[00:00:01]
OKAY. GOOD AFTERNOON. THIS MEETING IS NOW CONVENED AT 1:04 P.M..
I'D LIKE TO ASK EVERYONE TO PLEASE SILENCE ALL CELL PHONES.
QUORUM OF THE BOARD MEMBERS IS PRESENT IN THE BOARD AUDITORIUM.
LET'S SEE. OUR FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS IS TO HEAR FROM SPEAKERS TO THE AGENDA.
PUBLIC COMMENT DURING SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS WILL ONLY BE AVAILABLE TO THOSE PERSONS WHO HAVE SIGNED UP TO SPEAK PRIOR TO THE MEETING TIME PER CURRENT PROTOCOL, VERBAL AND OTHER DISRUPTIONS BY PERSONS DURING SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE AS THEY INHIBIT THE BOARD'S ABILITY TO CONDUCT BUSINESS AND THE PUBLIC 'S ABILITY TO OBSERVE THOSE PROCESSES. PERSONS WHO PARTICIPATE IN SUCH BEHAVIOR WILL BE GIVEN ONE WARNING, AND THEN, IF THE BEHAVIOR IS REPEATED, WILL BE ASKED TO LEAVE THE MEETING. WE HAVE 14 SPEAKERS SIGNED UP TODAY, WHO WILL BE LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES EACH PER BOARD POLICY.
BUT YOU MAY NAME YOUR OWN CHILD. I ASK YOU TO PLEASE RESPECT OUR PROCEDURES AND THE OTHER SPEAKERS, AND TO END YOUR COMMENTS PROMPTLY WHEN YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED AND THE TIMER RINGS.
WE WILL FIRST HEAR FROM IN-PERSON SPEAKERS, FOLLOWED BY SPEAKERS WHO ARE WHO ARE ON ZOOM.
IN-PERSON SPEAKERS PLEASE COME TO THE MICROPHONE IN YOUR NUMBERED ORDER.
PLEASE STATE YOUR FULL NAME BEFORE YOUR REMARKS.
MISS SMITH, ARE YOU GOING TO CALL FOLKS? YES.
SPEAKERS ONE THROUGH SIX PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME BEFORE YOU AT THE PODIUM AND THEN BEGIN.
MY NAME IS JACK DEAR MEMBERS OF THE HISD BOARD OF MANAGERS, I AM SPEAKING TO YOU AS A DEEPLY CONCERNED MEMBER OF THE MIDDLE COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL AT FELIX FRAGA COMMUNITY REGARDING THE DEVASTATING BUDGET CUTS PROPOSED FOR THE 2025 2026 SCHOOL YEAR.
OUR CAMPUS SERVES A UNIQUE AND VITAL POPULATION OF 130 STUDENTS, 99% OF WHOM IDENTIFY AS HISPANIC.
AS AN EARLY COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL WITH AN ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION ACCOUNTABILITY PROVISIONS, OUR PROGRAM IS SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO SERVE STUDENTS FOR WHOM THE TRADITIONAL HIGH SCHOOL SETTING WAS NOT EFFECTIVE OR ACCESSIBLE.
MANY OF OUR STUDENTS ARE ON TRACK TO GRADUATE, BUT FACE LIFE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT REQUIRE MORE FLEXIBLE AND SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT TO THRIVE. OTHERS ARE UNDERSERVED YOUTH WHO MAY NOT HAVE NEVER ACCESS COLLEGE WITHOUT THE PERSONALIZED SUPPORT WE OFFER, DESPITE OPERATING WITH MINIMAL RESOURCES OUR STAFF AND STUDENTS HAVE ACHIEVED REMARKABLE OUTCOMES A 94% GRADUATION RATE, A 94% ATTENDANCE RATE, 97% GRADUATION RATE, 97% COLLEGE READINESS RATE, 93.2% OF STUDENTS EARNING AN APPROVED INDUSTRY BASED CERTIFICATION.
85% OF STUDENTS ENROLLED IN ONE OR MORE COLLEGE COURSES.
WE OPERATE WITH ONLY THREE OFFICE STAFF MEMBERS, AN ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT, A REGISTRAR, AND A COUNSELOR. OUR TEACHING STAFF IS COMPRISED JUST EIGHT TEACHERS, EACH RESPONSIBLE FOR AT LEAST THREE PLUS. THREE PREP PLUS A CREDIT RECOVERY COURSE, AND WE RECEIVE ONLY ONE PLANNING PERIOD EVERY OTHER DAY. THIS ALREADY UNSTABLE MODEL IS ABOUT TO WORSEN. WE'VE INFORMED THAT DUE TO THE COMING BUDGET CUTS, OUR REGISTRAR POSITION WILL BE ELIMINATED. THE PLAN IS TO COMBINE THE ROLES OF REGISTRAR AND COUNSELOR, BUT THIS IS NOT FEASIBLE. OUR COUNSELORS KNEW THE ROLE AND HAS NO EXPERIENCE AS A REGISTRAR. ASKING THEM TO PERFORM BOTH JOBS WOULD NOT ONLY BE UNREASONABLE, IT WOULD DIRECTLY JEOPARDIZE THE STABILITY OF OUR CAMPUS.
THE ALTERNATIVE THAT WAS DISCUSSED IS TERMINATING TWO TEACHER POSITIONS IS EQUALLY UNTHINKABLE, WITH ONLY EIGHT TEACHERS CARRYING A FULL LOAD ALREADY, WE CANNOT LOSE ANYONE WITHOUT SACRIFICING THE QUALITY AND BREADTH OF INSTRUCTIONS WE PROVIDE TO OUR STUDENTS. WE IMPLORE YOU TO RESTORE THE SMALL SCHOOL AND HIGH SCHOOL ALLOTMENTS SO THAT WE MAY KEEP OUR REGISTRAR AND MAINTAIN OUR CURRENT STAFFING LEVELS. DOING SO WILL ALLOW US TO CONTINUE DEVELOPING THE HIGH QUALITY, PERSONALIZED EDUCATION THAT OUR STUDENTS NOT ONLY DESERVE, BUT HAVE COME TO RELY ON. FRAG IS MORE THAN JUST A SCHOOL.
IT'S A PLACE OF SECOND CHANCES OF TRANSFORMATION AND GROWTH. PLEASE. THANK YOU.
MY NAME IS JUDY CHANG. I'M A PARENT AND A TAXPAYER.
IN FACT, THE PUA IS AN ALL TIME LOW. SO WHAT HAPPENS WHEN STANDARDIZED TEST SCORES IN CORE SUBJECTS DOMINATE THE EVALUATION SYSTEM? WITH THE LIMITED BUDGET, PRINCIPALS ARE FORCED TO CUT WHAT MAKES SCHOOL MEANINGFUL.
THE FOREIGN LANGUAGES, FINE ARTS, AND ATHLETICS.
AND HERE'S A QUESTION TO ALL TO ASK THAT WHY IS MONEY NOT FOLLOWING THE STUDENTS? 80% OF HISD STUDENTS ARE ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED.
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AND WHAT ABOUT THE STATE HIGH SCHOOL ALLOTMENT? WHY ISN'T THE FUNDING GOING DIRECTLY TO SCHOOL TO SUPPORT STUDENTS AS DESIGNED BY LAW? CUTTING CAMPUS BUDGET MEANS CUTTING PROGRAMS AND STAFF, AND THAT MEANS CUTTING INTO THE HEART OF WHAT HELPS STUDENTS GROW AND LEARN.IF WE WANT TO INCREASE ENROLLMENT, WE MUST START VALUING OUR HUMAN CAPITAL, BECAUSE THE ADULTS IN THIS BUILDING ARE TEACHERS, COUNSELORS, AND STAFF. THEY MAKE OR BREAK A SCHOOL.
I'M ASKING YOU TO MAKE MEANINGFUL CHANGES. FOCUS ON THE REAL LEARNING.
GIVE OUR SCHOOLS THE RESOURCES THEY NEED TO BE EXCELLENT, NOT JUST ADEQUATE.
MEDIOCRITY IS NOT ACCEPTABLE NOT TO OUR STUDENTS, NOT FOR OUR CITY.
