HOUSTON – Officials from the Texas Education Agency held a meeting on Thursday to discuss the takeover of the Houston Independent School District.
The TEA laid out the following takeover plan during the meeting:
- After two years under the TEA, the commissioner does an evaluation.
- Commissioner could extend control for two more years.
- Transition to HISD control is gradual over three years.
KPRC 2 viewers asked TEA officials a series of questions about the takeover and what could be expected.
1. What does TEA plan to do differently to improve student outcomes at Wheatley HS?
Specific actions within the district are decided by the governing body and superintendent of a school system. Once appointed, the Board of Managers will work in collaboration with the superintendent to ensure that Houston ISD educators and staff have the necessary tools and resources at their disposal to facilitate student success in the classroom and beyond. While these details will be decided by the Board and superintendent, changes in support to campuses will be tiered so that more support is provided to campuses with greater need while high levels of autonomy are sustained at high-performing campuses.
2. It appears that the reasoning behind the TEA takeover of HISD no longer apply: The HISD Board has different trustees and Wheatley HS no longer has a failing grade. My question is: Does TEA have the authority to take over an ISD for any reason at all, or do they have to justify their takeover to anyone?
The intervention process, created by the Legislature, began in 2019 when State law required the Commissioner of Education, pursuant to Texas Education Code (TEC) §39A.111 - as it existed in 2019 and which remains effectively unchanged for this purpose in its current form - to either appoint a Board of Managers to temporarily govern the school district or order the closure of the campus when a campus has an unacceptable performance rating for five consecutive school years. As §39A.111 necessitates action after the fifth consecutive year of unacceptable performance ratings received by a campus, the Commissioner intervened under the statute in 2019 after the High School received its fifth consecutive unacceptable performance rating but was enjoined until this year by litigation that has now ended.
Now that the injunction is no longer in effect, TEA is proceeding with the intervention as it was required to be ordered in 2019 and as it continues to be required. This intervention was necessary because of consecutive unacceptable academic accountability ratings received by the High School, a Special Accreditation investigation that demonstrated multiple violations of law in the district, and the fact that the continued appointment of a conservator had been necessary in the district for at least two school years to ensure changes were made to improve student academic performance. A Board of Managers is being appointed because one of the district’s campuses received unacceptable academic accountability ratings for five consecutive years, requiring the Commissioner to either close the campus or appoint a Board of Managers to govern the district. And pursuant to TEC, § 39A.006(b), a Board of Managers is being appointed because the district has had a conservator assigned for more than two consecutive school years.
3. How will the takeover be any different from what is currently happening? How will improving the Wheatley High School situation be addressed differently? Who will have oversight of TEA actions and activities? How long before different outcomes can be expected and what should they look like?
Consistent with the role of district leadership in school systems across the state, Houston ISD’s new leadership team will make any and all resource and curriculum-related decisions. While the specifics will be decided by the Board and superintendent, any approach to changing resources or material support to campuses will be tiered so that more support is provided to campuses with greater need while high levels of autonomy are sustained at high-performing campuses.
4. Will this takeover hurt students’ academics and the special education population?
TEA’s intervention in Houston ISD will provide the district with a foundation and leadership team that gives educators the tools and resources to improve the academic achievement of HISD students. When the Board of Managers is named in June, they will work with the superintendent to identify action steps that must be taken to ensure the special education program offered by the district is improved to operate in full compliance with all state and federal statutory requirements. The approach will be phased over time, with the specifics to be decided by the Board and superintendent. Near-term changes will address key procedures to ensure Child Find and ARD committee obligations are met on a timely basis for students. Training for general education teachers on inclusion practices will similarly improve over time, along with changes to ensure more planning time to help teachers meet inclusion responsibilities.
5. Will this decision affect hiring and wages for HISD staff?
In mid-March, the Commissioner announced the process to appoint a Board of Managers. Until a Board of Managers is appointed on or after June 1, Houston ISD continues to be governed by the Board of Trustees. The current Board of Trustees and superintendent are working to finalize the budget for the 2023-2024 school year, including the district’s pay scale. That base pay scale will not be reduced for the 2023-2024 school year from the base pay scale adopted in the 2022-2023 school year budget.
6. What is the process for voters to hold the new BOM accountable? Who should I, as a taxpaying constituent, direct my concerns towards on the BOM? Who selects the BOM and who can remove them if they are ineffective? What are the metrics in place for the performance of the new BOM? How much will the current superintendent be paid since the state is breaking the current contract? Will the state of Texas be covering those expenses (for the current, highly effective, superintendent) since it is the state’s decision to remove the current superintendent?
TEA officials also said, “Boards of Managers have all the powers and duties of the Board of Trustees. This includes holding all meetings in public, allowing for public comment, holding public hearings, and posting all required budget and tax information for public review and discussion.
The Texas Education Agency’s Commissioner of Education has statutory authority to replace a Board of Managers at any time and is required to consider removal no later than two years after the initial appointment. If stakeholders have concerns with any member of the appointed Houston ISD Board of Managers, they may email BoardofManagers@tea.texas.gov.”
RELATED LINKS ON HISD TAKEOVER