HOUSTON – Employees walking out of HISD’s Hattie Mae building are telling KPRC 2 photographer Joevany Luna that their last day on the job is June 28.
The district just confirmed to us they’ve made the “tough” decision to eliminate positions, although they are not saying how many or exactly what positions.
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“Superintendent Miles has said the district will keep cuts as far away from students and classrooms as possible and will continue to invest in our teachers and leaders.” the district told us when we asked what was going on.
“In the weeks to come, all impacted employees will be notified that their positions have either been eliminated or changed. HISD will support impacted employees who wish to remain at the district in pursuing open positions in other departments,” the administration’s response says. They say the job cuts process has been going on since January.
The district asked each department chief to identify positions and programs that were previously funded by a one-time federal grant of COVID-era money. HISD administrators say the district doesn’t have the money to keep all that afloat.
“In some cases, positions/programs can be funded at the campus level if principals so choose. In other cases, services currently funded with the one-time money will need to be delivered in new ways.” administrators say.
“For the good of our students and community, HISD must structure its operations to avoid the fiscal cliff predicted by previous administrations, and we must ensure the district is financially stable going forward. In order to do so, HISD will have to address the challenges created by funding so many recurring costs with limited, one-time federal money. The central office staffing decisions being made now are driven by our responsibility to prioritize resources for kids and classrooms and support the long-term fiscal health of our District.”
SEE ALSO: FOCUS ON FLEMING
June 30 is the end of the district’s budget year and that will be the last day on the job for HISD employees whose positions are eliminated or changed.
Last summer, the District slashed nearly 2,400 positions as part of a reorganization within the central office. Of those, 1,675 were vacant positions that never got filled.