[CALL TO ORDER] [00:00:06] GOOD AFTERNOON, BUENAS TARDES, THIS MEETING IS NOW CONVENED AT 2:01 P.M.. BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT IN THE BOARD AUDITORIUM ARE TRUSTEE ALLEN, TRUSTEE CRUZ, TRUSTEE GUIDRY, TRUSTEE HERNANDEZ, TRUSTEE WADE, AND TRUSTEE BAKER. AND I GUESS THE BOARD WILL NOW ADJOURN TO CLOSED SESSION OR EXECUTIVE SESSION UNDER CHAPTER 551 OF THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE OPEN MEETINGS ACT SUBSECTIONS [ADJOURN TO CLOSED OR EXECUTIVE SESSION UNDER SECTIONS 551.004, 551.071, 551.072, 551.073, 551.074, 551.076, 551.082, 551.0821, 551.083, 551.084, AND 551.089 OF THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE FOR THE PURPOSES LISTED IN THIS NOTICE (Part 1 of 2)] 551.004, 551.071, 551.072, 551.073, 551.074, 551.076, 551.082, 55 1.0821, 551.083, 551.084, 551.089. SHOULD BOARD FINAL ACTION, VOTE OR DECISION ON ANY MATTER CONSIDERED IN CLOSED SESSION BE REQUIRED. SUCH FINAL ACTION, VOTE OR DECISION SHALL BE TAKEN AT THE OPEN MEETING COVERED BY THIS NOTICE. UPON THE RECONVENING OF THIS PUBLIC MEETING, OR AT A SUBSEQUENT PUBLIC MEETING OF THE BOARD UPON NOTICE THEREOF. THE BOARD HAS ADJOURNED TO CLOSED SESSION OR EXECUTIVE SESSION AT 2:02 P.M. ON MAY 11TH, 2023. BUENAS NOCHES. [SPANISH] GOOD EVENING. THIS MEETING IS NOW RECONVENED AT 5:01 P.M.. BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT IN THE BOARD AUDITORIUM ARE TRUSTEE ALLEN. TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. TRUSTEE HERNANDEZ. TRUSTEE WADE. TRUSTEE BAKER. TRUSTEE SANTOS AND TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. I WOULD LIKE TO ASK EVERYONE TO PLEASE SILENCE ALL CELL PHONES. [SPANISH] TRUSTEE CRUZ HAS ALSO JOINED US IN THE BOARD AUDITORIUM. WE WILL NOW BE JOINED BY A MEMBER OF THE JUNIOR RESERVE OFFICER TRAINING CORPS TO LEAD OUR PLEDGES. THIS STUDENT IS FROM STERLING AVIATION HIGH SCHOOL IN DISTRICT FOUR. I WOULD LIKE TO ASK DISTRICT FOUR TRUSTEE PATRICIA ALLEN TO INTRODUCE THE PLEDGE LEADER, TRUSTEE ALLEN. THANK YOU. PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ. CADET [INAUDIBLE] JOSEPH COKER HAS DISTINGUISHED, DISTINGUISHED HIMSELF IN ACADEMICS, LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES THROUGHOUT HIS TWO YEARS IN HIGH SCHOOL. CADET COKER SERVES AS THE MARKSMANSHIP CAPTAIN FOR ROSS SHAW STERLING AVIATION HIGH SCHOOL. UNDER HIS GUIDANCE, THE TEAM RECENTLY PLACED THIRD IN THE PRECISION CATEGORY AT AN ANNUAL SKILLS COMPETITION IN SAN ANTONIO. DURING THIS TIME IN JROTC, HE VOLUNTEERED COUNTLESS HOURS SERVING HIS SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY. MOST RECENTLY FOR VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS POST 8960 DURING THEIR HOPE FOR HEROES BANQUET. CADET COKER IS ALSO AN ACTIVE MEMBER OF THE COLOR GUARD. HE HAS EARNED SEVERAL AWARDS AND HONORS, INCLUDING THE AMERICAN LEGION MILITARY EXCELLENCE MEDAL, THE ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY RIBBON AND NJROTC EXEMPLARY CONDUCT RIBBON. HE PLANS TO ATTEND TEXAS A&M ON AN ROTC SCHOLARSHIP AND BE COMMISSIONED IN THE US NAVY, CADET COKER. PLEASE RISE FOR A MOMENT OF SILENT MEDITATION AND RECITING THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE AND PLEDGE TO TEXAS FLAG. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. HONOR THE TEXAS FLAG, I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THEE, TEXAS ONE STATE UNDER GOD, ONE AND INDIVISIBLE. THANK YOU, CADET COKER. [00:05:06] NOW WE WILL MOVE ON TO OUR RECOGNITIONS. [RECOGNITIONS] MAY IS ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH. I'D LIKE TO ASK TRUSTEE WADE TO READ OUR PROCLAMATION IN HONOR OF THIS EVENT, TRUSTEE WADE. WHEREAS ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER STUDENTS IN THE HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT ENRICH OUR SCHOOLS AND PROVIDE A UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE THAT BROADENS OUR EXPERIENCE AND UNDERSTANDING. AND WHEREAS, MEN AND WOMEN OF ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER ANCESTRY MAKE SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO OUR CULTURE IN MANY AREAS INCLUDING SCIENCE, COMMERCE, EDUCATION AND THE ARTS. SHARING WITH US NOT ONLY THEIR INDIVIDUAL TALENTS, BUT ALSO SETTING HIGH STANDARDS OF ACHIEVEMENT. AND WHEREAS, ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER PARENTS, BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVES AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS BRING TO SCHOOLS IN OUR DISTRICT A WEALTH OF SUPPORT AND A STRONG COMMITMENT TO MAKING A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE OF ALL STUDENTS. AND WHEREAS, ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER ADMINISTRATORS, TEACHERS AND STAFF MEMBERS ARE MAKING A LIFELONG DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF OUR CHILDREN, PROVIDING THE GUIDANCE AND EDUCATION OUR STUDENTS NEED TO SUCCESSFULLY PURSUE THEIR DREAMS. NOW, THEREFORE, WE, THE HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION AND SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS PROCLAIM MAY 2023 ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH IN HISD, AND ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO CELEBRATE THE TRADITIONS OF THE ASIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER CULTURES. IN WITNESS THEREOF ON THE 11TH DAY OF MAY 2023. THANK YOU, TRUSTEE WADE. [HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY (Part 1 of 2)] WE'LL NOW BE MOVING ON TO HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY. PLEASE NOTE THAT WE ARE CONDUCTING THE HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY IN TWO PARTS TO PRIORITIZE OUR STUDENTS WHO WISH TO ADDRESS THE BOARD. ALL SPEAKERS THIS EVENING ARE LIMITED TO ONE MINUTE EACH PER BOARD POLICY AS WE HAVE MORE THAN 30 PEOPLE SIGNED UP TO ADDRESS THE BOARD . TONIGHT WILL JAYDEN BOSEN PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM, FOLLOWED BY MICHAEL JOHNSON? JUST START. I'M A STUDENT AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. REMOVING MR. WATSON FROM BEING MY BAND DIRECTOR WILL BE REMOVING A TEACHER THAT ACTUALLY CARES ABOUT HIS STUDENTS. HE'S THE TYPE OF TEACHER THAT TAKES TIME OUT OF HIS SCHEDULE TO GIVE US INDIVIDUAL INSTRUCTION. IF HE ISN'T MY DIRECTOR, I WILL FEEL DEVASTATED AND MOST LIKELY QUIT BAND. PLEASE REINSTATE HIM FOR THE NEXT SCHOOL YEAR. MICHAEL JOHNSON. OKAY, GO AHEAD. I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT MR. WASHINGTON IS A SECOND FATHER FIGURE TO SOME OF US, AND HE'S A ROLE MODEL AS WELL FOR SOME OF US, ESPECIALLY TO ME. HE ENCOURAGED ME TO STAY MOTIVATED WITH BAND EVEN THROUGHOUT TROUBLES AND HARDSHIPS. AND TO HAVE HIM REMOVED LIKE THIS MAKES ALL OF US ALIKE CONFUSED AND DISTRAUGHT. SO TO HAVE HIM FIRED AND REMOVED FROM HIS POSITION LIKE THIS JUST MAKES MAKES US ALL CONFUSED AND WE WOULD LIKE HIM TO STAY IN THIS POSITION. THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY. THANK YOU. IT IS NOW TIME TO HEAR FROM SPEAKERS TO SPECIFIC AGENDA ITEMS. [SPEAKERS TO AGENDA ITEMS ] PLEASE SPEAK TO THE AGENDA ITEM THAT YOU HAVE SIGNED UP FOR. WE ALSO ASK THAT SPEAKERS STAY ON TOPIC AND REFRAIN FROM NAMING INDIVIDUALS, ESPECIALLY STUDENTS, AS THEIR IDENTITY IS PROTECTED UNDER LAW. BUT YOU MAY NAME YOUR OWN CHILD. SPEAKERS SHOULD PRACTICE NORMAL RULES OF DECORUM. OBSCENE LANGUAGE AND PROFANITY WILL NOT BE TOLERATED AS THIS IS A PUBLIC MEETING AND OUR STUDENTS ARE WATCHING. ADDITIONALLY, DISRUPTIONS OF THE MEETING WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. WE ASK THAT THE AUDIENCE REFRAIN FROM INTERRUPTING SPEAKERS WHILE THEY PRESENT TO THE BOARD DURING THIS PORTION OF THE MEETING AND TO PROMPTLY END THEIR REMARKS WHEN THE TIMER RINGS INDICATING THE EXPIRATION OF THEIR TIME. SPEAKERS WILL GENERALLY BE GIVEN TWO REMINDERS OF OUR PUBLIC COMMENT RULES. IF THE SPEAKER CONTINUES TO VIOLATE THE RULES AFTER THESE REMINDERS, THE SPEAKER WILL BE ASKED TO LEAVE THE MEETING. [00:10:10] WILL ANNA GARCIA, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM. THIS SPEAKER WILL BE FOLLOWED BY LARRY MCKENZIE. ANNA GARCIA, STUDENT. OKAY. LARRY MCKENZIE. SO DO I GET THE EXTRA MINUTE FOR HEARING OF CITIZENS AND ALSO. WE STILL STILL HAVE ONE MINUTE. SO IT'S JUST ONE MINUTE FOR HEARING OF CITIZENS AND AGENDA ITEM. CORRECT. Y'ALL CHANGED THE RULES. I MAKE A MOTION THAT MR. MCKENZIE IS ALLOWED THE TWO MINUTES. SECOND. THANK YOU. CONSIDERING APPROVED PROPOSED APPOINTMENTS, REASSIGNMENTS AND CONTRACT LENGTHS AND RESIGNATION RETIREMENTS OF PERSONNEL, INCLUDING TEACHERS, ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS AND PRINCIPALS. NOW, WHAT I'M HERE FOR IS TO KEEP MR. REGINALD WASHINGTON. BUT IF WE NEED TO REPLACE THE PRINCIPAL AT WESTBURY, THEN THAT'S WHAT WE NEED TO DO. SO I LOOKED AT THAT AND I AND I SAID IT. WE GOT OVER 2,500 SIGNATURES ON THE PETITION, AND WE HAVE PARENTS AND STUDENTS THAT ARE HERE THAT DROVE ALL THE WAY FROM WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL, GOT OUT AT 4:10, AND THE PRINCIPAL IS NOT ON OUR SIDE. SO THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO COME AS FAST AS WE CAN. NOW, IT MADE IT VERY DIFFICULT THAT YOU CHANGED THE SIGN UP WAY TOO THAT YOU COULD SPEAK, BECAUSE INITIALLY WHEN I FIRST GOT ON THERE, I COULD NOT EVEN SIGN UP FOR THE THE COMMUNITY HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY. AND THEN THEY CALLED ME BACK IN THE MORNING AND I ASKED THAT THEY ADD SIX HOURS TO THE PEOPLE THAT DID NOT KNOW. SO I'M SAYING THIS BECAUSE ESPECIALLY WITH THE PRINCIPALS, THE PRINCIPAL THAT'S AT WESTBURY, PULLED MY SON, THAT HAS A 3.82 GPA THAT'S ABOUT TO GRADUATE. AND QUESTIONED HIM WITHOUT CALLING ME AND THEN ASKED THAT HE NOT TELL HIS PARENTS. SO I ENDED UP HAVING TO GO THERE AND THREATENING HER THE WAY I THREATENED HER. AS I SAY, IF YOU DON'T TALK TO ME TODAY, THEN I'M GOING TO 4400 WEST 18TH AND I'LL SPEAK TO ALL OF YOUR BOSSES. SO SHE WAITED. I HAD TO WAIT 2.5 HOURS TO SPEAK TO HER, TO TALK TO HER ABOUT MY SON. AND THEN SHE THREATENED THAT SHE WOULD MAKE IT A FELONY. IT WAS [INAUDIBLE] PLAN. SHE WANTED TO MAKE IT HAZING AND GANG INITIATION. FOR ALL OF YOU THAT HAVE SONS A FELONY ON A BROWN OR BLACK MAN IS A DEATH SENTENCE. YOU CAN QUESTION ME. I'M A PARENT AT WESTBURY AND I WAS SURPRISED THAT SHE GO AS FAR AS TO GO WITH ME KNOWING THAT I HAVE FREQUENT FLIER MILES AT THE BOARD MEETINGS. BUT IF YOU WONDER. NOW, THEY MAY NOT WANT IT, BUT I WANT A FIGHT BECAUSE SHE ATTACKED MY SON. IS ANNA GARCIA IN THE BOARDROOM? UM, EVELINA MCKENZIE. SHE'S ON HER WAY. SHE'S ABOUT TEN MINUTES. OH. MALCOLM MCKENZIE. ALSO A STUDENT. STUDENT. BRAYLEN TILLMAN. STUDENT. MIA SANTANA. OKAY. WE'LL COME BACK TO THE STUDENTS. OUR NEXT ITEM HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS IS CLOSED SESSION LEGAL? OKAY. DO I HAVE ANNA GARCIA WALKING IN RIGHT NOW? YEAH. OKAY. AND YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND COME ON UP ANNA GARCIA. FOLLOWED BY EVELINA MCKENZIE. SHE'S NOT HERE. GO AHEAD. HELLO MY NAME IS ANNA GARCIA. I'M IN 10TH GRADE AND A CURRENT BAND MEMBER AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. WHEN I FOUND OUT MR. WASHINGTON WAS GETTING DEMOTED FROM HEAD BAND DIRECTOR, I FELT BETRAYED BY THE PRINCIPAL. I FELT BETRAYED BECAUSE I HAD HOPED TO GRADUATE LIKE MY SISTER AND BE A PART OF THE LEGACY MR. WASHINGTON HAS CREATED. YOU SEE, MY OLDER SISTER IS A FORMER STUDENT OF HIS, AND SHE'S ALWAYS SPOKEN POSITIVELY OF HIM AND HAS EVEN REFERRED TO HIM AS A SECOND DAD. I'M PRETTY SURE THAT MAJORITY OF US CAN AGREE WITH THAT, AND OUR PRINCIPAL HAS FAILED US STUDENTS BY REMOVING THE PERSON THAT TRULY CARES ABOUT US. THANK YOU. MALCOLM MACKENZIE. [00:15:16] GO AHEAD. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS MALCOLM MCKENZIE. I'M A SENIOR AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. I'VE LEARNED RECENTLY THAT MY BAND DIRECTOR, REGINALD WASHINGTON, WAS BEING DEMOTED AND WOULD NO LONGER BE THE DIRECTOR OF THIS UPCOMING YEAR. WHEN I CAME TO WESTBURY, IT WAS FOR JAZZ BAND. BUT WHEN I WHEN I MET MR. WASHINGTON, I LEARNED THAT THERE WAS A WHOLE NEW WORLD. HE INTRODUCED ME TO MARCHING BAND AND HARD WORK. IF YOU WANTED YOUR SPOT, YOU WOULD HAVE TO WORK FOR IT. I HAVE SEEN MR. WASHINGTON WORK WITH KIDS AND THAT I THOUGHT HAD NO CHANCE. HE OPENS NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO EACH STUDENT HE MEETS, AND I WAS SURPRISED TO HEAR THAT HE'S BEEN AT WESTBURY FOR 17 YEARS. I CAN TELL FROM THE ALUMNI THAT RETURN HIS GUIDANCE IS LONG TERM AND EVERLASTING. I WANT MR. WASHINGTON TO STAY AS THE BAND DIRECTOR NEXT YEAR SO INCOMING STUDENTS COULD EXPERIENCE THE SAME LOVE AND COMPASSION HE'S BEEN SHARING FOR THE PAST TWO DECADES. THANK YOU. BRAYLON TILLMAN, FOLLOWED BY MIA SANTANA. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS BRAYLEN TILLMAN. I'M A GRADUATING SENIOR FROM WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. I AM HERE TO ADDRESS THE REMOVAL FOR MR. WASHINGTON AS THE BAND DIRECTOR FROM WESTBURY. I THINK THIS IS VERY, VERY NOT WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING RIGHT NOW. AS SOMEBODY THAT SPENT A LOT OF TIME DEDICATING THEIR TIME TO THEIR CRAFT AND IMPROVING THEMSELVES, I KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO PUT IN A LOT OF WORK INTO SOMETHING. AND MR. WASHINGTON IS THE DEFINITION OF A HARD WORKER AND A DEDICATED PERSON TO HIS COMMUNITY AND HIS PEERS AND HIS COWORKERS. HE HAS DONE A LOT AND HE HAS HELPED A LOT OF STUDENTS. AND TO REMOVE HIM FROM THIS PROGRAM, EVEN THOUGH HE DEDICATED AROUND 20 YEARS TO IT, IS VERY DISRESPECTFUL AND IS NOT IN THE BEST INTEREST OF ANY OF THE STUDENTS. AND WE SHOULD BE TRYING TO FOCUS ON WHAT THE STUDENTS WANT AND HOW MUCH WE WANT TO DEDICATE OUR TIME AND OUR LIVES TO PUSHING OURSELVES TO BETTER OURSELVES IN MUSIC. AND THIS IS THE COMPLETE OPPOSITE OF WORKING WITH THE STUDENTS AND GIVING US WHAT WE NEED AND WE WANT. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. MIA SANTANA. OKAY. AND EVELINA MCKENZIE, SHE'S PARKING RIGHT NOW. SHE'S PARKING. OKAY. WE WILL COME BACK TO THIS ITEM. AND BEFORE WE MOVE ON, I DO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE PRESENCE OF HONORABLE ARNETTA MURRAY. THANK YOU. WHO'S WITH US TODAY AND ALSO SENATE DISTRICT 13 COMMITTEEWOMAN MRS. MELINDA MORRIS. THANK YOU. OUR NEXT ITEM HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS IS CLOSED SESSION LEGAL B PENDING OR CONTEMPLATED LITIGATION MATTERS AND STATUS REPORT. WILL DIEGO PERALATA, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM. DIEGO PERALATA. [INAUDIBLE] OKAY. OUR NEXT ITEM HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS IS ITEM THREE AUTHORITY TO NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE PARTNERSHIPS WITH CHILD CARE CENTERS TO EXPAND PRE-KINDERGARTEN ENROLLMENT. WILL DANIELA SANTOS COME TO THE PODIUM? GOOD EVENING. HFT IS CONCERNED THAT MOST OF THE PRE K PARTNERSHIPS WILL BE LOCATED ON THE WEST SIDE. IS THIS EQUITABLE? IN 2019, RICE UNIVERSITY PUBLISHED A BRIEF CONCLUDING THAT ENGLISH LEARNERS IN HISD HAVE LESS ACCESS TO PRE K PROGRAMS THAN OTHER PEERS. COULD THIS BE A PREVIEW OF THE INEQUITY THAT A TEA BOARD OF PUPPETS WILL BRING TO OUR DISTRICT? HISD NEEDS TO INVEST IN MORE UNLIKE THE GOVERNOR AND THE COMMISSIONER WHO PRETEND TO CARE ABOUT OUR CHILDREN, OUR ELECTED TRUSTEES HAVE ONE LAST OPPORTUNITY TO SECURE TRUE EQUITY. ON YOUR LAST NIGHT LEAVE US WITH INTEGRITY AND FIGHT FOR ALL OUR CHILDREN. ON YOUR LAST NIGHT RESIST THE RACIST TAKEOVER AND LEAVE US WITH POLICIES THAT SUPPORT ALL OUR SCHOOLS AND ALL OF OUR TEACHERS. THANK YOU. OUR NEXT ITEM HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS IS ITEM FOUR APPROVAL OF THE MAY BUDGET AMENDMENT. WILL JACKIE ANDERSON, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM. WELL, TONIGHT IS BITTERSWEET. [00:20:01] MANY OCCASIONS WE HAVE AGREED AND ON MANY WE HAVE AGREED TO DISAGREE. BUT FOR THE MOST PART, I THINK WE ALL HAVE WANTED WHAT IS BEST FOR HISD AND HISD STUDENTS. TONIGHT, YOU CAN MAKE SURE THAT OUR EMPLOYEES ARE PRIORITIZED. YOU HAVE A CHANCE TONIGHT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE HISD BUDGET CONTINUES TO BE COMPETITIVE AND THAT THE BUDGET YOU ADOPT REFLECTS YOUR SINCERE DESIRE TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR EMPLOYEES ARE RESPECTED. TONIGHT, YOUR VOTE CAN EXEMPLIFY YOUR UNDERSTANDING THAT TEACHERS WORKING CONDITIONS ARE STUDENTS LEARNING CONDITIONS. IT IS NOT ABOUT YOUR INDIVIDUAL INTERESTS. IT IS ABOUT THE DISTRICT. TONIGHT IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO DO WHAT'S RIGHT, AND YOU CAN SHOW OUR TEACHERS THAT YOU SUPPORT THEM AND THAT YOU REALLY CARE. AS WE TRANSITION TO THE BOARD OF MANAGERS, LET ME BE PERFECTLY CLEAR THAT WE STILL BELIEVE THIS IS A HOSTILE TAKEOVER AND THE APPOINTMENT OF A BOARD OF MANAGERS MANAGERS IS AN ATTACK ON DEMOCRACY AND IS TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION. WE ARE NOT HAPPY THAT YOU GAVE UP, BUT WE STILL HAVE WORK TO DO. THANK YOU. NEXT ITEM HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS IS ITEM FIVE APPROVAL OF RECOMMENDED CURRICULUM MATERIALS FOR HUMAN SEXUALITY INSTRUCTION AND INSTRUCTION ON THE PREVENTION OF CHILD ABUSE, FAMILY VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE AND SEX TRAFFICKING. WILL MEG [INAUDIBLE], PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM. THE SPEAKER WILL BE FOLLOWED BY MELINDA MORRIS. HELLO. LAST WEEK I SPOKE. LAST MONTH I SPOKE TO YOU ABOUT THE CURRICULUM. TONIGHT I'M GOING TO ADDRESS THE VOCABULARY IN THE CURRICULUM. BIRTHING PERSON, REPLACING WOMEN, FEMALE GIRLS, DAUGHTERS AND GRANDDAUGHTERS. MYRNA GUIDRY. WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE KNOWN INSTEAD AS A FASHIONISTA, A WOMAN AND WITH BIRTHING PERSON WITH MANY HATS? KATHY BLUEFORD-DANIELS. INSTEAD OF BEING KNOWN AS AN EX CHEERLEADER, WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE REPLACED WITH A BIRTHING PERSON WHO JUMPED A LOT? SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE YOUR YOUNG BIRTHING PERSON IS GRADUATING HIGH SCHOOL. KENDALL BAKER YOU'RE RAISING A YOUNG BIRTHING PERSON. I HAVE FIVE GRANDDAUGHTERS AND I DON'T WANT THEM RAISED AS GRAND BIRTHING PERSONS. I THINK THE LANGUAGE IN THIS CURRICULUM IS AN ATTACK ON WOMEN AND DISGRACEFUL. MOST OF YOU ON THE BOARD ARE WOMEN. HOW CAN YOU ACCEPT THIS? IT FEELS LIKE AN ATTEMPT TO WIPE OUT WOMEN IN SOCIETY BY BRAINWASHING CHILDREN AS EARLY AS KINDERGARTEN. [INAUDIBLE] I WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR WORKING SO HARD THIS YEAR. WE MIGHT NOT AGREE ON EVERYTHING, BUT I REALLY APPRECIATE THE EFFORT. THANK YOU. MELINDA MORRIS. GOOD EVENING AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS THE BOARD THIS EVENING. I'M A RETIRED OB/GYN OF 35 YEARS. I'M A GRANDMOTHER. I HAVE 15 GRANDCHILDREN, 10 GRANDDAUGHTERS, 5 GRANDSONS AND ONE BEAUTIFUL GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER. I'VE DELIVERED OVER 6,000 BABIES. AND I CAN ASSURE YOU THERE ARE TWO SEXES, MALE AND FEMALE. AND I WOULD NEVER DEMEAN A WOMAN WHO HAS CARRIED A BABY INSIDE HER FOR NINE MONTHS, GONE THROUGH THE HORRIFIC ORDEAL OF LABOR, WHICH MANY OF YOU MAY REALIZE THAT IT CAN BE QUITE HORRIFIC AND THEN REFER TO HER AS A BIRTHING PERSON AFTERWARDS, JUST LIKE I WOULD NOT REFER TO HER PARTNER AS A SPERM DONOR. SO I THINK THE ATTEMPTS TO REDEFINE WOMEN, REDEFINE MEN, REDEFINE FAMILIES, IS NOT THE DIRECTION THAT WE SHOULD GO IN EDUCATION. THANK YOU SO MUCH. OUR NEXT ITEM HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS IS ITEM SIX APPROVAL OF PROPOSED REVISIONS TO BOARD POLICY AE LOCAL EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY REGARDING GOAL PROGRESS MEASURES. 1.1. 1.2. 1.3. 2.1. 2.2. 2.3. 4.1. 4.2 AND 4.3. FIRST READING. WILL [INAUDIBLE], PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM. THIS SPEAKER WILL BE FOLLOWED BY RUTH KRAVITZ. VOTE NO ON THIS ITEM. THE LAST THING OUR KIDS NEED IS MORE TESTING. LET THE COMMISSIONERS RAINBOW COALITION OF EXCREMENT DO IT. YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO HIS BIDDING ANYMORE. TRUSTEE SANTOS. THANK YOU FOR PUSHING LESS TESTING, MORE FINE ARTS, EQUITY, TEACHER PAY RAISES THAT THEN OTHERS TOOK CREDIT FOR, PUSHING TO IMPROVE EDUCATION TEA HAS BEEN THREATENING TAKEOVER SINCE BEFORE 2017. THERE WAS ALREADY A TEA CONSERVATOR HERE THAT HASN'T HELPED OR IMPROVED ANYTHING BUT SURE WAS GOING GIVING LOIS BULLOCK TOURS OF THE SCHOOLS THEY WANTED TO CHARTER OFF. SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. I'M SORRY THAT TEA WILL NOT KEEP YOU AROUND, BUT I HOPE THAT BEFORE YOU GO, PLEASE LOOK INTO THE SPED DEPARTMENT. [00:25:06] I HAD SECOND HAND EMBARRASSMENT WHEN THE SPED DIRECTOR COULDN'T ANSWER BASIC QUESTIONS AT THE LAST WORKSHOP. I'M A MOTHER OF A SPED STUDENT AND I SEE ALL THE LAWS THAT END UP GETTING BROKEN IN THIS , IN THIS DISTRICT. IT STARTS FROM THE TOP. PEOPLE DON'T KNOW SPED LAW. THEY DON'T KNOW IDEA. AND WE HAVE TO IT'S IT'S A CRIME THAT I HAVE TO HIRE AND ADVOCATE TO GET SERVICES FOR MY SON. IT REALLY IS. THANK YOU. RUTH KRAVITZ. GOOD EVENING. I'M HERE DURING TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK WITH A WISH THAT WE STOP THE UNHOLY FIXATION ON STANDARDIZED TESTING THAT AGENDA ITEM SIX PROMOTES. I'M ALSO HERE ABOUT DEMOCRACY AND JUST TANGENTIALLY, BECAUSE OF THE LAST TWO SPEAKERS, I SUPPORT THE CURRICULUM CHANGE. I THINK WE SHOULD NOT BAN TRANS. I BELIEVE IN DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES LIKE YOU, EVEN THOUGH SOME OF YOUR IDEOLOGIES AND VOTES ARE, IN MY OPINION, BAD FOR CHILDREN AND SCHOOLS. DEMOCRACY WORKS BECAUSE WHEN YOU LET US DOWN, WHEN WE DISAGREE WITH YOUR VOTING DECISIONS OR YOUR IDEOLOGY, WE CAN VOTE YOU OUT. ON JUNE 1ST THE BOARD OF MANAGERS WILL SEIZE POWER FROM THE CITIZENS AND TAKE CONTROL OF OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT LIKE THEY DID IN NEW ORLEANS AND IN OTHER CITIES SO UNSUCCESSFULLY. THE UNELECTED AND UNACCOUNTABLE BOARD OF MANAGERS WILL BE EXPECTED TO RUBBER STAMP DECISIONS, AND WHEN THEY DON'T, THEY WILL BE REPLACED. PLEASE JOIN US AS WE TRY TO REDUCE THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF THE HOSTILE TAKEOVER. SIGN THE PETITION. YOU CAN FIND IT AT HOUSTON [INAUDIBLE]. