HOUSTON – Superintendents and school board leaders across Texas are raising urgent concerns about the financial crisis gripping their districts. Alief ISD and Spring Branch ISD are among those hardest hit, warning of severe cuts ahead if the state continues to withhold additional funding.
Alief ISD Deputy Superintendent Charles Woods is sounding the alarm. Despite facing rising inflation, higher costs, and natural disasters, state support for the district has remained stagnant. The $6,160 basic student allotment, unchanged since 2019, has lost significant value due to inflation, further straining school budgets.
“It’s not mismanagement by schools,” Woods explained. “We’re all in the same boat that the general public is; we’ve got high inflation, high costs, we have hurricanes coming through, we have all the things we’ve always had, and then we have had six years, three legislative sessions without additional funding just for the basic costs of education.”
The funding crisis has led Alief ISD to make painful cuts, even though billions in state funding are available but stuck in Austin.
“More than $4 billion allocated for schools is not being used because our governor threw a temper tantrum,” said Zeph Capo, president of the Texas American Federation of Teachers.
“The governor and the Senate insisted that schools would get no new dollars, teachers wouldn’t get raises, and students wouldn’t get new funding unless they got their way on vouchers. That’s why we’re in this mess,” Capo added.
Lawmakers meet every two years to decide school funding. In 2023, they left without an agreement. Governor Greg Abbott’s push for a voucher program, which would divert public funds to private schools, faced strong opposition. As a result, districts are starting the school year short on cash.
The recent legislative session ended without an increase to the basic student allotment, despite a $30 billion state surplus. Woods expressed frustration over the inaction.
“We have to figure out ways to cut things that are no longer absolutely necessary,” Woods said. “You’ll see districts cutting transportation services that aren’t stated in law. You’ll see them cutting extracurricular programs.”
Alief ISD has begun holding public meetings to confront the budget crisis head-on, urging the community to step up as the state fails to provide necessary support.
“I came from a poor background myself, and I understand when people don’t have money. It’s hard to ask them for more,” Woods said. “But people dig deep to better themselves and their community. And that’s the only thing we can do at this point because we can’t count on the state to give us the funding.”
Without new funding, Woods confirmed that school closures are a real possibility.
“Absolutely,” he stated. “It’s not unforeseen for a district to get to that level. It would be tragic if it happened because of this because everything I’ve said today didn’t have to be. People need to stand up and do what’s right for the kids, which is the future of this state.”
Spring Branch ISD is facing similar financial challenges, having implemented $35 million in budget cuts last school year. These cuts led to the closure of several schools and the discontinuation of beloved programs.
“We have a deficit budget, and although with the cuts, we’re okay right now, if we don’t get additional funding, we will have to make more cuts,” warned Spring Branch School Board President Lisa Alpe.
She says further cuts could potentially impact classrooms and teacher salaries.
Alpe expressed frustration with the ongoing political debate over school choice and vouchers, which she believes is diverting attention from the critical need for adequate public school funding.
“We’re in a political war over school choice and vouchers, but public schools need proper funding. It’s critical for our students,” she said.
The state’s decision not to allocate any of its billions of dollars in surplus money to public education drew sharp criticism from Alpe.
“It’s unconscionable that with a $30 billion surplus, they have chosen not to allocate funds to Texas schoolchildren,” Alpe remarked.
A new study released by the Kinder Institute for Urban Research reveals a troubling trend: over 73% of Texas school districts are underfunded, with 17% classified as “severely” underfunded. Some districts in the Houston area face gaps exceeding 40% of what is needed to operate efficiently. The report finds that districts with larger funding gaps typically have lower Texas Education Agency (TEA) student achievement ratings, often falling to grades of “C” or lower.
Dr. Ruth Lopez Turley, Director of the Kinder Institute, noted, “A TEA rating of C or lower is considered not very good. And we learned that in particular, when a school district has a funding gap that exceeds 40% of their needs, that’s when their chances of having a C or lower rating increase significantly.”
The report highlights a crucial point: If school districts don’t receive enough funding, even the most effective teaching methods and programs won’t work as intended. To improve student performance, it’s essential to close these funding gaps.
KPRC2 reached out to 16 school districts across the Houston area for this report, including Houston ISD, Aldine ISD, Clear Creek ISD, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, Fort Bend ISD, Humble ISD, Katy ISD, Klein ISD, Pasadena ISD, Spring ISD, Tomball ISD, Conroe ISD, Galena Park ISD, and Goose Creek Consolidated ISD. Despite our efforts, only Alief ISD and Spring Branch ISD responded to our inquiries. Perhaps this underscores the widespread concern and possibly the cautious approach many districts are taking when addressing financial challenges publicly.
The situations in Alief ISD and Spring Branch ISD paint a grim picture of the financial crisis facing Texas public schools. Both districts are urging the state to take immediate action to address funding gaps that threaten the future of education in the state.