I KNOW THE DECISIONS AHEAD ARE NOT EASY, BUT I ALSO KNOW WHAT'S AT STAKE THE FUTURE OF OUR STUDENTS, AND I HOLD YOU TO A HIGH STANDARD BECAUSE THEY DESERVE NOTHING LESS.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON, I'M BROOKE LONGORIA. PER USUAL, AS I WAS DRIVING OVER HERE, I TRIED TO PUT MYSELF IN YOUR SHOES AND THINK WHAT I WOULD THINK IF I WAS SITTING UP THERE WITH YOU ALL. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WENT THROUGH MY HEAD AS I DROVE OVER HERE TODAY IS SOME OF THE RHETORIC THAT MIKE MILES HAS SAID RECENTLY IN THE PRESS, THINGS LIKE THERE IS NO SUPERINTENDENT THAT COULD MAKE THE ACHIEVEMENTS THAT I'VE MADE OR THINGS THAT JIM TERRY AND I ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO CAN SAVE THIS HISD BUDGET. I'VE SERVED ON BOARDS BEFORE, AND IF THAT IS A STATEMENT MADE TOWARDS ME, THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WOULD HAVE GIVEN ME GREAT PAUSE AND QUESTION.
SO I JUST WANTED TO BRING THAT UP. AND THEN ADDITIONALLY, MUCH LIKE JUDY, I ALSO SHARE BIG CONCERNS ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL BUDGETS AND THE PUA AND MONEY NOT FOLLOWING THE STUDENTS. I'M VERY CONCERNED THAT WE'RE ROBBING PETER TO PAY PAUL, AND I AM CONCERNED THAT NES CONTINUES TO BE UNSUSTAINABLE AND NOT A GOOD FISCAL INVESTMENT CONSIDERING THE DECLINE IN ENROLLMENT.
AND THEN ADDITIONALLY, I WANTED TO SHARE CONCERNS I HAVE ABOUT THE TEST PREP CULTURE IN HISD.
AT SOME NES SCHOOLS I LEARNED RECENTLY. STUDENTS WHO ARE VANGUARD AND GT ARE ALLOWED TO ENJOY RECESS, WHILE THOSE WHO ARE NOT ARE DOING ZEARN LESSONS DURING RECESS.
A COMPUTER PROGRAM JUST REPEATEDLY, REPEATEDLY, REPEATEDLY IS NOT A BENEFIT.
IT'S NOT WHAT OUR KIDS NEED. SO GOOD LUCK TODAY.
OH, I SEE THIS IS SOMEONE ELSE'S. BROOKE DID NOT BRING A COMPUTER WITH HER.
SO UNDER LONE STAR GOVERNANCE, YOU'RE EXPECTED TO DEFER TO THE SUPERINTENDENT ON MATTERS OF POLICY SO LONG AS THERE ARE MEASURABLE RESULTS SHOWING PROGRESS. AND THE PROBLEM IS GOD BLESS YOU ALL.
YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT QUESTIONS TO ASK. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IS CONSIDERED VALID DATA.
SO WHAT YOU'VE BEEN TOLD OVER AND OVER IS THAT THE DISTRICT IS MAKING THIS GREAT IMPROVEMENT.
BECAUSE LOOK AT THE 23 TO 24 CHANGE. WELL, ANYBODY EVERYBODY IN THE ACADEMIC WORLD WHO HAS ANY INTEGRITY KNOWS THAT THE 23 SCORES WERE AN ANOMALY. THEY WERE NOT VALID BECAUSE THERE WAS SUCH A DRASTIC CHANGE TO THE TEST, BOTH IN THE FORMAT AND IN THE CONTENT. EVERYTHING BOMBED.
IF YOU WANT TO LOOK AT THE LAST VALID SCORES, YOU NEED TO LOOK AT 2018 AND 2019.
AND GUESS WHAT? SO FAR NONE OF YOU HAVE ASKED FOR THAT THAT I HAVE SEEN.
GUESS WHAT? HERE IS THE CHART. HERE'S 2018. HERE'S 2019.
HERE'S 2024. THE BLUE IS A THROUGH C RATED SCHOOLS AND THE ORANGE IS D AND F.
IT'S IDENTICAL. THERE IS NO CHANGE. SO WHAT HAVE WE GOTTEN FOR THAT.
WELL IN FACT ALSO HALF OF THE NES SCHOOLS DID BETTER IN EITHER 18 OR 19 THAN THEY DID IN 24.
SO WHAT HAVE WE GOT? WE'VE GOT A BALLOONING DEBT. WE'VE GOT HEMORRHAGING ENROLLMENT, ESPECIALLY AT NES CAMPUSES. WE'VE GOT NO LIBRARIES, WE'VE GOT NO WRAPAROUND SERVICE PROVIDERS. WE HAVE NOW DONE THE THING THAT YOU SAID MR. CAMPO YOU KNEW WAS BAD, WHICH WAS TO SILO THOSE SERVICES.
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WE HAVE CLOSED CAMPUSES AND THERE'S A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN DAEP PLACEMENT, WHICH IS THE SCHOOL TO PRISON PIPELINE, EVERYTHING THAT IS EVIDENCE BASED, WHICH MEANS IT HAS BEEN PUBLISHED IN PEER REVIEWED JOURNALS, SAYS RELATIONSHIPS ARE WHAT MAKE EDUCATION WORK.AND EVERYTHING THAT THIS ADMINISTRATION IS DOING [BELL].
GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M KELLY BLEAKLEY, PARENT. YOU HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF PEOPLE FIRST.
THAT'S WHAT YOU MR. CAMPO TOLD THE KINDER INSTITUTE JUST THIS MONTH.
BUT NOW YOU'RE DOING THE OPPOSITE. LAST YEAR, THIS DISTRICT HAD HUNDREDS OF WRAPAROUND SPECIALISTS EMBEDDED IN SCHOOLS, TRUSTED ADULTS WHO NOTICED WHEN A STUDENT NEEDED FOOD OR CLOTHES OR MENTAL HEALTH CARE WITHOUT WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO ASK.
THIS YEAR, JUST 44 REMAIN. AND NOW EVEN THOSE ROLES ARE BEING ELIMINATED.
THE ONE CLOSEST TO MY SON'S SCHOOL IS 18 MILES AWAY.
MEANWHILE, FAMILIES ARE EXPECTED TO SCAN A QR CODE FROM A SIGN POSTED OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL.
IT'S IN ENGLISH, MAYBE SPANISH. HISD HAS STUDENTS WHO SPEAK OVER 100 LANGUAGES.
THESE SIGNS ARE BARRIERS, NOT BRIDGES. THEY EXCLUDE OUR MOST VULNERABLE IMMIGRANT FAMILIES.
FAMILIES WITHOUT INTERNET. FAMILIES WHO DON'T WANT TO ASK FOR HELP FROM A SIDEWALK.
WRAPAROUND SPECIALISTS DIDN'T NEED A FORM TO SEE A HUNGRY KID.
THEY DIDN'T NEED A QR CODE TO KNOW WHEN A STUDENT NEEDED SHOES OR A SAFE PLACE TO SLEEP.
THEY WERE THERE EVERY DAY ON CAMPUS. YOURS IS NOT A PLAN THAT CENTERS STUDENTS.
THOSE WHO ALREADY ARE FACING FOOD INSECURITY, LANGUAGE BARRIERS, JOB INSTABILITY, OR HOUSING LOSS.
THIS IS NEGLECT DRESSED UP AS EFFICIENCY. YOU SAY YOU WANT TO PUT PEOPLE FIRST.
THEN DO IT. PLEASE STOP OUTSOURCING COMPASSION.
STOP DEFLECTING RESPONSIBILITY. BRING WRAPAROUND SPECIALISTS BACK TO OUR SCHOOL.
THANKS. [APPLAUSE] THANK YOU. ANY OTHER IN-PERSON SPEAKERS? OKAY, WE'LL MOVE TO ZOOM.
DOCTOR BENZONI, YOU MAY BEGIN. THANK YOU. HI.
TODAY, I'M HERE TO SPEAK ABOUT THE ESSENTIAL ROLE OF WRAPAROUND SERVICES IN OUR SCHOOLS.
IN 2019 TO 2020, HISD'S WRAPAROUND SPECIALISTS COMPLETED OVER 622,000 INTERVENTIONS, REACHING OVER 75% OF THE TARGETED STUDENT POPULATION. NOTABLY, STUDENTS AT RISK OF DROPPING OUT WHO RECEIVE THESE SERVICES WERE SEVEN TIMES MORE LIKELY TO MEET GRADE LEVEL STANDARDS IN MATH AND FIVE TIMES MORE LIKELY IN READING. IN JUNE 2024, THE HISD BOARD APPROVED A $2.1 BILLION BUDGET, DESPITE A $528 MILLION SHORTFALL.
ONE THIRD OF IT WAS FUNNELED INTO MILES'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM, A MODEL THAT OFFERS HIGH SALARIES FOR COMPLIANCE, NOT CREATIVITY. THIS ISN'T EMPOWERMENT, IT'S CONTROL.