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK. OUR LAST ITEM BEING HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS IS ITEM 17. AUTHORITY TO NEGOTIATE, EXECUTE AND AMEND A CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT FOR THE ATHLETICS FIELD AND TRACK RENOVATIONS AT EVAN WORTHING HIGH SCHOOL. WILL DR. PAMELA BOLAND PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM? WE WILL GO BACK TO OUR FIRST ITEM AFTER THIS. GOOD EVENING. I AM HERE TO ONE CONGRATULATE YOU ON GETTING THE NEEDED IMPROVEMENTS AT EVANS WORTHING. IT'S NOT MY SCHOOL. YOU ALL KNOW I WENT TO YATES, BUT I APPLAUD THE EFFORT FOR WORTHING. I'M ALSO HERE BECAUSE I BELIEVE IN I BELIEVE THAT I AM GRIEVING THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY. I DON'T KNOW WHY I'M GRIEVING THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY, BUT IT'S DYING RIGHT BEFORE OUR EYES. AND WE WILL BE ABLE TO SAY IN HISTORY, THIS IS WHERE IT STARTED. WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO FIGHT THIS TAKEOVER. WE WILL CONTINUE TO FIGHT THIS TAKEOVER. AND I CAN GUARANTEE YOU WE WILL CONTINUE TO PLEDGE FOR DEMOCRACY AND WE HOPE THAT YOU CAN STAND WITH US. WE'LL NOW BE GOING BACK TO OUR FIRST ITEM HELD FOR REGISTERED SPEAKERS. IS ANNA GARCIA HERE? I THINK SHE SPOKE ALREADY. OR EVELINA MCKENZIE. GOOD EVENING. I AM HERE TODAY TO SPEAK AGAINST THE TERMINATION OF MR. REGINALD WASHINGTON, BAND DIRECTOR AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. [INAUDIBLE] DESPITE MY SON'S EXCELLENT GRADES AND MUSIC ABILITIES, HE WAS PLACED ON A WAITING LIST FOR HIS SCHOOLS OF CHOICE IN HISD MAGNET PORTAL. HE AUDITIONED WITH WESTBURY AND IMMEDIATELY FELT THE VALIDATION AND VALUE EXPRESSED BY THE DIRECTORS. MY SON GAINED MUCH EXPOSURE AND SUPPORT FROM MR. WASHINGTON IN ALL OF HIS ACADEMIC AND MUSIC CAREER CHOICES. IT WOULD BE A TRAGEDY IF THE UPCOMING STUDENTS AT WESTBURY ARE DEPRIVED OF THE SAME OPPORTUNITIES AND LEADERSHIP. PLEASE DO WHAT'S IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE STUDENTS. IT SEEMS AS THOUGH THE PRINCIPAL IS WORKING TO WRITE OFF AND OUT THE ONLY EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITY THAT ATTRACTS BLACK MUSICIANS TO WESTBURY, THE FINE ARTS PROGRAM, WHICH IS CURRENTLY LED BY THE BEST OF THE BEST, MR. REGINALD WASHINGTON. PLEASE HELP US BY KEEPING REGINALD WASHINGTON AS THE THE DIRECTOR OF WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. OUR CHILDREN ARE WORTH IT. THANK YOU. [INAUDIBLE] GLADLY. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING. AND I JUST WANT TO SAY THIS, FIRST OF ALL, FOR YOU HERE. YOU GUYS HAVE DONE A GREAT JOB. [00:30:02] AND, YOU KNOW, NOTHING'S PERFECT. I'M A TEACHER AT WESTBURY MIDDLE SCHOOL. AND I JUST WANT TO SAY THIS. THE TAKEOVER ISN'T FAIR. WE'RE NOT HAPPY ABOUT IT. AND WE'RE GOING TO FIGHT TO THE BITTER END. AND AGAIN, I DIDN'T THINK I WAS GOING TO SPEAK BECAUSE WHEN I WROTE IN, THEY TOLD ME I DIDN'T DO THE FORM, BUT YOU KNOW, I MADE SURE I DID THE EMAIL. SO IF I WANT TO SAY ANYTHING, WE GOT TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR SPECIAL ED KIDS ARE OKAY. I'M A SPECIAL ED TEACHER AND IT'S VERY IMPORTANT. AND I THINK ONE TIME I SPOKE TO YOU ABOUT PARENT REGULATION. YEAH, YOU CAN REGULATE PARENTS. THESE KIDS ARE KIND OF OUT OF CONTROL. WE NEED SOME HELP WITH I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S TRUANCY. I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAVE TO FIND THE PARENTS, BUT IT'S ENOUGH IS ENOUGH WITH KIDS GETTING I MEAN, TEACHERS GETTING ATTACKED BY STUDENTS OVER AND OVER AGAIN. AND NUMBER FOUR IS, I GOT TO SAY THIS AND I'M DONE. I HAVE 32 SECONDS. PLEASE CONTINUE TO FIGHT. EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE NOT HERE ON THE BOARD, PLEASE FIGHT AND WE'LL MAKE IT I WANT TO MAKE IT VERY CLEAR WE ARE NOT HAPPY THAT TEA IS TAKING OVER. IT DIDN'T HAVE TO BE AND WE DIDN'T WANT IT TO BE. AND WE'RE GOING TO FIGHT TILL THE BITTER END BECAUSE OUR KIDS DESERVE, I'M A [INAUDIBLE] STERLING GRADUATE AND I CAME OUT PRETTY GOOD. I THINK SO. TEACHER, COUNCILWOMAN, MOTHER OF FIVE. NO KIDS WENT TO JAIL, FOUR SONS AND A DAUGHTER. COLLEGE GRADUATES. I THINK I'VE TURNED OUT OKAY. WE'RE GOING TO FIGHT AND WE'RE NOT GOING TO FIGHT AND WE'RE NOT GOING TO STOP FIGHTING. AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. HAVE TO DOUBLE CHECK. IS MIA SANTANA IN THE ROOM? MIA SANTANA. OKAY, PERFECT. THIS CONCLUDES OUR HEARING OF REGISTERED SPEAKERS FOR AGENDA ITEMS. WE ARE READY TO CONSIDER A DISCUSSION AND REPORT ITEM. [1. Acceptance Of Board Monitoring Update: Presentation Of Goal 4 Progress Measures 4.1, 4.2, And 4.3] SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE, WE ARE READY FOR YOUR UPDATE. COLLEAGUES, PLEASE HOLD YOUR QUESTIONS UNTIL THE PRESENTATION IS COMPLETE. THANK YOU, MADAM PRESIDENT. I'D LIKE TO, OF COURSE, INVITE DR. ALLISON MATNEY OF OUR RESEARCH AND ACCOUNTABILITY DEPARTMENT TO THE PODIUM. DR. MATNEY, GOOD EVENING. THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. TRUSTEES I'M HERE THIS EVENING TO PRESENT THE UPDATE, THE MIDDLE OF YEAR UPDATE FOR OUR GOAL PROGRESS MEASURES 4.1, 4.2 AND 4.3 . AT THE BEGINNING OF OUR PRESENTATION, OF COURSE, IS OUR GLOSSARY OF TERMS USED IN THESE PRESENTATIONS. AND AS A REMINDER, THIS IS OUR DATA FOR OUR END OF YEAR LAST YEAR DATA WHERE WE SAW AN INCREASE FOR OUR ACTUAL GOAL DATA FROM 21% OF STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES WHO ARE READING AT OR ABOVE GRADE LEVEL AS MEASURED BY THE MEETS GRADE LEVEL STANDARD ON STAAR THREE THROUGH EIGHT AND ENGLISH ONE AND TWO READING ASSESSMENTS. WE SAW IT MOVE FROM 21% TO 27% OVER THE COURSE OF THAT TWO YEAR SPAN. SO THAT INCREASE OF FOUR PERCENTAGE POINTS. WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR PROGRESS MEASURE DATA, STARTING WITH GOAL 4.1, THIS SLIDE SPECIFICALLY LOOKS AT OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS. SO OUR THIRD THROUGH FIFTH. SECOND THROUGH FIFTH GRADE STUDENTS ON MIDDLE OF YEAR RENAISSANCE ASSESSMENTS. AND WE CAN SEE HERE THAT WE HAD A THREE POINT JUMP FOR THOSE GRADE LEVELS FROM BEGINNING OF YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR. THIS SCHOOL YEAR OF STUDENTS WHO ARE CLASSIFIED AS PROFICIENT ON THAT LITERACY SCREENER. HOWEVER, AS YOU CAN SEE, LOOKING AT PRIOR YEAR DATA, THE 21-22 DATA MIDDLE OF YEAR, WE DID SEE WE ARE DOWN FROM 21% OF STUDENTS IN MIDDLE OF YEAR LAST YEAR TO 18 THIS YEAR. YOU CAN SEE ON THIS SLIDE ALSO OUR RISE CAMPUS DATA VERSUS OUR NON RISE CAMPUS DATA. AND AS A REMINDER, OF COURSE, ON THIS SLIDE IS THE LIST OF OUR RISE CAMPUSES AT THE ELEMENTARY LEVEL. AND WE CAN SEE HERE THAT WE HAD A TWO PERCENTAGE POINT GROWTH FROM BEGINNING OF YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR FOR OUR RISE CAMPUSES AS OPPOSED TO A THREE PERCENTAGE POINT GAIN FOR OUR NON RISE CAMPUSES. FOR GOAL 4.2 WE'RE LOOKING AT OUR MIDDLE SCHOOL GRADE LEVELS. SO SIXTH THROUGH EIGHTH GRADE, AGAIN, ON THE READING LITERACY SCREENER USING OUR RENAISSANCE ASSESSMENT, WE GREW ONE PERCENTAGE POINT FROM BEGINNING OF YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR, FROM 9% TO 10% OF OUR STUDENTS. BUT THAT IS DOWN FOR MIDDLE OF YEAR, 2% FROM THE 12 POINTS FROM LAST YEAR. AS WE CAN SEE FROM OUR RISE CAMPUSES, AGAIN, THE LIST IS ON THE RIGHT. OUR RISE CAMPUSES SAW AN INCREASE OF TWO PERCENTAGE POINTS FROM BEGINNING OF YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR AND ARE ABOVE WHERE THEY WERE MIDDLE OF YEAR LAST YEAR AT OUR MIDDLE SCHOOLS, WHEREAS THE NON RISE COMPARISON CAMPUSES WERE FLAT FROM 11 TO 11, BEGINNING OF YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR . FOR OUR HIGH SCHOOL. [00:35:01] THIS IS PRIMARILY OUR NINTH AND 10TH GRADERS. WE ARE LOOKING AT A ONE PERCENTAGE POINT GAIN FROM BEGINNING TO MIDDLE OF YEAR ON THE RENAISSANCE SCREENER. AND YOU CAN AGAIN SEE HERE WE ARE DOWN FROM 11 TO 8 PERCENTAGE POINTS, MIDDLE OF YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR LAST YEAR TO THIS YEAR. FOR OUR RISE CAMPUSES. AND AT THE HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL, THIS COMES WITH A LITTLE BIT OF A CAUTION BECAUSE IT IS ONLY TWO CAMPUSES. SO THESE ARE VERY SMALL NUMBERS THAT THOSE BLUE BARS OF 1%. SO NOT SEEING A GAIN, THERE ACTUALLY COULD BE A GAIN WITHIN THOSE DECIMAL POINTS. BUT WE SAW AS IT'S DISPLAYED HERE FLAT AS WELL AS A SMALL ONE PERCENTAGE POINT GAIN FOR NON RISE CAMPUSES AT THE HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL. SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. THANK YOU. DR. MATNEY. NOW, IN LOOKING AT THE GOAL PROGRESS MEASURE FOR FOR GOAL FOUR. OF COURSE, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IMMEDIATELY JUMPS OUT IS THE NUMBER OF TESTERS RECORDED BETWEEN THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR AND THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR EXAMS. HISTORICALLY, THERE'S BEEN A TREND ACROSS GRADE LEVELS. THE NUMBER OF TESTERS DECLINING BETWEEN THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR IN THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR. YET THIS YEAR, ACROSS ACROSS ALMOST ALL LEVELS, WE SAW AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF TESTERS BETWEEN THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR AND THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR EXAMS. WE THINK THAT IS DEFINITELY A POSITIVE TREND THAT WE CAN AND SHOULD CONTINUE. I THINK THE INCREASE IN NUMBER OF TESTERS SPEAKS TO THE IMPROVEMENTS MADE AND HOW WE'VE IDENTIFIED STUDENTS AND HOW WE ARE NOT ONLY MONITORING STUDENTS IN TERMS OF THEIR IEPS, WHICH WE'VE TALKED SO MUCH ABOUT. THIS WORK IS CROSS FUNCTIONAL IN NATURE AND SPEAKS TO THE IMPROVED COORDINATION BETWEEN OUR SPED DEPARTMENT, WITHIN OUR ACADEMICS TEAM AND OUR SCHOOLS OFFICE, WHO'S PROVIDING SUPPORT DIRECTLY TO OUR SCHOOL LEADERS. WHILE WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE DID NOT SEE AS LARGE OF A SPIKE IN SCORES AS WE DID LAST YEAR BETWEEN THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR IN THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR, WE BELIEVE THAT THE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF TESTERS REPRESENTS MORE RELIABLE MEASURES OF STUDENTS PERFORMANCE GIVEN THE LARGER SAMPLE SIZE. I THINK THAT THE WORK THAT HAS OCCURRED AND CONTINUES TO OCCUR ON THE MONITORING AND COMPLIANCE FRONT, AS WELL AS THE WORK BEING DONE ON THE ACADEMIC SUPPORT OF OUR TEACHERS IN TERMS OF THE DEVELOPMENTAL SIDE, PUTS THE DISTRICT IN A GREAT POSITION TO ALLOW US TO REMAIN ON COURSE TO MEET THE OVERALL GOAL, AS WE DID THIS PAST YEAR. AS WE DISCUSSED DURING THE SPECIAL ED WORKSHOP A FEW WEEKS BACK, OUR STRATEGIC PLAN HAS FOCUSED ON IMPROVING THREE KEY PILLARS OF THE WORK FOR OUR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES PROACTIVELY AND TIMELY COMMUNICATION TO REBUILD TRUST WITH FAMILIES, INSTRUCTIONAL EXCELLENCE TO MEET STUDENTS NEEDS, AND IMPROVING SYSTEMS TO INCREASE THE QUALITY OF OUR SERVICES IN IEP COMPLIANCE. NOW, FINALLY, WE BELIEVE THAT THE INVESTMENT THAT WE'RE MAKING IN OUR SCIENCE OF READING TRAINING AND IMPLEMENTING HIGH QUALITY INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS FOR READING HELPS TO IMPROVE OUTCOMES FOR LEARNERS. WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK TO TRAIN AND SUPPORT OUR TEACHERS ON HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE INSTRUCTION TO MEET THE NEEDS OF ALL LEARNERS, ESPECIALLY THOSE WITH DISABILITIES. PASS IT BACK TO YOU. THANK YOU. WE ARE NOW READY FOR COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM TRUSTEES. WE WILL DO TWO ROUNDS OF TWO MINUTES PER TRUSTEE. IF AN ADDITIONAL ROUND IS DESIRED, THAT CAN BE DONE WITH A MOTION, SECOND, AND BOARD VOTE. IF YOU GO TO MY COMPUTER, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO PUT YOURSELF IN THE QUEUE. TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE ON ALL THREE OF THESE PROGRESS MEASURES WE ARE NOT MEETING NOT ON TRACK TO MEET THE TARGET, AND I'M NOTICING THAT WE HAVE DECLINED ON ALL THREE OF THEM FROM MOI LAST YEAR COMPARED TO MOI THIS YEAR. AND THERE WAS LESS GROWTH THIS YEAR BETWEEN BOY AND MOI. SO WHAT HAVE YOU IDENTIFIED AS THE CAUSE OF OF THAT TREND CONSISTENTLY ACROSS ALL THREE OF THESE? AND HOW ARE YOU USING THIS DATA? LIKE WHAT ARE THINGS WHAT ARE YOUR COURSE ADJUSTMENTS TO MEET THE TARGET FOR THIS YEAR? YEAH. WHAT WE'RE DOING TO TO MAKE THOSE IMPROVEMENTS. SO I'D ALSO SAY THAT ROOT CAUSE. YEAH. CAUSE AND THEN RESPONSE. YEAH. SO WE'RE ALSO IDENTIFYING MORE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. THEIR IDENTIFICATION RATE HAS GONE UP SEVERAL PERCENTAGE POINTS. SO THAT IS WITH THESE THIS PARTICULAR GROUP OF STUDENTS, THE NUMBERS, THE PEOPLE ARE NOT ALWAYS THE SAME BECAUSE YOU'RE ALWAYS YOU'RE IDENTIFYING PEOPLE ON A ROLLING BASIS. [00:40:02] SO DEPENDING ON WHERE KIDS COME IN, YOU KNOW, AND HOW MUCH SERVICE THEY'VE ACTUALLY HAD BEFORE THEY TAKE THE TEST, THE RESULTS ARE GOING TO VARY IN THIS PARTICULAR GROUP OF STUDENTS. BUT I WOULD SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS CONTINUING COLLABORATION WITH THE SCHOOLS OFFICE TO COURSE CORRECT, IS THAT THERE ARE REGULAR MEETINGS WITH THE SCHOOL'S TEAM AND SPECIAL ED TEAM WHO'VE BEEN DEPLOYED OUT TO CAMPUSES TO ASSIST IN MAKING INSTRUCTIONAL IMPROVEMENTS. AND THERE'S ALSO A LOT OF TRAINING GOING ON RIGHT NOW FOR MTS, MULTI SYSTEM, MULTI-TIERED SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT THAT'S GOING ONGOING WITH STAFF MEMBERS TO REALLY ONE, MAKE SURE WE'RE IDENTIFYING THE RIGHT STUDENTS FOR SPECIAL ED SERVICES AND THEN TWO TRAINING TRAINING GENERAL ED TEACHERS BECAUSE REMEMBER THAT ABOUT 85% OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES ARE IN GENERAL ED CLASSES. AND THOSE TEACHERS ALSO NEED TRAINING. SO IT'S NOT JUST THE SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER THAT IS RECEIVING THOSE STRATEGIES. SO THAT'S ANOTHER THING THAT WE ARE DOING ACTIVELY PURSUING. AND YEAH, THOSE ARE THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT ARE IN PROGRESS. SO I THINK WHAT I'M HEARING YOU SAY IN ALL OF THIS, BOTH YOUR REMARKS AND YOURS, IS THAT BECAUSE WE HAVE ADDITIONAL STUDENTS WHO HAVE BEEN RECENTLY IDENTIFIED THAT MAY NOT HAVE BEEN GETTING SERVICES EARLIER IN THE YEAR, THAT'S PULLED THIS PART OF IT? SO THAT'S THAT'S TRUE THIS YEAR. BUT THAT WASN'T TRUE LAST YEAR. YEAH, WE'VE IDENTIFIED MORE STUDENTS. IF YOU LOOK YEAR OVER YEAR, WE'VE IDENTIFIED MORE STUDENTS. THE PERCENTAGE OF LAST YEAR WAS ABOUT 8% OF STUDENTS RECEIVING SERVICES AND THIS YEAR IT'S ABOUT 11%. SO AND SO IF YOU PULL OUT THE NEW KIDS. WHAT I THINK I'M HEARING YOU SAY IS IF YOU HADN'T HAD NEW KIDS, YOU WOULD HAVE MET THE TARGET. I DON'T KNOW IF WE WOULD HAVE MET THE TARGET BECAUSE, AGAIN, THE WITH THIS PARTICULAR GROUP OF STUDENTS, AS STUDENTS ARE IDENTIFIED AND AUDITED INTO SPECIAL ED SERVICES. SO IN LIKE IN THE MATH TEST IN THE REGULAR, THOSE ARE GENERALLY THE SAME KIDS, YOU KNOW, FROM BEGINNING TO MIDDLE TO END. WITH STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES, YOU'RE ALWAYS IDENTIFYING. SO YOU'RE GETTING NEW KIDS IN THE MIX ALL THE TIME. YOU'RE GETTING SOME KIDS THAT ARE DISMISSED FROM SPECIAL EDUCATION, SOME KIDS THAT ARE BEING ADDED. SO THE IT'S NOT REALLY THE SAME. IT'S NOT ALWAYS THE SAME GROUP OF STUDENTS FROM BEGINNING TO MIDDLE TO END. OKAY. SO IF THE FUTURE BOARD WERE TO REVISIT THESE, SOMETHING I'VE NOTICED NOW THAT WE'VE DONE THIS FOR SEVERAL YEARS IS WE KIND OF LEARN LIKE WHAT WORKS AND DOESN'T WORK WITH OUR GOALS AND OUR MONITORING AND HOW WE'RE FRAMING IT, HOW WHAT WE SAID IS PROGRESS MEASURES. AND SO THAT MIGHT BE JUST A NOTE FOR CONSIDERATION FOR WHATEVER'S COMING NEXT. AND THEN I WOULD JUST ADD THAT THE INTERESTING THING ABOUT THESE DATA IS THAT WHILE YOU SEE THESE TRENDS IN THE SCREENER DATA, ACTUALLY THE END OF THE SUMMATIVE DATA, THESE THIS GROUP OF STUDENTS HAS DONE BETTER THAN THAN OTHER GROUPS. THEY'VE HAD MORE CONSISTENT INCREASES ON SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENTS. SO THAT'S ANOTHER JUST INTERESTING THING ABOUT THE DATA. AND THEN I THOUGHT WE WERE GOING TO BE INCORPORATING THE AIR RECOMMENDATIONS AND PROGRESS ON THAT INTO PROGRESS MONITORING ON GOAL FOUR. SO REFERENCING THOSE FIVE MAIN AIR AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS, WHERE ARE WE AT IN IMPLEMENTATION AND TIMELINE OF COMPLETION? YEP. ADDRESS THIS IN WRITING TO THE ENTIRE BOARD. BUT DURING OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION WORKSHOP ON MARCH 27TH, WE DIRECTLY ADDRESSED THE AIR REPORT IN REFERENCE TO THE FIVE PRIMARY RECOMMENDATIONS FROM 2000, I THINK IT WAS 18 SPECIFICALLY, WHICH HELPED TO INFORM OUR STRATEGIC PLAN AND THE COMMITMENTS TOWARD SUPPORTING LEARNERS WITH EXCEPTIONAL NEEDS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. THE SAME IS TRUE FOR THE SUPPORT THAT WE RECEIVED FROM SPED STRATEGIES AS WELL, WHICH IS WHICH IS THIS ADMINISTRATION'S. IT WAS ONE OF THE GUIDING TOOLS THAT SPECIFICALLY WE CHOSE TO TO PARTNER WITH TO SUPPORT US IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SPECIAL EDUCATION STRATEGY WHEN WE DEVELOPED THE STRATEGIC PLAN. NOW, THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE WORK ARE REFLECTED IN THE THREE PRIMARY FOCUS AREAS DISCUSSED ON MARCH 27TH BOARD WORKSHOP. AS I DISCUSSED PROACTIVELY, WE LOOKED AT TIMELY COMMUNICATION TO REBUILD TRUST WITH FAMILIES, INSTRUCTIONAL EXCELLENCE, TO MEET STUDENT NEEDS AND SYSTEMS TO ENSURE QUALITY AND COMPLIANCE, ALL OF WHICH ARE KEY TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DISTRICT'S STRATEGIC PLAN. NOW, JUST TO PROVIDE SOME ADDITIONAL CONTEXT, THE AIR REPORT AND ITS RECOMMENDATIONS WERE RELEASED UNDER, I BELIEVE, DR. CARRANZA'S LEADERSHIP OVER FIVE YEARS AGO NOW, IN 2021, PRIOR TO MY ARRIVAL IN THE DISTRICT TEA APPOINTED A COUPLE OF CONSERVATORS TO [00:45:03] OVERSEE THE SPECIAL ED SERVICES ACROSS THE DISTRICT WITH THE AUTHORITY TO, OF COURSE, ISSUE DIRECTIVES AS NECESSARY TO HELP BRING THE DISTRICT INTO COMPLIANCE. NOW THE PROGRESS, MEASURES AND GOALS THAT THE BOARD APPROVED AND TO WHICH MY ADMINISTRATION HAS BEEN PUBLICLY REPORTING ON EACH MONTH BEGAN PRIOR TO MY TENURE IN 2019. SO IF THERE HAD BEEN A DESIRE TO MORE SPECIFICALLY REFLECT THE AIR REPORT OR IN THE PROGRESS MONITORING AND CONSTRAINTS, IT SEEMS THAT IT COULD HAVE HAPPENED WELL BEFORE I ARRIVED AS SUPERINTENDENT AND ACCEPTED THE GOALS AND PROGRESS MEASURES AND MOVE FORWARD ACCORDINGLY. IT IS A BIT PERPLEXING THAT THIS CONVERSATION IS REALLY TAKING PLACE AT THE DAIS AT THIS PARTICULAR POINT. DESPITE THIS BEING THE SIXTH TIME THAT MY ADMINISTRATION HAS BROUGHT FORTH THE GOAL FOR PROGRESS MEASURE FOR DISCUSSION. NOW, HOWEVER, REGARDLESS OF ALL OF THAT, AS I STATED BEFORE, THE THOSE AIR RECOMMENDATIONS HAVE BEEN EMBEDDED INTO OUR STRATEGIC PLAN AND MY TENURE AS SUPERINTENDENT, MY TEAM AND I HAVE WORKED EXTREMELY HARD TO MEET THE GOAL PROGRESS MEASURE AND GOAL RESTRAINTS THAT WE'VE DISCUSSED IN THESE PROGRESS MONITORING DISCUSSIONS. NOW, FINALLY, I THINK THAT THE DATA SPEAKS FOR ITSELF. WE EXCEEDED THE OVERALL GOAL BY FOUR PERCENTAGE POINTS THIS PAST YEAR. AND I THINK THAT IT'S A TESTAMENT OF THE INCREDIBLY HARD WORK THAT NOT ONLY PRINCIPALS BUT TEACHERS AND SPED TEAM HAVE REALLY WORKED TOWARDS ON A DAILY BASIS TO IMPROVE. IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF TEACHING AND LEARNING THAT HAPPENS WITH OUR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES ON A DAILY BASIS. THANK YOU. SO ARE THERE NEW THINGS THAT YOU'RE IMPLEMENTING? SO I GUESS I'M CONFUSED NOW. YOU'RE SAYING THESE ARE OLD AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS FROM A DIFFERENT ADMINISTRATION, AND SO WE'RE NO LONGER THEY'RE NO LONGER RECOMMENDED FOR US. WHAT I'M SAYING IS THEY WERE THEY WERE EMBEDDED. AND WE'VE HAD QUITE A BIT OF TIME OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST SEVERAL TIMES THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR PROGRESS MEASURE. AND AND THEY'VE BEEN EMBEDDED IN EVERYTHING THAT WE'VE WE'VE DONE. SO WE'VE ACHIEVED THESE. WE'VE ACHIEVED THESE RECOMMENDATIONS. OKAY. TRUSTEE WADE. YES. THANK. YES. THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. I SO APPRECIATE THE ADDRESSING THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR TO MIDDLE YEAR NUMBERS AND THE TEST TAKERS. I KNOW. I ALWAYS BRING THAT TO LIGHT. SO MY QUESTION STARTS AT SLIDE FOUR AND THE FIRST SLIDE AND THRILLED TO SEE THAT IMPROVEMENT AND THAT JUMP IN THE TARGET. BUT WHAT MEASURES DO YOU THINK LED TO THIS INCREASE BESIDES ANYTHING THAT YOU'VE MENTIONED TODAY? DO YOU THINK THERE WAS SOMETHING SPECIFIC BESIDES WHAT YOU'VE ALREADY MENTIONED? [INAUDIBLE] I THINK YOU'VE HIT ON A MAJORITY OF THE POINTS THAT WE BELIEVE MADE A MADE A DIFFERENCE IN TERMS OF STRATEGIC IMPROVEMENT. YOU KNOW, THE LAST 18 OR 19 MONTHS, THERE HAS BEEN A CONCERTED EFFORT IN COLLABORATION WITH THE CONSERVATORS IN THE DISTRICT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE SYSTEMS ARE IN PLACE SO THAT STUDENTS ARE GETTING APPROPRIATE IEPS WRITTEN AND THAT THOSE THERE WERE THERE HAVE BEEN SOME SYSTEMIC PROBLEMS. AND ONCE THOSE ARE CORRECTED, THEN YOU CAN GET TO THE TEACHING AND LEARNING PART. SO WE'VE SEEN THIS IS A TREND THAT WE'VE SEEN IN THE DATA THROUGHOUT THE LAST YEAR THAT THERE THIS GROUP OF STUDENTS IS OUTPERFORMING. AND THAT'S BECAUSE THE IEPS ARE BETTER WRITTEN, THEY'RE BETTER IMPLEMENTED, ET CETERA. SO BUT THE REASON I BRING THIS UP SO YOU UNDERSTAND WHERE I'M GOING IS THAT NOW WE WE HAVE THIS GOAL TO THAT WE'VE ALREADY SURPASSED, RIGHT? SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD. HOW WILL YOU CONSIDER ADDRESSING THE GOAL NOW THAT YOU'VE. WELL, I THINK THAT ALTHOUGH WE ARE MEETING THE TARGET, I MEAN, THERE'S STILL LOTS OF ROOM TO IMPROVE FOR THIS GROUP OF STUDENTS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE ACHIEVING AT HIGH LEVELS. SO WHILE, YOU KNOW, WE CAN STILL WE HAVE LOTS OF ROOM TO GROW. SO WE'LL CONTINUE TO REFINE OUR SYSTEMS, CONTINUE TO WITH THE MTS MULTI-TIERED SYSTEM SUPPORT STRUCTURE IN PLACE THAT WILL ALSO HELP ALL STUDENTS BECAUSE SOME TIMES WHEN STUDENTS ARE HAVING DIFFICULTIES, ESPECIALLY ELEMENTARY AGED STUDENTS, THE TENDENCY IS TO MAKE REFERRAL TO SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES WHEN MAYBE MAYBE THEY'RE JUST DEVELOPMENTALLY DELAYED AND THEY'LL THEY'LL BE FINE. SO WHEN YOU HAVE MTS SYSTEM IN PLACE THAT'S TRAINING GENERAL EDUCATION TEACHERS TO TRY LOTS OF DIFFERENT STRATEGIES BEFORE IT SHOULDN'T BE THE, YOU KNOW, INSTANT REFERRAL TO SPECIAL EDUCATION. SO I THINK THAT THAT WILL HELP THAT THAT'S A BIG HELP TO THE SYSTEM. [00:50:01] AND AS MORE PEOPLE ARE TRAINED IN THAT IN THOSE STRATEGIES, THEN WE'LL SEE IMPROVED WE'LL BE IDENTIFYING THE RIGHT STUDENTS. BUT THEN EVEN BEFORE STUDENTS GET TO THAT STAGE OF IDENTIFICATION, THERE ARE STRATEGIES IN PLACE THAT TEACHERS CAN USE IN THEIR CLASSROOMS. THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND THEN MY NEXT QUESTION HAS TO DO WITH IN THE NON RISE NUMBERS. AND AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE FLAT 11. LET ME GO. YEAH. SLIDE SEVEN. SO IN THE NON RISE DATA. SO WHEN YOU GO BACK TO IN MOST OF THESE CASES, EVEN THOUGH THEY WEREN'T NECESSARILY RISE CAMPUSES AT THE TIME, YOU HAVE 2020, 2020 AND 2021 NUMBERS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR AND MOST OF THE SLIDES ARE MUCH INCREASED, MUCH HIGHER THAN YOU ARE CURRENTLY AND WE'RE STILL SEEING FLAT IN THE NON RISE. IS THERE A REASON THAT YOU FEEL LIKE WE'RE NOT MEETING THOSE TARGETS? I THINK A LOT OF IT DOES GO BACK TO WHAT DR. BIRD SAID ABOUT THE IDENTIFYING NEW STUDENTS. SO ESPECIALLY AT MIDDLE SCHOOL LEVEL, IF WE'RE IDENTIFYING NEW STUDENTS, THESE ARE STUDENTS THAT WERE STRUGGLING BEFORE THE DATA WAS WHAT IT WAS BEFORE. THEY JUST WERE NOT BEING PULLED INTO OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION DATA SPECIFICALLY. SO NOW THAT YOU CAN SEE THE NUMBERS, THE IN LOOKING FROM MIDDLE OF YEAR LAST YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR, THIS YEAR ALMOST A 900 STUDENT INCREASE, THOSE ARE STUDENTS THAT HAD NOT HAD THE SERVICES BEFORE AND THAT ARE BEHIND. WE'RE JUST PULLING THEM OUT AND HIGHLIGHTING THEM HERE IN THIS ON THESE SLIDES. OKAY. AND THEN CAN I GO BACK TO SLIDE SIX, TOO? SO I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND BACK TO THIS OLD DATA, BUT 20, 20, YEAR 20 AND 21 AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, WE HAVE 27, IF I'M CORRECT, IF I CAN READ THAT AND IS OUR HIGH IN THE NON RISE OR IN NON RISE? WELL, THEY WAS A DIFFERENT PROGRAM. I KNOW IT'S HARD TO. CAN YOU EXPLAIN? YEAH ABSOLUTELY. AND THAT ONE SPECIFICALLY IN THE YEAR 2021 SO IF YOU'LL GO FROM THE RISE CAMPUS SIDE OVER TO THE LEFT HAND SIDE AND YOU CAN SEE THAT SECTION OF DATA IN 2021, YOU SEE ALL THOSE DIFFERENT COLORS. OH, I SEE. THEY WERE TESTED AT HOME. AND SO THE THE DATA, THE QUALITY WAS OFF. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. MISS CONROY, I HAVE A QUICK REQUEST FROM TRUSTEE CRUZ TO PUT HER IN THE QUEUE. IS SHE ON ZOOM? WE DON'T SEE HER. OKAY. DON'T SEE HER. OKAY. TRUSTEE CRUZ. TRUSTEE CRUZ. THANK YOU. SO, QUESTION. TRUSTEE CRUZ WE CANNOT HEAR YOU. OH, CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? YES. OKAY. SORRY. SO I DO SHARE THE CONCERN OF THAT MY COLLEAGUES SHARE ABOUT MIDDLE OF YEAR TO MIDDLE OF YEAR, THE DOWNWARD TICK. YOU KNOW WE WERE DEFINITELY ON THE ON THE UPWARD TREND PRIOR TO THAT. I HAD A MOTION. I HAD ALREADY MADE A MOTION. GO AHEAD TRUSTEE CRUZ. WELL, I HAD A MOTION. SO MY QUESTION IS. POINT OF ORDER. WE'RE IN THE ROUNDS RIGHT NOW, SO LET'S JUST CONTINUE ROUND ONE. ALL THE TRUSTEES HAVE THEIR FIRST ROUND AND THEN YOU CAN MAKE YOUR MOTION. NO, NO, NO. ROBERT'S RULES SAY I CAN CALL FOR A POINT OF ORDER, AND I'M CALLING FOR A POINT OF ORDER RIGHT NOW. CAN I FINISH MY QUESTION? I DIDN'T EVEN GET ONE QUESTION. I SECOND YOUR MOTION [INAUDIBLE]. THANK YOU. BECAUSE I KNOW I CALLED FOR IT. IS THERE IS THERE ANY WAY TO DETERMINE WHO CAME IN FIRST WITH A REQUEST FOR A MOTION OR THE REQUEST TO SPEAK? I DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH CONTINUATION OF THE QUESTION FROM TRUSTEE CRUZ. I MADE A MOTION FOR IN THE QUEUE TO ASK FOR A POINT OF ORDER AND THAT POINT OF ORDER IS SINCE WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT AND I WANT TO DO IT FOR THE PEOPLE THAT ARE OUT HERE IN THIS AUDIENCE AND THAT ARE LISTENING. WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE VARIOUS CAMPUSES AND PARTICULARLY THE REA. WHAT WAS IT REA? AIR. IT WAS FOR THE AIR. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE AIR, AND APPARENTLY YOU KNOW WHAT AIR IS TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE EVERYBODY KNOWS WHAT AIR IS. WE DON'T WANT TO TALK IN ACRONYMS. WE WANT TO TALK PLAIN AND CLEAN AND CLEARLY SO EVERYBODY CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT. [00:55:01] THAT WAS MY MR. HOUSE. CAN YOU EXPLAIN? DR. MATNEY, YOU WANT TO GIVE SOME INSIGHT ON THE AIR REPORT FROM 2018? I WAS NOT HERE THEN. OKAY. I DO KNOW IT'S A REPUTABLE ORGANIZATION AND THEY PRODUCED A REPORT ABOUT THE STATUS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION IN HISD. BUT THAT'S JUST FROM READING IT. THAT'S WHAT I KNOW. I DON'T HAVE ANY MORE INSIGHT. AND MR. HOUSE, JUST FOR THOSE IN THE AUDIENCE, AIR, I BELIEVE, STANDS FOR AMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH. THAT'S THE A, THE I AND THE R. THANK YOU. I JUST DON'T LIKE ACRONYMS WHEN WE GOT PEOPLE LISTENING AND PAYING ATTENTION. I AGREE WITH THAT. TRUSTEE. OKAY. TRUSTEE CRUZ. CRUZ. OKAY. THANK YOU. HOPEFULLY MY TIME RESTARTS. SO MY QUESTION IS ABOUT COMPARING THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR TO THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR AND THE DOWNWARD TREND. ARE THERE GROUPS OF STUDENTS BECAUSE I HEARD WHAT YOU SAID WAS THAT BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE MORE STUDENTS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED AND THANK YOU FOR THAT. I FEEL LIKE WE HAVE BEEN WAY BELOW THE STATE AND NATIONAL AVERAGE IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS THAT ARE RECEIVING SPECIAL SERVICES. BUT MY QUESTION IS, WHAT GROUPS OF STUDENTS LIKE ARE THERE? WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE MORE GRANULAR DATA, ARE THERE ANY CONCERNS? YOU KNOW, BECAUSE WE'RE SEEING THE DATA AS AN AGGREGATE BY GRADE LEVEL AND THEN STUDENT GROUP, WE'RE NOT ABLE TO SEE THE DISAGGREGATED. SO ARE THERE ANY CONCERNS THAT CAME ABOUT FROM LOOKING AT THE MIDDLE OF YOUR DATA? DR. MATNEY, ANY SUBGROUPS THAT THAT JUMP OUT, I THINK IS WHAT SHE'S ASKING. NO, OUR PRACTICES AT OUR LEVEL, WHEN WE HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH CAMPUSES AND WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS DATA AND WE'RE GUIDING CONVERSATIONS, WE REALLY DON'T DISAGGREGATE BEYOND STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES BECAUSE THAT IS THAT'S THE INDICATOR THAT WE ARE INTERVENING WITH AND FOR WE DON'T LOOK AT IT BEYOND THAT . ANY GRADE LEVELS OR OTHER IDENTIFIERS, YOU KNOW, PARTICULAR COMMUNITIES THAT THAT WERE A CONCERN? WE DO SEE THE TREND AND YOU CAN SEE IT MORE GLOBALLY HERE ON THESE SLIDES, BUT WE DO SEE THE TREND AS YOU MATRICULATE UP THROUGH GRADE LEVELS WITH STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. SO THIRD GRADE STUDENTS ARE DOING A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN FIFTH GRADE STUDENTS WHO ARE DOING A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN OUR NINTH GRADE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. THAT IS A COMMON TREND WE CONTINUE TO SEE, AND IT'S NOT AN UNUSUAL NEW TREND. AND WHAT I GUESS IS DONE TO ADDRESS THAT CHALLENGE. DR. BIRD. I DON'T HAVE AN ANSWER FOR THAT QUESTION, BUT I CAN GET SOME PEOPLE FROM SPECIAL ED TEAM TO DIG INTO THAT MORE AND GIVE YOU A WRITTEN RESPONSE. I WOULD APPRECIATE THAT. AND I THINK JUST SOME SOME CLARITY ON THE ISSUE THAT WAS RAISED EARLIER, BECAUSE I'M THE ONE THAT SENT THE EMAIL INITIALLY ABOUT THIS WHOLE CONVERSATION. MY MEMORY WAS, YOU KNOW, OUR OUR BOARD HAD HAD THE SELF CONSTRAINT ON CONDUCTING A SPECIAL ED AUDIT EVERY FIVE YEARS. AND SO THE AIR AND I'LL USE THAT ACRONYM SINCE IT'S BEEN CLARIFIED. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS. SO MY, MY RECOLLECTION WAS THAT SPED STRATEGIES WAS A MUCH MORE RECENT REPORT. SO INSTEAD OF SPENDING MORE MONEY ON ANOTHER STUDY OR AUDIT WAS TO USE THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS. AND I HAVEN'T SEEN THAT REPORT OR THE AND SO I AND I HEAR THE BELL LET ME JUST FINISH MY QUICK THOUGHT. MY UNDERSTANDING WAS THAT INSTEAD OF HAVING THAT NEW STUDY, WE WOULD WE WOULD RECEIVE NOT JUST THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT WE COULD MONITOR THE PROGRESS, NOT JUST A ONE TIME SPED WORKSHOP, WHICH, BY THE WAY, THAT WORKSHOP WAS ADDED ON OUR CALENDARS AT THE LAST MINUTE, NOT JUST THIS SPED WORKSHOP, BUT ON PROGRESS MONITORING. PARTICULARLY THE PUBLIC CAN HAVE CONFIDENCE THAT IT'S BUT IT HELPS THE PUBLIC UNDERSTAND WHAT IS BEING DONE AND AND THE BOARD HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO MONITOR THAT. SO I JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY THAT. TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS. THANK YOU. WE TALKED ABOUT AIR AND I'M GLAD WE DISCUSSED THAT BECAUSE AGAIN, APPARENTLY MOST OF THE PEOPLE EVEN HERE UP HERE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT AIR WAS. AND I JUST HAVE AN ISSUE WITH TALKING IN ACRONYMS. [01:00:01] I'VE SAID THAT REPEATEDLY, AND I'LL SAY IT AGAIN FOR WITH EVERYTHING IN ME AND I KNOW IT'S A PROGRAM THAT WE STILL USE THAT TEA OBVIOUSLY WAS WAS PAID, WAS PAYING THE GRANT? I BELIEVE IT WAS. DO WE STILL USE THAT AIR AS A MEASURE FOR RESEARCH? THEY ARE A WELL KNOWN RESEARCH INSTITUTION NATIONWIDE. WE DO NOT CONTRACT WITH THEM BECAUSE WE ACTUALLY HAVE OUR OWN INTERNAL RESEARCHERS. BUT THERE THEY DO PHENOMENAL WORK. OKAY, SO LET'S SAVE THAT TIME TALKING ABOUT AIR THEN. SO WITH THE RISE CAMPUSES, WHEN WAS RISE CAMPUSES INITIALLY IMPLEMENTED? THE FALL, THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR. THIS SCHOOL YEAR. THIS ONE SCHOOL YEAR. AND WE'VE USED THAT AS A MEASURING TOOL. AND THANK YOU FOR THAT DATA, BECAUSE HOW ARE THOSE CAMPUSES CHOSEN SO EVERYBODY CAN KNOW, RISE CAMPUSES. THEY WERE BASED ON THEIR TEA ACCOUNTABILITY RATING, RECURRING D AND F CAMPUSES OR F CAMPUSES IN THE LAST ACCOUNTABILITY YEAR. RECURRING MULTIPLE MORE THAN ONE. SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT RISE CAMPUSES AND THE COMPARISONS TO THE REGULAR CAMPUSES, LET'S BE CLEAR. THOSE CAMPUSES THAT ARE RISE CAMPUSES HAVE HAD MULTIPLE YEARS OF FAILURE. SO WE CAN'T CONVOLUTE THE TWO. AND OBVIOUSLY, IF THEY'VE HAD MULTIPLE YEARS, THAT'S PART OF THE REASON WHY WE'RE GETTING OFF THIS BOARD BECAUSE WE'VE NOT CLEANED IT UP. SO IF THEY'VE HAD MULTIPLE YEARS, THAT'S WHERE THE CONCENTRATION APPARENTLY NEEDS TO BE. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND, AND I'LL YIELD THE REST OF MY TIME. TRUSTEE SANTOS. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ AND SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE DR. MATNEY, FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. HOW DOES THIS GOAL DEVELOP OUR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES, FUNCTIONAL SKILLS AS WELL AS THEIR ACADEMIC SKILLS? DR. BIRD? I'M NOT SURE I UNDERSTAND YOUR QUESTION. CAN YOU? WELL FUNCTIONAL SKILLS. WHEN OUR STUDENTS GO TO CLASS, LEARN DISCIPLINE. AND SO THIS THIS IS TESTING THEIR READING ABILITY. SO THAT'S THE MEASURE THAT WE'RE TESTING HERE. IT DOESN'T TEST THOSE OTHER. SO THE FUNCTIONAL SKILLS THAT THEY NEED, THAT THEY NEED IN ORDER TO LEARN ARE NOT NOT REFLECTED IN THIS DATA. NO. OKAY. HOW IS THE DISTRICT ENSURING THAT IT'S FULFILLING THIS PART OF STUDENT'S IEPS AND FOLLOWING IDEA? WELL, THAT'S I MEAN, THAT'S WHY WE HAVE IEP MEETINGS TO MAKE SURE THAT STUDENTS ARE MAKING PROGRESS ON ALL OF THEIR GOALS. AND THERE ARE DATA POINTS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR THAT TEACHERS MONITOR FOR PROGRESS AND THEY REPORT THAT OUT. SO PARENTS GET INFORMATION ON REPORT CARDS AND THEN AT THE ANNUAL ARD, THEY REVIEW THE GOALS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE APPROPRIATE. SO IT'S NOT JUST READING AND MATH. SO WHEN PARENTS DON'T UNDERSTAND THE LANGUAGE OR DON'T UNDERSTAND THE POLICY SURROUNDING SPECIAL EDUCATION, OR THERE AREN'T ENOUGH TEACHERS OR SPECIAL ED CASE MANAGERS, HOW ARE YOU ENSURING THAT THOSE IEPS, NUMBER ONE, ARE BEING FULFILLED WITH THE LACK OF TEACHERS THAT WE HAVE FILLING THESE POSITIONS AND THAT PARENTS AREN'T BEING LIED TO? WELL, I MEAN, PARENTS ARE PART OF THE IEP TEAM, SO I MEAN, THEY HAVE THEIR PART OF THE DECISION MAKING BODY. THAT'S WHY IT'S PURPOSELY NOT JUST SCHOOL STAFF. THERE ARE PARENTS THERE TOO, THAT CAN THEY KNOW THEIR CHILDREN BETTER THAN ANYBODY. AND SO, YOU KNOW, FROM MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE, MANY TIMES PARENTS WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, MY CHILD NEEDS TO WORK ON THIS SOCIAL SKILL OR FUNCTIONAL SKILL AS IT MIGHT BE. SO I MEAN, THAT INPUT IS ALL TAKEN AS GOALS ARE DEVELOPED. I DON'T THINK THAT OUR STAFF IS LYING TO PARENTS. I DON'T BELIEVE THAT. DR. BIRD I LOVE I HOPE THAT YOU STAY HERE IN HISD AND I HOPE THAT YOU GO AND SIT IN IN A COUPLE OF ARDS AND AND BRING SOMEBODY THAT'S A TRANSLATOR SO THEY CAN FOLLOW ALONG. OKAY. SO SUPERINDENT HOUSE. THERE ARE 28 STUDENTS IN AN HISD TEACHER'S CLASSROOM, MANY OF WHOM ARE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. THEY'RE LEARNING AND GROWING, BUT THE PANDEMIC IS A REAL HURDLE. THEY'RE WORKING HARD TO OVERCOME. ONE, THEY WERE ONLINE FOR HALF OF PRE-ALGEBRA AT THE START OF THE PANDEMIC, ALL OF NINTH GRADE TO ALL OF NINTH GRADE. THEY WERE ONLINE FOR ALGEBRA ONE. THE KIDS TELL ME THAT IT WAS INCREDIBLY HARD TO LEARN MATH ONLINE. MANY OF OUR STUDENTS DID NOT HAVE AFFLUENT PARENTS OR WHO HAD LEARNING PODS AND HIRING TUTORS THROUGHOUT THE PANDEMIC TO OFFER. HOW CAN THE ADMINISTRATION ADDRESS OUR STUDENTS CONCERNS WITH JUST LEARNING ALGEBRA? I THINK WE ALL KNOW THAT THE PANDEMIC WAS A VERY DIFFICULT, UNEXPECTED TIME PERIOD AND EVEN THAT MUCH MORE DIFFICULT WITH MANY OF OUR STUDENTS THAT HAVE DISABILITIES THAT ARE IN SPED. BUT A LOT OF THAT SHOULD BE ADJUSTED IN THE IEP AS WELL. WE KNOW THAT THERE'S BEEN A LOT THAT HAS GONE INTO EXTENDED SERVICES AND SUPPORTS THROUGH TUTORING AND OTHER PULL OUTS TO ENSURE THAT WE [01:05:01] GAIN AS MUCH GROUND OVER THE COURSE OF TIME WITH OUR STUDENTS AS WELL. SO MUCH LIKE THE PANDEMIC WENT ON FOR AN EXTENDED TIME, IT'S GOING TO TAKE TIME BUT A JUNIOR THAT'S IN HIGH SCHOOL LEARNING ALGEBRA ONE AT NINTH GRADE VERSUS LEARNING ALGEBRA ONE AS A JUNIOR IS REALLY DIFFERENT. I JUST WANT TO REMIND THE ADMINISTRATION THAT THE COMBINED CONSEQUENCES OF THE PANDEMIC AND POVERTY ARE VERY, VERY REAL. WE ALL WE KNOW WE NEED SMALLER CLASS SIZES AND WE NEED TO END THE NARROWING OF THE CURRICULUM WITH ALL THIS TESTING. ALSO, WITH SO MANY YOUNG PEOPLE IN THIS ROOM, WE SHOULD THE BOARD SHOULD TEMPER THEIR FIXATION ON DATA. IT'S DEMEANING. CHILDREN ARE MORE THAN TEST SCORES. STAAR DOES NOT DEFINE THEM. BAND DIRECTORS DEFINE THEM, COACHES DEFINE THEM, AND TEACHERS THAT HELP THEM PROGRESS. NOT STAAR, NOT SOME RIDICULOUS TEST. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE ALLEN. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE HERNANDEZ. I WANT TO THANK DR. MATNEY FOR HER PRESENTATION AND ALLOWING THE BOARD TO ASK QUESTIONS. I DID HAVE A CONCERN LAST THURSDAY WHEN WE HAD A COMP ED PRESENTATION AND WE WERE NOT ALLOWED TO ASK QUESTIONS. SO MY I'M GOING TO SAY MY GRIEVANCE WITH THAT WAS THAT MAYBE THE NEW BOARD OF MANAGERS WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO ASK QUESTIONS REGARDING THE FULL COMP ED PRESENTATION. YOU KNOW HOW I AM ABOUT FOLLOWING THE MONEY. SOMETIMES WHEN THE MONEY IS NOT PRESENTED AND IT'S JUST PUT INTO THE RECORDS. I HAVE AN ISSUE WITH THAT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IS THERE ANYONE ELSE IN THE QUEUE FOR ROUND ONE? OKAY. I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. UM. MR. HOUSE, MOST OF MY QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED FROM MY COLLEAGUE'S QUESTIONS. MR. HOUSE, YOU STATED THAT WE HAVE WE'VE HAD SPECIAL CONSERVATORS THAT GIVE DIRECTIVES. HAVE THOSE DIRECTIVES HAD A DIRECT EFFECT ON GOAL FOUR. DR. BIRD. YES. I BELIEVE THAT THE CONSERVATORS HAVE BEEN HELPFUL IN MAKING AND ESTABLISHING, HELPING US ESTABLISH SOME SYSTEMS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE IN COMPLIANCE WITH TIMELINES AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND THEY HAVE BOTH OF THEM HAVE A LOT OF EXPERIENCE IN THIS WORK AND HAVE BEEN HELPFUL TO, YOU KNOW, ADVISE ON THE INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM. SO YEAH, I DO THINK THAT IT'S CONTRIBUTED. ARE THOSE DIRECTIVES MONITORED OR TRACKED? YES. EVERY MONTH THE CONSERVATORS SUBMIT A REPORT TO THE TEA AND THEY THEY MONITOR OUR PROGRESS ON THOSE THOSE GOALS. AND ARE THOSE DIRECTIVES AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AND THE PROGRESS THE DATA? THEY ARE SUBMITTED TO THE TEA. I DON'T THINK THAT THEY WE DON'T POST THEM BUT THAT'S THE CONSERVATOR SUBMITS TO THE TEA SO WE DON'T I MEAN WE SEE THE REPORT BUT WE DON'T POST THAT. OKAY. THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS FOR ROUND ONE. TRUSTEE BAKER. THANK YOU SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. THANK YOU DR. MATNEY. I JUST WANT TO STATE FOR THE RECORD THAT MY ANSWERS HAVE BEEN ADDRESSED BY MY COLLEAGUES QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. OKAY. I DON'T SEE ANYBODY ELSE IN THE QUEUE FOR ROUND ONE. ROUND TWO. WE'LL START WITH TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. THANK YOU. OKAY, SO I'M HEARING THAT THE AIR AUDIT SPECIAL EDUCATION AUDIT THAT WAS DONE BY THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF RESEARCHERS WAS AN OLDER REVIEW. HAS A MORE RECENT REVIEW BEEN OR AUDIT BEEN DONE FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION IN HISD. SPED STRATEGIES IS THE I GUESS WHAT WE WOULD CALL THE MOST RECENT AUDIT THAT THAT I ORDERED WITH PHILANTHROPIC DOLLARS TO SUPPORT WHAT WE WERE DOING. AND AS I INDICATED EARLIER, WE HELPED TO UTILIZE, IT DID HELP TO UTILIZE US AS WE BUILT THE FIVE YEAR PLAN. SO YES, AND I'M SORRY THAT WASN'T IN THE SPECIAL ED WORKSHOP, WHICH IS WHY I WAS REFERENCING THE AIR, BECAUSE I THOUGHT THAT WAS THE MOST RECENT ONE. SO THE SPED STRATEGIES, WHAT WERE THEIR TOP RECOMMENDATIONS AND WHAT IS THE STATUS OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS? RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATIONS. YEAH. SO THOSE ARE REALLY, YOU KNOW, APPLES AND ORANGES. THE SPED STRATEGIES REALLY LOOKED AT THE INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM MORE HEAVILY THAN THE COMPLIANCE KINDS OF THINGS THAT WAS IN THE INITIAL AUDIT. SO THAT'S THE WORK THAT HAS COME OUT OF SOME OF THE REORGANIZATION THAT HAPPENED IN SPECIAL EDUCATION, PUSHING MORE SUPPORT TO SCHOOLS INSTEAD OF IN THIS BUILDING [01:10:08] THE MULTI-TIERED SYSTEM OF SUPPORT TRAINING. THAT WAS THAT'S COME OUT OF THAT THE SOME OF THE INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES FOR INCLUSIVE, MORE INCLUSIVE CLASSROOMS. SO SOME TRAININGS SOME TRAINING THAT IS BEGINNING OR IS UNDERWAY AS A RESULT OF SPED STRATEGIES. WHEN WAS THAT? THAT WAS COMPLETED. THAT WORK WAS RIGHT WHEN I GOT HERE, SO PROBABLY LIKE DECEMBER OF 2021. THAT'S CORRECT. YEAH. THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS PROBABLY STARTED IN FEBRUARY, RIGHT AROUND THE TIME OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN, BECAUSE THAT'S HOW THAT INFORMED THE STRATEGIC PLAN FOR THAT PILLAR OF THE PLAN. THEIR STRATEGIES WORK INFORMED THAT. OKAY. AND SO WHAT I'M HEARING THEN IS IT'S THE STRATEGIC PLAN THREE PRIMARY FOCUS AREAS. HOW ARE YOU? WHERE ARE YOU IN IMPLEMENTATION OF THOSE, WHEN WILL IMPLEMENTATION BE COMPLETE? SO FOR SOME THINGS, THAT IS ONE THING I DIDN'T MENTION. THE BIGGEST PART IS PROBABLY COMMUNICATION. SO THERE HAVE BEEN NEW COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS PUT IN PLACE TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR PARENTS TO NAVIGATE. THAT PART IS COMPLETE AND NOW WE'RE JUST MONITORING TO SEE HOW IT'S GOING. AND THEN THE OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS AROUND A LOT OF MOST OF THE SYSTEMIC KINDS OF THOSE ARE IN PLACE NOW. SO NOW WE'RE JUST GOING TO BE MONITORING DATA TO SEE TO SEE IF IT'S WORKING. SO THE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE COMPLETE. NOW YOU'RE MONITORING FOR EFFECTIVENESS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION. THAT'S RIGHT. THAT IS AN AWESOME ANSWER. THANK YOU. AND SINCE THIS IS OUR LAST PROGRESS MONITORING. THANK YOU. DR. MATNEY. THANK YOU. DR. BIRD, YOU HAVE COME UP HERE EVERY MONTH UNDER FIRE SINCE YOU GOT HERE AND YOU SOMEHOW HAVE MANAGED LIKE THE FIRST SEVERAL ONE OF THESE, YOU WOULD JUST BREAK OUT IN A SWEAT AND YOU HAVE FIGURED OUT HOW TO JUST FIGURE OUT OUR QUESTIONS AND ANSWER THEM WITH AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF CONFIDENCE. AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT I'VE APPRECIATED HOW YOU GUYS HAVE TAG TEAMED ON THIS AND THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANYONE ELSE IN THE QUEUE FOR ROUND TWO? I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS IN REGARDS TO THE CONSERVATORS DIRECTIVES. SO WHERE ARE YOU IN THOSE? I'M GOING TO TAKE YOUR QUESTION, TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. WHERE ARE YOU IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THOSE DIRECTIVES? AND THEN WHEN DO YOU SEE THOSE IMPLEMENTATION, THAT IMPLEMENTATION TO BE COMPLETE? WHAT I WILL SAY BEFORE DR. BIRD JUMPS IN, DR. BIRD AND HIS TEAM MEETS WITH THE CONSERVATORS ON A MONTHLY BASIS. I MET WITH THEM ON A QUARTERLY BASIS TO KIND OF GET AN OVERALL SCOPE OF WHAT WHAT RECOMMENDATIONS NEEDED TO BE MADE. AND AND WE GENERALLY SAW THAT AS A AS A TEAM EFFORT. WE WORKED CLOSELY TO NOT ONLY LOOK AT THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT TO ENSURE THAT WE HAD STEPS IN PLACE TO ENSURE THAT WE COULD NOT ONLY MONITOR, BUT SEE ON THE BACK END WHERE WE WERE MAKING IMPROVEMENTS WITH THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS. DR. BIRD, ANY OTHER INSIGHTS? YEAH, I DON'T HAVE IT ON THE TOP OF MY HEAD HOW MANY AREAS THERE ARE. I DON'T REMEMBER, BUT I DO MEET WITH THEM WEEKLY AND THAT'S A CHANCE FOR THEM. EXCUSE ME, TO BRING UP ANY LIKE RED FLAGS THAT THEY'RE EXPERIENCING. THEY ALSO ATTEND MEETINGS IN THE WITH THE SPECIAL ED TEAM. SO THEY'RE MONITORING CONSTANTLY THE SYSTEMS AND THINGS THAT ARE IN PLACE. SO WE ADDRESS THE CONCERNS AS THEY COME UP. SO I CAN'T TELL YOU. I'LL HAVE TO GET IT TO YOU IN WRITING. HOW MANY.. IS THERE A COMPLETION DATE FOR THOSE ON YOUR END? WELL, YEAH. I MEAN, WE'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS THINGS AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE COMPLYING, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY WITH THE LAW, BUT ALSO MAKING SURE STUDENTS HAVE THE BEST EXPERIENCE. AND THE SO I MEAN, IT'S AN ONGOING PROCESS. I WOULD JUST SAY THAT SOME THINGS ARE DONE LIKE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE. SO I'LL GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE WERE STRUGGLING WITH AT ONE POINT WAS THE DATA FOR STUDENTS AS THEY'RE MEETING THEIR GOALS. SO THE QUESTION THAT TRUSTEE SANTOS ASKED BEFORE, NOW THERE ARE STRUCTURES IN PLACE SO THAT TEACHERS REPORT DATA ON A REGULAR BASIS SO THAT AT THE END OF THE MARKING PERIOD, THERE'S A COLLECTION OF DATA THAT WE CAN OBJECTIVELY LOOK AT AND SAY, YES, THE STUDENT IS MAKING PROGRESS OR NO, THEY'RE NOT. AND THIS IS THE EXTENT TO WHICH THEY'RE MAKING PROGRESS, THAT HAS COME OUT OF THE CONSERVATORS RECOMMENDATIONS. BUT IT'S BEEN OVER TIME THAT THOSE SYSTEMS HAVE BEEN REFINED BASED ON THE COLLABORATION WITH THEM. IS THERE A COMPLETION TIMELINE LIKE THE LATEST COMPLETION TIMELINE LIKE THIS YEAR, NEXT YEAR? OH, YEAH, I NO, I THINK IT'S KIND OF THEY'RE HERE UNTIL IT'S INDEFINITE THAT THEY'RE HERE UNTIL. OKAY. THANK YOU. [01:15:03] THANK YOU, DR. MATNEY. THANK YOU, DR. BIRD. WE APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT YOU ALL DO FOR US. I KNOW THAT THIS IS A CHALLENGING BOARD, CHALLENGING EFFORT, BUT THANK YOU SO MUCH. WE WILL NOW MOVE TO ACCEPT THE PRESENTATION. PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ. I WAS IN A QUEUE. OH, SORRY. TELL ME THAT THERE'S NOBODY ELSE IN THE QUEUE AND THEN I'LL GET IN. YOU INSPIRED A QUESTION. TRUSTEE SANTOS. THANK YOU. PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ. SUPERINTENDENT, DR. MATNEY. I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE OUR STUDENTS AND PARENTS THAT MADE IT OUT TONIGHT. OUR STUDENTS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ADVOCATING FOR YOURSELVES AND FOR WHAT YOU NEED AND WHAT YOUR COMMUNITY NEEDS. I HOPE TO SEE YOU HERE AND HOLD WHOMEVER IS SITTING IN THESE SEATS TO ACCOUNT. AND DR. MATNEY AND CHIEF, ALL Y'ALL. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. OKAY. TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS. I'M GLAD YOU GOT THAT IN TRUSTEE SANTOS. BECAUSE THEY'LL PROBABLY BE GONE WHEN WE GET TO THE LATTER PART OF THE MEETING WHEN WE SPEAK. AND I'M JUST, I JUST WANT TO TELL YOU ALL, I AM SO IMPRESSED WITH YOU ALL COMING OUT AND SUPPORTING WHAT YOU BELIEVE IN AND THAT'S IN YOUR BAND TEACHER. YOU BELIEVE IN THAT AND YOU'RE STANDING UP FOR WHAT WHAT YOU KNOW IS IMPORTANT. AND THIS IS A LESSON LEARNED FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE. Y'ALL DID AN AWESOME JOB. YOU ALL DID AN AWESOME JOB SPEAKING, SPEAKING BEFORE THE BOARD. SO DON'T LET THIS BE THE LAST TIME. THANK YOU. YES. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. OKAY, SO I'M GOING TO COME UP ON THE REAR ON THAT ONE BECAUSE GUESS WHAT? I AM YOUR BOARD TRUSTEE FOR WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. AND SO I AM TOTALLY IMPRESSED TODAY, BUT I'M ALWAYS IMPRESSED WITH WESTBURY. THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING OUT, FOR SPEAKING UP FOR WHAT YOU ALL BELIEVE IN. I'VE ALWAYS SEEN YOU DO IT. EVERYTHING YOU ALL HAVE DONE HAS BEEN IN EXCELLENCE. AND I'M SO PROUD OF YOU. I'M PROUD THAT YOU ALL CAME OUT IN THE NUMBERS THAT YOU CAME OUT SUPPORTING AND STANDING UP FOR WHAT YOU ALL BELIEVE IN. AND I HOPE THAT MY COLLEAGUES WOULD TAKE NOTE OF WHAT HAS HAPPENED HERE TODAY AND OUT OF RESPECT FOR THEIR BAND DIRECTOR WHO HAS IMPACTED ALL OF THESE LIVES. AND SO WE'RE THANKFUL FOR YOU ALL TO COME OUT AND SPEAK YOUR MIND AGAIN, I'M SO IMPRESSED WITH WESTBURY. I'M ALWAYS AGAIN, IMPRESSED WITH WESTBURY. THANK YOU ALL FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO, PARENTS. THANK YOU ALL. I KNOW IT WAS HARD GETTING THEM OVER HERE IN THE TRAFFIC THIS AFTERNOON, THIS EVENING. BUT YOU ALL MADE THE EFFORT, AND THAT SAYS A LOT. PLEASE DON'T LET IT BE YOUR LAST TIME. WE HAVE A BOARD OF MANAGERS COMING IN. SOMEONE YOU ALL DID NOT ELECT. OKAY. SO WE DEFINITELY WILL NEED YOU ALL TO COME IN AND SPEAK UP AND SPEAK OUT. THANK YOU ALL. AND SHE WAS A CHEERLEADER, TOO. SHE WAS A CHEERLEADER. TRUSTEE BAKER YES. YOU KNOW, WE INSPIRE EACH OTHER. I JUST HAD TO JUMP IN AND GET A LITTLE BIT. I WAS A PART OF WESTBURY CLASS OF 1982. I WAS THERE FOR THE 11TH GRADE. MY SISTER WAS IN 1982. SO GO, WESTBURY. I WAS THERE. THANKS FOR COMING. THANK YOU. MADAM PRESIDENT, I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT TO THE BOARD THAT SO THAT IT'S CLEAR THAT WE ARE BEING CONSISTENT WITH OUR AGENDA. TRUSTEE COMMENTS ARE POSTED ON THE AGENDA, WHICH CAN BE TAKEN UP AT ANY TIME DURING THE MEETING. AND SO THE TRUSTEES HAVE JUST CHOSEN TO TAKE UP SOME OF THOSE COMMENTS NOW AND THEY'LL TAKE UP SOME OF THOSE COMMENTS LATER, BUT WE'RE STILL ON THE POSTED AGENDA. THANK YOU. I DON'T SEE ANYBODY ELSE IN THE QUEUE FOR THIS ROUND, SO WE WILL NOW MOVE TO ACCEPT THE PRESENTATION GIVEN TO US. I HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. DO I HAVE A SECOND? PLEASE VOTE. I HAVE A SECOND BY TRUSTEE BAKER. PLEASE VOTE. VOTING IS NOW CLOSING. MOTION PASSES. EIGHT IN FAVOR. ZERO OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. I DO WANT TO RECOGNIZE FOR FORMER TRUSTEE ANN SUNG, WHO HAS JOINED US IN THE AUDITORIUM, AND THEN WE WILL ALSO GO BACK TO HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY, BECAUSE I SEE THAT THERE ARE SOME STUDENTS WHO WANTED TO REGISTER. WE HAVE A NEW SYSTEM FOR REGISTERING TO SPEAK THAT WE ARE HERE WITH US RIGHT NOW AND THEY DO WANT TO WE WANT TO GIVE THEM THEIR ONE MINUTE TO [HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY (Part 2 of 2)] [01:20:09] SPEAK ON AGENDA ITEM CLOSED SESSION PERSONNEL BE CONSIDERED AND APPROVED. PROPOSED APPOINTMENTS, REASSIGNMENTS, PROPOSED TERMINATIONS, TERMINATIONS/SUSPENSIONS, CONTRACT LENGTHS, PROPOSED NON-RENEWAL RENEWALS AND RESIGNATIONS. RETIREMENTS OF PERSONNEL INCLUDING TEACHERS, ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS, PRINCIPALS, CHIEF OFFICERS, ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENTS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND OTHER ADMINISTRATORS, AND, IF NECESSARY, APPROVE WAIVER AND RELEASE AND COMPROMISE AGREEMENTS. SO DO I HAVE JEREMIAH WILLIAMS? AND BOARD SERVICES, IF WE CAN PUT ONE MINUTE ON THE SPEAKER. GOOD EVENING. I'M JEREMIAH WILLIAMS AND I'M A MEMBER OF THE WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL MARCHING BAND WHERE I PLAY TRUMPET. ON APRIL 29TH, I WAS ON THE HIGH AFTER COMPETING AGAINST BANDS FROM LOUISIANA, ARKANSAS AND MISSISSIPPI, WINNING FIRST PLACE IN THE HUNTINGTON JAMBOREE WITH MY FELLOW PEERS AND LOOKING FORWARD TO WRAPPING UP MY SOPHOMORE YEAR ON A POSITIVE NOTE. BY THE MORNING OF MAY 3RD, MY POSITIVE DEMEANOR ABRUPTLY CHANGED DUE TO THE LEARNING THAT OUR CURRENT BAND DIRECTOR, MR. WASHINGTON, WAS BEING REMOVED FROM HIS POSITION FOR THE 2023 -2024 SCHOOL YEAR BY OUR PRINCIPAL. I CHOSE WESTBURY BECAUSE THE BAND PROGRAM WAS HIGHLY RECOGNIZED AND RECOMMENDED BY THE CURRENT BAND STUDENTS AND THE PARENTS. IT WAS NOTED THAT THE WESTBURY MARCHING BAND AND THE AMBASSADORS OF WESTBURY MAGNET PROGRAM AND THE POSTER CHILD OF THE WEST HISD FINE ARTS, MISSION AND CULTURE AROUND THE DISTRICT. MORE IMPORTANTLY, IT IS KNOWN THAT. IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT MR. WASHINGTON HAS STRUCTURED A MARCHING BAND THAT IS CULTURALLY DIVERSE AND COULD MEET THE NEEDS AND TRANSFORM ALL LEARNING, ESPECIALLY ESPECIALLY STUDENTS LIKE ME, THAT WERE STARTING FROM SCRATCH DURING MY FRESHMAN YEAR, DUE TO COVID. STRIPPING ME FROM THE SOUND TEACHING AND HISD FROM MY SEVENTH AND EIGHTH GRADE YEAR. UNKNOWINGLY CHOOSING THE BAND PROGRAM HAS NOT ONLY BRIDGED MY MUSICAL EDUCATIONAL GAP, BUT THROUGH MR. WASHINGTON. A HIGH QUALITY SCHOLARLY EXPECTATION HAS ALSO BEEN ESTABLISHED THAT HAS ALSO TAUGHT ME DISCIPLINE, ENHANCE MY ORGANIZATIONAL SKILLS, ASSISTED ME ACADEMICALLY WHERE I HAVE MAINTAINED A 3.6 GRADE POINT AVERAGE AND HAS SUSTAINED ME MENTALLY, EMOTIONALLY DURING THIS DIFFICULT TIME IN TRANSITION. UNLIKE THE PRINCIPAL OF OUR CAMPUS, THE DECISION HAS TAKEN A DRASTIC TOLL ON ME AS NO EXPLANATION HAS BEEN GIVEN AND IT HAS NOT HAS NOT BEEN ADDRESSED WITH ALL STUDENTS OF THE BAND. THIS NEWS HURTS BECAUSE I FEEL OUR PRINCIPAL FAIL TO CONSIDER THAT MR. WASHINGTON IS MORE THAN A BAND DIRECTOR. HE'S A MENTOR, A ROLE MODEL THAT CARES ABOUT MY OVERALL WELL-BEING AND SCHOLAR AND MUSICIAN. THEREFORE, I'M ASKING THAT THE DECISION OF OUR PRINCIPAL MADE TO DRASTICALLY CHANGE MY EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM WITHOUT CONSULT, BE INVESTIGATION AND MR. WASHINGTON BE REINSTATED AS THE BAND DIRECTOR FOR THE 2023-2024 SCHOOL YEAR. [INAUDIBLE] FOLLOWED BY ANNE SANCHEZ. YOU HAVE ONE MINUTE. HELLO, EVERYONE. I AM LIZZY TURCIOS, A GRADUATE OF WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. I GRADUATED LAST YEAR, AND WHILE AT WESTBURY, I SPENT ALL FOUR YEARS IN THE MARCHING BAND UNDER THE DIRECTION OF MR. WASHINGTON AND MR. MAJOR, WHILE A STUDENT AT WESTBURY. MR. WASHINGTON HAS SET A STANDARD OF ACADEMIC AND MUSICAL EXCELLENCE IN HIS STUDENTS, PUSHING US TO BE THE VERY BEST AND MOST SUCCESSFUL VERSION OF OURSELVES. AS A FRESHMAN, MR. WASHINGTON SAW THAT I WAS ON A WRONG PATH, HELPED ME BE BETTER, AND BECAUSE HE SAW THE POTENTIAL THAT I HAD WITH HIS UNFORGETTABLE ADVICE, I WENT ON TO PLACE A HEAVIER FOCUS ON MY ACADEMICS, GRADUATING WESTBURY AT THE TOP OF MY CLASS BECAME CLASS PRESIDENT AND EVEN JOINED CLUBS AND ORGANIZATIONS AT WESTBURY. THIS IS ALSO THE CASE FOR MANY OTHER STUDENTS UNDER HIS DIRECTION, MANY OF HIS CURRENT AND FORMER STUDENTS DEMONSTRATED LEADERSHIP AND ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE BECAUSE OF HOW MR. [01:25:04] WASHINGTON PUSHES US. THOUGH HE RUNS THE BAND PROGRAM IS WHY THE BAND IS SO SUCCESSFUL AND WELL KNOWN, ALWAYS REPRESENTING WESTBURY CORRECTLY, ESPECIALLY WITH MR. MAJOR ALONGSIDE OF HIM. IT WOULD BE AGAINST THE INTERESTS OF THE STUDENTS TO TAKE AWAY SUCH A POSITIVE INFLUENCE OR TAKE AWAY THE FROM A SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM THAT HAS DONE NOTHING. ANN SANCHEZ, FOLLOWED BY DIEGO PERLATA. ANNIE SANCHEZ. I'M A FRESHMAN AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. MR. WASHINGTON IS A ROLE MODEL FOR ME, AND REMOVING HIM WILL BE REALLY DISAPPOINTING BECAUSE HE WILL, HE IS A GREAT TEACHER AND I'VE LEARNED A LOT FROM HIM JUST THIS YEAR AND I WOULD LIKE TO KEEP LEARNING FROM HIM. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. DIEGO PERLATA, FOLLOWED BY MIA SANTANA. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS YAEL PERALTA. I'M A CURRENT MEMBER OF THE WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL MARCHING BAND. I WASN'T READY FOR THIS. MR. WASHINGTON HAS DONE NOTHING BUT TO SUPPORT ME AND MY DECISIONS I'VE MADE. I'VE BEEN EVER SINCE I'VE BEEN ON THE WRONG PATH, YOU KNOW HE HAS ALWAYS HELPED ME STRIVE TO SUCCESS AND BE THE BETTER VERSION OF MYSELF. REMOVING HIM, I KNOW IT WILL BE A GREAT MISTAKE. AND HE HAS DONE NOTHING BUT TO SUPPORT AND HELP THE BAND. THAT'S ALL I HAVE. MIA SANTANA. HELLO, MY NAME IS MIA SANTANA AND I'M A CURRENT SENIOR AT WESTBURY. STEP UP A LITTLE MORE. A LITTLE MORE.. MICROPHONE. HELLO. MY NAME IS MIA SANTANA, AND I'M A CURRENT SENIOR AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. WHEN I TELL YOU THAT HE HAS DONE SO MANY THINGS FOR HIS KID, HE HAS DONE IT ALL. THE AMOUNT OF LOVE, CARE AND PATIENCE HE HAS HAD FOR ALL OF US IS IMMENSE. NOT ONLY FOR US, HIS CURRENT STUDENTS, BUT ALSO FOR THOSE WHO CAME BEFORE US. CAN YOU IMAGINE THE KIND OF IMAGE A STUDENT MUST HAVE FOR HIS TEACHER IN ORDER TO COME BACK YEARS AFTER THEY HAVE GRADUATED? THE AMOUNT OF LOVE AND RESPECT THEY MUST HAVE FELT, THE YEARS THAT THEY'VE BEEN HERE TO FEEL COMFORTABLE ENOUGH AND TO HAVE A HOME, AND NOT ONLY IN THEIR HIGH SCHOOL, BUT WITHIN A PERSON. I HAVE A SISTER WHO WILL BE JOINING THE BAND WHO HAS BEEN EAGER TO JOIN THE BAND, WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN NEXT YEAR, AND HEARING THE NEWS OF WHAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW. SHE HAS BEEN UPSET AND SHE HAS BEEN THINKING OF NOT EVEN COMING TO WESTERN. THANK YOU. AND THANK YOU FOR ALL THE STUDENTS THAT CAME OUT AND HAD THE COURAGE TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD TODAY. WE ARE NOW READY TO CONSIDER THE SUPERINTENDENTS AGENDA ITEMS. BOARD POLICIES REQUIRE THAT TRUSTEES ABSTAIN FROM ALL DISCUSSION AND VOTES PERTAINING TO CONTRACTS THAT MIGHT INVOLVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST AS DEFINED IN BOARD POLICY FOR LOCAL. A CONFLICT OF INTEREST IS ANY CIRCUMSTANCE THAT COULD CAST DOUBT ON A TRUSTEE'S ABILITY TO ACT WITH TOTAL OBJECTIVITY WITH REGARD TO THE DISTRICT'S INTEREST. WE WILL NOW CONSIDER ITEMS HELD FOR ABSTENTION AND OR DISCUSSION FOR EACH ITEM OF DISCUSSION. WE WILL DO ONE ROUND OF ONE MINUTE PER TRUSTEE IF AN ADDITIONAL ROUND IS DESIRED, THAT CAN BE DONE WITH A MOTION SECOND AND BOARD VOTE. OUR FIRST ITEM HELD FROM CONSENT AGENDA IS ITEM THREE AUTHORITY TO NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE PARTNERSHIPS WITH CHILD CARE CENTERS TO EXPAND PRE [3. Authority To Negotiate And Execute Partnerships With Childcare Centers To Expand Prekindergarten Enrollment ] KINDERGARTEN ENROLLMENT. THIS ITEM WAS HELD FOR DISCUSSION BY TRUSTEE. ALLEN. TRUSTEE. ALLEN. MAY I HAVE A MOTION? SO I HAVE A SECOND. I HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS AND THE SECOND BY TRUSTEE GUIDRY. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? UH TRUSTEE. ALLEN. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ. I RECEIVED THE Q AND A, I THINK YESTERDAY OR THIS MORNING AND WAS DISAPPOINTED TO READ THAT THE DISTRICT IS NOT MOVING FORWARD WITH BUSINESS AS [01:30:05] USUAL. WHEN I TALKED LAST WEEK ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THE MRK WOULD BE ABLE TO ADD KINDERGARTEN TO THEIR SCHOOL, THEIR PRE-K CLASSES, ALONG WITH THE ADDED KINDERGARTEN, ALONG WITH THEIR PRE-K CLASSES AND THE Q AND A ANSWER THAT I GOT WAS THAT THEY WOULD THEY WERE NO LONGER MOVING FORWARD WITH BUSINESS AS USUAL IN THE DISTRICT, AND THEY WERE GOING TO WAIT ON THE NEW SUPERINTENDENT AND THE BOARD OF MANAGERS TO DETERMINE THAT ISSUE. SO WHEN I SAY I WAS DISAPPOINTED THAT WE ARE NOT GOING ALONG WITH BUSINESS AS USUAL, I WOULD HOPE THAT SOMETHING COULD BE DONE BECAUSE THOSE PARENTS HAVE THE RIGHT TO KNOW WHERE THEIR CHILDREN WILL BE ATTENDING SCHOOL. YOU THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO SPEND. THE NEW BOARD OF MANAGERS IS NOT COMING IN UNTIL JUNE. SCHOOL WILL BE OUT. CHILDREN WILL BE PUSHED OUT OF THE SYSTEM AND INTO A NEW SCHOOL. SO I WANTED TO MY QUESTION WAS, WILL WE BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT THIS YEAR? THE PRINCIPAL SAID THAT SHE DID NOT KNOW THE PROCESS THAT WAS PUT IN THE Q AND A, SHE DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THAT. AND IF SHE SHE DID REQUEST THAT KINDERGARTEN BE ADDED, BUT SHE DIDN'T KNOW THAT THE PROCESS THAT WAS PUT IN THE Q AND A WAS THE PROCESS. SHE ASKED HER, SSO, SO SOMEBODY IN ADMINISTRATION SHOULD HAVE KNOWN TO TELL HER THAT SHE NEEDED TO FOLLOW THAT PARTICULAR PROCESS. SO MY QUESTION IS, ARE WE GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING SO THAT THOSE PARENTS CAN KNOW THAT THEIR CHILDREN WOULD BE ABLE TO STAY? DR. WATTS, IF YOU DON'T MIND SHARING. THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION TRUSTEE ALLEN. SO MY UNDERSTANDING THAT BUSINESS AS USUAL IN THE DISTRICT BASICALLY WAS THAT IF A SCHOOL MADE A REQUEST SUCH AS ADDING A PROGRAM OR ADDING A GRADE LEVEL, THAT DECISION WAS MADE ON AN AD HOC BASIS. SO WHOEVER THE REQUEST CAME TO, THAT INDIVIDUAL PERSON WOULD MAKE THAT DECISION. AND THERE WAS NO WAY TO REALLY DOCUMENT OR TRACK OR STUDY THE IMPLICATIONS FOR THOSE DECISIONS LONG TERM. DURING MY TIME HERE, WHAT I'VE WORKED TO DO IS ESTABLISH A CALENDAR AND A PROCESS BY WHICH IF A SCHOOL DID MAKE A REQUEST .. RESPECTFULLY, YOU FIXING TO TELL ME WHY IT DIDN'T HAPPEN? I WANT TO KNOW CAN IT HAPPEN? I MEAN, SHE REQUESTED IT A LONG TIME AGO. HER SSO IS WHO SHE REQUESTED TO. I DON'T KNOW WHO THAT IS. I WAS NOT AWARE OF THE REQUEST, BUT THE NEW PROCESS. I KNOW THAT NOW. YES, BUT BECAUSE SHE READ THE ANSWER THAT YOU GAVE ME BACK. YES, MA'AM. AND SO WHEN YOU SAID IN THAT ANSWER THAT I WASN'T AWARE. WELL, NO. IN THAT ANSWER, YOU SAID THAT YOU ALL WERE GOING TO WAIT ON THE NEW SUPERINTENDENT AND ANSWER. I SAID I WAS UNAWARE OF THE REQUEST. I'M SURE MAYBE IT JUST DIDN'T GO PAST OUR. RIGHT. MY QUESTION IS, CAN WE DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT? THAT DECISION, IS THAT A YES OR NO BEFORE YOU GET TO THAT LONG? ANSWER NOT. IT'S NOT AS EASY AS THE YES OR NO. MAKING THAT DECISION HAS OTHER IMPLICATIONS. OKAY. YOU CAN STOP RIGHT THERE. THAT MEANS THAT SOMEBODY'S GOING TO TRY TO DO SOMETHING.. WHAT THE IMPLICATIONS ARE BEFORE WE MAKE A DECISION. AS LONG AS I KNOW YOU'RE TRYING. OKAY. THANK YOU. I AM IN THE QUEUE. NEXT, I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THIS ITEM. WHEN I KNOW I READ THE Q&A AS WELL, IT SAYS THAT THE WEST SIDE HAS THE MOST DEMAND. IS THAT BASED ON THE APPLICATIONS OF THE SCHOOLS ON THE WEST SIDE OF TOWN, OR IS THAT BASED ON THE ADDRESS OF THE STUDENTS APPLYING TO SCHOOLS ON THE WEST SIDE OF TOWN? I BELIEVE THAT'S I HAVE TO VERIFY. I THINK IT'S BASED ON THE APPLICATIONS THAT WE ARE GETTING AND NOT BASED ON THE ADDRESS OF WHERE THOSE STUDENTS LIVE. WELL, IT'S PROBABLY. I DON'T KNOW. I'LL HAVE TO CHECK. OKAY. YEAH. CHUCK. TRUSTEE. BLUEFORD-DANIELS. THANK YOU. INTERESTING, BECAUSE WE'VE HAD A LOT OF CONVERSATION ABOUT PRE K, AND I KNOW THAT YOU ALL WERE MAKING PLANS IN THE FUTURE TO IDENTIFY, I THINK, WHAT WAS IT SEVEN OPPORTUNITIES FOR PRE K? WAS IT WAS IT 20? 22. WE EXPANDED LAST YEAR BY 24 CLASSROOMS AND THE IDEA WAS TO CONTINUE TO EXPAND. WE WERE LOOKING AT I THINK INITIALLY LAST YEAR AT 18, WE ENDED UP EXPANDING BY 24 AND WE WERE LOOKING TO DO THE SAME ANNUALLY FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT THREE YEARS AS A PART OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN. AND I'M GLAD THAT PRE K IS ON THE RADAR FOR SO MANY NOW BECAUSE AS WE'VE SAID SINCE WE CAME ON IN 2020, PRE K NORTHEAST IS A [01:35:08] PRE K DESERT. IT HAS ONE EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER. AND WE KNOW FROM DATA AND HISTORY THAT THE SOONER THE CHILDREN ARE IN A LEARNING ENVIRONMENT PRE K AND KINDER THEN THERE'S MORE OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO TO TO START THAT EDUCATIONAL LEARNING PROCESS THAT WILL HELP THEM AND WITH WITH THEIR TESTING OR TO KNOW WHERE THEY ARE SANTOS NOT SO MUCH NO MORE TESTING BUT TO HAVE AN INDICATOR AS TO WHERE THE CONCENTRATION NEEDS TO BE FOR THEIR LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES. BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY THAT STILL IS PART OF THAT AREA THAT HAS THE BIGGEST OPPORTUNITY FOR STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT TO IMPROVE STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT. SO I'M GLAD WE'RE HAVING THIS CONVERSATION. WE JUST GOT TO FIND SOME KIND OF WAY TO INCREASE THAT PRE K TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. THANK YOU. TWO QUICK THINGS. THE EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTERS WERE CREATED IN AREAS THAT HAD A NEED FOR PRE-K BUT THAT DID NOT HAVE CAPACITY IN THE K FIVE SCHOOLS IN THOSE COMMUNITIES. WEST SIDE IS PRETTY DARN BIG. GULFTON COMMUNITY IS THE HIGHEST DENSITY OF POVERTY IN OUR CITY. THEY HAVE THEIR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS ARE BUSTING AT THE SEAMS. AND SO I THINK THERE ARE A LOT OF PRESUMPTIONS THAT ARE GETTING BAKED INTO THIS CONVERSATION THAT ARE A DISSERVICE TO THE CHILDREN IN GULFTON. THANK. TRUSTEE SANTOS THANK YOU. PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE CAN WE KNOW THE IMPLICATIONS? WELL, LET ME ASK THIS QUESTION. ARE THE IMPLICATIONS THAT WE INCREASE ENROLLMENT AND CREATE A PATHWAY FOR STUDENTS TO COME INTO HISD, SPECIFICALLY INTO THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS? PIGGYBACKING OFF OF DR. ALLEN'S QUESTION, THE THE IDEA IS TO REALLY LOOK AT THE NEED ACROSS ACROSS THE ENTIRE DISTRICT. AND THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID AS WE PREPARED IN THIS STRATEGIC PLAN BEFORE WE ACTUALLY OPENED UP THE ADDITIONAL 24 CLASSROOMS THAT WE OPENED UP. EACH AREA OF THE CITY HAS DIFFERENT DEMANDS, AND WE REALLY WORKED HARD TO DETERMINE WHERE THE DEMAND WAS THE HIGHEST AND TRY TO GO TO THOSE PARTICULAR AREAS OF THE CITY TO EXPAND. AND THAT EXPANSION, THE IDEA OF EXPANDING LAST YEAR, EXPANDING THIS COMING SCHOOL YEAR AND EXPANDING THE YEAR AFTER WAS A PART OF THE THE OVERALL STRATEGIC PLAN. SO WE LOOKED AT IT AND DETERMINED THAT THERE WERE PARTICULAR AREAS ACROSS THE CITY, WHETHER IT WAS THE PRE-K DESERTS OR NOT. WE HAD TO LOOK AT THE DEMAND AND THAT'S WHAT WE TRULY TRIED TO FOCUS ON IN THIS PROCESS.. WE DON'T LOOK AT ALL AT CAPACITY, WHETHER PRE-K CENTERS OR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS HAD THE CAPACITY TO OPEN UP A PRE-K CENTER? I'M SAYING THIS BECAUSE YOU HAVE A THREE YEAR OLD AND MY SON WAS A BABY WHO WAS BORN DURING COVID AND DIDN'T GET TO GO OUT MUCH. AND AND NOW I'M BACK IN EDUCATION, EDUCATION SPECIFICALLY FOCUSING ON EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION. OVER 85% OF MY SON'S CLASS HAS A SPEECH PATHOLOGIST. HE'S THREE YEARS OLD. IT'S A THREE YEAR OLD GROUP. THEY ARE THEY NEED THE HELP. THEY NEED ALL THE HELP THAT THEY CAN GET. SO I GUESS MY QUESTION IS BACK TO DR. ALLEN'S POINT. CAN WE MAKE SOMETHING MORE HAPPEN IN ORDER TO OPEN UP THESE, AS MY COLLEAGUES LIKE TO CALL THEM, PRE-K SEATS FOR NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS, IF A PRINCIPAL ASKED FOR IT? RIGHT NOW, WE'RE STICKING TO THE PLAN OF EXPANSION THAT WE FOCUSED ON FROM THE BEGINNING. SO IT'S NOT IT'S NOT AS IF EXPANSION IS NOT HAPPENING. IT'S JUST HAPPENING IN THE IN THE WAY THAT WE PLAN FOR IN THE DISTRICT. SO SO JUST AN ANECDOTAL SURVEY HERE. I TRIED TO GET INTO AN EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER IN DISTRICT ONE IN THE NORTH SIDE, AND I WAS UNABLE TO. THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THERE'S NOT NEED EVERYWHERE ELSE. I'M JUST SAYING THAT WE'RE YOU'RE LOSING AN ENTIRE DEMOGRAPHIC HERE BY NOT SURVEYING OTHER COMMUNITIES. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. THANK YOU PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ. SO, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE, I'M LOOKING AT AN EQUITY REPORT FROM HERC, DATED JANUARY 2021, AND ACCORDING TO THIS REPORT, THE NEED IS GREATER ON THE EAST SIDE. SO I'M NOT SURE OF WHY WE'RE FOCUSING AND FEEL LIKE WE HAVE DETERMINED THAT THE WEST SIDE IS [01:40:02] IN MOST NEED. DR. BURT. SO WE HAVE EXPENDED IN THE EAST SINCE 2021, WE'VE EXPANDED AND THERE ARE ROOM, THERE ARE GENERALLY ROOM IN SCHOOLS. I MEAN, THAT'S THE FIRST THING WE LOOK AT. DO WE HAVE ROOM IN OUR OWN FACILITY? DO WE CAN WE DO THE BATHROOM? CAN WE DO THE MODIFICATIONS THAT WE NEED TO? THAT'S THE FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS. AND BUT THE WEST SIDE HAS THOSE SCHOOLS. MANY OF THEM DO NOT HAVE SPACE TO BE ABLE TO EXPAND WITHIN THEIR OWN SCHOOL, WHEREAS OTHER PARTS OF THE CITY, THEY HAVE ROOM IN THE SCHOOL THAT WE CAN CONVERT CLASSROOMS. SO MANY OF THE 24 CLASSROOMS THERE, IF YOU LOOK AT THE MAP THERE ACROSS THE CITY AND THIS YEAR, THIS COMING YEAR, WE HAVE ANOTHER PLANS FOR ANOTHER 22, I BELIEVE. AND THEY ARE ACROSS THE CITY AS WELL. THIS PARTICULAR ITEM IS A PARTNERSHIP BECAUSE WE DO NOT HAVE OUR OWN. WE CAN'T FIT ANYBODY ON OUR OWN FACILITIES WITHOUT DOING MAJOR CONSTRUCTION. THAT WOULD PROBABLY REQUIRE KIND OF BOND DOLLARS TO DO SO. THAT'S THAT'S WHY WE'RE NOW LOOKING WHERE WE DON'T HAVE OUR OWN. WE'RE NOT ABLE TO DO IT IN OUR OWN FACILITIES, TO PARTNER WITH OTHER PARTNER WITH PEOPLE THAT HAVE THE FACILITIES. THANK YOU, DR. BURT. AND THEN SO I GUESS I'M A LITTLE CONFUSED HERE. SO, YES, WE'VE EXPANDED 24 NEW CLASSROOMS. RIGHT. BUT IS IT TRULY AN EXPANSION IF THE CURRENT STUDENTS MAY NOT BE ABLE TO ATTEND IS WHAT I'M UNDERSTANDING, OR IS THAT NOT THE RESPONSE WE GOT FROM THE Q AND A? THE EXPECTATION IS TO CONTINUE THE EXPANSION. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT LAST YEAR'S EXPANSION OF THE 24 CLASSROOMS, BUT WE'RE LOOKING AT AN ADDITIONAL EXPANSION ACROSS THE DISTRICT OF ANOTHER 22 CLASSROOMS STRATEGICALLY. SO THE IDEA FROM THE BEGINNING WAS TO FOCUS ON THIS AT LEAST THREE YEARS IN A ROW. AND WE'RE ON WE'RE ON COURSE TO CONTINUE TO DO THAT. I CAN ADD THE Q AND A, IF I IF I CAN REMEMBER CORRECTLY, WAS ABOUT ADDING KINDERGARTEN, NOT ABOUT PRE-K. IT WAS ABOUT ADDING A KINDERGARTEN TO THE AS WELL AS PRE-K. I'M READING IT. I'M READING IT RIGHT NOW. IT SAYS KINDERGARTEN AS WELL AS PRE-K. SO IT WAS BOTH OKAY. I INTERPRETED IT AS ADDING THE KINDERGARTEN. THANK YOU. AND TRUSTEE GUIDRY WHEN, SO THERE'S A COUPLE OF WAYS THAT WE ADD. WE LOOK AT APPLICATIONS ACROSS CITY AND SEE WHERE THAT IS. SOMETIMES PRINCIPALS CALL US AND SAY, HEY, I HAVE A LOT OF THREE YEAR OLDS, CAN WE EXPAND HERE? AND I HAVE A ROOM TO DO SO. SO WE'RE GOING TO MEET THAT NEED THAT THE PRINCIPAL IDENTIFIES IF WE CAN. BUT REALLY THE BIGGEST BARRIER TO IT IS REALLY THE LICENSING REQUIREMENTS AND THE BATHROOM HEIGHT AND ALL THOSE THINGS THAT ARE JUST IT'S NOT EASY. IT'S NOT PUTTING UP A WALL. IT'S IT'S A PRETTY MAJOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECT IN SOME CASES. YEAH. OKAY. SO, SO THEN BUT, BUT THE GOAL RIGHT NOW BECAUSE AGAIN, I'M KIND OF FOLLOWING TRUSTEE ALLEN. WE'RE NOT HALTING, WE'RE CONTINUING TO MOVE FORWARD. CORRECT. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. TRUSTEE ALLEN. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT. MY FIRST QUESTION, DO YOU HAVE A LIST OF THE ADD ON PRE K'S THAT YOU'RE ADDING ON FOR NEXT YEAR? IF SO, WHAT ARE THEY? WE DO HAVE A LIST. I DON'T HAVE IT WITH ME, BUT I CAN GET IT TO YOU. OKAY. I JUST WANTED TO NOTE THIS IS OUR LAST BOARD MEETING, SO WE'LL GET IT TO YOU. TELL THEM BEING I'M NOT EVEN BEING POLITICALLY CORRECT THIS DAY, SO I JUST WANTED TO SEE WHERE WERE THEY? WILL, YOU KNOW, WILL THE MLK PRE-K CENTER BE SURE CHILDREN ARE IF ALL OF THE CHILDREN ARE COMING FROM THE WEST SIDE, LIKE OUR SPEAKER SAID, MR. SANTOS ME, WHERE ARE THEY? I MEAN, WE'RE NOT, WILL MLK REALLY LOSE A BUNCH OF KIDS AND THOSE I JUST DON'T WANT OUR STUDENTS TO HAVE TO CLOSE DOWN BECAUSE OF A LACK OF STUDENTS. AND WE SIT THERE AND LET THEM ALL GO OUT. THANK YOU. I'M SORRY. WE'LL DEFINITELY GET YOU A LIST ASAP. WORKING ON IT RIGHT NOW. I DON'T HAVE BUT ONE MORE WEEK LEFT. OKAY. I HAVE TO BE ABLE TO ACT. I GOT TWO WEEKS LEFT. I NEED. OH, THAT'S RIGHT. WE HAVE A MEETING NEXT WEEK. OKAY. THANK YOU. UM, I JUST WANT TO STATE THAT I AGREE WITH DR. ALLEN THAT I UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS OUR LAST BOARD MEETING, BUT I THINK UNDERSTANDING WHETHER THE ADDRESS OF THE STUDENT IS WHAT'S DETERMINING THE DESERT ON THE WEST SIDE, OR IF IT'S JUST THE THE DESIRE TO BE AT A SCHOOL ON THE WEST SIDE, IT WOULD BE I THINK THAT WOULD BE REALLY INTERESTING DATA TO HAVE FOR THE NEW BOARD OF MANAGERS. SO WE DO KNOW THAT THERE ARE NEIGHBORING DISTRICTS THAT HAVE BUILT BEAUTIFUL NEW PRE-K CENTERS. AND SO WE ARE TRYING TO KEEP KIDS IN THE DISTRICT THAT ARE BORDERING OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS. ALL RIGHT. SOUNDS GOOD. THANK YOU. OH, I SEE. TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS IN THE QUEUE. YEAH, I JUST WANT TO ADD ONE MORE THING, BECAUSE AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PRE-K, I THINK IT'S STILL, AS I'VE SAID ALL ALONG, IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY. [01:45:07] IT'S A GATEWAY TO LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FROM PRE-K TO KINDER, ETCETERA. AND SO AS THE USE OF THE WORD. BUT I HEAR THE USE OF THE WORD POVERTY. LET ME TELL YOU, I GREW UP POOR, NOT POOR, POOR AND DIDN'T KNOW I WAS POOR BECAUSE EVERYBODY IN THE COMMUNITY WAS POOR AND BUT WE STILL HAD OPPORTUNITIES. AND I HATE THE USE OF THAT WORD. I SAID IT MANY TIMES. WE CAN SAY INCOME CHALLENGED, BUT THESE CHILDREN, IT'S NOT THESE CHILDREN'S FAULT THAT THEY HAVE POVERTY ISSUES. SO LET'S SAY INCOME CHALLENGED. UM, I ASKED ABOUT THE MODIFICATIONS LAST TIME BECAUSE AGAIN, IT'S SO IMPORTANT AND YOU MENTIONED DR. BIRD ABOUT THE MAJOR CONSTRUCTION BOND AND THE AND THE MONEY AND THE DOLLARS. I THINK I ASKED YOU ABOUT THAT SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE LAST WEEK ABOUT HOW COSTLY IT WILL BE TO INCORPORATE THOSE PRE-K INTO SOME OF THE CAMPUSES WE ALREADY HAVE. BUT I THINK IT'S OBVIOUSLY TRUSTEE HERNANDEZ WORTH THE MONEY BECAUSE AGAIN, GIVEN OUR STUDENTS THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A LEG UP INTO A LEARNING ENVIRONMENT, THANK YOU AND TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS COMPLETELY AGREE. AND A PART OF THE REASON FOR THE PARTNERSHIPS IS SO THAT WE CAN SHY AWAY FROM SOME OF THE COSTS THAT WOULD BE INCURRED TO ADD EXTERIOR DOORS, TO LIFT SINKS, TO LIFT TOILETS PARTNERSHIP. BUT WHAT IT WOULD ALSO DO IS ALLOW FOR US TO PARTNER FROM A CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION STANDPOINT, A TRAINING STANDPOINT WITH THOSE TEACHERS AND THOSE CLASSROOMS. SO THERE WOULD BE THE KIND OF CONSISTENCY THAT WE WANT TO FOCUS ON TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE ACCOUNTABILITY AND STRUCTURE AROUND WHAT IT IS THAT WE WANT TO FOCUS ON. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NO, THANK YOU. I DON'T SEE ANYBODY ELSE IN THE QUEUE, SO PLEASE VOTE ON THIS ITEM. WE'LL TAKE A QUICK BREAK TILL SEVEN. WE ARE STILL WAITING FOR SOME TRUSTEES TO CAST THEIR VOTE. OH. TRUSTEE WADE IS NOT HERE. SHE IS ON HER WAY. TRUSTEE CRUZ HAS HER THUMB UP, VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION PASSES. NINE IN FAVOR. ZERO OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. THE BOARD WILL NOW TAKE A 13 MINUTE RECESS. WE WILL COME BACK AT 7:00 FOR HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY. AGAIN, SPEAKERS ARE LIMITED TO ONE MINUTE EACH. I'D LIKE TO REMIND SPEAKERS THAT WHEN ADDRESSING THE BOARD, PLEASE STAY ON TOPIC AND REFRAIN FROM NAMING INDIVIDUALS, ESPECIALLY STUDENTS, AS THEY ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE FAMILY EDUCATION RIGHTS AND PRIVACY ACT. HOWEVER, NAMING YOUR OWN CHILD IS PERMISSIBLE IN THE COURSE OF STATING YOUR CONCERN. THE BOARD ENCOURAGES AND WELCOMES COMMENTS AND INPUT FROM OUR COMMUNITY, BUT WE CANNOT RESPOND TO OR DELIBERATE ON ANY SUBJECT THAT IS NOT INCLUDED ON A POSTED AGENDA. WHILE THE BOARD LISTENS TO CONCERNS OF A GENERAL NATURE. SPEAKERS SHOULD PRACTICE NORMAL RULES OF DECORUM. OBSCENE LANGUAGE AND PROFANITY WILL NOT BE TOLERATED AS THIS IS A PUBLIC MEETING AND OUR STUDENTS ARE WATCHING. ADDITIONALLY, DISRUPTIONS OF THE MEETING WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. WE ASK THE AUDIENCE TO REFRAIN FROM INTERRUPTING SPEAKERS WHILE THEY PRESENT TO THE BOARD DURING THIS PORTION OF THE MEETING. WE WILL BEGIN WITH REGISTERED SPEAKERS WHO SIGNED UP TO ADDRESS THE BOARD IN THE AUDITORIUM WITH AN SUNG. PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM. WE'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE MISS SUNG FOR HER SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY, INCLUDING AS A FORMER BOARD OF EDUCATION TRUSTEE. WELCOME, MISS SUNG. I'M HERE AS AN HHC PARENT TO SAY THANK YOU. SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE, THANK YOU FOR MAKING YOUR HOME HERE IN HOUSTON, SERVING OUR COMMUNITY WITH DIGNITY. YOU'LL BE MISSED. TRUSTEES, THANK YOU FOR YOUR DEDICATION, FOR YOUR PASSION FOR RUNNING FOR OFFICE, AND FOR SERVING OUR CHILDREN IN THIS UNPAID VOLUNTEER JOB. [01:50:08] AND AS A FORMER NORTHSIDE TEACHER, SINCE IT'S TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK WEEK, I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T HONOR AND THANK MY NORTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER COLLEAGUE ELIZABETH SANTOS. THANK YOU FOR LOVING AND LIVING DEMOCRACY, FOR SHOWING OUR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS THAT THEY COULD PUT TOGETHER A CAMPAIGN AND WIN AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOR STUDENTS. THANK YOU. NEXT. WILL LASHAY DAVIS PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM? THIS SPEAKER WILL BE FOLLOWED BY TED WISDOM. GOOD EVENING MY NAME IS DR. LASHAY DAVIS. I'M AN ACTIVE HISD STAKEHOLDER WITH THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION. HOWEVER, I'M HERE AS A PARENT AND MOTHER OF JEREMIAH WILLIAMS, WHO IS A TRUMPET PLAYER IN THE ESTEEMED WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL MARCHING BAND UNDER THE DIRECTION OF REGINALD WASHINGTON, AT THE FOCAL POINT OF WESTBURY'S DISTRICT WEBSITE. IT EMPLOYS THAT, LIKE HIS FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DEPARTMENT, THE PRINCIPAL VALUES PARENTS AS PARTNERS IN PREPARING OUR STUDENTS TO SUCCEED IN COLLEGE, CAREER AND BEYOND, I WOULD HAVE TO BEG TO DIFFER AND SAY NOT SO. THE PRINCIPAL HAS INFLICTED A PERSONAL, UNETHICAL AND UNJUSTIFIED DECISION TO REMOVE MR. WASHINGTON AS BAND DIRECTOR FOR THE UPCOMING SCHOOL YEAR WITHOUT THE CONSULT OR CONSIDERATION OF WESTBURY BAND STUDENTS OR THEIR PARENTS. WHAT DISTRICT COURT PRINCIPLES UPHOLD THESE LEADERSHIP METHODS THAT WOULD JEOPARDIZE THE STUDENT'S SOCIAL EMOTIONAL STATE AND DISREGARD A STUDENT AND PARENTS EDUCATIONAL INPUT FOR THE SAKE OF GAINING AN EXTRA DOLLAR? IS IT TO IMPROVE HUMAN CAPITAL, IMPROVE PUBLIC SUPPORT AND CONFIDENCE IN SCHOOLS? OR MAYBE IT ALIGNS WITH CREATING A POSITIVE DISTRICT CULTURE? MOREOVER, HELP ME EXPLAIN TO MY SON HOW THE EMPHASIS PLACED ON WESTBURY'S FINE ARTS BUDGET THAT WAS MINIMIZED DUE TO THE COVID 19 PANDEMIC AND HOW IT HAS AN EFFECT ON ENROLLMENT AT WESTBURY AND ACROSS THE DISTRICT AS A WHOLE IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO MR. WASHINGTON'S PERFORMANCE AND JUSTIFIES THE REMOVAL OF HIM AS BEING DIRECTOR. I WANT CLARIFICATION AS THE PRINCIPAL HAS DISREGARDED MY PARENTS REQUEST FOR A FORMAL MEETING AND BAND STUDENTS AND THE PARENTS. THUS, I'M ASKING THAT THERE BE AN INVESTIGATION REGARDING THE DECISION THE PRINCIPAL HAS MADE TO SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE MY CHILD'S EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM WITHOUT THE INCORPORATION OF FACE THAT TO BE THE FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DEPARTMENT AND THAT MR. WASHINGTON BE REINSTATED AS BAND DIRECTOR FOR THE 23-24 SCHOOL YEAR. JERRY MONROE DIED ON APRIL 30TH. HE MADE A POSITIVE DIFFERENCE IN KIDS LIVES AND MINE. I HOPE HE MADE ONE IN YOURS. LIKE FORMER HISD BOARD PRESIDENT JULIETTE STIPEK, WHO INTRODUCED ME TO THE LATE PRINCIPAL OF FIR HIGH, DR. BIRDIE SIMMONS, JERRY WAS ABLE TO SECURE A PRIVATE MEETING FOR ME WITH YATES HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL KENNETH DAVIS. AS A RESULT, I HAD THE PLEASURE OF WORKING WITH STUDENTS IN THOSE SCHOOLS TO CREATE BYLAWS FOR THEIR STUDENT GOVERNMENTS. THOSE BYLAWS ARE IN MY HISD VENDOR APPROVED BOOK, ROBERT'S RULES FOR KIDS AND BIG KIDS. IN 2021, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE PARTICIPATED IN A PANEL THAT ADDRESSED DISRUPTING THE SCHOOL TO PRISON PIPELINE. I MERGED THAT PANEL'S THOUGHTS WITH MINE. THERE HAVE BEEN POSITIVE RESPONSES FROM THE HIGHEST RANKING OFFICIALS IN YOUR COUNSELING AND POLICE DEPARTMENTS, BUT I HAVE RECEIVED NO INSTITUTIONALIZED TRACTION FROM ANY SCHOOLS. TOO OFTEN WE HEAR ABOUT GUN VIOLENCE. IT COMES MOSTLY FROM FORMER STUDENTS. WHAT I PROPOSE WOULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE. JERRY AND JULIET HAD FAITH IN ME. HOW ABOUT YOU? MADAM PRESIDENT. MOTION TO EXTEND. HE WANTED TO SPEAK ABOUT WESTBURY'S MOTION TO EXTEND. GO AHEAD. I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT THE WESTBURY AGENDA ITEM, BUT I HAVE LIVED ACROSS WEST ACROSS THE STREET FROM WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL OR DOWN THE BLOCK SINCE 1980. I ATTENDED SOME EVENTS AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL IN THE PAST YEAR, AND AS A RESULT I MET THE PRINCIPAL, MISS NIXON, AND SHE INTRODUCED ME TO TWO TEACHERS INVOLVED IN STUDENT GOVERNMENT. ONE WAS MR. CRUZ, THE OTHER WAS MISS WHITE. WHEN I SUGGESTED A CAMPUS WIDE STUDENT GOVERNMENT THAT WOULD GET THIS KIND OF A TURNOUT BECAUSE OF THE ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDENTS, MISS NIXON REBUFFED THE IDEA COMPLETELY. WHEN I MET ABOUT A MONTH AGO WITH THE PEOPLE IN THE WRAPAROUND SERVICES PROGRAM AND SAID, YOU NEED TO REACH OUT TO THE COMMUNITY, OUR PROPERTY VALUES GO DOWN BECAUSE THE SCHOOL IS NOT WELL RESPECTED IN THE COMMUNITY. AND I FOLLOWED IT UP WITH A LETTER TO THE WRAPAROUND SERVICES PEOPLE. [01:55:05] I GOT NO RESPONSE. THAT'S THE PROBLEM WE HAVE AT WESTBURY. GETTING RID OF THIS GENTLEMAN IS. CALANDRA BOLSON, FOLLOWED BY VERONICA HUNTER JOHNSON. GOOD EVENING, FERGUSON. I'M A PARENT OF A STUDENT AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. I'M ASKING YOU TO PLEASE REINSTATE MR. WASHINGTON AS THE DIRECTOR OF WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL BAND FOR 2023 AND 24 SCHOOL YEAR. MR. WASHINGTON HAS DIRECTED THIS BAND FOR OVER 16 YEARS, CONVERTING IT INTO ONE OF THE MOST RECOGNIZED AND THE MOST DISTINGUISHED PROGRAM THAT WESTBURY HAS TO OFFER. HE ENCOURAGES OUR CHILDREN TO PRESENT THEMSELVES WITH INTEGRITY AND RESPECT. HE CHALLENGED THEM, CHALLENGES THEM TO MAINTAIN ABOVE AVERAGE GRADES. HE ASSISTS THEM THROUGH THE COLLEGE APPLICATION PROCESS AND HOST COLLEGIATE BAND AUDITIONS AT THE SCHOOL. IN CLOSING, OUR CHILDREN DESERVE THE BEST EXPERIENCES AT SCHOOL. PLEASE DON'T ALLOW THEM TO STRIP AWAY TO BE STRIPPED AWAY OF YET ANOTHER SEASONED, QUALIFIED AND EFFECTIVE TEACHER. I ASK YOU TO REINSTATE MR. WASHINGTON AS DIRECTOR FOR 23-24. AND FOR THE SAKE OF OUR CHILDREN'S EMOTIONAL HEALTH, I THANK YOU. VERONICA HUNTER JOHNSON, FOLLOWED BY JUAN ROMERO AND RYAN PENNER. OKAY. I'M HERE TO ADDRESS TWO ITEMS. FIRST OFF IS REINSTATING MR. WASHINGTON AS THE BAND DIRECTOR AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. MY SON FELL IN LOVE WITH THE PROGRAM IN ELEMENTARY. I LOVE IT. ELEMENTARY WHEN HE HAD AN OUTREACH PROGRAM AND THE KIDS GOT AN OPPORTUNITY TO COME OUT ON THE FOOTBALL FIELD. AND THAT'S WHEN MY SON SAID, I'M GOING TO PLAY THE TROMBONE AND I'M GOING TO BE A PART OF WESTBURY BAND WAY BACK IN THE SECOND AND THIRD GRADE. SO THOSE ARE THE TYPE OF INPUTS AND THE TYPE OF EFFECTS THAT HE HAVE ON THE COMMUNITY AND THAT, YOU KNOW, FROM LOVETT TO MEYERLAND TO WESTBURY, MY SON IS ENJOYED THE BAND AND WE WANT TO KEEP OUR BAND DIRECTOR. ALSO, I WANT TO ADDRESS THE PRINCIPAL, MISS NIXON, AND HER POLICIES OF MISCOMMUNICATION AND CALLING STUDENTS IN THE OFFICE TO SPEAK TO THEM ABOUT BAND INCOMES AND THE MONEY AND THE SCHOOL AND NOT SPEAKING TO THE PARENTS. WE'VE BEEN WAITING ON A MEETING WITH HER SINCE MAY 3RD, EMAILING EVERYONE AND STILL HAVEN'T GOTTEN A DATE. WE DESERVE TO HAVE COMMUNICATION. WE WANT TO BE A PART OF OUR STUDENTS LEARNING. YOU KNOW, I'M IN A PTO, I'M IN SDMC, BUT WE CAN'T GET A MEETING WITH HER. THANK YOU. JUAN ROMERO, FOLLOWED BY RYAN PENNER AND ANNA OTERO. JUAN ROMERO. RYAN PENNER. ANA OTERO. ANA OTERO, FOLLOWED BY MICHAEL JOHNSON SENIOR. DO YOU KNOW WHERE THE TRANSLATION SERVICES ARE? THERE'S NOBODY BACK THERE. OKAY. GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. MY NAME IS ANA OTERO. MY NAME IS ANA OTERO, MIJA. BRIANNA OTERO, MY DAUGHTER, BRIANNA OTERO. EMPEZO ESTE ANO IN LA ESCUELA WAS BETTY. SHE BEGAN THIS YEAR AT THE WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. CUANDO COMENZO COMENZO MUY EMOCIONADA. WHEN SHE BEGAN, SHE WAS VERY EXCITED. ESSER POR LA BANDA DE LA ESCUELA BECAUSE SHE WAS ACCEPTED INTO THE BAND PROGRAM AT THE SCHOOL. NOSOTROS RECIBIMOS LA NOTICIA. AND NOW THAT WE RECEIVED THE NEWS, DE NUESTRO DIRECTOR DE BANDA THAT THE BAND DIRECTOR MUY TRISTE, WE FELT VERY SAD. TODAS LAS PERSONAS, ESTAMOS AQUI, ESTAMOS TRUSTEE. AND I THINK THAT ALL THE PEOPLE THAT ARE HERE. VAMOS ESTA NOTICIA. BECAUSE WE RECEIVE THIS NEWS DIRECTOR DE LA BANDA THAT THEY'RE GOING TO REMOVE THE BAND DIRECTOR. CUANDO UN BUEN TRABAJO POR TODA LA ESCUELA POR TODOS LOS ALUMNOS WHEN HE'S DONE A GREAT JOB FOR THE ENTIRE SCHOOL AND FOR ALL THE STUDENTS. [02:00:06] TODOS LOS PADRES NECESITAMOS LES PEDIMOS DE FAVOR A TODA LA JUNTA DIRECTIVA. ALL OF THE PARENTS NEED AND ASK THAT ALL OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS WERE HERE. POR FAVOR THAT YOU PLEASE THINK ABOUT IN BEING IN TODO EL TRABAJO. EL MAESTRO POR LA ESCUELA POR LOS ALUMNOS THAT YOU THINK WELL ABOUT ALL OF THE WORK THAT THE INDIVIDUAL, THE EMPLOYEE HAS DONE FOR THE SCHOOL AND FOR THE STUDENTS. ENFOCADO MUCHO EN LA ESCUELA IN MANTENER IN ALTO LA ESCUELA HIGH SCHOOL WESTBURY BECAUSE THEY HAVE FOCUSED ON THE SCHOOL AND MAINTAINING IT AT A HIGH STANDARD. GRACIAS. THANK YOU. MICHAEL JOHNSON, SENIOR, FOLLOWED BY SHANITA WASHINGTON. GOOD EVENING. MICHAEL JOHNSON SENIOR, FATHER OF MICHAEL JOHNSON JUNIOR. HE'S A JUNIOR IN THE BAND AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. I WAS JUST AMAZED ABOUT HOW EVERYBODY IN THE COMMUNITY I ALWAYS SAY THEY WANT A LEADER, SOMEONE THAT KIDS CAN LOOK UP TO AND HELP THE COMMUNITY. AND YOU HAVE A GENTLEMAN LIKE MR. WASHINGTON. I HAVE THE ABILITY, I HAVE A CAREER THAT I'M ABLE TO DROP MY SON OFF EVERY MORNING AND PICK HIM UP EVERY EVENING. AND MR. WASHINGTON IS THERE. AND WHEN YOU HAVE A DEDICATED EMPLOYEE LIKE THAT, IT'S A SHAME THAT YOU WOULD JUST GET RID OF HIM OR JUST DISREGARD IT. AND THEN HE'S RUNNING AN EXCELLENT PROGRAM THAT EVERYONE SEEMS TO RESPECT. THE SECOND THING THAT REALLY JUST IRKS ME IS THAT THE PRINCIPAL WOULDN'T SPEAK TO ANYONE, ANY OF THE PARENTS. I HAVEN'T HEARD ONE PARENT SAY THAT SHE ACTUALLY SPOKE TO THEM, GAVE HIM A REASON WHY. BUT IT JUST SEEMS JUST A TRAGEDY THAT ANY CONFLICT THAT A PRINCIPAL AND A TEACHER HAVE WHERE WE KNOW THERE'S NO PERFECT EMPLOYEE, BUT WHY WOULD YOU HURT SO MANY STUDENTS AND PARENTS JUST BECAUSE ONE LITTLE ISSUE YOU HAVE. DEAL WITH THAT ISSUE ALONE, BUT DON'T HURT THE COMMUNITY AND THE STUDENTS AND THE PARENTS. THAT'S IT. THANK YOU. SHANITA WASHINGTON, FOLLOWED BY SUSANA GUZMAN AND SAM SMITH. GOOD EVENING. I'M SHANITA. I AM THE PARENT OF A STUDENT BAND STUDENT AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. HE'S GOING INTO HIS SENIOR YEAR. I WOULD LIKE TO REQUEST THE REINSTATEMENT OF REGINALD WASHINGTON, THE BAND DIRECTOR. MR. WASHINGTON HAS POSITIVELY INFLUENCED EVERY STUDENT HE HAS COME ACROSS IN THE PAST 17 YEARS. HE ENCOURAGES THE STUDENTS TO BELIEVE IN THEMSELVES AND TO USE THEIR MUSICAL GIFTS TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN LIFE. HE IS A MENTOR TO THE STUDENTS. HE TEACHES THEM THAT HARD WORK PAYS OFF. THIS MAKES THEM STRIVE TO BE THE BEST. BY MAINTAINING GOOD GRADES AND HAVING SELF DISCIPLINE, THE PROGRAM THAT HE CREATED HAS ALLOWED SO MANY TO RECEIVE SCHOLARSHIPS. WHY WOULD ANYONE WANT TO CHANGE THAT? PLEASE THINK OF THE STUDENTS AND THE NEGATIVE IMPACT THAT THIS WILL HAVE ON THEM MENTALLY AND EMOTIONALLY. MY SON WAS NOT IN A GOOD SPACE DURING COVID WHEN HE CAME TO WESTBURY. HE WAS NOT PHYSICALLY FIT AND THIS BAND CHANGED HIM. WHEN I TELL YOU HE'S RIGHT THERE, HE HAS LOST. HE IS SO PHYSICALLY FIT NOW. I AM PROUD. VERY PROUD. AND I'M SO THANKFUL. MR. WASHINGTON, I AM SO THANKFUL. THANK YOU. SUSANA GUZMAN. HI, I'M SUSANA GUZMAN, PARENT OF A FRESHMAN AT WESTBURY HIGH SCHOOL. OUR WESTBURY BAND DIRECTOR, MR. WASHINGTON, HAS BEEN A PILLAR AND AN INSTRUMENTAL PART IN MY SON'S AND ALL STUDENTS EDUCATION. WE CHOSE TO ATTEND THIS HIGH SCHOOL DUE TO THE BAND PROGRAM UNDER MR. WASHINGTON'S DIRECTION. FROM MY SON'S PERSPECTIVE, HE HAS BEEN A VERY INFLUENCE IN MY LIFE. HE'S MADE SURE EVERYONE IS DOING THE RIGHT THING AND KEEPING UP WITH THEIR GRADES. HE FEELS HE'S TAUGHT HIM TO BE WELL DISCIPLINED AND A PROFESSIONAL YOUNG PERSON. HE ACTUALLY DOES CARE ABOUT OUR EDUCATION AND SUCCESS. WE HAVE YET TO HEAR FROM THE PRINCIPAL. SHE IS NOT PUTTING THE STUDENTS FIRST. REMOVING THE BAND DIRECTOR FROM WESTBURY WOULD BE THE DEMISE OF THE BAND PROGRAM AND A HUGE LOSS FOR THE STUDENTS, SCHOOL AND BAND COMMUNITY. WE REQUEST THE THE WESTBURY BAND DIRECTOR, MR. WASHINGTON, BE REINSTATED. THANK YOU. SAM SMITH. SAM SMITH. OKAY. NEXT, WE WILL HEAR FROM REGISTERED SPEAKERS WHO SIGNED UP TO SPEAK VIRTUALLY VIA ZOOM. ZOOM SPEAKERS, PLEASE REMEMBER THAT WE MUST SEE YOU LIVE WITH YOUR CAMERA ON AS YOU SPEAK. MISS CONROY, PLEASE IDENTIFY AND ADMIT OUR SPEAKERS. [02:05:03] JEFFREY HUNTER, PLEASE TURN ON YOUR CAMERA. YOU MAY BEGIN SPEAKING. JEFFREY HUNTER, YOU NEED TO TURN YOUR CAMERA ON, PLEASE, AND BEGIN SPEAKING. STOP. JEFFREY HUNTER, YOU MUST TURN YOUR CAMERA ON, PLEASE, AND BEGIN SPEAKING. HELLO? CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, WE CAN HEAR YOU. HI. SO, MY NAME IS JEFF HUNTER. THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME A MINUTE TO TALK. TWO THINGS I KNOW, UNDER THIS BAND DIRECTOR, THIS BAND PROGRAM HAS FLOURISHED NOT ONLY JUST REGIONALLY, BUT ACROSS THE SOUTHERN STATES. ANOTHER THING I KNOW IS TRANSPARENCY WILL HELP BUILD TRUST, WILL HELP BUILD ADVOCACY FOR ALL STAKEHOLDERS. AND I AM DISAPPOINTED IN THIS CASE. IT SEEMS TO BE A LACK OF TRANSPARENCY. IT SEEMS TO BE THINGS ARE BEING MOVED IN A PERSONALLY MOTIVATED WAY AND THE FACT THAT THE PRINCIPAL WOULD TAKE THE TIME TO MEET WITH SUCH DEDICATED PARENTS AND STAKEHOLDERS TO REALLY JUST RUN A TRANSPARENT PROGRAM OF WHAT WE'RE DOING OR WHAT SHE'S PLANNING TO DO IS DISAPPOINTING AND DISHEARTENING. SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE THAT WE STEP BACK, HIT THE RESET BUTTON AND DO SOMETHING THAT'S TRANSPARENT, WHERE PEOPLE CAN MAKE EDUCATED DECISIONS ON THE PATH FORWARD. THANK YOU. MADAM PRESIDENT. THAT WAS THE ONLY ZOOM SPEAKER IN THE QUEUE. THANK YOU. THAT CONCLUDES OUR HEARING OF THE COMMUNITY. MADAM PRESIDENT, I HAVE A POINT OF ORDER. GO AHEAD. YEAH, I JUST WANT TO THANK ALL OF THESE YOUNG FOLK AND ADULTS FOR COMING OUT HERE TONIGHT. AND THE POINT OF ORDER IS THAT AS A BOARD MEMBER, I REFERRED IT TO THE ADMINISTRATION FOR REVIEW, AND I WOULD LIKE TO ASK SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE, WHAT HAVE YOU BEGIN TO LOOK INTO THE SITUATION YET WESTBURY? IT'S A PERSONNEL MATTER AND UNFORTUNATELY IT CAN'T BE TALKED ABOUT. I JUST WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW I REFERRED IT TO HIM. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING OUT. WE WILL NOW GO BACK TO ITEMS CONSIDERED AND HELD FOR ABSTENTION AND OR DISCUSSION. OUR NEXT ITEM BEING HELD FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA IS ITEM FOR APPROVAL OF THE MAY BUDGET AMENDMENT, AND THIS WAS BEING HELD AT THE [4. Approval Of The May Budget Amendment] REQUEST OF TRUSTEE. CRUZ. TRUSTEE. CRUZ IS NOT HERE, IS SHE ON ZOOM? MISS CONROY ADMITTING HER NOW, HOLD ON, PLEASE. CAN YOU ASK THE GUEST TO CHECK? AND SEE IF THEY HAVE A PHONE. TRUSTEE. CRUZ. YOU'RE IN THE ROOM. WE NEED TO SEE YOU ON CAMERA, PLEASE. SO. WE DO HAVE A MISSING PHONE FROM ONE OF THE TRUSTEES. SO WHILE WE'RE WAITING ON TRUSTEE CRUZ DOES ANYONE HAVE. DOES ANYBODY FIND A PHONE? THANK YOU. OKAY, SO TRUSTEE CRUZ, CAN YOU HEAR US? YES, WE ARE ON ITEM FOUR APPROVAL OF THE MAY BUDGET AMENDMENT. OKAY. MAY I HAVE A MOTION? OH, I HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE ALLEN. DO I HAVE A SECOND? I HAVE A SECOND BY TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? TRUSTEE CRUZ. THANK YOU. SO I'M VERY CONCERNED THAT AS OF MARCH 31ST, 2023, WE HAD ONLY SPENT 64% OF FUNCTION 11, WHICH IS INSTRUCTION. AND A YEAR AGO, AT THE SAME TIME, WE HAD SPENT 61%. OR FUNCTIONAL [INAUDIBLE] 64 EARLIER. WHAT THIS TELLS ME IS THAT PRINCIPALS AND DEPARTMENTS ARE NOT SPENDING THE MONEY ALLOCATED FOR INSTRUCTION FOR A PARTICULAR YEAR. DECENTRALIZATION DOES NOT EQUATE TO LACK OF SUPPORT, GUARDRAILS OR CONTROLS, ESPECIALLY IF OUR PURPOSE OF A SCHOOL DISTRICT IS TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR STUDENTS ARE [02:10:08] LEARNING. IF WE CONTINUE TO INTENTIONALLY INFLATE OUR RAINY DAY FUND BALANCE, WE ARE TAKING MONEY THAT SHOULD BE SPENT ON EDUCATING CHILDREN AND WE ARE MERELY SAVING FOR SOME RAINY DAY THAT WILL ONLY BE A BAND-AID ON ANY GIVEN YEAR. IT DOES NOT ADDRESS THE DEFICIT, AND IT CONTINUES TO ROB OUR CHILDREN OF THE EDUCATION THEY DESERVE. PRINCIPALS AND DEPARTMENTS NEED SUPPORT AND ACCOUNTABILITY WITH SPENDING THEIR RESOURCES TO BE ABLE TO DO RIGHT BY OUR KIDS AND FOCUS ON THEIR OUTCOMES. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE ALLEN. THANK YOU. MR. SUPERINTENDENT. LAST THURSDAY, I THINK I ASKED ABOUT THE ONE TIME FUNDS THAT WE HAVE FOR THIS YEAR, AND TRUSTEE DEIGAARD HAD SOME KNOWLEDGE OF THOSE FUNDS. AND MY QUESTION IS, WELL, LET ME GIVE YOU THE INFORMATION SOME BEFORE THAT. DEBAKEY RECEIVED $272,000 IN EXTRA FUNDS. HSPVA RECEIVED 214,000 IN EXTRA FUNDS. TH ROGERS, FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS HAS RECEIVED 200,000 IN EXTRA FUNDS. CARNEGIE VANGUARD, 127,000 IN EXTRA FUNDS. WESTBURY 117,000 IN EXTRA FUNDS. HAMILTON MIDDLE SCHOOL $100,000 IN EXTRA MAGNET MONEY. OAK FOREST, 94,000IN EXTRA MAGNET MONEY AND JONES, 90,000 AN EXTRA MAGNET MONEY. THOSE MONIES ARE THOSE STUDENTS THAT WERE SUPPOSED TO BE ONE TIME FUNDS AND THAT WERE SHARED BETWEEN THE SCHOOLS WHEN THEY NEEDED TO DO SOMETHING EXTRA. AS I SAID BEFORE, I GOT 20,000 ONE TIME. SO THAT AND WE TOOK THAT 20,000 AND REPAIRED OUR. CAN YOU FIX THAT TO TWO MINUTES IS STILL STUCK ON ONE MINUTE.. REPAIRED OUR INSTRUMENTS. SO MY QUESTION IS, I ASKED YOU TO TO LET ME KNOW IF YOU WERE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT SO YOU DIDN'T EMAIL ME OR TEXT ME OR ANYTHING. SO WERE YOU ABLE TO ADDRESS THE MAGNET FUNDS THAT WE HAVE? IF NOT, THEN I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THAT THE NEW SUPERINTENDENT AND BOARD OF MANAGERS INCLUDE THIS REACTIVATION OF THE ONE TIME FUNDS. SO WERE YOU ABLE TO TALK TO THE MAGNET PEOPLE? WE DID TAKE A LOOK AT IT AND HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH THE MAGNET PEOPLE. AND DUE TO THE LATE NATURE OF THE REQUEST, WHAT THIS WOULD HAVE MEANT IS SEVERAL STAFFING CHANGES. SO WE DIDN'T THINK IT WAS IN THE BEST NATURE OF, YOU KNOW, THESE SCHOOLS AND THE IMPACT THAT WOULD HAVE ON THESE SCHOOLS AT THIS LATE NATURE. WE.. SO THEY'VE BEEN KEEPING ALMOST A COUPLE OF MILLION DOLLARS BETWEEN FIVE SCHOOLS THAT THE REST OF THE DISTRICT IS SUPPOSED TO SHARE. SO THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO KEEP IT NEXT YEAR BECAUSE IT'S A LATE DATE. THEY KNEW IT WAS A ONE TIME FUND AND THEY KNEW IT WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE IT ONE TIME. AND I HAD THIS CONVERSATION SPECIFICALLY WITH WITH MY CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER IN REFERENCE TO TO IT BEING CATEGORIZED AS ONE TIME FUNDS. AND GLENN, I DON'T REMEMBER HOW MANY YEARS MA'AM. I THINK THE DEFINITION CHANGED WITH OUR LAST AFTER THE LAST SUPERINTENDENT WHEN YOU CAME IN, THE DEFINITION KIND OF CHANGED. AND IT WAS STUCK AT THE SCHOOLS. OKAY. BUT AS I INDICATED, DUE TO THE LATE NATURE, WE JUST DIDN'T FEEL IT WAS HEALTHY TO TO GO IN AND CHANGE. IT WOULD MEAN INDIVIDUALS THAT WOULDN'T BE ALLOCATED TO THOSE SCHOOLS. THOSE INDIVIDUALS HAVE ALREADY GONE THROUGH WHAT IT WAS TO HAVE THOSE COMMITMENTS TO BE AT THOSE SCHOOLS. SO I'M OPEN AND WE WERE LOOKING AT THAT FOR THE PREVIOUS YEAR, SO WE'RE OKAY. SO THESE ARE POSITIONS THAT THESE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN SOME OF THEM, SOME OF THEM ARE AND SOME OF THEM ARE NOT. THE ONES THAT ARE NOT POSITIONS. ARE OTHER SCHOOLS ABLE TO SHARE THOSE SCHOOLS THAT WERE TOLD TO HAVE A THEME WITH NO MONEY? SO I DON'T KNOW THE EXACT NATURE OF EVERY DOLLAR, BUT I DO KNOW THAT THERE ARE STAFFING IMPLICATIONS THAT GO ALONG WITH THAT AS WELL. WE DO HAVE THIS PROCESS CALLED RIFF WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE ANY MORE MONEY. WHAT WAS YOUR QUESTION? MY QUESTION WAS, ARE WE GOING TO BE ABLE TO SHARE THE MONEY BACK, PUT IT BACK INTO TO REACTIVATE THE MONEY AS IT WAS BEFORE, NOT TO GIVE TO CERTAIN 5 OR 6 SCHOOLS THAT WHEN THE WHOLE DISTRICT IS SUPPOSED TO BE, YOU KNOW, I HAVE THIS ISSUE WHEN WHEN I SAY SHOW ME THE MONEY AND THEN SOMEBODY SHOWS YOU THE MONEY AND IT'S NOT BEING SHARED EQUITABLY, EQUITABLY. THAT'S THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO DO EVER SINCE I THINK THE LAST FOUR OF US THAT CAME ON, THE FOUR PEOPLE THAT CAME, OUR MAIN WORD WAS EQUITABLE. AND SO NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN WE CAN SEE AFTER WE'VE BEEN HERE A WHILE AND LEARNED THE ROPES, THAT THINGS ARE NOT EQUITABLE AND CERTAIN SCHOOLS GET TO KEEP MILLIONS, THAT'S BEEN A MAJOR PART OF WHAT WE'VE DONE, DR. ALLEN AND WHAT WE'VE TRIED TO SUPPORT IN TERMS OF EQUITY THROUGHOUT. [02:15:03] IT'S A PART OF WHY WE MOVED FORWARD WITH RISE AND THE SUPPORTS THAT WE'VE PUT THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT. THIS PARTICULAR INSTANCE IN REFERENCE TO MAGNET AND THE LONG HISTORY, GIVEN THAT IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S LATE NATURE, WE CHOSE NOT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE RECOMMENDATION. SO I HEAR WHERE YOU'RE COMING FROM AND RESPECT FOR WHERE YOU'RE COMING FROM. BUT AS YOU INDICATED, THIS WILL BE AN ITEM THAT WE WON'T BE MAKING ANY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FOR THIS COMING SCHOOL YEAR. BUT WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT THE CONCERN IS PASSED ON TO THE NEXT SUPERINTENDENT AND THE BOARD OF MANAGERS AS THEY TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT MOVING FORWARD WITH BUDGETS AND PREVIOUS YEARS. AND BASICALLY, THAT WAS MY POINT WHEN I TOLD YOU I WAS NOT BEING POLITICALLY CORRECT TODAY. I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE ALL THE MONEY IS OUT THERE. EVERY TIME YOU HEAR ME OPEN UP MY MOUTH. IT'S ABOUT SOME MONEY THAT'S BEEN HIDDEN FOR A WHILE. SO I THINK.. I CAN I CAN TELL YOU. OH, YOU DID NOT IN THE BUSINESS OF THIS, NOT YOUR FAULT. THIS IS YOU. YOU CAME IN WITH EVERYBODY TO BE EQUITABLE. AND WHEN YOU DID THAT, YOU WERE BROWBEATEN DOWN SO THAT THINGS WOULD STAY THE STATUS QUO. SO THAT ALL THE SCHOOLS THAT HAD CONTINUED TO HAVE AND THOSE THAT HAD NOT CONTINUED TO NOT GET THAT WASN'T YOUR FAULT. YOU TRIED AND THEN YOU WERE BROWBEATEN DOWN, WHICH IS PROBABLY THE REASON WHY WE'RE GETTING A BOARD OF MANAGERS BECAUSE OF THOSE TRUSTEES THAT BROWBEAT AND DO THE THINGS THAT THEY DO AND THAT THEY'RE STILL TRYING TO DO. AND THEN. OKAY. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. I WOULD HAVE TO COME AFTER TRUSTEE ALLEN. SORRY. SO THAT THE COMMUNITY UNDERSTANDS WHAT, WHAT, WHAT'S TRUSTEE ALLEN IS TALKING ABOUT. AND EXCUSE ME IF YOU DO, I DON'T WANT TO TALK DOWN TO ANYONE, BUT IT WAS A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT THESE SCHOOLS WAS ONLY SUPPOSED TO RECEIVE ONE TIME. THANKFULLY WESTBURY, YOU WERE INCLUDED. OKAY. BUT THE PROBLEM IS THEY'VE BEEN RECEIVING IT FOR THREE YEARS NOW AND THEY WILL CONTINUE TO RECEIVE IT EVEN AFTER WE'RE GONE. EVEN THOUGH WE BROUGHT IT TO THE ATTENTION OF THE ADMINISTRATION. IT CONCERNS ME BECAUSE I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE WESTBURY, BUT I ALSO LOVE WORTHY, ALSO LOVE MADISON. I ALSO LOVE SOUTH EARLY. ALL OF THOSE SCHOOLS ARE IN OUR AREA, DISTRICT NINE AND THEN THERE ARE SO MANY OTHER SCHOOLS WHO DON'T HAVE. AND SO OUR CONCERN IS THAT THIS MONEY NEEDS TO BE PUT BACK INTO THE COFFER SO THAT IT CAN BE DIVIDED EQUITABLY. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE SANTOS. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ AND SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. I DO WANT TO ECHO TRUSTEE ALLEN, TRUSTEE GUIDRY'S POINT SEGREGATION. THAT'S INEQUITY IN ITS MOST VISIBLE FORM. WE HAVE BEEN OUR COMMUNITY SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN STRIPPED OF NOT JUST THEIR TALENT, BUST OUT OF OUR COMMUNITIES, BUT ALSO NO RESOURCES OR NO ADEQUATE RESOURCES HAVE BEEN GIVEN TO OUR COMMUNITY. I REFUSE TO VOTE ON A BUDGET AMENDMENT THAT DOES NOT ADDRESS THESE ISSUES. WE HAVE INSTITUTIONAL KNOWLEDGE STUDENTS, FORMER TEACHERS, FORMER PRINCIPALS ON THIS DAIS THAT HAVE TRIED TO FIGURE THIS OUT. WE'VE TRIED TO GIVE POWER TO THE POWERLESS, AND IT HAS FAILED TIME AND TIME AGAIN WITH THIS INSTITUTIONAL KNOWLEDGE. WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO SUCCEED. SO A BOARD OF MANAGERS THAT DOESN'T HAVE THE COMMUNITY BEHIND THEM, A BOARD OF MANAGERS THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE TRUST, THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE INSTITUTIONAL KNOWLEDGE, IS NOT GOING TO GET IT STRAIGHT. WE DON'T NEED OUTSIDERS COMING IN AND TELLING US WHAT OUR COMMUNITY NEEDS. SO I WILL NOT BE VOTING ON THIS WITHOUT SOME AMENDMENTS. THANK YOU. SO I'LL GO IN FOR ROUND ONE. FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO THANK DR. WATTS FOR DOING THE MAGNET STUDY, BECAUSE WITHOUT THAT INFORMATION, WE WOULDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON. I AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUES THAT THERE IS SOME INHERENT INEQUITIES THAT WE SEE FROM THAT STUDY AND THAT THEY DO NEED TO BE REMEDIED. UM, I YOU KNOW, WE'RE BEING TOLD THAT IT'S TOO LATE AT THIS POINT IN TIME, BUT DEFINITELY FOR ANYONE COMING IN, IT'S DEFINITELY A CONCERN THAT THERE ARE SOME SCHOOLS WHO ARE STRUGGLING TO FIND PTAS FOR PRE K TEACHERS, AND THERE'S OTHER SCHOOLS RECEIVING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. [02:20:02] TRUSTEE. GUIDRY. THANK YOU. SO PLEASE HELP ME UNDERSTAND SOMETHING, BECAUSE I WENT TO LAW SCHOOL. I DIDN'T GO TO MEDICAL SCHOOL, AND THIS IS PROBABLY WHY. ON SLIDE 18, WE'RE LOOKING AT AN ACTUAL AN MARCH OF 2022. A BUDGET, THE AMOUNT WE BUDGETED. AND THE AMOUNT WE BUDGETED WAS $2,000,313 AND 604. BUT THE ACTUAL THAT WAS SPENT, UNLESS I'M WRONG, IS 1,000,274. IS IT $1,274,000,410. WE CAME IN LESS. WHERE IS THE REST OF THAT MONEY? BECAUSE ACCORDING TO THE ACTUAL REVENUE UP HERE. IT'S 1 MILLION. 1 BILLION. I'M SORRY. MY EYES ARE GIVING OUT. EIGHT 2355. 916 SO THERE WAS SOME MONEY LEFT OVER THAT I'M NOT SEEING. AND I KNOW, GLENN, I COULD BE READING. I'M SORRY. I KNOW SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. I COULD BE READING IT WRONG. BUT CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN THAT TO ME? BECAUSE NOT ONLY IS IT IN 2022, BUT IT'S IN 2023 AS WELL. WE CAME UNDER OUR BUDGETED AMOUNT AND WE CAME UNDER THE AMOUNT OF THE REVENUE OF THE ACTUAL REVENUE. SO WHAT AM I MISSING? SURE. SO IN THE ACTUAL COLUMN, THAT'S A SNAPSHOT IN TIME. THAT'S JUST SAYING THAT'S NOT THE BUDGET. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE ACTUAL COLUMN, RIGHT. THAT IS JUST SAYING AT THIS POINT IN TIME, I'M GOING TO LOOK AT TALK ABOUT 22. WE AT THAT TIME COLLECTED $1.8 BILLION. BUT AS OF THAT TIME, WE ONLY SPENT 1.2. RIGHT. BUT THERE ARE SOME BIG DOLLARS IN HERE THAT WE HAVEN'T SPENT YET IN 22IN MARCH, FOR EXAMPLE, RECAPTURE OF 231 MILLION STILL HADN'T BEEN PAID. OH, I SEE. OKAY. YOU CAN STOP RIGHT THERE. I DIDN'T KNOW BECAUSE I'M THINKING WE'RE AT THE END OF THE YEAR IN MARCH AND YEAH, WE'RE AT THE END OF THE YEAR PRETTY MUCH. AND THOSE ITEMS ARE NOT THERE. SO THAT'S I THINK THAT'S WHAT THREW ME OFF. WELL, AND YOU STILL HAVE APRIL, MAY, JUNE FOR SALARIES TO BE PAID OUT IN THE DISTRICT AS WELL. YEAH. BUT STILL, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE BIG EXPENDITURES THAT HAVEN'T COME OUT YET. OKAY. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE. ALLEN. WHILE WE ARE ON THE BUDGET FOR THIS PARTICULAR YEAR. I ALSO WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT I ADDRESSED IN THE NEW BOARD OF MANAGERS AND THE NEW SUPERINTENDENTS SAW OUR ISSUES THAT WE HAD PREVIOUSLY IN THE CAREER AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT. THAT MONEY THAT WAS SET UP, ESPECIALLY WITH THE LAST VOTE THAT WE HAD FOR LAMAR TO GET A VETERINARY CLINIC AND THEY WERE UPSET BECAUSE THEY HAD A DOG WASHING CLINIC AND IT DIDN'T WORK. AND THEN THEY TURNED IT INTO A CAFETERIA AND THAT DIDN'T WORK. THEN THEY NEED SOME MORE MONEY. THEY WANTED SOME MORE MONEY FOR VETERINARY CLINIC AND WE VOTED THAT DOWN. WE DIDN'T VOTE IT DOWN. IT DIDN'T PASS. PUT IT LIKE THAT. THERE ARE SCHOOLS WITH CTE PROGRAMS LIKE BEL AIR HAS TEN. LAMAR HAS 14. AND THEN THERE ARE OTHER SCHOOLS THAT HAVE TO GET ON THE BUS, WASTE THEIR VALUABLE TIME TO ALL GO OVER TO BARBARA JORDAN TO GET ONE OF THEIR 14 PROGRAMS FOR THOSE CHILDREN TO DO CAREER AND TECHNOLOGY. WHEN I ASKED YOU TO SHOW ME THE MONEY, YOU WENT TO THE CAREER AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT TO GET THE MONEY THEY DIDN'T SHOW. CAN Y'ALL MOVE THAT TO TWO MINUTES? SO, MADAM PRESIDENT. HAVE WE SUSPENDED OUR ONE ROUND OF ONE MINUTE RULE FOR THIS MEETING? NO, WE HAVE NOT. BUT WE'RE. EVERYBODY ELSE WENT OVER ANYWAY. UM, BUDGET. YEAH. BACK TO THE CTE MONEY THAT YOU NEVER GET SHOWN. THE CONTRACT THAT I WAS SHOWN AND I DID TALK ABOUT THIS ELEVATOR IN THAT CONTRACT THAT WAS NOT EVEN THE CONTRACT THAT WAS FOR ACTUALLY FOR THE VETERINARY CLINIC. THAT WAS A FAKE CONTRACT THAT I WAS SHOWN. AND IT WAS FOR THE DOG WASHING PROJECT. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THEY CAME UP. LOOK AT HERE. YOU SIGNED IT. YOUR NAME IS RIGHT HERE. I KNOW WHAT I SIGNED. I READ I'M ONE OF THE FEW THAT READ. I READ EVERYTHING. IT WAS NOT THE CONTRACT. I KNEW WHAT THE CONTRACT LOOKED LIKE FOR THAT VETERINARY CLINIC. AND IT WAS NOT THAT CONTRACT THAT THEY SHOWED ME. SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THE NEW SUPERINTENDENT AND THE BOARD OF MANAGERS COMES IN AND LOOKS AT THAT CAREER AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT. THANK YOU. FOLLOW THE MONEY. [02:25:01] TRUSTEE. BLUEFORD-DANIELS. LET ME LOOK BACK OVER MY SHOULDER FOR OUR ATTORNEY, BECAUSE I KNOW SHE'S GOING TO GET ME, BUT I'M GOING TO ASK ABOUT THE BUDGET. HOW MUCH MONEY DO WE OWE STILL YET? IF WE OWE ANYTHING ON THE BEL AIR, $4.2 MILLION BASEBALL SOFTBALL FIELD. WE PAID IT OFF. IT'S PAID IN FULL. I KNOW IT'S A PREVIOUS BOARD THAT OKAYED THAT, BUT I JUST WANTED TO ASK SINCE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BUDGET. SO IF I REMEMBER THAT WAS THAT WAS IN THE THAT WAS IN THE BOND PROGRAM. I KNOW. BUT I JUST WONDERED WHAT WHAT REMAINED OF THAT EVEN THOUGH IT WAS THAT 2012 BOND, THEN WE STILL HAD TO PAY THE REMAINDER OF IT, I GUESS ABOUT LAST YEAR SOMETIMES. SO ONE OF THE THINGS, TOO, I WANT TO MENTION, AND I WILL SAY THIS OPENLY. YOU DO NEED TO TIE I KNOW YOU'RE YOU'RE WORKING REALLY HARD, BUT YOU NEED TO TIE IT TO ONE OF THE LINE ITEMS THAT IS IN THE BUDGET AMENDMENT ON THIS PARTICULAR AGENDA ITEM. I DON'T THINK BOND PROGRAMS ARE A PART OF THAT. BUT IF YOU'VE GOT A QUESTION ABOUT A PARTICULAR LINE ITEM AT THE FUNCTION LEVEL, THAT'S PART OF THE BUDGET AMENDMENT, THEN THAT WOULD BE GERMANE TO THIS TOPIC. YES, MA'AM. MAKE IT GERMANE. LOOK ON BUDGET PAGE 18. I WAS BRINGING IT AROUND. I KNEW IT WAS COMING BACK AROUND. I KNEW I WAS GOING TO GET A WHIPPING. BUT ANYWAY, THE INITIALLY AND TRUSTEE AND SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. I WILL SAY THIS IN ALL HONESTY, YOU KNOW, I KNOW WE'RE HAVING A LITTLE FUN, BUT SERIOUS ALL AT THE SAME TIME, YOU CAME TO US WITH A FIVE YEAR PLAN TWICE. AND WITH THAT FIVE YEAR PLAN, FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT FOLLOWED IT, I KNOW LARRY PROBABLY DID BECAUSE HE KNOWS MORE ABOUT THESE BONDS THAN I DO. YOU INITIALLY CAME TO US WITH YOUR STAFF TRYING TO SHOW US OPPORTUNITY FOR SOME EQUITY, AND THIS BOARD VOTED THAT DOWN. AND SO YOU HAD TO COME BACK WITH A SECONDARY FIVE YEAR PLAN. AND THAT FIVE YEAR PLAN, IT GAVE IT IT GAVE THE CAMPUSES THEY WERE RETAINING FULL AUTONOMY TO DO WHAT THEY WANTED TO DO WITH THAT MONEY. WHEREAS THE FIRST PLAN, HATTIE MAE WHITE, WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE IN CHARGE OF IT. AND THEN YOU ALL COULD HAVE TAILORED THE AMOUNTS OF MONIES THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN SPENT IN THE VARIOUS CAMPUSES. SO THAT WAS AN OPPORTUNITY. LET ME BRING IT BACK TO BUDGET PAGE 18. SO. AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF MONEY, I THINK. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. ALWAYS. WE ALWAYS LOSE THAT TRUSTEE. BUT TRUSTEE WAS GUIDRY WAS TALKING ABOUT THE BOTTOM LINE, GLENN, THAT SHE WAS SPEAKING OF. AS FAR AS WHAT LINE WAS THAT? WHAT LINE WAS. PAGE 18. WHAT LINE ITEM WAS THAT? THE BOTTOM LINE THAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT, THE SAVINGS, THE TOTAL AMOUNT, I DON'T HAVE IT PULLED UP. BUT THAT ITEM THAT YOU MENTIONED, GLENN, IS THAT A CARRY OVER FROM LAST YEAR OR IS THERE ANY OF THAT MONEY, CARRY OVER FROM LAST YEAR, OR IS THAT ALL PART OF THAT DOLLARS FROM THE 2022-23 BUDGET? SO I'M NOT SURE I'M FOLLOWING WHAT I WAS RESPONDING TO. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. OKAY. PAGE 18. RIGHT. PAGE 18. AND WE'RE ON THE ACTUAL BUDGET AS OF MARCH 31ST, 2023. THE SURPLUS. THE DEFICIT IS WHAT I WAS REFERENCING THE DEFICIT ABOUT. HOW MUCH OF THAT IS INCLUSIVE OF WHAT TRUSTEE ALLEN AND TRUSTEE GUIDRY WAS REFERENCING WITH THAT ONE TIME FUNDING THAT WAS MADE THREE TIMES IS, IS THAT IN THAT TOTAL AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WE'RE SPENDING FOR 2023? IT'S IN BOTH THE $2.3 MILLION IN 2022 AND IN 2023. OKAY. IT'S IN THE TOTAL BUDGET. SO THE NEXT YEAR, WHEN THAT'S WITHDRAWN, THEN THAT SHOULD WE SHOULD HAVE A SMALLER, SMALLER DEFICIT THAT'S GOING TO ROLL OVER FOR 23-24 ? CORRECT, BECAUSE WE'LL HAVE THAT MONEY RETURNED. SO RIGHT NOW, THERE'S NO THERE'S NO RECOMMENDATION TO CHANGE THE BUDGET FOR 23-24 RELATED TO THOSE MAGNET DOLLARS. YEAH, IT JUST. OKAY. I WENT TO WHEATLEY, Y'ALL, BUT I JUST DON'T SEE HOW THAT'S GOING TO ADD UP. LIKE, THESE QUESTIONS ARE FOR THE NEXT BUDGET WORKSHOP. WE WILL BE HERE. YES, IT'S THURSDAY. IT'S IN ONE WEEK. OKAY. DON'T SEE ANYBODY ELSE IN THE QUEUE. PLEASE VOTE. [02:30:14] I DON'T KNOW. I'M ABSTAINING. ONE MORE TRUSTEE TO VOTE. THAT WOULD BE ME. VOTING IS CLOSING. TRUSTEE CRUZ VOTED NO. MOTION FAILS. TWO IN FAVOR. SIX OPPOSED. ONE ABSTENTION. OUR NEXT ITEM HELD FIRM. THE CONSENT AGENDA IS ITEM FIVE. APPROVAL OF RECOMMENDED CURRICULUM MATERIALS FOR HUMAN SEXUALITY INSTRUCTION AND INSTRUCTION ON THE PREVENTION OF CHILD ABUSE, FAMILY VIOLENCE, DATING [5. Approval Of Recommended Curriculum Materials For Human Sexuality Instruction And Instruction On The Prevention Of Child Abuse, Family Violence, Dating Violence, And Sex Trafficking ] VIOLENCE AND SEX TRAFFICKING. THIS ITEM WAS HELD FOR DISCUSSION BY TRUSTEE BAKER. MAY I HAVE A MOTION? DO I HAVE A SECOND? I HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE WADE AND A SECOND BY TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? KATHY TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS. OH, WAIT. ARE YOU IN THE QUEUE? NO. TRUSTEE BAKER. YES. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MADAM PRESIDENT. I. I DID GET THE ANSWERS BACK ON THE Q&A, BUT I'M NOT SATISFIED WITH THAT. AND NAMELY BECAUSE I'M NOT CLEAR ON THE CONTENT OF THE HUMAN SEXUALITY INSTRUCTIONS AND HOW IT WILL BE TAUGHT TO K THROUGH ESPECIALLY FIVE FIFTH GRADE STUDENTS. SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE, COULD YOU CLARIFY THAT PART FOR ME FIRST OF ALL? DR. BIRD, DO YOU MIND SHARING AGAIN SOME OF THE INSTANCE? SO THE MATERIALS ADOPTED WERE APPROVED BY THE SHAC COMMITTEE AND THEY ARE AGE APPROPRIATE. EXCUSE ME FOR JUST A MOMENT. SURE. I SPOKE WITH THE SHAC COMMITTEE THAT I REFERRED TO THE FIRST TIME AROUND, AND THE PERSON SAID THAT THEY DID NOT APPROVE THAT AND THEY WERE UNAWARE OF IT. SO, I MEAN, WE HAVE THE MINUTES FROM THE MEETINGS AND THE ATTENDANCE. WE CAN. WE CAN. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WELL, PERHAPS SHE MISSED THAT MEETING, BUT HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AGE STUDENTS? SO IT'S AN OPT IN PROGRAM, SO PARENTS HAVE TO OPT THEIR CHILD INTO IT. IF THERE'S NO PERMISSION SLIP RECEIVED, THEN THE STUDENT WILL NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE INSTRUCTION. AND IT'S IT'S PRESENTED IN AGE APPROPRIATE WAYS. IT'S THE FACTS OF HUMAN REPRODUCTION IS ESSENTIALLY WHAT'S TAUGHT. AND AT THE YOUNGER GRADES, IT'S REALLY JUST ABOUT THEM UNDERSTANDING THEIR BODY. SO IT'S IT'S THIS HAS BEEN TAUGHT IN SCHOOLS FOR MANY YEARS. BUT AGAIN, THIS IS AN OPT IN PROGRAM FOR STUDENTS. SO NOBODY IS FORCED TO TO DO IT. AND IN FACT, LIKE IF A PARENT DOESN'T EXPLICITLY SAY THEY WANT THEIR CHILD TO PARTICIPATE, THEY DO NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE IN THE INSTRUCTION. OKAY. WELL, YOU KNOW, I JUST AS I SAID LAST WEEK AND I STILL SAY THAT TODAY, I JUST CANNOT GO WITH THAT. I SAY YOU CAN CALL ME OLD FASHIONED IF YOU WANT, BUT I JUST CANNOT SEE BECAUSE I HAVE A SEVEN YEAR OLD DAUGHTER AND I THINK SOME THINGS SHOULD BE LEFT. HEY, LISTEN, I'M TALKING RIGHT NOW. POINT OF ORDER. POINT OF ORDER. YOU MESSED UP MY MINUTES. I HAVE A SEVEN YEAR OLD, AND I BELIEVE THAT SOME THINGS SHOULD BE TAUGHT AT HOME. AND SO I JUST WILL NOT BE VOTING FOR THIS ITEM TONIGHT. THANK YOU, TRUSTEE WADE. YES, THERE YOU GO. SO MY QUESTION HAS TO DO WITH I REALIZE THAT THIS WAS BROUGHT I SEE THE ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS SUBMITTED, BUT MY AND I REALIZE THAT IT'S GONE THROUGH THIS PROCESS. MY CONCERN IS I'M NOT I KNOW YOU ALL SAY THAT YOU'RE GOING TO PUT IT ON THE PORTAL THIS THIS PARENT PORTAL. BUT WILL YOU ALSO PROVIDE THE THE LANGUAGE THAT'S GOING TO BE IN THIS, ESPECIALLY IN THIS HIGH SCHOOL? YES, THE PARENTS HAVE ABSOLUTELY THE RIGHT TO REVIEW ANY CURRICULUM, NOT JUST THIS ANY CURRICULUM THAT A PARENT WANTS TO PREVIEW. THEY ABSOLUTELY HAVE THE RIGHT TO DO THAT AND WILL MAKE IT AVAILABLE TO PARENTS AT ANY TIME THEY WISH. SO I SEE YOU SAY YOU'LL HAVE IN THE PORTAL AND IT HASN'T HAS THE CURRENT IS THE CURRENT CURRICULUM THAT'S ALREADY IN PLAY RIGHT NOW. IS IT ON THE PORTAL? I DO NOT KNOW. I HAVE TO VERIFY THAT. SO THAT'S MY PROBLEM. I'M NOT COMPLETELY CONFIDENT THAT. LET ME LOOK. OKAY. PLEASE. THANK YOU. SINCE I DON'T HAVE PORTAL ACCESS. MY OTHER QUESTION FOR YOU ON THIS IS THAT IF YOU'RE GOING TO SAY SOMETHING LIKE BIRTHING PERSONS, WHICH I AM TOTALLY AGAINST, IS THERE A WAY [02:35:02] TO STATE THAT THAT LANGUAGE WOULD BE IN THIS AS A HEADING SO PEOPLE KNOW TO BE LOOKING FOR IT? SO THAT THAT CHOICE OF LANGUAGE WAS A CHOICE THAT WAS MADE BY THE PUBLISHER. I GET IT. I GET IT. AND I SEE THAT YOU HAVE SAID THAT THE CDC AND THE WHO HAVE RECOMMENDED IT, WHICH AGAIN. TO THE PUBLIC. YEAH, WELL, ANYWAY, I SEE THAT. I GUESS WHAT I WANT TO KNOW IS WHAT CAN THE DISTRICT DO TO PROTECT CHILDREN AND LET THE PARENTS KNOW WHAT THE LANGUAGE THAT'S GOING TO BE CLEARLY STATED AT THE TOP BEFORE THEY EVEN GET INTO ALL THE MINUTIAE. WILL YOU BE ABLE TO SOMEHOW IMPLY THAT THIS LANGUAGE IS BEING USED? LET ME VERIFY WHAT. OKAY. THANK YOU. THAT'S ALL. THANK YOU, TRUSTEE GUIDRY. THANK YOU. SO JUST SO I CAN DO A RECAP A LITTLE BIT JUST FOR OUR STUDENTS TO KNOW THIS PROPOSAL IS GOING TO BE TAUGHT, ISN'T IT GOING TO BE TAUGHT, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE AT AN AGE APPROPRIATE LEVEL? THAT'S CORRECT. THAT'S CORRECT. AND THE PARENTS WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO NOT ONLY OPT OUT, BUT THEY HAVE TO ACTUALLY OPT IN TO THIS PROGRAM. IS THAT CORRECT? THAT'S CORRECT. SO IF A PARENT DOES NOT AGREE AND OPT IN, THEN THE CHILD ISN'T TAUGHT THIS, CORRECT? THAT'S CORRECT. AND SO AND WOULD YOU SAY THAT A TEACHER. OH, I'M DOING A CROSS EXAM. I'M SORRY [LAUGHTER]. SO SORRY. WOULD YOU SAY WOULD YOU SAY, SIR, THAT A TEACHER COULD CHANGE THE LANGUAGE FROM A BIRTHING PERSON TO A MOTHER? A PARENT AS THEY'RE TEACHING. IF THEY COULD. YES, THEY COULD. YES, THEY PROBABLY COULD. CORRECT. CORRECT. AND EXPLAIN TO THE CHILD IN AN AGE APPROPRIATE LANGUAGE WHAT THAT MEANS, CORRECT? CORRECT. I PASS THE WITNESS. THANK YOU [LAUGHTER]. TRUSTEE BAKER. OH, SORRY. TRUSTEE SANTOS. NO, I WAS FIRST POINT OF ORDER. YOU'VE ALREADY GONE ONE TIME. THANK YOU. PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE TRUSTEE BAKER. I'M GOING TO SAY THIS. I BELIEVE THAT WE, THE HISD BOARD, ARE ON DISPLAY OF AN EXAMPLE OF HOW PEOPLE SHOULDN'T BE TREATED. OUR DISTRICT IS MADE UP OF ALMOST 90% PEOPLE OF COLOR, ALMOST 90% OF STUDENTS THAT LIVE IN POVERTY. 90% OF OUR COMMUNITY IS MARGINALIZED AND IS BEING DISENFRANCHISED. WE ARE BEING MADE TO FEEL VERY SMALL BY ONE MAN. ONE MAN THAT IS NOT A PERSON OF COLOR AND CERTAINLY DOESN'T COME FROM POVERTY. WE CANNOT BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WE CAN NEVER KNOW. THE UNDERTONES OF THE DIALOG SUGGEST THAT PARENTS AND STUDENTS CANNOT THINK FOR THEMSELVES. I KNOW THAT OUR COMMUNITIES CAN THINK FOR THEMSELVES JUST BECAUSE I'M A WOMAN, JUST BECAUSE I'M A WOMAN OF COLOR DOESN'T MEAN THAT I CAN'T THINK FOR MYSELF. AND FOR THE RECORD, I WANT TO GO AHEAD AND STATE THAT I SUPPORT OUR TRANS BROTHERS AND SISTERS, INCLUDING THOSE WHO GIVE BIRTH, PERIOD. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE BAKER. JUST WANT TO ADD TO HOW MANY MINUTES DO I HAVE LEFT OVER. IS THE CLOCK ROLLING? SECOND ROUND. SECOND ROUND. JUST WANT TO ADD THAT WHEN I STATED SOME COMMENTS ON THIS LAST WEEK AND I GOT THE Q&A, MY CONCERN HERE IS ELEMENTARY AGED STUDENTS. AND, YOU KNOW, I'M AN OLDER PARENT AND THANK GOD I HAD MY FIRST CHILD. AND, YOU KNOW, THERE'S JUST SOME THINGS. AND I ALSO ASKED, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A STUDENT HAS NO PARENT TO OPT THEM OUT? AND I'M TOLD THAT THEY WILL BE SENT TO THE CAFETERIA WHILE THE CLASS IS GOING ON OR TO ANOTHER PART OF THE SCHOOL. SO IT SEEMS LIKE THEY'RE GOING TO BE OSTRACIZED FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE CLASS EVEN WHEN THEY'RE OPTED OUT BY THEIR PARENTS. SO THIS IS JUST PUT TOGETHER KIND OF WEIRD AND IT WILL NOT HAPPEN ON MY WATCH, NOT WITH MY APPROVAL. SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE COULD YOU GIVE SOME CLARITY ON IF A STUDENT HAS NO PARENT TO OPT OUT AND ALSO IF A STUDENT HAS A PARENT AND OPTS THEM OUT, SAY LIKE A CLASS OF 35 AND THAT ONE STUDENT OPTS OUT, WON'T THEY BE OSTRACIZED LIKE A TO A 7 TO 8 YEAR OLD FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO TAKE THE SEXUAL HUMAN SEXUALITY INSTRUCTION PORTION OF THE CLASS? THE IDEA IS NOT TO OSTRACIZE ANY STUDENT THAT HAS A GUARDIAN OR A PARENT THAT THAT OPTS OUT. THE IDEA IS TO PROVIDE THEM WITH AN ALTERNATIVE OPPORTUNITY TO NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE SAID CURRICULUM. [02:40:08] THEY'LL HAVE ALTERNATIVE OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN AROUND SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT GIVEN THAT WE PROVIDED A CHOICE TO OPT IN. SO IT'S COMPLETELY FOCUSED AROUND PARENT CHOICE AND PROVIDING AN ALTERNATIVE OUTSIDE OF WHAT IT IS THAT THAT PARENT DOESN'T WANT TO SEE FOR THEIR CHILD. WELL, LET ME JUST SAY THIS IN MOTION. I WOULD MAKE A POINT OF ORDER THAT THE PEOPLE OF DISTRICT SIX ARE VEHEMENTLY AGAINST THIS CURRICULUM. AND SO THOSE ARE THE ONES WHO ELECTED ME. WE ARE NINE INDIVIDUAL ELECTED BOARD OWNERS. AND SO I WILL NOT SUPPORT THIS CURRICULUM, PERIOD. TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. MY MICROPHONE DOESN'T WORK. I KNOW THIS IS A COMPLEX ISSUE, AND I WANT TO THANK TRUSTEE WADE FOR RAISING CONCERNS FROM THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE I THINK WE NEED TO BE MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE INCLUSIVE OF ALL VIEWS. BUT I ALSO AM GRATEFUL ON BEHALF OF THE FAMILIES WHO HAVE TRANS STUDENTS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE BEING INCLUSIVE OF ALL KIDS. THANK YOU. I DO HAVE ONE FOLLOW UP IN REFERENCE TO A QUESTION THAT TRUSTEE WADE HAD, DR. BIRD. SO TRUSTEE WADE, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, ONCE IT'S LOADED ONTO THE PORTAL, IT'LL BE AVAILABLE AT ALL TIMES FOR THIS CURRENT YEAR. IT WAS AVAILABLE AT ADOPTION, BUT IT WASN'T LOADED ONTO THE PORTAL YET. SO THE PORTAL IS A NEW FUNCTION THAT WE'RE USING, SO IT'LL ALWAYS BE AVAILABLE. BUT IT WAS AVAILABLE FOR PARENTS, STILL HAD TO OPT INTO IT AND IT WAS AVAILABLE AT THE TIME OF ADOPTION FOR THIS CURRENT SCHOOL YEAR, BUT IT WOULD BE AVAILABLE AT ALL TIMES GOING FORWARD. SEEING NOBODY ELSE IN THE QUEUE PLEASE VOTE. AND FOR THE RECORD, TRUSTEE CRUZ IS IN FAVOR. WE ARE MISSING ONE TRUSTEE. ALL RIGHT. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION PASSES SEVEN IN FAVOR. TWO OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. OUR LAST ITEM HELD FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA IS ITEM SIX APPROVAL OF PROPOSED REVISIONS TO BOARD POLICY. [6. Approval Of Proposed Revisions To Board Policy AE(LOCAL), Educational Philosophy, Regarding Goal Progress Measures 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 4.1, 4.2, And 4.3-First Reading ] AE LOCAL EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY REGARDING GOAL PROGRESS MEASURES. 1.1. 1.2. 1.3. 2.1. 2.2. 2.3. 4.1. 4.2 AND 4.3. FIRST READING. TRUSTEE CRUZ REQUESTED THAT THIS ITEM BE PULLED FOR DISCUSSION. MAY I HAVE A MOTION? DO I HAVE A SECOND? A MOTION BY TRUSTEE DEIGAARD AND A SECOND BY TRUSTEE WADE. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM MY COLLEAGUES? I SEE TRUSTEE DEIGAARD IN THE QUEUE AND THEN I WILL PUT TRUSTEE CRUZ IN RIGHT AFTER. TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. ACTUALLY, SINCE TRUSTEE CRUZ PULLED THIS. WELL, MY QUESTION IS, DO WE NEED TO VOTE ON THIS TONIGHT OR CAN THIS WAIT FOR THE BOARD OF MANAGERS? THIS IS THIS IS JUST CHANGING HOW THEY'RE CALCULATING THESE PROGRESS MEASURES. MONTH? I THINK YOU'RE COMPLETELY RIGHT. I THINK IT CAN. IT CAN WAIT. I'LL WAIT TO HEAR WHAT JUDITH SAYS. TRUSTEE CRUZ. WE CAN'T HEAR YOU. SORRY. I THOUGHT THERE WAS A PRESENTATION THAT WAS GOING TO BE DONE ON THIS TONIGHT. THAT'S WHAT I WAS TOLD. THAT'S WHY I DIDN'T ASK QUESTIONS LAST WEEK. LAST WEEK. LAST WEEK. [INAUDIBLE] WE DO HAVE WE DO HAVE A SLIDE DECK THAT HAS THE INFORMATION TO REFERENCE. [02:45:01] DR. MATNEY, WILL A SLIDE DECK. THERE IS A PRESENTATION TRUSTEE CRUZ. THERE IS A A SLIDE DECK, BUT I KNOW THAT THERE'S A MOTION ON OR THERE IS A LIKELY MOTION ON THE TABLE. TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. I MOVE THAT WE POSTPONE THIS TO THE JUNE BOARD MEETING. I HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. DO I HAVE A SECOND? I HAVE A SECOND BY TRUSTEE GUIDRY. I WAS IN THE QUEUE TO SPEAK. COULD THAT MOTION WAIT? I'LL SUPPORT IT. JUST LET ME SPEAK. I'M SORRY TRUSTEE SANTOS. THERE'S ALREADY A MOTION ON THE TABLE. CAN YOU MAKE IT GERMANE TO THE MOTION TO POSTPONE WHATEVER YOUR COMMENT WAS? OKAY. SO IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? TRUSTEE SANTOS. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ. SO CONSIDERING THIS THE POSTPONEMENT OF THIS ITEM, I JUST WANT TO REMIND THE ADMINISTRATION THAT THERE ARE OTHER WAYS TO GAUGE STUDENT LEARNING FINE ARTS WRITING PORTFOLIOS, SMALLER CLASS SIZES, CEASING THE ATTACK ON INSTRUCTION, INSTRUCTIONAL TIME TEACHERS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO TEACH ANYMORE BECAUSE ALL THEY DO IS HAVE DLAS AND DISTRICT ASSESSMENTS AND PRACTICE FOR STAAR AND A LOT OF OTHER BOLOGNA. SO I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT IN YOUR GOAL, AE LOCAL EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY THAT WE ACTUALLY EDUCATE OUR CHILDREN AND NOT JUST TEST PREP THEM TO DEATH. THANK YOU. SEEING NO FURTHER SPEAKERS. PLEASE VOTE ON THE POSTPONEMENT OF THIS ITEM TO THE JUNE BOARD MEETING. OKAY. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION PASSES EIGHT IN FAVOR. ONE OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. WE ARE NOW READY TO CONSIDER THE REMAINDER OF TODAY'S AGENDA. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO ACCEPT THE BALANCE OF TODAY'S AGENDA BY CONSENSUS? [CONSENT AGENDA] IS THERE A SECOND? WE HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS AND A SECOND BY TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM MY COLLEAGUES? PLEASE VOTE. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION PASSED. NINE IN FAVOR. ZERO OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. WE ARE NOW READY TO CONSIDER ITEMS DISCUSSED IN EXECUTIVE SESSION. [CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON MATTERS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED OR EXECUTIVE SESSION ] ARE THERE ANY MOTIONS? I MOVE THAT THE BOARD APPROVE THE AMENDMENT TO HISD CONTRACT WITH REGION FOUR FOR PROVISION OF LONE STAR GOVERNANCE ON THE TERMS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION EFFECTIVE MAY 12TH, 2023. IS THERE A SECOND? WE HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS AND A SECOND BY TRUSTEE BAKER. PLEASE VOTE. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION PASSES EIGHT IN FAVOR. ZERO OPPOSED. ONE ABSTENTION. ANY OTHER MOTIONS? I MOVE THAT THE BOARD APPROVE THE AMENDMENT TO THE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT. IN THE MATTER OF VINCENT R. B/N/F DANIEL AND CRISTIN R. V. HOUSTON ISD DOCKET NUMBER 188-SE-0220 ON THE TERMS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION EFFECTIVE MAY 12TH, 2023. IS THERE A SECOND? WE HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS AND A SECOND BY TRUSTEE GUIDRY. PLEASE VOTE. [02:50:15] WE ARE WAITING FOR ONE TRUSTEE TO VOTE. WE ARE GOOD TO GO. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION PASSES. NINE IN FAVOR. ZERO OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. I MOVE THAT THE BOARD APPROVE A FINDING OF NO GOOD CAUSE FOR EDUCATORS TO RESIGN OR ABANDON EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS WITHOUT DISTRICT CONSENT UNDER SECTIONS 21.105C, 21.160C OR 21.210C OF THE TEXAS EDUCATION CODE, AS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION AND AUTHORIZE THE SUPERINTENDENT OR HIS DESIGNEE TO SUBMIT A WRITTEN COMPLAINT TO SBEC ASPECT TO IMPOSE SANCTIONS AS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION EFFECTIVE MAY 12TH, 2023. I HAVE HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS. DO I HAVE A SECOND? I HAVE A SECOND BY TRUSTEE BAKER. PLEASE VOTE. I HAVE. I HAVE A QUESTION OF CLARITY. FOR LEGAL. DOES THIS INCLUDE THE WESTBURY BAND DIRECTOR POSITION? YOU ARE NOT VOTING ON THAT AT ALL TONIGHT. OKAY. YOUR MOTIONS REFER TO THAT. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. PLEASE VOTE. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION PASSES EIGHT IN FAVOR ZERO OPPOSED, AND ONE ABSTENTION. I MOVE THAT THE BOARD APPROVE CLOSED SESSION PERSONNEL AGENDA ITEM FIVE AS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION EFFECTIVE MAY 12TH, 2023. I HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS. DO I HAVE A SECOND? I HAVE A SECOND BY TRUSTEE DEIGAARD. PLEASE VOTE. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION FAILED FOUR IN FAVOR. FOUR OPPOSED. ONE ABSTENTION. I MOVE THAT THE BOARD APPROVE CLOSED SESSION PERSONNEL AGENDA ITEM SEVEN AS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION EFFECTIVE MAY 12TH, 2023. I HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS. DO I HAVE A SECOND? I HAVE A SECOND BY TRUSTEE BAKER. PLEASE VOTE. WE HAVE TWO MORE BOARD MEMBERS THAT NEED TO VOTE. VOTING IS CLOSING. MOTION FAILS. FOUR IN FAVOR. FOUR OPPOSED. ONE ABSTENTION. THREE IN FAVOR. OH, NO, NO, NO. OKAY. I MOVE THAT THE BOARD APPROVE THE BALANCE OF THE CLOSED SESSION PERSONNEL AGENDA, INCLUDING SPECIFICALLY THAT THE BOARD APPROVED PROPOSED TERMINATIONS OF CONTINUING TERM AND PROBATIONARY CONTRACTS, APPROVE END OF TERM TERMINATIONS OF PROBATIONARY CONTRACTS THAT THE BOARD APPROVE PROPOSED NON-RENEWALS OF TERM CONTRACTS THAT THE BOARD APPROVE ISSUANCE OF FOUR YEAR PROBATIONARY CONTRACTS, AND THAT THE BOARD AUTHORIZE THE SUPERINTENDENT OR HIS DESIGNEE TO PROVIDE NOTICE OF OF SAME THAT THE BOARD APPROVED SEPARATION AND RELEASE AGREEMENTS, THAT THE BOARD APPROVE WITHDRAWALS OF CONTRACT RECOMMENDATIONS AND THAT THE BOARD APPROVE ISSUANCE OF FINAL ORDERS ON CONTRACT TERMINATIONS AND NON-RENEWALS AS DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION EFFECTIVE MAY 12TH, 2023. WE HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS AND A SECOND BY TRUSTEE BAKER. AND WE HAVE TRUSTEE GUIDRY IN THE QUEUE. AND I JUST WANT TO SAY, FOR THE BENEFIT OF OUR AUDIENCE, THAT YOU ALL KNOW THE BAND DIRECTOR, THE WESTBURY BAND DIRECTOR DID NOT COME BEFORE US TO VOTE ON THIS IS HE IS NOT INCLUDED IN THIS BECAUSE YOU READ IT AND YOU SEE TERMINATION SUSPENSIONS AND ALL OF THAT. AND I WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW THAT THIS ONE IS NOT BEFORE US TONIGHT. OKAY? BUT YOU SHOWING UP WAS AWESOME. [02:55:01] YES. PLEASE VOTE. WE ARE WAITING ON ONE TRUSTEE TO VOTE. VOTING IS NOW CLOSING. MOTION PASSES EIGHT IN FAVOR. ONE OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. IS THAT ALL OF OUR MOTIONS FROM CLOSED SESSION? OKAY. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MONTHLY BOARD MEETING HELD ON APRIL 13TH, 2023? [CONSIDERATION AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM PREVIOUS MEETINGS] WE HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE SANTOS. IS THERE A SECOND? WE HAVE A MOTION BY TRUSTEE GUIDRY AND A SECOND BY TRUSTEE WADE. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? PLEASE VOTE. WE ARE MISSING TWO TRUSTEES, ONE TRUSTEE. VOTING IS NOW CLOSING. MOTION PASSES. NINE IN FAVOR. ZERO OPPOSED. ZERO ABSTENTIONS. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, DO YOU HAVE ANY REPORTS? [REPORTS FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT] [INAUDIBLE] MADAM PRESIDENT, I DO NOT. BUT I DO HAVE A FEW COMMENTS THAT THAT I'LL MAKE AS THIS, OF COURSE, IS THE LAST OPPORTUNITY THAT I'LL HAVE TO ADDRESS THE COMMUNITY AND THE BOARD BEING THAT IT IS MY LAST REGULARLY SCHEDULED MEETING. I WILL SAY I HAVE TRULY ENJOYED THE JOB. YOU KNOW, IT'S BEEN INTERESTING OVER THE COURSE OF THE PAST 22 MONTHS, IT'S BEEN A IT'S BEEN A JOURNEY LIKE, QUITE FRANKLY, NO OTHER FILLED WITH CHALLENGES, AS YOU ALL SEE IN THE PUBLIC ON A DAILY BASIS. TRIUMPHS AND AND LESSONS LEARNED. I REALLY HAVE HAD THE HONOR TO WITNESS FIRSTHAND THE INCREDIBLE WORK BEING DONE IN OUR CLASSROOMS WITH OUR EDUCATORS AND THOSE THAT WORK WITH OUR STUDENTS ON A DAILY BASIS. THE PASSION AND DEDICATION OF OUR TEACHERS, QUITE FRANKLY, AND STAFF AND STUDENTS, HAS REALLY BEEN INSPIRING TO WHAT I DO AND HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO ON A DAILY BASIS. AS I PREPARE TO LEAVE THIS POSITION, I WANT TO THANK THE HISD COMMUNITY FOR YOUR SUPPORT, TIRELESS DEDICATION TO OUR KIDDOS. IT'S BEEN AN HONOR AND A PRIVILEGE TO SERVE AS YOUR SUPERINTENDENT, AND I'M PROUD OF ALL THAT WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED TOGETHER. WE HAVE, AS I REFLECT BACK OVER 50 SCHOOLS THAT WERE CATEGORIZED D OR F WHEN WHEN I ARRIVED. AND 40 OF THOSE SCHOOLS ARE NO LONGER D OR F SCHOOLS. SO THERE HAS BEEN PROGRESS IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. THE FINAL NOTE FOR THE GRADUATING CLASS OF 2023, YOU ARE THE FUTURE OF THIS CITY, THIS COUNTRY, THIS STATE. AND I'M REALLY, REALLY PROUD OF ALL THAT YOU GUYS CONTINUE TO DO TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THIS CITY, STATE AND COUNTRY. KEEP STRIVING FOR EXCELLENCE. KEEP PUSHING YOURSELVES TO BE THE BEST VERSION OF WHO YOU ARE AND KNOW THAT YOU HAVE THE WHOLE COMMUNITY BEHIND YOU, CHEERING YOU ON EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. THANK YOU. WE ARE NOW READY TO HEAR REPORTS AND COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS. PLEASE LIMIT YOUR TIME TO ONE MINUTE PER TRUSTEE. [TRUSTEE REPORTS AND COMMENTS] ONE MINUTE. NO, THIS IS A CLOSING OUR LAST STATEMENT. THIS IS IN THE SCRIPT. OKAY. I GUESS WE WILL NOT. WE WILL START. IS THERE ANYONE WHO WILL VOLUNTEER TO GO FIRST WITH ALL THE MINUTES THAT THEY WANT TO SPEND? SHE'S A LAWYER. YEAH, DEFINITELY WANT TO THANK I MEAN, CONGRATULATE THE CLASS OF 2023. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO GRADUATIONS. IT'S ALWAYS SUCH AN EXCITING TIME. AND I THINK BACK ON ALL OF MY YEARS OF WORKING WITH STUDENTS AND JUST SUCH A HUGE MILESTONE. I HAD THE HONOR OF ATTENDING THE G UNITY HUSTLE TANK EARLIER. WAS IT JUST YESTERDAY? YESTERDAY. UM, JUST SO IMPRESSED. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WINNERS AND REALLY JUST CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF THE PARTICIPANTS. THE SKY IS REALLY THE LIMIT FOR OUR STUDENTS. AND I JUST THINK ABOUT WHEN THEY'RE GIVEN OPPORTUNITIES, THEY WILL DEFINITELY THRIVE. [03:00:03] IT'S TRULY BEEN AN HONOR TO SERVE AS A TRUSTEE. I'LL STILL BE HERE. I'M NOT GOING AWAY. I WILL BE WATCHING, ASKING FOR TRANSPARENCY AND SHARING INFORMATION WITH THE PUBLIC. I REALLY DO WANT TO THANK MY COLLEAGUES. SORRY, I WASN'T GOING TO CRY. WE PUT IN THE TIME WE DID THE WORK, EVEN THOUGH WE DISAGREED A LOT OF THE TIME. UM. THANK YOU TO BOARD SERVICES. THEY WORK TIRELESSLY BEHIND THE SCENES. THANK YOU TO ALL OF THE EMPLOYEES OF HISD THAT SHOW UP EACH AND EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR OUR STUDENTS. AND REALLY THANK YOU TO OUR TEACHERS BECAUSE I KNOW YOUR WORK IS NEVER EASY. AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, THANK YOU TO OUR STUDENTS. MAY ALL OF THOSE IN LEADERSHIP MAKE SURE THAT EACH OF YOU IS AFFORDED EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO FULFILL YOUR DREAMS. THANK YOU. I'LL GO NEXT. THANK YOU. YOU KNOW, I AT LEAST HAD TO LET ONE LADY GO FIRST, BECAUSE MY MOTHER ALWAYS TAUGHT ME TO BE A GENTLEMAN. MOM IS STILL ALIVE. SHE'S IN GEORGIA. SHE'LL BE 84 NEXT MONTH. BUT I JUST HAVE A HEART OF THANKS TONIGHT. I'VE BEEN ELECTED FOR 17 MONTHS NOW, AND I FINALLY GOT USED TO BEING A TRUSTEE TO BEING TO LEARNING THE ROPES, SO TO SPEAK. AND SO I HAVE A HEART OF SERVICE. AND IT'S NOT ALL ABOUT ME. IT'S ABOUT THE KIDS AND EDUCATION. I SAY THAT I HAVE 197,000 CHILDREN, AND SO I'M GRATEFUL FOR WHAT THE PUBLIC HAS ALLOWED ME TO DO SO FAR. FOR THE CONSTITUENTS OF DISTRICT SIX AND THE ENTIRE HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT I'M THANKFUL BECAUSE WE HAVE ONE MUTUAL DESIRE, AND THAT IS TO SEE STUDENTS BE SUCCESSFUL. I ALSO WANT TO SPEND THIS NIGHT TO GIVE MY CONDOLENCES TO THE FAMILY OF MR. GARY MONROE. IT WAS HIM WHO PUSHED ME FOR SEVEN MONTHS TO RUN FOR SCHOOL BOARD. HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR GARY MONROE, I WOULD NOT BE ON THE SCHOOL BOARD. AND SO I WOULD LIKE TO SALUTE FIVE STAR TONIGHT IN HIS ABSENCE. WE MANY OF US SAY THIS, THAT WE ALWAYS DIDN'T AGREE ON EVERYTHING. BUT THAT GENTLEMAN, I DIDN'T KNOW HIM BEFORE I RAN, SOUGHT ME OUT AND PUSHED ME FOR SEVEN MONTHS UNTIL I SIGNED UP TWO DAYS BEFORE THE FINAL DAY, RAN MY RACE AND WON. AND SO GOD HAS A WAY OF USING PEOPLE, AND NOW HIS SERVICE IS OVER. AND I WANT TO BELIEVE THAT HE'S WATCHING US FROM UPSTAIRS. TO ALL OF YOU WHO CAME TONIGHT, I TRULY, TRULY THANK YOU FOR STAYING TO THE END. I CAN'T RECALL A MEETING WHERE I'VE SEEN SO MANY YOUNG FOLKS STAY TO THE END. I WANT TO ENCOURAGE YOU TO KEEP PURSUING HIGHER HEIGHTS. YOU ARE OUR LEADERS. YOU WILL TAKE OVER WHEN WE'RE ALL GONE AND SO CONTINUE TO PRESS ON TOWARD A HIGHER MARK AND A HIGHER CALLING. AND AS A PASTOR, I SAY THAT THROUGH JESUS CHRIST AND HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL OF THE MOTHERS AND THOSE EXPECTANT MOTHERS. HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL OF YOU. AND I WISH MANY BLESSINGS UPON YOUR LIFE. AND MAY THE LORD BLESS ALL OF YOU, ALL THE COLLEAGUES I'VE BEEN SERVING WITH. I KNOW AS THE ONLY GUY ON THE BOARD YOU'VE HAD TO PUT UP WITH ME, YOUR LITTLE BROTHER, YOUR BIG BROTHER. BUT HEY IT IS WHAT IT IS. BUT I LOVE ALL OF Y'ALL LIKE SISTERS AND MR. HOUSE, LIKE A BROTHER AND ALL OF THE STAFF, SENIOR STAFF, ALL THE CHIEFS, ALL OF YOU ALL ALONG THE WALL. ALL OF Y'ALL. I JUST LOVE EVERYBODY. THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING ONE BIG FAMILY AND LIKE TRUSTEE CRUZ SAID, I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE. WE WILL BE SUPPORTING THE BOARD OF MANAGERS. AND, YOU KNOW, AND SINCE I HAVE A HEART OF SERVICE, I MIGHT BE PURSUING OTHER THINGS, BUT I WILL ALWAYS BE THERE BECAUSE I'VE BEEN SERVING THE PUBLIC FOR NEARLY 40 YEARS. SO GOD BLESS YOU AND GOOD NIGHT. ANOTHER VOLUNTEER. TRUSTEE WADE. OKAY. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. I MEAN, IT JUST MEANS THE WORLD TO US TO SEE ALL THESE FOLKS THAT COME OUT AND ARE HERE AND ARE DEDICATED. IT IS AMAZING TO WATCH YOU ALL AND WITNESS AND HEAR FROM YOU. AND SO THANK YOU. AND I WANT TO THANK ALL THE STAFF. I WANT TO THANK BOARD SERVICES. I MEAN, IF YOU ONLY KNEW WHAT BOARD SERVICES DOES FOR US, THANK YOU FOR THE TIME THAT Y'ALL STAY THE TIME THAT YOU ANSWER OUR EMAILS. I JUST CAN'T SAY ENOUGH. I WANT TO ALSO HIGHLIGHT THE SPRING VISUAL ARTS SHOWCASE THAT'S OUT IN THE LOBBY. [03:05:05] IF YOU HAD A MINUTE TO CHECK IT OUT, IT'S WORTH SEEING. THAT'S STUDENTS FROM ALL OVER THE DISTRICT TO WITNESS. IT'S ALSO TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK. AND AS KENDALL BAKER SAID, IT'S MOTHER'S DAY WEEKEND TO COME. I WANT TO THANK AND CONGRATULATE THE ALL THE GRADUATES THAT WILL BE GOING ACROSS THE STAGE IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS TO CELEBRATE THAT MOMENTOUS DAY. HOW IMPORTANT THAT IS. I ALSO WANT TO THANK SECURITY. I WANT TO THANK TECH SERVICE FOR ALL THE HELP THEY GIVE US, FOOD SERVICES FOR THE FOOD THEY PROVIDE, AND ALL THE REST OF THE STAFF THAT MAKE THIS SHIP RUN. I WANT TO THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE, FOR PUTTING UP WITH US AND FOR US PUTTING UP WITH YOU. SO IT WORKS BOTH WAYS. I WANT TO THANK WESTBURY COMMUNITY. WOW. VERY IMPRESSED. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING OUT. AND IT'S BEEN SUCH AN HONOR AND A PRIVILEGE TO BE ABLE TO SERVE YOU OVER THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF. AND I CONTINUE TO PRESS IN AND I JUST THANK YOU AND HAVE A BLESSED AND WONDERFUL NIGHT. TRUSTEE GUIDRY. CAFETERIA WORKERS, JANITORIAL SERVICE. I KNOW THAT IS ANOTHER NAME NOW, BUT I'M OLD SCHOOL. IT'S JANITORIAL SERVICE, BUS DRIVERS, PARAPROFESSIONAL PROFESSIONALS, ET CETERA. YOUR DEDICATION TO THESE CHILDREN IS MIND BLOWING. IT TRULY IS. AND I WANT TO BE THE FIRST. WELL, ONE OF THE FIRST TO ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD, TO SAY WE REALLY, REALLY APPRECIATE YOU ALL. WHETHER YOU HEAR IT FROM US OR HEAR IT, US TELLING YOU INDIVIDUALLY, I WANT TO SAY IT. LET ME JUST SAY I'M NOT SAYING GOODBYE. I WAS ELECTED TO SERVE UNTIL 2025, AND I PLAN TO DO JUST THAT. PRIOR TO BEING APPOINTED AND THEN ELECTED TO THE BOARD. I WAS FIGHTING IN A DIFFERENT ARENA, ADDRESSING THE INJUSTICES OF THE CPS SYSTEM. BUT I'M HERE NOW AND I'M HERE TO STAY. WE WILL CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE FOR THE INJUSTICES IN OUR ON OUR CAMPUSES. FOR INSTANCE, THERE ARE CAMPUSES THAT CONTINUE TO RECEIVE A ONE TIME FUND YEAR AFTER YEAR AFTER YEAR, AND WE HAVE CAMPUSES WHO ARE HAVING THEIR CTE FUNDING REDUCED BECAUSE THERE IS NO FUNDING. ALLEGEDLY. ALLEGEDLY. I RAN FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE, AND THAT WAS TO HELP RIGHT POLICY TO ACHIEVE BETTER STUDENT OUTCOMES. I WILL STAY HERE TO MAKE SURE WHOEVER SIT AT THIS SEAT WILL BE MAKING WILL BE LOOKING OUT FOR ALL OF THE STUDENTS AND NOT JUST SOME. YOU ALL I'M SO THANKFUL THAT YOU ALL SHOWED UP SO YOU'VE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO SEE HOW THIS THING WORKS. YOU NOW KNOW WHAT HAPPENS AT A BOARD MEETING. YOU'VE HEARD ABOUT THEM AND THE BOARD OF EDUCATION, WELL NOW YOU KNOW HOW IT WORKS. YOU TOO CAN SIT IN THIS SEAT, GIVE BACK, GIVE BACK TO YOUR COMMUNITIES AT SOME POINT. THIS IS A GIVING BACK TO YOUR FUTURE GENERATIONS. NO MATTER WHAT PROFESSIONS YOU GO INTO, YOU'VE HEARD ME SAY, I'M AN ATTORNEY. I'M A LAW SCHOOL PROFESSOR, BUT I'M HERE TO HELP TO RIGHT POLICY BECAUSE IT TAKES ALL TYPES TO DO IT. THEY NEED PEOPLE FROM EVERY GENRE TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERY COMMUNITY IS ADDRESSED. SO REMEMBER TO COME BACK AND GIVE BACK. WE HAVE LEARNED THAT IT IS A POSSIBILITY THAT WE WILL NO LONGER HAVE AN HISD EMAIL. SO BECAUSE YOU ALL ELECTED ME, TAKE OUT YOUR PENS, YOUR PENCILS AND YOUR YOUR PHONES BECAUSE I'M GOING TO GIVE YOU AN EMAIL WHERE YOU ALL CAN CONTACT ME, YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL. MY EMAIL ADDRESS WILL BE HISDMYRNA. M-Y-R-N-A.