More than 160 speakers turned up at the last Houston ISD board meeting before the Nov. 5 election. In this election, voters will also cast their ballots on HISD’s $4.4 billion bond proposal that promises to utilize the funds for infrastructure, security, and technology improvements.
Speakers, including parents, teachers, former trustees, and community leaders, addressed state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles and the Board of Managers.
The prevalent sentiment, heard in all other board meetings, resounded through the hall: “No trust, no bond.”
This would be the largest school bond proposal in Texas’ history. Twelve years have passed since the last HISD bond. The bond has two propositions: Proposition A asks for $3.96 billion for infrastructure, renovations, school safety, and security, and Proposition B asks for $440 million for technology.
HISD says the bond will aim to address three categories and allot $1.1 billion each to “safety and healthy campuses” and preparing students to be “future ready,” while $2.2 billion will be dedicated to “restoring Houston’s schools.”
Elected officials, including Texas State Representatives Gene Wu, Jolanda Jones, and Sen. Molly Cook, expressed their opposition to the bond.
“I’ve been talking to constituents, talking to experts, talking to impacted community members, and no one has been able to convince me, even with all the issues in our schools, with the issues of the facilities and what children and teachers are dealing with, that this is a good idea,” Cook said during the meeting. “And at the end of the day, if there is no trust, then I’m encouraging my constituents not to go.”
Jones called Miles a bully and an uncertified superintendent.
“We don’t trust or respect yo,u and your voters should vote against HISD bond props A and B. We’re smarter than you think. We’ll approve it at the polls,” she said.
Across the city, local coalitions including the Houston chapter of NAACP, the Houston Federation of Teachers, the Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation, and politicians from both parties, held press conferences to oppose the bond and Miles’ leadership.
Organizations like the Houston Food Bank, the Center for School Behavioral Health, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston, and Children at Risk spoke in favor of the bond.
During the board meeting, speakers who were former teachers at HISD read out their exit interviews that never took place. Some spoke on behalf of certified teachers and other employees who also left the district.
Some of the speakers continued to bring up the prevalent issues Miles’ New Education System (NES) schools have been facing: a rigorous curriculum, the lack of libraries, teacher retention, and the trimming down of wraparound services.
Others addressed incidents of bullying their child faced and spoke in support of Harvard Elementary School principal Dr. Shelby Calabrese, who was put on administrative leave. They also raised concerns over the total cost of $8.9 billion taxpayers would have to pay, including interest over the next three decades, as Houston Landing reported earlier.
HISD turns attention to the TSIA and CTE
After a few speakers, HISD representatives presented slides on the TSIA (Texas Success Initiative Assessment) after weeks of discussions on improvements to the STAAR test.
Currently, only 2% of all 11th graders are TSI-ready, compared to the 1% at the beginning of the 2023-24 school year.
The district has set a goal to increase:
- The percentage of students graduating the TSIA and with an industry-based certification from 11% for the 2021-22 graduates to 26% for 2026-27 graduates, students meeting TSI criteria to increase from 2% at the beginning of the year (BOY) to 17% at the end of the year (EOY), and a minimum growth of 14 percentage points over the next four years.
- The percentage of 10th, 11th, and 12th-grade students who are expected to achieve CTE Completer status by graduation is expected to increase from 34% in May 2023 to 49% in May 2028.
- HISD projects that the percentage of 11th-graders meeting TSI criteria on the SAT, ACT, or TSIA in both math and reading will increase, doubling from 15% in May 2023 to 30% in May 2028. During the same period, the percentage of 10th, 11th, and 12th-grade students who are on track to achieve CTE Completer status by graduation will increase from 34% to 49%.
The TSIA assessment, mandated by the Texas State Legislature, aims to determine whether students are ready for entry-level college coursework in English Language Arts Reading (ELAR) and math. Students can be excused from the test if they meet the requirements on the SAT, ACT, STAAR English III, Algebra II EOCs, or the high school College Preparatory Course.