THE 48 REMAINING SPECIALISTS HAD TO SPLIT TIME AMONG 5 TO 10 CAMPUSES EACH.
EQUITY MEANS MEETING FAMILIES WHERE THEY ARE.
WE NEED WRAPAROUND SERVICES IN SCHOOLS, NOT CENTRALIZED IN EIGHT HUBS ACROSS 333MI².
A FLASHY PROGRAM THAT ONLY WORKS FOR THE FEW IS NOT EQUITY.
IT'S PERFORMANCE. AND WE ALL KNOW THAT MILES LIKES HIS PERFORMANCES.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE] ROBERT VAN BORSSUM, YOU MAY BEGIN.
[00:15:11]
GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD AND SUPERINTENDENT MILES .I'M SPEAKING HERE TODAY TO ASK YOU TO RECONSIDER THE PRIORITIES IN YOUR CURRENT BUDGET.
I BELIEVE THAT THERE IS A MUCH BETTER USE CASE FOR A LOT OF THE MONEY THAT IS BEING PULLED BACK AND REALLOCATED TO REALLY IMPROVE THE OUTCOMES OF THE CHILDREN IN HISD. THE FACT THAT NON-NES SCHOOLS ARE BEING PENALIZED WHILE NES SCHOOLS ARE SHOWING SEVERE FLOODS IS ABHORRENT.
IT IS NONSENSICAL AND THE CURRENT BUDGET NEEDS TO REFLECT THAT NON-NES SCHOOLS ARE ACHIEVING BETTER OUTCOMES AND HAVING MORE STUDENTS SEEK THEM OUT. I KNOW SEVERAL PEOPLE PERSONALLY WHO ARE DOING THE SAME THING RIGHT NOW LOOKING FOR NON-NES SCHOOL OPTIONS WITHIN THE DISTRICT.
AND WITH THAT, I'LL YIELD THE REST OF MY TIME. THANK YOU.
CHRISTINE HURLEY, PLEASE UNMUTE YOURSELF. YOU MAY BEGIN. HI. EVERY TIME I SPEAK BEFORE YOU, I WONDER WHAT MESSAGE WILL FINALLY GET YOU TO LISTEN.
YET YOU CONTINUE TO HAVE THE ARROGANCE THAT YOU, NOT THE EXPERTS, KNOW WHAT'S BEST.
OR WILL YOU CLAIM IT'S THAT WE NON-BOARD MEMBERS WHO DON'T UNDERSTAND THE FULL PICTURE? IN WHICH CASE IT'S STILL A LACK ON YOUR PART, A LACK OF TRANSPARENCY.
HOW ARE WE AT THIS POINT OF A CRISIS AND YOU STILL WILLFULLY CHOOSE TO REMAIN BLIND TO IT? IN THE BOARD Q&A YOU ADMIT THAT ENROLLMENT IS IN A FREEFALL.
SPENDING MILLIONS ON HISD NOW IS NOT GOING TO HELP ENROLLMENT OR STUDENT OUTCOMES.
YOU KNOW WHAT WOULD BE MONEY WELL SPENT? LIBRARIES, WHICH I'M SURE YOU'RE SICK OF HEARING ABOUT, BUT YOU CONTINUE TO DISREGARD THEIR IMPORTANCE.
FURTHER EMPHASIZING YOUR UNSUITABILITY FOR YOUR POSITIONS.
YOU DON'T ASK QUESTIONS SEEKING TO UNDERSTAND.
YOU ASSUME YOU KNOW BEST TO THE VAST DETRIMENT OF OUR SCHOOLS.
I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THE DECIMATION OF OUR CAMPUS.
WE'RE PLANNING ON LEAVING OUR NES CAMPUS BECAUSE NES SUCKS, BUT NOW WE'RE TERRIFIED THAT WITH THESE ASININE BUDGET CUTS YOU'RE PLANNING, OUR NON NES SCHOOL CHOICE WILL LOSE THEIR LIBRARY BECAUSE VERY FEW CAMPUSES ARE SUPPORTED BY A WEALTHY ENOUGH PTO TO SUSTAIN THESE BUDGET DEFICITS.
AT ANY POINT, YOU CAN COURSE. CORRECT. BUT I DOUBT YOU WILL.
I HOPE YOU [BELL] WRONG. THANK YOU. BRIANNA VAN BORSSOM, PLEASE BEGIN.
OKAY. THANK YOU. I'M HERE TO EXPRESS DEEP CONCERN OVER THE DECISION TO CUT VITAL WRAPAROUND SERVICES WITHIN OUR SCHOOLS, A MOVE THAT SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACTS OUR STUDENTS WELL-BEING AND ACADEMIC SUCCESS.
CURRENTLY, APPROXIMATELY 80% OF HISD STUDENTS ARE CONSIDERED ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED.
THESE STUDENTS OFTEN FACE CHALLENGES BEYOND THE CLASSROOM, INCLUDING FOOD INSECURITY, HOUSING INSTABILITY, AND LIMITED ACCESS TO MEDICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH CARE.
WE ALL KNOW A HUNGRY CHILD DOESN'T LEARN WELL.
THE CONSEQUENCES OF THESE CUTS ARE TANGIBLE. CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM HAS BECOME A SIGNIFICANT OBSTACLE TO STUDENT SUCCESS, WITH MANY STUDENTS MISSING 10% OR MORE OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
WITHOUT ADEQUATE SUPPORT, STUDENTS FACING PERSONAL HARDSHIPS ARE MORE LIKELY TO DISENGAGE, LEADING TO LOWER ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AND HIGHER DROPOUT RATES.
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THE ONE THING MIKE MILES AND I AGREE ON IS KEEPING OUR TAX DOLLARS AS CLOSE TO THE CLASSROOM AND STUDENTS AS POSSIBLE.INVESTING IN THE WHOLE CHILD IS ESSENTIAL FOR ENSURING EVERY CHILD HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO SUCCEED.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NO MORE SPEAKERS ON ZOOM.
OKAY. HAS ANY OTHER SPEAKERS COME IN OR? OKAY, GREAT.
OKAY. OUR FIRST HEARING IS A PROCEDURE TO CONSIDER THE DISPUTE RESOLUTION OF STACEY KOPESKY.
LEVEL THREE DISPUTE HEARING. THE PURPOSE OF THIS MEETING.
UNDER THE TERMS OF THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE, SECTION 551.071.
IF ANY BOARD MEMBER WISHES TO SEEK ADVICE OF COUNSEL, PLEASE MAKE THE REQUEST TO ME FOR THE RECORD.
HECTOR MORALES WILL, WITH THE TEXAS SUPPORT PERSONNEL EMPLOYEES LOCAL ONE IS REPRESENTING STACEY KOPESKY. AND STACEY IS IS PRESENT. ELISHA PHIPPS WITH MONTY RAMIREZ LAW REPRESENTING THE ADMINISTRATION IS PRESENT AND CATOSHA WOODS HISD GENERAL COUNSEL IS ALSO PRESENT.
MR. MORALES, WOULD YOU CONTINUE IN OPEN SESSION OR CLOSED SESSION? OPEN SESSION. OPEN SESSION. OKAY.
THE ISSUES BEFORE THE SCHOOL BOARD ARE WHETHER BOARD POLICIES AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES WERE CORRECTLY APPLIED TO THE GRIEVANCE, AND WHETHER THE ADMINISTRATION HAS VIOLATED THESE POLICIES OR PROCEDURES.
YOU BOTH SIDES WILL THEN BE AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD AFTER EACH PRESENTATION.
AFTER DELIBERATION, THE BOARD WILL RENDER ITS DECISION.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW THIS DISPUTE RESOLUTION HEARING WILL BE CONDUCTED? EVERYBODY GOOD? OKAY. MR. MORALES, HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO DIVIDE YOUR TIME MAKING YOUR PRESENTATION TO THE BOARD.
WITH SIX MINUTES AND FOUR MINUTES FOR REBUTTAL? SIX MINUTES AND FOUR MINUTES. OKAY, MR. MORALES, YOU MAY BEGIN.
CAN I SHUT IT OR? GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. PRESIDENT.
I'VE ALWAYS SAID, AND I'VE ALWAYS ARGUED IN FRONT OF YOU WHEN I'VE COME IN FRONT OF YOU TO WEIGH IN ONLY THE EXHIBITS THAT WERE PRESENTED, ONLY THE TRANSCRIPTS THAT WERE PRESENTED TO YOU.
THE PROBLEM AND THE CONCERN THAT ARISED IS ABOUT A PAY.
SHE DISCUSSED HER PAY. FOLLOW THIS ONE IF YOU COULD PLEASE.