@GMAIL.COM. [03:10:02] IF YOU NEED YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL, CONTACT ME. REACH OUT TO ME AND I WILL STAND WITH YOU ON YOUR ISSUES BEFORE THIS BOARD, THE NEW BOARD OF MANAGERS. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR COMING OUT. CONGRATULATIONS, MADISON, ON BEING ONE OF THE G UNITY WINNERS. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF OUR OUR GRADUATES. AND I WISH ALL OF YOU ALL THE MOST SUCCESS AND REMEMBER, I ALWAYS SAY EXCELLENCE RESIDES IN DISTRICT NINE. YOU'RE A PART OF DISTRICT NINE. THANK YOU. WE WILL BE GOING TO THE GRADUATIONS UP UNTIL JUNE 4TH. VOLUNTOLD. TRUSTEE ALLEN. I WANT TO START WITH ACCOLADES FOR OUR SUPERINTENDENT, MR. MILLARD HOUSE. YOU CAME TO TEXAS WITH THE BEST OF INTENTIONS, BUT TEXAS POLITICS IS A WHOLE DIFFERENT BALL GAME. BUT PLEASE KNOW THAT I APPRECIATE YOU. WE HAVE ONE MORE MEETING AND I KNOW WE HAVE THE HEARINGS AND THE BUDGET WORKSHOPS, BUT THIS IS OUR LAST. MY LAST TIME TO MAKE BE ABLE TO MAKE COMMENTS. AND I WANT TO SAY TO THE CONSTITUENTS, I HAVE NEVER GIVEN UP THE FIGHT. I WILL CONTINUE TO BE YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL EVEN AFTER THE FAKE BOARD CONTINUES WITH THEIR HOSTILE TAKEOVER. THERE IS NO WAY THAT ONE MAN SHOULD BE ABLE TO OVERTURN THE VOTES OF 1 MILLION PEOPLE. ON A POSITIVE NOTE. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 23. TRUSTEE BLUEFORD-DANIELS. OKAY. I TRIED TO I TRIED TO INITIATE A JOKE OVER HERE FOR CRUZ TO KEEP HER FROM CRYING. SO I AIN'T GOING TO CRY. BUT I WILL SAY THIS. I AM NOT ALWAYS THE MOST POISED OR THE MOST ARTICULATE. BUT I AM YOU. I AM THOSE STUDENTS AT KASHMERE, AT WHEATLEY, AT YATES, AT NORTH FOREST. I AM ALL OF THOSE STUDENTS. AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE THE EDUCATION BACKGROUND. I SEE ONE OF MY COHORTS OUT HERE, I'M A RETIRED POSTAL MANAGER, RETIRED POSTAL MANAGER, ALMOST 30 YEARS. AND SO THOUGH I HAVE ANOTHER JOB NOW, SECONDARY JOB, I DID MY TIME. SO IF NOTHING ELSE, THAT TELLS YOU THAT I AM A COMMITTED INDIVIDUAL TO SPEND 30 YEARS ON A JOB, ESPECIALLY THAT JOB [LAUGHTER]. BUT, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO SAY TOO THANK YOU TO MY FAMILY, MY HUSBAND, MY DAUGHTER, MY GRANDKIDS, ALL OF MY FAMILY FOR PUTTING UP FOR THE TIME THAT WE HAVE TAKEN UP HERE AND WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME. YOU ALL JUST SEE US BASICALLY ON THURSDAYS. BUT WE ARE HERE. WE HAVE TO STUDY AND PREPARE TO COME UP HERE AND BE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT THE VARIOUS THINGS ON THIS DAIS, WHATEVER WE GET FOR THE AGENDA. NOW, EVERYBODY DON'T STUDY, BUT SOME OF US WILL. WE STUDY, WE GO AND WE PREPARE. THANK YOU TO BOARD SERVICES. YOU ALL HAVE BEEN AWESOME. AWESOME. I CAN'T SAY THAT WITH ENOUGH EMPHASIS. THANK YOU ALL. YOU ALL HAVE BEEN SO, SO, SO GOOD TO US. I WANT TO SAY ALSO TO THE WHEATLEY STUDENTS, NOT JUST BECAUSE I'M A WHEATLEY GRAD. THANK YOU, PAM. I SEE YOU BOTH BACK THERE. BUT I WANT TO SAY THOSE KIDS HAVE HEARD. SO I SAY DR. PAM, TOO. DON'T DON'T GET IT TWISTED, DR. PAM BOLAND. BUT THOSE KIDS HAVE HEARD SO MUCH NEGATIVITY, SO MUCH NEGATIVITY, HOW POOR THEY ARE. THEIR ZIP CODES MEANS THAT THEY CAN'T LEARN. BUT THIS ONE RIGHT HERE, IF YOU SEE KATHY AND A BEAR IN A FIGHT. HELP THE DAMN BEAR [LAUGHTER], BECAUSE I'M GOING TO FIGHT. AND I'M GOING TO FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT BECAUSE I AM THAT KID AT WHEATLEY, AT WALTRIP, AT YATES, AT WORTHING, ET CETERA, I'M THAT KID. [03:15:07] I'M GOING TO ALWAYS TRY TO DO WHAT'S BEST FOR OUR CHILDREN. WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME HERE, A LOT OF TIME HERE. I MISS MY GRANDDAUGHTER'S DANCE RECITAL IN KLEIN LAST WEEK. BECAUSE I WAS PREPARING FOR THIS, FORGOT MY DAUGHTER SAID, MOM, YOU CAN'T SAVE EVERYBODY. I MET LARRY MACKENZIE, 15, LITERALLY IN 2015 WHEN WE WERE OUT THERE ON THAT SIDE OF THE DAIS PROTESTING, PROTESTING OUR 288 SAVED NORA BLOODSHED. SO VERY VARIOUS MANY THINGS. I'VE BEEN ON THE GROUND, WHICH IS WHY I WAS ELECTED TO THIS POSITION, BECAUSE THE PEOPLE IN MY DISTRICT KNOW, AGAIN, HELP THE BEAR BECAUSE KATHY'S GOING TO FIGHT. I'M GOING TO FIGHT FOR WHAT'S RIGHT. YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT AN INTEGRITY. LIKE I SAID, I DID 30 YEARS. I GET A CHECK EVERY MONTH, THANK GOD. RETIREMENT CHECK. SO I AM NOT GOING TO RISK THAT BY A FEW HUNDRED DOLLARS. I'M GOING TO BE THERE. MY REPUTATION SPEAKS FOR ITSELF. AND IT ALMOST 65 YEARS, 65, 66 YEARS OLD. NEXT MONTH, I AM NOT GOING TO DESTROY MY REPUTATION. I AM NOT. I'VE WORKED TOO HARD FOR IT. THANK YOU FOR TEACHERS APPRECIATION. I LOVE YOU ALL. I MEAN, WE WORK HARD FOR YOU ALL AS WELL. WE DON'T ALWAYS AGREE, [INAUDIBLE]. BUT ONE THING ABOUT IT IS THERE IN THE WORK THEY DO THE WORK. MR. WASHINGTON I WATCHED YOU AND IT TOOK EVERYTHING IN YOU TO KEEP FROM CRYING BECAUSE THOSE KIDS GAVE YOU YOUR FLOWERS TODAY. YOU DON'T HAVE TO WONDER. ONE YOUNG MAN, A COUPLE OF THEM SAID YOU MADE A DIFFERENCE IN THEIR LIVES. A YOUNG BLACK MAN TO SOME BLACK AND BROWN AND WHITE KIDS MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THEIR LIFE. WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH OF THAT [APPLAUSE]. AND I HOPE I HOPE THAT I'M SURE, LARRY, SOMEBODY RECORDED AND YOU COULD UNDERSTAND APPARENTLY WHAT YOU MEAN TO THESE KIDS. IF THERE WAS ANY QUESTION IN ANYBODY'S MIND BEFORE IT TELLS YOU WHAT YOU MEAN TO THESE KIDS. SO I APPLAUD YOU ALL FOR COMING OUT HERE. I THINK IF SOMEBODY SAID AND STANDING UP FOR WHAT'S RIGHT, RUTH KRAVIS, I SEE YOU BACK THERE ALWAYS ON THE FOREFRONT, ALWAYS IN THE FIGHT. AND WE APPRECIATE Y'ALL. YOU KNOW, WE APPRECIATE MISS MACKENZIE. THANK YOU FOR LETTING, LOANING US YOUR HUSBAND, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN AROUND HIM FOR A LONG TIME. IT'S A GOOD THING I'M OLD, THOUGH. BUT ANYWAY, THANK YOU. MUSIC IS A BRIDGE. IT'S A IT'S A BRIDGE FOR LEARNING. SOME OF THESE SCHOOLS AND I'VE TALKED ABOUT IT MANY TIMES, HAVE LESS THAN 20 KIDS IN THEIR BAND. THAT USED TO BE A MARCH IN 100 YATES. BOOKER T WASHINGTON. FOREST BROOK. NORTH FOREST. LESS THAN 20 KIDS. AND YOU GOT ALL THESE KIDS OUT HERE SUPPORTING YOU. APPARENTLY YOU'RE POURING SOMETHING INTO THEM [APPLAUSE]. THE MOST IMPORTANT THING I WANT TO SAY IS THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SERVE YOU. NOT JUST D2 D2 DIAMONDS, BUT ALL OF YOU. AND I RAISED SO MUCH CAIN BECAUSE THOSE KIDS IN D2 HAVE BEEN SO OVERLOOKED FOR SO LONG. PEOPLE SAY EQUITY, BUT THEY USE THAT WORD LOOSELY. THAT PART, RIGHT? THAT PART. IT'S USED LOOSELY WHEN WE'RE WHEN WE GET SERIOUS ABOUT THE PLANS AND INFORMATION THAT THIS SUPERINTENDENT OR ANY OTHER SUPERINTENDENT IN THE FUTURE BRINGS TO BRINGS TO US, THAT'S GOING TO LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD AND STOP TAKING OUR CHILDREN OUT OF OUR COMMUNITIES. LET THEM STAY IN OUR COMMUNITY SCHOOLS. LET OUR KIDS STAY IN OUR COMMUNITY SCHOOLS AND GIVE THEM THE PROGRAMS THAT I'VE TALKED ABOUT SINCE 2020 IN OUR COMMUNITY SCHOOLS TO RETAIN THEM. AND SO WE CAN GROW OUR COMMUNITIES AGAIN. SOMEBODY, TRUSTEE BAKER ACKNOWLEDGED GARY MONROE AND I AND I SAY, HATS OFF TO GARY BECAUSE WE WERE ON THE PLANE. WE WERE ON THE BATTLEFIELD FOR A LOT OF THINGS. WE DON'T ALWAYS AGREE, BUT HATS OFF TO HIM BECAUSE HE CAME AND STOOD HERE AND FOUGHT. WHETHER I AGREE WITH HIM OR NOT, HE CALLED ME SOME TIMES AFTERWARDS AND TELL ME AND WE'D HAVE A FEW CHOICE WORDS RIP, BUT I CAN'T SAY THOSE WORDS. BUT ANYWAY, WE HAD THEM. UM. CONGRATULATIONS TO MY GRANDEST SON, E3. I TALKED ABOUT THE TIME THAT WE'RE AWAY FROM THEM. MY GRANDSON WILL BE GRADUATING FROM LAMAR UNIVERSITY THIS SATURDAY WITH A DEGREE IN SHOOT NUMBERS. [03:20:07] I CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT IT IS. IT'S NUMBERS. HE'S OBVIOUSLY SMARTER THAN HIS QUEEN, BUT IT'S SOMETHING TO DO WITH NUMBERS. MR. HOUSE, THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BRINGING SOME OF THE BEST AND THE BRIGHTEST CHIEFS HERE. [INAUDIBLE] I'M GOING TO MISS MISS YOU, BUT I REALLY DO APPRECIATE THAT YOU BROUGHT SOME OF THE BEST. AND Y'ALL, Y'ALL, Y'ALL RAISED UP DR. WATTS [LAUGHTER] NOW, BUT Y'ALL HAVE BEEN GOOD. AND MY NEIGHBOR OVER HERE. AND WE APPRECIATE YOU ALL. SO SOME OF YOU ALL HAVEN'T HEARD THE LAST OF US. AND I'LL BE BACK ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DAIS, LARRY. I'LL BE RIGHT RIGHT BACK OUT THERE WITH YOU AGAIN. YOU KNOW, SO I'M GOOD WITH THAT. BUT THANK YOU, TOO, FOR ALLOWING US THIS OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO EXTEND OUR TIME AND JUST LET THE PUBLIC KNOW HOW MUCH WE DO ENJOY SERVE. SERVICE IS WHAT I DO. AFTER RETIREMENT SERVICE IS WHAT I DO, I'M GETTING OLD AND RAGGEDY, SO IT'S TIME TO PASS THE BATON. SO YOU GUYS START LOOKING AT OPPORTUNITIES AS TO WHAT YOU CAN BRING FORTH, WHAT YOU CAN OFFER. YOU MAY NOT WANT TO BE A BOARD MEMBER. YOU MIGHT WANT TO BE. WE MAY HAVE A MAYOR OUT THERE AT WESTBURY SITTING UP OUT THERE. WE DON'T KNOW, IN D2. YOU ALL HAVE EVERY OPPORTUNITY. DON'T LET ANYBODY TELL YOU YOU CAN'T DO IT. AND I FIGHT BECAUSE ALL OF OUR CHILDREN DESERVE THE SAME, THE SAME OPPORTUNITIES, AND THEY HAVE THE SAME ABILITY TO LEARN JUST BECAUSE THEIR ZIP CODE IS 77020, 77026 OR 77028 OR -16 DOES NOT MEAN THAT THEY CANNOT LEARN. SO THAT'S WHY I FIGHT LIKE I FIGHT. THANK YOU, RIP. [APPLAUSE] THANK YOU ALL. TRUSTEE I'VE. PASS THE PLATE. TRUSTEE SANTOS. OKAY, FINE. UM, FIRST, THANK YOU SUPERINTENDENT HOUSE. I KNOW YOU UPROOTED YOUR FAMILY TO COME TO HOUSTON WITH A LOT OF HOPES AND ASPIRATIONS FOR WHAT YOU WOULD ACCOMPLISH HERE. AND THIS ISN'T, I'M SURE, HOW YOU WANTED ALL OF THIS TO GO. I KNOW THAT THIS WAS CHALLENGING FOR YOU. WE CAN BE A CHALLENGING BUNCH, BUT I'VE APPRECIATED YOUR SERVICE HERE. TO MY COLLEAGUES, TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU. I HAVE APPRECIATED THE DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES THAT EACH OF YOU HAVE BROUGHT TO THE TABLE FOR THE DECISIONS THAT HAVE BEEN BEFORE US AND THE CHALLENGES WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO OVERCOME FOR OUR STUDENTS. BOARD SERVICES STAFF, YOU HAVE BEEN SO GRACIOUS IN YOUR SUPPORT OF US, AND THERE'S NO WAY THAT WE COULD HAVE DONE WHAT WE DO WITHOUT YOU. TO EVERY ADMINISTRATOR AND EVERYBODY WHO WORKS FOR OUR DISTRICT AT EVERY LEVEL THAT SUPPORTS OUR STUDENTS AND THEIR SUCCESS, YOU CHOOSE TO WORK FOR HISD, AND I THANK YOU FOR MAKING THAT CHOICE TO OUR SCHOOL BASED STAFF, ESPECIALLY OUR TEACHERS SAME THING. YOU WERE THE CLOSEST TO OUR KIDDOS. YOU HAVE A CHOICE OF WHERE YOU WORK AND I KNOW THAT THIS IS A SCARY TIME FOR EVERYBODY WHO WORKS FOR THE DISTRICT. AND THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING TO STAY HERE AND AND TRY AND HAVE AS SEAMLESS OF A TRANSITION TO CREATE AS MUCH STABILITY FOR OUR STUDENTS DURING THESE UNCERTAIN TIMES AS WE COULD POSSIBLY DO. UM, WE ALL HAVE FOUGHT DIFFERENTLY FROM THIS TABLE. I KNOW THAT I AM PARTICULARLY, I THINK, MISUNDERSTOOD. I CAN BE PASSIONATE, I CAN BE ABRUPT. MY MOTHER SAYS I HAVE NO SOFT EDGES. UM. I CAME IN HERE WITH IF I COULD HAVE ONLY ACCOMPLISHED ONE THING, IT WAS TO INCREASE LITERACY FOR ALL KIDS. SOME OF YOU, BUT MOST OF YOU PROBABLY DON'T KNOW. MY DAD WAS A HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUT. SO WAS HIS SISTER. SHE WENT ON TO BE A SPECIAL ED TEACHER WITH HER HUSBAND IN ARIZONA. I KNEW THE CHALLENGES GROWING UP OF HAVING SOMEONE WHO HAD NOT HAD A LEVEL OF EDUCATION AND REALLY THE LEVEL OF SUPPORT IN SPECIAL ED THAT HE NEEDED. IT HAS BEEN VERY PERSONAL FOR ME TO CHOOSE TO BE AT THIS TABLE FOR MANY REASONS WITH MY OWN FAMILY, BUT ALSO IN THE ADVOCACY OF ALL THE YEARS THAT I SAT WHERE EVERY ONE OF YOU THAT ARE SITTING IN THE ADVOCACY OF FIGHTING FOR THE STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT, AND I KNOW NOT EVERYBODY BELIEVES OR UNDERSTANDS THE POSITION THAT I CAME FROM BECAUSE OUR VIEWS MAY BE DIFFERENT, BUT I FOUGHT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE KIDS WHO WEREN'T GETTING WHAT THEY NEEDED, EVEN THOUGH I KNOW A LOT OF YOU WON'T BELIEVE THAT WE'RE GOING TO GET WHAT THEY NEEDED. [03:25:08] THERE WERE BUDGETS THAT CAME BEFORE THIS BOARD THAT WERE GOING TO INCREASE INEQUITIES, NOT DECREASE THEM IN TERMS OF THE DOLLARS INVESTED ON KIDS. I AM GOING TO KEEP FIGHTING. IT'S IN MY BLOOD. I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE EITHER, AS I DON'T SUSPECT ANY OF MY COLLEAGUES WILL. WE ALL CARE DEEPLY ABOUT THE CITY, THE FUTURE OF THE CITY. I'VE ALWAYS BELIEVED THAT DESPITE OUR DIFFERENCES IN HOW TO GET THERE, THAT WE ALL HAD THE VERY CORE OF OUR BEINGS WHAT WE WANTED FOR THE LEAST OF OUR STUDENTS WHO HAVE BEEN MARGINALIZED FOR FAR TOO LONG. EVEN THOUGH WE DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT. I HOLD OUT HOPE BECAUSE I KNOW THAT WE ARE A CITY FULL OF PASSIONATE PEOPLE WHO CARE ABOUT OUR COMMUNITIES, CARE ABOUT OUR KIDS. AND I KNOW THAT THOSE OF YOU THAT ARE SITTING IN THE ROOM TONIGHT, THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE WATCHING FROM HOME, ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO LIFT UP YOUR VOICE. AND I HAVE ONE ASK. I ASK THAT WE FIGURE OUT AS A COMMUNITY A VISION FOR WHAT WE ASPIRE TO FOR OUR CHILDREN FOR WHAT 21ST CENTURY LEARNING LOOKS LIKE FOR KIDS. KIDS LEARN DIFFERENTLY. THEY COME FROM DIFFERENT SPACES. THEY HAVE DIFFERENT ASPIRATIONS. WE REWARD THE KIDS WHO ARE GOOD AT EVERYTHING, AND WE LABEL THE KIDS WHO STRUGGLE. AND THAT NEEDS TO STOP. WE NEED TO SEE THE GIFTS IN EVERY CHILD, AND WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DEVELOP THE GIFTS THAT EVERY KID HAS, NO MATTER WHERE THEY LIVE. AND TO ME, AND I'LL LEAVE YOU WITH A STORY I HEARD. I CAN'T REMEMBER IF IT'S A PODCAST OR AN MPR, BUT NASA WAS STRUGGLING, IS STRUGGLING TO DIVERSIFY THEIR ENGINEERING FORCE. AND THAT ALL STARTS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. BECAUSE IF KIDS AREN'T GETTING GOOD, STRONG MATH AND SCIENCE IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, THEY CAN'T ACCESS THE ADVANCED CLASSES IN MIDDLE SCHOOL THAT ACCESS THE ADVANCED CLASSES IF THEY EVEN HAVE THEM IN HIGH SCHOOL. AND THE TRUE MEASURE OF EQUITY IN MY MIND, AND I WELCOME ANYBODY WHO AFTER THIS WANTS TO GIVE ME A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE THAN THIS, BUT WHEN NASA ISN'T HAVING TROUBLE DIVERSIFYING THEIR ENGINEERING FORCE BECAUSE WE PREPARED KIDS FROM THE VERY, VERY START TO BE ABLE TO ASPIRE AND ACCESS THAT, AND THAT MEANS EQUITABLE OPPORTUNITIES IN EVERY CLASSROOM, EVERY DAY FOR EVERY CHILD. AND I WANT YOU ALL TO FIGHT FOR THAT. I WANT YOU TO FIGHT TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR KIDS ARE ACTUALLY GETTING THE OUTCOMES THAT THEY DESERVE AT EVERY LEVEL TO ACCESS THE NEXT LEVEL, THAT'S WHAT YOU GUYS ARE GOOD AT DOING . BUT IF WE COULD COLLECTIVELY FIGHT FOR THAT FOR KIDS, I THINK WE CAN HOLD WHOEVER COMES IN BEHIND US TO THAT COLLECTIVE ASPIRATION AND BE INCREDIBLE AS A CITY FOR WHAT WE DO FOR KIDS. SO THANK YOU. TRUSTEE SANTOS. THANK YOU PRESIDENT HERNANDEZ I DO HAVE TO SAY ONE ONE SECOND. MORRIS [INAUDIBLE] SANTOS PENNER GO TO BED [LAUGHTER]. HE'S AT HOME WATCHING ME NOW. OKAY, SO ON A MORE SERIOUS NOTE, I KNOW MANY OF YOU ARE ASKING, WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION, WE HAVE TO ANSWER ANOTHER ONE FIRST. HOW DID WE GET HERE? SOME SAY IT WAS HB 1842 OR SB 1882 OR SOME OTHER BILL OR COURT CASE OR ADMINISTRATIVE ACT. OTHERS SAY IT WAS BECAUSE WE WEREN'T NICE ENOUGH TO EACH OTHER, OR MAYBE BECAUSE WE DIDN'T FORCE OUR CHILDREN TO TAKE ENOUGH STANDARDIZED TESTS. NO, THE PLACE WE FIND OURSELVES TODAY IS A POINT ON A STRAIGHT LINE OUR DISTRICT HAS TRAVELED FOR MANY DECADES. AT ONE END OF THE LINE IS SEGREGATION. INEQUITY IN ITS MOST VISIBLE FORM. THE INEQUITY NEVER WENT AWAY. IT JUST BECAME LESS OBVIOUS. THOSE WHO STARTED WITH PRIVILEGE WERE RELENTLESS, WERE RELENTLESS IN THEIR EFFORTS TO KEEP IT. ALL ALONG THE POWERFUL SIPHONED RESOURCES FROM THE POWERLESS. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, SOME OF US REFUSED TO BE CONTENT LETTING THINGS HAPPEN TO US. WE BEGAN TO MAKE THINGS HAPPEN FOR US. THAT'S HOW I GOT HERE. I GREW UP IN HISD SCHOOLS, HERRERA ELEMENTARY, BURBANK MIDDLE SCHOOL, AND MY OWN HIGH SCHOOL, SAM HOUSTON WAS SHUT DOWN BY THE STATE. IN MY COMMUNITY, MANY, MYSELF INCLUDED, ARE CHILDREN OF IMMIGRANTS AND MORE ARE IMMIGRANTS THEMSELVES. SOMETIMES WE ARE SCARED TO SPEAK UP, OFTEN FOR GOOD REASON. BUT I KNEW EARLY ON THAT I WANTED TO DO WHAT I COULD TO MAKE SURE OUR SCHOOLS WERE SET UP TO SERVE OUR COMMUNITIES. [03:30:06] WE ARE HISD. I AM HISD. I TAUGHT FOR TEN YEARS IN HISD SCHOOLS. THEN I BECAME THE FIRST DISTRICT ONE TRUSTEE FROM THE EAST SIDE OF I-45, WHERE MORE THAN 60% OF DISTRICT ONE'S STUDENT DISTRICT ONE STUDENTS LIVE . FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, THOSE STUDENTS HAD A LEADER WHO KNEW WHO THEY WERE, WHERE THEY CAME FROM, HOW THEY LIVED. FOR THE FIRST TIME, THEY COULD SEE THEMSELVES IN THEIR LEADER AND NOW TEA HAS COME IN AND STRIPPED THEM OF THAT. WE ARE HERE NOW BECAUSE THOSE KIDS WERE NEVER SUPPOSED TO HAVE A VOICE IN THIS DISTRICT. SOME HAVE MISTAKEN OUR EFFORTS TO FIGHT BACK AND DEMAND OUR VOICES TO BE HEARD AS THE VERY CAUSE OF OUR TROUBLES. FROM THE FIRST DAY I GOT ON THIS BOARD, PEOPLE WOULD TELL ME, DON'T FIGHT. THAT WILL JUST MAKE TEA ANGRY. I DIDN'T LISTEN TO THEM AND NEITHER SHOULD YOU. BECAUSE WHEN WE FIGHT, WE WIN. WE FOUGHT TEA AND WE WON. WE REFUSE TO ALLOW OUR SCHOOLS TO BE SOLD TO CORRUPT PRIVATE CHARTER ORGANIZATIONS. WE KEPT TEA FROM TAKING OVER FOR YEARS. WE TOOK THEM TO THE TEXAS SUPREME COURT TWICE, AND WE WOULD HAVE KEPT WINNING BUT THE LEGISLATURE CHANGED THE RULES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIGHT. AND THAT REMINDS ME, I SAID WHEN WE FIGHT, WE WIN. BUT THE TRUTH IS WE ONLY WIN WHEN WE FIGHT TOGETHER, WE LOSE WHEN WE BECOME DIVIDED. WE'VE BEEN DIVIDED OVER AND OVER FROM WITHIN. SOME WHO CLAIM TO SUPPORT PUBLIC EDUCATION, INCLUDING MEMBERS OF THIS BOARD AND MEMBERS OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE, WOULD HAVE HAD US SELL THE SCHOOLS SERVING OUR MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER. SOME THOUGHT WE COULD COMPROMISE WITH THOSE WHO SOUGHT TO STEAL THE MOST VALUABLE ASSETS OUR COMMUNITIES HAVE OUR SCHOOLS. I HOPE THEY HAVE LEARNED THEIR LESSON BECAUSE WE CAN NO LONGER MAKE THAT MISTAKE. I BELIEVE THAT MANY OF US HAVE HAD OUR EYES OPENED IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS. WE HAVE SOMETHING PRECIOUS WILL BE TAKEN. WE HAVE SOMETHING PRECIOUS THAT WILL BE TAKEN FROM US UNLESS WE STAND OUR GROUND. TEA, THE BOARD OF MANAGERS, THE PROFITEERING CHARTER MOVEMENT HAVE WON MANY BATTLES, BUT THEY ARE ON OUR TURF NOW. THEY HAVE PUSHED OUR BACKS TO THE WALL, BUT THEY HAVEN'T SEEN THE FULL POWER OF OUR COMMUNITIES MANIFEST WHEN UNITED IN A FIGHT FOR OUR SURVIVAL. WE HAVE NO CHOICE NOW BUT TO SHOW IT TO THEM. SO TONIGHT I WILL STEP DOWN FROM THIS DAIS, FROM THIS SEAT OF POWER. BUT A GREATER POWER WILL CONTINUE TO FLOW THROUGH ME, STANDING SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH MY COMMUNITY. AND WHEN A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF MANAGERS TAKES THIS SEAT, THEY WILL SOON LEARN HOW EASY IT IS FOR US TO KNOCK DOWN A PAPER PUPPET. STUDENTS, TEACHERS, PARENTS, PARTNERS, WE ARE THE COMMUNITY. WE MAKE UP THE HEART OF OUR SCHOOLS AND WITH EVERY LESSON TAUGHT, EVERY MUSIC NOTE PLAYED, EVERY FIELD COACHED AND PLAYED ON, EVERY RELATIONSHIP BUILT IS THE TESTAMENT THAT OUR COMMUNITY IS OUR SCHOOLS AND WE ARE THE HEARTBEAT. WE WILL NEVER STOP BEING THE COMMUNITY. WE WILL NEVER STOP BEING HISD AND WE WILL WIN. THE FIGHT IS JUST BEGINNING. REMEMBER STUDENTS, MY FORMER STUDENTS THAT ARE IN THIS VERY ROOM TONIGHT AND TEACHERS, YOU ALL MADE THE IMPOSSIBLE HAPPEN. IT'S TIME TO PICK OUT OUR WALKING SHOES AND LET'S GET TO WORK. GOVERNOR ANN RICHARDS WAS A TEACHER. I AM A TEACHER AND WE HAVE A GOVERNOR TO REMOVE AND A STATE AGENCY TO EXPEL [APPLAUSE]. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. I DO WANT TO JUST SIDEBAR THIS FOR A SECOND. THESE LAST SIX YEARS HAVE SPENT HONORING OUR STUDENTS BY HONORING OUR TEACHERS. LET'S LET TEACHERS TEACH. PAY THEM LIKE THE PROFESSIONALS THEY ARE. LET THEM BUILD RELATIONSHIPS. REDUCE CLASS SIZES. THEN AND ONLY THEN WILL YOU LET THEM KNOW YOU HONOR THEM AND TRULY APPRECIATE THEM. HAPPY TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK [APPLAUSE]. SO THANK YOU TO ALL THE STUDENTS WHO ARE HERE TODAY. [SPANISH] CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF THE 2023 GRADUATES FOR THIS YEAR. [03:35:05] I KNOW IT'S BEEN A CRAZY TIME THROUGH YOUR HIGH SCHOOL YEARS. THANK YOU TO ALL OF THE HISD STUDENTS, ALL OF THE HISD PARENTS AND TEACHERS, STAFF MEMBERS, INCLUDING MR. HOUSE, WHO HAS BEEN HERE WITH US [APPLAUSE] WORKING. IT'S A LOT OF HARD WORK. I HAVE BEEN TRUSTEE FOR ALMOST FOUR YEARS AND I AM SO APPRECIATIVE OF IT AND GRATEFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY. UM, I CAME HERE WITH THE FOCUS ON EQUITY AND WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THAT AS A BOARD, BUT THERE'S STILL A LOT MORE STEPS AND A LOT MORE ACTIONS THAT HISD NEEDS TO TAKE IN ORDER TO GET THERE AND IN ORDER TO MAKE HISD ACTUALLY EQUITABLE. BUT WE'VE BEEN GOING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. TONIGHT IS THE FINAL BOARD MEETING FOR THE ELECTED TRUSTEES. THE ELECTED TRUSTEES HAVE BEEN FOCUSED ON GOVERNANCE, ALTHOUGH IT IS HARD AT TIMES, IT'S INTERESTING TO HAVE AND CHALLENGING TO HAVE NINE VERY DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES ON THE BOARD. BUT THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THE ELECTED BOARD SHOULD BE. WE HAVE BEEN LASER FOCUSED ON STUDENT OUTCOMES AND WE'VE MADE MANY POSITIVE CHANGES TO HISD SCHOOLS AND HISD IN GENERAL. WE WILL CONTINUE I WILL CONTINUE TO REMAIN INVOLVED AND MAKING SURE THAT THERE IS COMMUNITY VOICE HEARD, ESPECIALLY THAT THE BOARD OF MANAGERS UNDERSTANDS WHAT THE COMMUNITY WANTS. I'M HOPING THAT THE BOARD OF MANAGERS IS NOT ONLY FOCUSED ON STUDENT OUTCOMES BUT IS ALSO TRANSPARENT AND THAT THE COMMUNITY IS. REACHING OUT TO THE NEW WHOEVER IS HERE NEXT BECAUSE THEY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE GOING TO BE MAKING DECISIONS. SO THEY NEED TO HEAR COMMUNITY VOICE AS WELL. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO BEING IN THIS SEAT AGAIN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. BUENAS NOCHES. GOOD NIGHT, EVERYBODY. OH, WAIT FOR THE BOARD. THE BOARD WILL NOW ADJOURN TO CLOSED SESSION, AS WE HAVE DISCUSSED, OR EXECUTIVE SESSION UNDER CHAPTER 551 OF TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE OPEN MEETINGS ACT SUBSECTION 551.004, [ADJOURN TO CLOSED OR EXECUTIVE SESSION UNDER SECTIONS 551.004, 551.071, 551.072, 551.073, 551.074, 551.076, 551.082, 551.0821, 551.083, 551.084, AND 551.089 OF THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE FOR THE PURPOSES LISTED IN THIS NOTICE (Part 2 of 2)] 551.071, 551.072, 551.073, 551.074, 551.076, 551.082, 55 1.083, 551.04, 551.089. SHOULD BOARD FINAL ACTION VOTE DECISION ON ANY MATTER CONSIDERED IN CLOSED SESSION BE REQUIRED. SUCH FINAL ACTION, VOTE OR DECISION SHALL BE TAKEN AT THE OPEN MEETING COVERED BY THIS NOTICE. UPON THE RECONVENING OF THIS PUBLIC MEETING OR A SUBSEQUENT MEETING UPON NOTICE THEREOF. THE BOARD IS ADJOURNED TO CLOSED SESSION AT 8:50 P.M.. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.