HOUSTON – Many school districts are already back in session and Houston ISD is just a weekend away from its first day. However, with that in mind, some parents noticed some T.L.C. that needs to be done at some area schools and they’re taking their concerns right to the top.
RELATED: Houston ISD board unanimously votes to send $4.4 billion bond proposal before voters in November
The big concern is the overgrown grass at several schools, including Wisdom High School. Superintendent Mike Miles addressed the conditions which include the long grass and lawn care and whether or not there are enough maintenance people to take care of it before the start of the school year — even with the cuts that have been made.
“To be honest, we hadn’t been able to analyze any change in staffing because of the weather,” he said. “I mean, seriously, you know, if you’re here just two weeks ago and a week and a half go, I probably wouldn’t be getting this question because the answer would be obvious, right? It’s like they have been cutting grass for two weeks, guys. Come on. And then before that, there was a hurricane.”
Miles says already two campuses have been “remediated” and commended the maintenance staff for the work they’ve done over the summer even with the weather we’ve had, including Hurricane Beryl and last Spring’s derecho, which caused some damage to schools, and stalled some of the maintenance teams work.
“I want to know why our schools look so horrible, why are there are not maintenance people out there cleaning up?” another parent asked Miles. “It’s been a month since, bro. Month and a half since.”
“There’s a difference between the service level agreement and cut grass,” Miles replied. “It’s not really high. And then to cut grass, it’s when really high or just really high, tall grass. And so, all of those things have to be figured out before we can answer that question definitively. But at the end of the day, we will have the maintenance grounds maintenance teams that we need to maintain their properties.”
Although Miles says work is getting done, parents during Thursday night’s school board meeting felt otherwise.
“My school starts Monday and our yards look horrible,” one parent said. “School starts Monday, and some of our schools have not had a principal assigned. I’m suggesting that maybe we could pitch in some money and buy you a lawnmower. So maybe you could go help us help the yard.
SUGGESTED: No cell phones and other new policies shaking up school districts across Southeast Texas
Another parent said, “The current conditions at our schools are unacceptable. Overgrown grass Nonfunctioning AC units, mold, and neglect have created a situation that is far from conducive to learning. These failures are not just inconveniences. They are symptoms of a deeper problem that has persisted for too long.”
In response to the concerns raised by parents, HISD issued the following statement to KPRC 2:
“We can’t wait to kick off the new school year and welcome students back to campuses. We are committed to building on the remarkable progress we have made in student achievement. Our incredible staff has been working tirelessly to get schools ready for the start of the school year and to recover from the impacts of the derecho and Hurricane Beryl. At this moment, over 210 HISD facilities are fully operational and ready to serve students on Monday August 12th. We are monitoring and working quickly to resolve issues at roughly 60 campuses and believe all campuses will be open on the first day of school. Many of these issues are a result of the age and condition of many of our facilities and the recent storms. The primary issue at most of these campuses is air conditioning, but we have made necessary repairs or secured temporary, portable AC units to cool these facilities. HISD crews will monitor these facilities throughout the weekend to ensure they are adequately cooled. HISD and our vendors have worked quickly to cut the grass at as many campuses as possible before the first day of school - in fact, we have mowed 60 schools in just three days. Like many parts of Houston, some of our campuses still have debris left from Hurricane Beryl. HISD is working with the City of Houston, non-profit partners, and other elected officials to clear as much debris as possible.”
Parents at T.H. Rogers School took matters into their own hands on Saturday by organizing a clean-up from 8 a.m. to noon, ahead of the new school year starting on Monday. KPRC 2 was on the scene, but we were asked to leave the property. Despite parents’ efforts, long grass, brush, and debris are still visible at HISD schools just days before students return to class.