WITH HER HR, WITH THE DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, WITH THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND ALSO HER SENIOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SHE FOLLOWED THE WHOLE CHAIN OF COMMAND REGARDING HER PAY.
THAT IS THE REASON AND THAT IS THE PURPOSE THAT WE'RE HERE.
THE ADMINISTRATION AND THE DISTRICT IS TRYING TO SAY THAT SHE WAS TERMINATED FOR MISCONDUCT.
BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE EXHIBITS AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE TESTIMONY THAT WAS PRESENTED TO YOU, NOWHERE DOES IT SAY THAT MISCONDUCT WAS CONDUCTED.
PRIME EXAMPLE IF YOU LOOK AT EXHIBIT B, WHICH IS A VERY IMPORTANT EXHIBIT 4B, SHE WAS NOT TERMINATED FOR HER MISCONDUCT WITH WORK. LOOK AT EXHIBIT FIVE.
WE DID AN OPEN RECORDS REQUEST UNDER THE TEXAS OPEN RECORDS REQUEST.
[00:25:05]
AND IT WOULD SHOW PROOF THAT MISS KOPESKY FOLLOWED EVERY BOARD POLICY THAT WAS OUTLINED IN HISD TO SHOW.THAT SHE WAS DOING HER JOB THE WAY SHE WAS ENTITLED TO DO IT.
SECONDLY, IF YOU LOOK AT EXHIBIT 11, SHE MET WITH MR. LEWIS TO DISCUSS HER PAY. HE IS THE DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE OTHER EXHIBIT, SHE MET WITH MISS BETTY WIGGINS AND MISS PALMER, WHO IS THE HR AND THE SENIOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ON 8- 28-24, AGAIN TO DISCUSS HER PAY AND THE PURPOSE THAT SHE WAS GOING TO DISCUSS HER PAY IS IF YOU LOOK AT EXHIBIT 11, WHICH IS A VERY IMPORTANT. EXCUSE ME. EXHIBIT 21, WHICH IS A VERY IMPORTANT EXHIBIT.
THE PURPOSE AND THE REASON THAT SHE DISCUSSED HER PAY IS THERE WAS AN INDIVIDUAL WHO JUST GOT PROMOTED AND WAS JUST RECENTLY IN THAT ROLE, MAKING $20,000 A YEAR AND THEN MIRACULOUSLY RECEIVED A $65,000 INCREASE. WHO JUST STARTED WORKING IN THAT DEPARTMENT? THAT IS THE REASON SHE WAS QUESTIONING WHY SHE ONLY RECEIVED A $2,000 INCREASE WHEN THE NEW EMPLOYEE, WHO JUST STARTED IN THAT ROLE WITH NO EXPERIENCE, CAME IN FROM A CAFETERIA MANAGER TO A COORDINATOR 2 RECEIVED A $65,000 INCREASE. I'M SURE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU, IF YOU WERE IN YOUR PROFESSION AND YOU REALIZE AN EMPLOYEE THAT JUST STARTED WAS MAKING LESS THAN YOU, BUT RECEIVED A $65,000 INCREASE, WOULD RAISE A CONCERN AND WOULD RAISE AN ISSUE.
AND THAT'S WHAT SHE DID. DGBA LOCAL BOARD POLICY STATES THAT EMPLOYEE HAS THE RIGHT TO RAISE A CONCERN ABOUT THEIR WAGES. SO SOMEHOW THE NUTRITION SERVICES CANNOT JUSTIFY HOW MY CLIENT ONLY RECEIVED A $2,000 INCREASE.
BUT THE NEWLY HIRED EMPLOYEE WITH NO EXPERIENCE, NO KNOWLEDGE OF THAT DEPARTMENT, NO KNOWLEDGE OF THE WORK WENT FROM MAKING 20,000 A YEAR TO A $65,000 INCREASE. NOW THE ADMINISTRATION IS GOING TO ARGUE, WELL, THIS TOOK PLACE AND THIS TOOK PLACE. SO YOU WANT TO RECOMMEND TERMINATION FOR MISCONDUCT ABOUT RAISING UP A CONCERN ABOUT HER PAY.
AND MIND YOU, SHE FOLLOWED THE CHAIN OF COMMAND.
SHE MET WITH HR, SHE MET WITH THE DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, SHE MET WITH THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.
AND SHE ALSO MET WITH THE SENIOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.
AND SHE SPECIFICALLY STATED, IF I'M HERE TO DISCUSS ABOUT MY PAY AND MY CONCERN, WOULD THERE BE ANY RETALIATION TAKEN AGAINST ME? THEY SPECIFICALLY SAID ABSOLUTELY NOT. WELL, GUESS WHAT HAPPENED A WEEK LATER.
SHE WAS CALLED IN TO EMPLOYEE RELATIONS, SAID, WE'RE HERE TO DISCUSS SOME CONCERNS.
SHE ANSWERED THEM TRUTHFULLY, AND A FEW DAYS LATER SHE WAS RECOMMENDED FOR TERMINATION.
SO MY QUESTION TO YOU AND I ARGUE TO YOU TODAY, WHAT BOARD POLICY DID SHE VIOLATE TO WARRANT THE TERMINATION? IF IT STAYS UNDER DGBA LOCAL, THAT YOU CAN RAISE A CONCERN REGARDING YOUR SALARIES AT ANY TIME.
AND THE GOOD THING IS, SHE FOLLOWED THE CHAIN OF COMMAND.
SHE DIDN'T GO OUTSIDE OF THE SCOPE. SHE DIDN'T GO WAY ABOVE.
SHE WENT STEP BY STEP BY STEP. AND THAT'S WHAT YOU NEED TO LOOK AT.
AND THAT IS WHAT I ASK YOU. AND I PRAY THAT YOU LOOK IN ONLY TO THE EXHIBITS THAT WERE PRESENTED TO YOU, AND ALSO THE DOCUMENTS THAT WERE PRESENTED TO YOU.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MISS PHIPPS YOU MAY MAKE YOUR PRESENTATION TO THE BOARD.
GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD MEMBERS. THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE TODAY.
MY NAME IS ELISHA PHIPPS, AND I AM WITH MONTY & RAMIREZ LAW FIRM.
AND I REPRESENT HISD IN THIS LEVEL THREE APPEAL.
I DO HAVE A PRESENTATION FOR YOU TODAY. JUST TO SUMMARIZE AND VISUALIZE OUR ARGUMENTS TODAY.
IF YOU JUST GIVE ME ONE MOMENT.
OKAY. GOT IT. THANKS. WE HAVE HEARD TODAY FROM MR.
[00:30:01]
MORALES MISS KOPESKY'S REPRESENTATIVE REGARDING WHY HE BELIEVES SHE SHOULD BE REINSTATED TO HER POSITION AS COORDINATOR 1.YET MISS KOPESKY HAS NOT AND CANNOT MEET HER BURDEN OF ESTABLISHING THAT THE LEVEL ONE AND THE LEVEL TWO HEARING OFFICERS DECIDED INCORRECTLY. TODAY I WILL BE TELLING YOU WHY BOTH THE LEVEL ONE AND LEVEL TWO HEARING OFFICERS CORRECTLY DECIDED TO DENY THE GRIEVANT HER REQUEST TO BE REINSTATED. THERE WERE NO REVERSIBLE ERRORS MADE BY EITHER OF THE HEARING OFFICERS FOR THIS GRIEVANCE, AND I WILL EXPLAIN WHY. THIS CASE IS VERY SIMPLE.
AND IS EASILY BROKEN DOWN INTO THREE KEY POINTS.
FIRST, HISD RIGHTFULLY TERMINATED HER EMPLOYMENT FOR VIOLATING DH LOCAL.
SECOND, THIS WAS NOT HER FIRST VIOLATION OF DH LOCAL AND SHE WAS PREVIOUSLY WARNED.
THIRD MISS KOPESKY WAS AN AT WILL EMPLOYEE IN A NON-CONTRACT POSITION AS A COORDINATOR ONE.
THEREFORE, SHE COULD BE TERMINATED FOR ANY REASON OR NO REASON.
HOWEVER, AS I WILL DISCUSS HISD DID HAVE A GOOD CAUSE TO TERMINATE HER.
FIRST I WILL DISCUSS THE GRIEVANCE VIOLATION OF DH LOCAL.
THE EVIDENCE IS CLEAR THAT MISS KOPESKY ENGAGED IN CONDUCT THAT VIOLATED DHD LOCAL, WHICH PROVIDES THAT EVERY EMPLOYEE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR RELATING TO COLLEAGUES AND SUPERVISORS WITH RESPECT, COURTESY AND IN A PROFESSIONAL MANNER.
THE LEVEL TWO RECORD IS CLEAR. MS. KOPESKY'S ACTIONS AROUND CONTACTING COWORKERS DURING AND AFTER WORK HOURS CREATED AN UNCOMFORTABLE AND UNPROFESSIONAL WORK ENVIRONMENT FOR HER COLLEAGUES, IN VIOLATION OF DH LOCAL, WHICH WILL BE SHOWN BY STATEMENTS THAT HER COLLEAGUES SUBMITTED FROM SEPTEMBER 13TH TO SEPTEMBER 16TH. MISS KOPESKY WAS. SORRY. FROM SEPTEMBER 13TH TO SEPTEMBER 16TH, 2024, BEFORE MISS KOPESKY WAS EVER INVESTIGATED BY EMPLOYEE RELATIONS SEVERAL COORDINATOR ONES REPORTED TO THEIR SUPERVISORS.
THEY WERE CONTACTED MULTIPLE TIMES AND DURING WORK HOURS TO URGE THEM TO SIGN A PETITION REGARDING PAY DIFFERENTIALS AND COMPANY VEHICLES, WHICH WAS CIRCULATED BY MISS KOPESKY ALONG WITH MR. ERNAND URGO AND MISS FELECIA MAYS-CORBIN. THAT PETITION IS AVAILABLE IN THE ADMINISTRATION'S EXHIBITS EXHIBIT 4. FEDALMA GUICE WAS ONE OF THE COORDINATOR ONES WHO WROTE HER SUPERVISOR THAT THE PETITION WAS ATTACHED AND SENT TO TOSHA HICKS ON AUGUST 29, 2024.
SHE STATED IN HER IN HER EMAIL TO HER SUPERVISORS THAT I DON'T WANT TO BE PRESSURED INTO SIGNING THE PETITION, AND SHE SAID THAT SHE FELT PRESSURED AND SHE WAS CONTACTED MULTIPLE TIMES ABOUT THE PETITION.
KAREN ROBERTS NAMED MISS KOPESKY AS ONE OF THE DRIVING COORDINATORS OUT OF A GROUP OF THREE THAT WERE CONTACTING COORDINATORS DURING THE WORK HOURS MULTIPLE TIMES.
WE ALSO HAVE STATEMENTS AVAILABLE IN ADMINISTRATION'S EXHIBITS FOR SHELBY DEWITT AND CURTIS JOHNSON.
THEY HAD A DESIRE TO REMAIN NEUTRAL.
MISS KOPESKY'S INVOLVEMENT IS CLEAR FROM HER COLLEAGUES IDENTIFYING HER AND FROM HER EMAIL TO MISS BETTY WIGGINS, AVAILABLE AT ADMINISTRATION'S EXHIBIT NINE, IN WHICH SHE REFERENCED THE PETITION REQUESTING HIGHER PAY, RENTAL CARS AND REMOTE OPTION WORK OPTIONS. SHE ALSO SIGNED THE EMAIL ON BEHALF OF THE COWORKERS AS A WHOLE, DESPITE THE FACT THAT, AS YOU'VE SEEN BY THE STATEMENTS, THEY DID NOT ALL AGREE TO BE INVOLVED.
[00:35:05]
HER EMAIL TO MISS WIGGINS ALSO REFERRED TO TEXT MESSAGES BETWEEN MISS KOPESKY, MISS MAYS-CORBIN AND OTHERS REGARDING THE COMPANY CAR SITUATION.IT WAS AFTER MISS KEIMIG AND MISS MAINON TWO OF HIS REPORTS EACH HAD TWO OF THEIR REPORTS, COORDINATOR ONE'S COMPLAIN ABOUT FEELING PRESSURED TO SIGN THE PETITION THAT MR. LEWIS DECIDED HE NEEDED TO HAVE HR LAUNCH AN INVESTIGATION.
DURING THE INVESTIGATION, MISS KOPESKY ADMITTED TO BREANNA TURNER IN EMPLOYEE RELATIONS THAT SHE, MR. URGO AND MISS MAYS-CORBIN CREATED THE PETITION TO ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO SIGN.
AND THIS IS ON THIS SLIDE IS A EXCERPT FROM HER STATEMENT.
SECOND, I WILL TALK ABOUT THE GRIEVANCE PRIOR DH LOCAL VIOLATION AND THE WARNINGS SHE RECEIVED.
ON THIS SLIDE, YOU SEE A A PRIOR LETTER OF CONCERN THAT SHE WAS ISSUED ON OCTOBER 5, 2020.
AND THE HIGHLIGHTED PORTIONS ARE THE MOST RELEVANT EXCERPTS FROM HER.
THE CITATION SHE RECEIVED. MISS KOPESKY'S DH LOCAL VIOLATION THAT IMMEDIATELY PRECEDED HER OCTOBER 2024 TERMINATION WAS AT LEAST HER SECOND VIOLATION OF THE SAME BOARD POLICY. ON OCTOBER 5, 2020, MS. KOPESKY'S SUPERVISOR ISSUED HER A LETTER OF CONCERN FOR DISRESPECTFULLY COMMUNICATING WITH A COLLEAGUE IN VIOLATION OF THE SAME LOCAL PROVISION. THIRD, AND FINALLY, I WILL DISCUSS THE AT WILL NATURE OF MS. KOPESKY'S EMPLOYMENT AS A COORDINATOR ONE. MISS KOPESKY WAS AN AT WILL EMPLOYEE AND IN A NON-CONTRACT POSITION AS STATED IN HER PERSONNEL FILE.
AND YOU CAN SEE ON THIS SLIDE THERE, THIS IS A LETTER REGARDING HER TERMINATION, AND SHE IS IDENTIFIED AS A NON-CONTRACT AT WILL EMPLOYEE PURSUANT TO DCD LOCAL.
AND SO PURSUANT TO DCD LOCAL SHE COULD BE TERMINATED FOR ANY REASON OR NO REASON.
HOWEVER, AS I SHOWED EARLIER, HISD DID DID TERMINATE MISS KOPESKY FOR GOOD CAUSE, WHICH WAS HER VIOLATION OF DH LOCAL NOT ONCE, BUT AT LEAST TWICE SHE WAS WARNED THAT DISCIPLINARY ACTION COULD FOLLOW, BUT STILL ENGAGED IN CONDUCT THAT VIOLATED THE POLICY.
THIS IS WHY HISD TERMINATED HER ON OCTOBER 2, 2024, AND MR. MORALES ARGUMENTS THAT SHE WAS UNJUSTLY TERMINATED, GIVEN THE ALLEGED MISCONDUCT OF OTHERS, IS COMPLETELY BASELESS AND NOTHING MORE THAN A RED HERRING TO DISTRACT FROM THE SIMPLE TRUTH.
THE TRUTH IS THAT SHE BROKE BOARD POLICY TWICE AND WAS TERMINATED FOR THAT.
HISD DID NOT NEED A REASON TO TERMINATE HER BECAUSE OF HER AT WILL STATUS, BUT HISD DID PROVIDE A REASON WHICH IS WELL DOCUMENTED AND PRESENTED IN THE RECORD BEFORE YOU TODAY. AS AN OVERVIEW, I HAVE TALKED ABOUT WHY THE LEVEL ONE AND LEVEL TWO DECISION TO DENY REINSTATEMENT MUST STAND. ONE I HAVE DISCUSSED HOW HISD TERMINATED HER FOR GOOD CAUSE DUE TO HER VIOLATION OF DH LOCAL AND REVIEWED THE EVIDENCE WHICH PROVES THIS. TWO I HAVE SHOWN THAT SHE HAD A PATTERN OF BREAKING THE SAME RULE, AND WAS WARNED PREVIOUSLY BY HER SUPERVISOR.
THEREFORE, HISD RESPECTFULLY REQUESTS THAT YOU UPHOLD BOTH THE LEVEL ONE AND LEVEL TWO DECISIONS, AND AGAIN DENY THE GRIEVANCE REINSTATEMENT REQUEST.
THANK YOU FOR HEARING MY PRESENTATION, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE.
THANK YOU, MR. MORALES. YOU HAVE FOUR MINUTES REMAINING.
TRYING TO BE VERY PROFESSIONAL AND NOT GET UPSET LIKE I DID LAST TIME.
SO MY CONCERN TO YOU IS WHEN SOMEONE IS FABRICATING SOMETHING, I BELIEVE THEY SHOULD BACK IT UP.
[00:40:04]
BUT IF YOU LOOK AT EXHIBIT EIGHT, WHICH IS A VERY IMPORTANT EXHIBIT THAT SHE STATED, KAREN ROBERTS, LET ME READ WHAT SHE SAYS. THREE COORDINATORS ARE STACEY KOPESKY I NEVER SPOKE TO HER ABOUT A PETITION.THESE ARE THE ONLY THE STATEMENTS THAT WERE GIVEN BY THE ADMINISTRATION FROM THE EMPLOYEES THAT ALLEGED THAT SHE WAS THE CORPORATE, AND SHE TOOK PLACE OF WHAT OCCURRED. THAT'S ONE STATEMENT RIGHT NOW.
EXHIBIT EIGHT. SHE STATED THAT THE EMPLOYEES WERE SCARED OF MISS KOPESKY.
YOU HAVE ONE EMPLOYEE ON THE RECORD. SHE NEVER SPOKE TO MISS KOPESKY.
IF YOU LOOK AT EXHIBIT SEVEN AGAIN, THIS IS THE ADMINISTRATION'S EXHIBIT AGAIN.
MR. CURTIS JOHNSON I'LL READ WHAT HE SAYS. I WROTE HIS SUPERVISOR.
I WASN'T GOING TO SIGN THE PETITION BECAUSE OF HOW FAR I HAVE COME AS A UNIFIED FRONT.
I TALKED TO HERNAN ABOUT THE PROGRESS AND CHANGES THAT HAVE BEEN MADE ALREADY WITH COORDINATORS.
AGAIN, NOTHING HAPPENS OVERNIGHT. NEVER DO THEY MENTION MISS KOPESKY'S NAME AT ALL.
LET'S LOOK AT MISS SHELBY DEWITT, EXHIBIT FIVE, WROTE HER SUPERVISOR.
PLEASE CONSIDER MY DESIRE TO REMAIN NEUTRAL WITH ALL THE INFORMATION ABOVE.
I DO NOT WANT TO BE PUT IN THE MIDDLE OF ANYTHING.
THAT'S EXHIBIT FIVE AGAIN. THE ADMINISTRATION'S EXHIBIT.
WHERE DOES IT MENTION MISS KOPESKY'S NAME? NOWHERE ON ANY OF THE EXHIBITS THAT THE ADMINISTRATION ADMITTED TO YOU. THE ADMINISTRATION HAS ALWAYS ARGUED THAT THERE ARE AT WILL EMPLOYEES, AND I'M ALWAYS ON THE RECORD.
I DON'T KNOW WHY THEY CONTINUE ARGUING THAT THAT THEY'RE AN AT WILL EMPLOYEE, BUT UNDER BOARD POLICY, IF AN EMPLOYEE FEELS THEY WERE UNJUSTLY TERMINATED, THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO FILE A GRIEVANCE IF IT HAS TO DO WITH PAY THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO FILE A GRIEVANCE. AND THAT'S WHAT MISS KOPESKY DID.
SHE EXERCISED HER RIGHTS UNDER DGBA, AND THAT IS THE PURPOSE AND THE REASON THAT WE'RE HERE.
THE ADMINISTRATION HAS NOT GIVEN YOU SUFFICIENT ENOUGH EVIDENCE TO WARRANT THE TERMINATION.
I ASK YOU, PLEASE WEIGH IN ONLY TO THE EXHIBITS.
WHAT I JUST READ TO YOU DOESN'T IMPLICATE MY CLIENT AT ALL.
AND IT SAYS ONE OF THEM SAYS, I NEVER SPOKE TO MISS KOPESKY.
ONE OF THEM SAYS, I NEVER MENTIONED MISS KOPESKY.
SO HOW IN THE WORLD CAN YOU UPHOLD SOMETHING THAT EMPLOYEES WHO ENTERED AS A STATEMENTS AND EXHIBITS FROM THE ADMINISTRATION NEVER IMPLICATES MY CLIENT? I ASK YOU TO PLEASE AND I'M BEGGING YOU TO PLEASE WEIGH IN ONLY TO THE EXHIBITS AND THE STATEMENTS.
THE STATEMENTS ALONE SHOWS THAT MY CLIENT DIDN'T PARTICIPATE IN THIS AT ALL.
IS THERE A WITCH HUNT? WHO KNOWS? BUT ALSO CONSIDER THE REASON WHY SHE SPOKE OUT FREELY.
AN INDIVIDUAL CAME IN AT 20,000 AND JUMPED TO 65.
THAT'S THE REASON SHE SPOKE OUT. THAT IS THE REASON WHY SHE WANTS TO BE IT CORRECTLY.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. THE PARTIES HAVE COMPLETED THEIR PRESENTATIONS.
NOW TIME FOR THE BOARD MEMBERS TO MAKE OUR DECISION ON THE ISSUES BEFORE US.
IF THERE IS ANY DISPUTE BETWEEN MISS KOPESKY AND THE ADMINISTRATION AS TO WHAT THE POLICY OR PROCEDURES MEAN, THAT IS THE BOARD'S RESPONSIBILITY TO DETERMINE THE MEANING OR APPLICATION OF THE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.
THE RECORD OF THE LEVEL TWO HEARING MUST SUPPORT ANY ACTION WE TAKE.
THAT IS, IF THE RECORD SUPPORTS THE POSITION OF THE ADMINISTRATION OR THE POSITION OF MISS KOPESKY, WE MAY FIND ACCORDINGLY. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? OKAY. DOES THERE NEED TO GO TO CLOSED SESSION.
AND UPHOLD THE DECISION OF THE LEVEL TWO HEARING OFFICER.
[00:45:01]
IS THERE A SECOND? WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.MOTION PASSES. FIVE FOUR. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. A LETTER NOTIFYING BOTH PARTIES TO ACTION OF THIS BOARD SHALL BE PREPARED AND SIGNED BY THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE BOARD OF RELATIONS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
THIS HEARING IS CONCLUDED AT 1:50 P.M.. BEFORE YOU START AGAIN.
WHAT'S THAT? IF SOMEONE LEAVES, WE HAVE TO PAUSE.
YES. TAKE A BRIEF RECESS. OKAY. WE'RE GOING TO TAKE A QUICK RECESS.
WE'RE BACK IN SESSION AT 1:52. I'M SORRY. COULD YOU HOLD ON? OH, YES, I CAN. GO AHEAD. WE'RE NOT BACK YET.
OKAY. GO AHEAD. OKAY. WE'RE BACK IN SESSION AT 1:52 P.M..
OKAY. DO WE HAVE THE OTHER GROUP HERE? HARD TO START IF WE DON'T HAVE ANOTHER PARTY. RIGHT? THE GRIEVANT.
OKAY. SHE WAS HERE EARLIER. OKAY. SHE DID COME EARLIER. HERE WE GO. SORRY. SHE WAS HERE EARLIER.
I'M SORRY. I THOUGHT MY MIC WAS ON. PROBABLY OUTSIDE.
SHE ACTUALLY JUST WALKED OUT OF THE ROOM.
MIC] FIRST WOULD LIKE TO SAY THANK YOU. OKAY. LET'S GO AHEAD.
AND WE HAVE SOME PROCEDURAL THINGS WE HAVE TO DO BEFORE WE START.
OKAY. OKAY. THE PURPOSE OF THIS MEETING IS TO CONSIDER THE DISPUTE FILED BY TORRENUS SHIELDS , SPECIAL EDUCATION RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT CHAIR AT BRIARGROVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
IF BOTH PARTIES REQUEST AN OPEN SESSION DURING THE COURSE OF THIS HEARING, THE BOARD WILL GO INTO CLOSED SESSION TO CONSULT WITH IT'S ATTORNEY UNDER TERMS OF THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE, SECTION 551.071. IF ANY BOARD MEMBER WISHES TO SEEK ADVICE OF COUNSEL, PLEASE MAKE THIS REQUEST KNOWN TO ME. FOR THE RECORD MISS SHIELDS IS PRESENT.
COREY RUSH WITH SPALDING NICHOLS LAMP LANGOLIS REPRESENTS THE ADMINISTRATION AS PRESENT.
CATOSHA WOODS GENERAL COUNSEL IS ALSO PRESENT.
[00:50:02]
MISS SHIELDS, DO YOU WISH TO HAVE AN OPEN OR CLOSED SESSION? IT CAN BE OPEN. IT'S FINE. OPEN IS. OPEN IS WHAT YOU CHOOSE.THAT'S FINE. THANK YOU. OKAY. THE ISSUE BEFORE THE SCHOOL BOARD IS WHETHER THE BOARD POLICY OR ADMINISTRATION AND ADMINISTRATION PROCEDURES ARE CORRECTLY APPLIED TO THE GRIEVANT, AND WHETHER THE ADMINISTRATION HAS VIOLATED THOSE POLICIES OR PROCEDURES.
MISS SHIELDS, SINCE YOU ASKED TO ASK THE BOARD TO HEAR THIS MATTER, YOU WILL PROCEED FIRST.
YOU'LL BE ALLOWED TO MAKE A TEN MINUTE PRESENTATION TO THE BOARD, FOLLOWED BY A TEN MINUTE PRESENTATION BY MR. RUSH. MISS SHIELDS, YOU MAY RESERVE A PART OF YOUR TEN MINUTES FOR REBUTTAL TO MATTERS PRESENTED BY MR. RUSH. BOTH SIDES WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD AFTER THEIR RESPECTIVE PRESENTATIONS, AND AFTER DELIBERATION, THE BOARD WILL RENDER ITS DECISION.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW THE DISPUTE RESOLUTION HEARING IS GOING TO BE MANAGED? YOU'RE GOOD. OKAY. MISS SHIELDS HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO DIVIDE YOUR TIME MAKING YOUR PRESENTATION TODAY TO THE BOARD BASED ON THE TRANSCRIPT.
SO YOU'RE SAYING I CAN SELECT.
I WOULD LOVE THE OPPORTUNITY. OKAY TO SPLIT IT.
YES. GREAT. SO HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPLIT IT THEN? THREE MINUTES FIRST AND THE REMAINDER OF THE TIME? THREE MINUTES TO START AND SEVEN FOR THE REMAINDER.
YOU MAY BEGIN. OKAY. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON BOARD.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME HERE TODAY. MY NAME IS TORRENUS SHIELDS .
I AM A FORMER EMPLOYER OR EMPLOYEE OF HISD. I PULLED THE AGENDA LAST NIGHT, AND I SAW THAT I'M LISTED AS EMPLOYEE. I SUPPOSE THAT'S PROCEDURAL, BECAUSE I WAS AN EMPLOYEE WHEN I FILED THE GRIEVANCE IN NOVEMBER OF 2023. I HAD THE LEVEL ONE HEARING AT THE END OF NOVEMBER.
I WAS DISSATISFIED WITH THE RESPONSE, SO I REQUESTED LEVEL TWO.
THE LEVEL TWO HEARING WAS IN FEBRUARY OF 2024.
I RECEIVED THE RESPONSE FROM, THE HEARING OFFICER ON FEBRUARY 21ST.
AND EVERYTHING FROM LEVEL TWO IS IN THE TRANSCRIPT THAT YOU ALL SHOULD HAVE RECEIVED BY NOW.
AND SO I RECEIVED A CERTIFIED LETTER LAST WEEK STATING THAT WE HAD ALL ARGUMENTS HAVE TO BE RESTRICTED TO THIS TRANSCRIPT. SO I'M GOING TO DO THE BEST THAT I CAN TO DO SO.
EVERYTHING THAT I LISTED AS A CONCERN THAT WAS IN THIS GRIEVANCE THAT I FILED WAS VALID IN THE FIRST AFTER THE FIRST OR THE LEVEL ONE HEARING.
THE HEARING OFFICER RESPONDED WITH MOVE FOR EVERY SINGLE ITEM THAT I REQUESTED RESOLVE FOR.
AFTER THE LEVEL TWO HEARING THE HEARING OFFICER ACCEPTED THE FIRST, AND WHAT REALLY ENDED UP BEING THE BULK OF MY RESPONSE, OR RATHER MY COMPLAINT INVOLVING ANOTHER COWORKER THAT I WAS CONCERNED ABOUT AND THE ADMINISTRATION'S MY CAMPUS ADMINISTRATION'S, WHAT I THOUGHT WAS FAILURE TO RESPOND TO MY CONCERN.
SO I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT THAT I DIDN'T GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A REBUTTAL.
AND THE LEVEL TWO HEARING AND ATTORNEY RUSH, I BELIEVE HE COMMENTED ABOUT MY INCLUDING SOME STUDENTS NAMES WITHIN OUR DOCUMENTATION THAT I SUBMITTED FOR THE GRIEVANCE. IF BY CHANCE, I HAPPEN TO BE, REPRIMANDED FOR THAT.
I DO WANT TO SAY THAT PART OF THAT INFORMATION INCLUDED SOME SHEETS THAT I RECEIVED FROM MY APPRAISER, AND THE APPRAISER WAS THE ONE WHO INCLUDED STUDENTS.
YOU MAY BEGIN. GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. PRESIDENT AND FELLOW TRUSTEES.
[00:55:07]
AND THERE MAY EVEN BE CONFUSION IF YOU'VE GONE THROUGH THE LEVEL TWO TRANSCRIPT AND THE LEVEL TWO DECISION.I'LL CONFESS TO YOU THAT I THINK OF MYSELF AS A FAIRLY OR REASONABLY SMART PERSON.
I SAT IN LEVEL TWO, I ARGUED LEVEL TWO, AND I, STILL STANDING BEFORE YOU HERE TODAY, CAN'T TELL YOU WITH THE GREATEST CERTAINTY IN THE WORLD WHAT WE'RE HERE COMPLAINING ABOUT AT LEVEL TWO.
MISS SHIELDS WAS STILL AN EMPLOYEE, SO WE WERE TALKING GENERALLY ABOUT SOME TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF HER EMPLOYMENT, AND SHE DISAGREED WITH SOME SPOT OBSERVATIONS SHE HAD.
FOR EXAMPLE AND SOME MEMORANDA SHE RECEIVED. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WAS A CONTENTION THAT MISS SHIELDS WAS UPSET THAT SHE RECEIVED A REPRIMAND ON THE THIRD DAY OF SCHOOL. LAST SCHOOL YEAR FOR THE 23-24 SCHOOL YEAR.
SOMEHOW MAKING THAT AS IMPROPER OR SOME UNFAIR SURPRISE.
BUT IN THE RECORD, YOU CAN SEE IT IN FRONT OF YOU.
THERE'S A IT'S BEHIND TAB THREE ON PAGE 41. THERE'S A TEXT MESSAGE CONVERSATION BETWEEN THE BRIARGROVE ELEMENTARY ADMINISTRATION AND MISS SHIELDS, SHOWING THAT THE EXPECTATION DISTRICTWIDE WAS THAT INSTRUCTION STARTED DAY ONE.
AND THERE WEREN'T GOING TO BE EXCUSES FOR THAT.
SO WHEN INSTRUCTION DID NOT GO FORWARD ON DAY ONE, MISS SHIELDS RECEIVED A VALID WRITE UP.
THERE WAS NO SURPRISE FROM THAT. WHEN THE SUNDAY BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS, THERE'S AN ACTUAL IN WRITING CONVERSATION SAYING INSTRUCTION STARTS DAY ONE. THERE'S NO CONFUSION THERE.
THERE'S A LOT OF THROUGH LINE CONSISTENCIES ABOUT ISSUES THAT WERE GOING ON IN THE CLASSROOM, SUCH AS NOT POSTING THE OBJECTIVE FOR THE DAY ON THE BOARD THAT AS LONG AS I'VE WORKED REPRESENTING HISD, THAT'S BEEN AN EXPECTATION THAT LEARNING OBJECTIVES ARE PRESENT IN THE CLASSROOM FROM BELL TO BELL.
BUT ON PAGE 40 OF BEHIND TAB THREE, PAGE 40 IS AN EXCERPT FROM THE CAMPUSES HANDBOOK LAST SCHOOL YEAR THAT DICTATES EXACTLY WHEN LESSON PLANS ARE DUE. SO WHEN IT COMES TO THE JOB PERFORMANCE DOCUMENTATION, THE LEVEL TWO RECORD IS VERY CLEAR THAT MISS SHIELDS WAS JUST HELD ACCOUNTABLE, AS WE WOULD EXPECT I BELIEVE AT EVERY ONE OF OUR CAMPUSES THAT TEACHERS ARE HELD ACCOUNTABLE TO DO THEIR JOB.
ALL EMPLOYEES, NOT JUST TEACHERS, ARE HELD ACCOUNTABLE TO DO THEIR JOBS. SO.
BUT WITH MISS SHIELDS NO LONGER BEING EMPLOYED, I THINK THAT DOES LARGELY TO STEAL A WORD FROM THE LOWER LEVEL DECISIONS THAT LARGELY MOOTS THAT PART OF THIS GRIEVANCE. BUT JUST SO THE RECORD IS CLEAR, I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT A FEW OF THOSE THINGS.
THE OTHER THING WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT AT THE LEVEL TWO CONFERENCE WAS THE WORKLOAD.
AND I BELIEVE THAT I SAID THIS AT LEVEL TWO, AND I'LL SAY IT NOW BECAUSE IT'S A CORE TRUTH FOR ME.
TEACHERS ARE THE HARDEST WORKING PEOPLE ON THIS PLANET AND HAVE 90 JOBS TO ONE.
RIGHT? YOU KNOW THAT THAT'S COMMON. I WISH IT WERE DIFFERENT.
WE ALL WISH IT WERE DIFFERENT. AND MISS SHIELDS WAS ALSO ON TOP OF THAT, THE DEPARTMENT CHAIR FOR THE SPECIAL ED AND AT THE CAMPUS. AND THAT COMES WITH EXTRA RESPONSIBILITIES.
NOT TO MENTION THAT JUST BEING A SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER IS A LOT OF WORK.
THERE'S SO MANY REQUIREMENTS PUT ON SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS WITH PAPERWORK AND WITH ARD MEETINGS AND JUST ALL AND HELPING, MOST IMPORTANTLY, OUR STUDENTS WHO NEED THE MOST HELP THEY'RE THE MOST VULNERABLE POPULATION WE HAVE.
SO OF COURSE, TO DO ANYTHING OTHER THAN ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WORKING AS A SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER IN PUBLIC EDUCATION IS IS NOT A HARD JOB IT WOULD BE FOOLISH. IT'S A HARD JOB WITH A LOT OF WORK.
WHAT I WILL SAY IS THAT THE RECORD REFLECTS THAT THE ADMINISTRATION WAS VERY SUPPORTIVE AND ATTEMPTED TO AID MISS SHIELDS AND OTHER SPECIAL EDUCATION PROFESSIONALS IN GETTING THE JOB DONE AND GETTING IT DONE ON TIME.
WE HAVE VERY LITTLE TIME TO WASTE. AND ARD MEETINGS NEED TO BE EFFICIENT.
AND IN ORDER FOR ARD MEETINGS TO BE EFFICIENT, THERE NEEDS TO BE QUITE A BIT OF PRE-PLANNING.
[01:00:04]
BUT THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED WITH MISS SHIELDS IS SHE CAME TO AT LEAST ONE ARD MEETING SEEMINGLY UNPREPARED, LEFT AT SOME POINT, CAME BACK AND STARTED ASKING QUESTIONS THAT THE REST OF THE ARD COMMITTEE HAD ALREADY MOVED ON FROM.SO THE ADMINISTRATION STEPPED IN. AND THIS IS ON PAGE 66 BEHIND TAB THREE STEPPED IN AND ADVISED MISS SHIELDS THAT SURE, THIS IS A LOT OF WORK, BUT YOU NEED TO DO SOME PRE-PLANNING, SOME PRE-PREPARATION BEFORE ARD MEETINGS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY GO EFFICIENTLY AND GAVE VERY DETAILED, THOROUGH AND THOUGHTFUL INSTRUCTIONS ABOUT HOW TO ACCOMPLISH THAT.
AND THE CAMPUS ALSO OUT OF THEIR OWN BUDGET LAST YEAR ENGAGED A RETIREE HIREE PARAPROFESSIONAL THAT WAS NOT FROM THE SPED BUDGET THAT WAS FROM THE CAMPUSES BUDGET. I BELIEVE I'M CORRECT IN ORDER TO ASSIST THIS AND ASSIST THAT DEPARTMENT IN GETTING UP TO COMPLIANCE WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS, AS WELL AS A PARAPROFESSIONAL FROM THE SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT BUDGET.
SO THIS WAS NOT A CAMPUS THAT WAS UNSUPPORTIVE OF THE SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AS A WHOLE, OR MISS SHIELDS INDIVIDUALLY. FINALLY, THE BIG ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM ON THIS GRIEVANCE IS ABOUT THIS CONVERSATION THAT SEEMINGLY HAPPENED BETWEEN MRS. SHIELDS AND ONE OF HER COWORKERS WHERE MRS. SHIELDS RECEIVED THESE TEXT MESSAGES ARE THROUGHOUT THE RECORD.
THEY START ON PAGE 12 AND GO FOR MANY PAGES THEREAFTER BEHIND TAB THREE, WHERE MRS. SHIELDS GOT THESE TEXT MESSAGES AND BELIEVED THAT HER COWORKER MIGHT HAVE BEEN EXPERIENCING SOME SORT OF MENTAL HEALTH EPISODE OR BEING IN DISTRESS.
OUT OF RESPECT FOR THAT PERSON WHO IS NOT HERE TO TALK FOR THEMSELVES, I'M NOT GOING TO MENTION THE NAME. I'M NOT GOING TO GO INTO THE DETAILS OF WHAT DISTRESS MAY HAVE BEEN PRESENT. THE BOTTOM LINE IS, MISS SHIELDS DID BRING HER CONCERNS ABOUT THIS COWORKER TO THE ATTENTION OF HER ADMINISTRATORS, AND THEY DID. THE ONLY THING THAT THE ADMINISTRATION CAN DO OR CAN RATIONALLY DO, CAN REASONABLY DO, AND CAN THOUGHTFULLY DO, AND THAT THEY DID A WELFARE CHECK THEY CALLED THIS PARTICULAR EMPLOYER WENT TO THIS PARTICULAR EMPLOYEE, ASKED IF SHE WAS DOING OKAY WHEN SHE CONFIRMED THAT EVERYTHING'S FINE THAT'S THEY TOOK HER WORD FOR IT THAT'S ALL WE CAN DO IS MAKE SURE THAT OUR PEOPLE ARE OKAY. OFFER HELP, OFFER SUPPORT, OFFER SERVICES.
THAT'S WHAT THEY DID. AND THEN THEY CONFIRMED THAT WE'VE REACHED OUT TO THIS EMPLOYEE, CONFIRMED THAT SHE'S NOT HAVING OR IS SAYING THAT SHE'S NOT HAVING ANY SORT OF DISTRESS. IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU NEED TO TELL US? AND THAT'S KIND OF WHERE IT STOPS. SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT RESPONSE MISS SHIELDS WOULD HAVE PREFERRED IN THAT SITUATION.
ON A SITUATION THAT'S LIKE, I UNDERSTAND THAT SHE SEEMINGLY WAS PULLED INTO THE MIDDLE OF IT, BUT ONCE SHE HANDED IT OFF TO THE ADMINISTRATION, FRANKLY, THAT'S NO LONGER MISS SHIELDS' BUSINESS.
I DO KNOW THAT THE LEVEL TWO RECORD IS REPLETE WITH INFORMATION THAT SUPPORTS THAT HISD DID NOT VIOLATE ANY POLICIES OR PROCEDURES OR LAW WITH REGARD TO ANYTHING HAVING TO DO WITH MISS SHIELDS EMPLOYMENT LAST SCHOOL YEAR.
AND GIVEN MISS SHIELDS ULTIMATE TERMINATION FROM THIS DISTRICT AT THE END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR LAST YEAR, THE REQUESTED REMEDIES IN THIS CASE ARE PLAINLY MOOT.
SO WITH THAT IN MIND, I WILL HAND BACK MY ABOUT MINUTE REMAINING.
AND THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR ATTENTION. THANK YOU, MISS SHIELDS.
YOU NOW HAVE SEVEN MINUTES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO I WANT TO DISCUSS SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT ATTORNEY RUSH MENTIONED. FIRST OR DELVING DEEPER TO EXPLAIN THERE WAS A RETIREE THAT WAS BROUGHT ON TO OUR CAMPUS UNDER THE GUISE OF HELPING ME BECOME MORE FAMILIARIZED WITH THE SPECIAL EDUCATION SYSTEM. WHEN SHE GOT THERE IT WAS NOT AT THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
I'M SORRY. LET ME BACK UP A LITTLE. I WAS A NEW HIRE OR RETURN EMPLOYEE FOR HISD IN AUGUST OF 2023. WHEN I GOT TO THE CAMPUS, THERE WERE URGENT ARDS THAT WERE NECESSARY.
[01:05:01]
AND THAT THE DISTRICT HAD A STRICT MANDATE ABOUT THOSE ARDS BEING HELD AND COMPLETED BEFORE THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL.AND ONCE I DID, I HAD TO PULL STUDENT PARENTS NAME, CONTACT THEM, SCHEDULE THE MEETINGS, SEND OUT THE INVITATIONS TO EVERYONE THAT WOULD BE A PART OF THE IEP COMMITTEE.
AND THEN HOLD OR PREPARE THE PAPERWORK BEFOREHAND.
WHEN THE MEETINGS WERE HELD I HAD TO FACILITATE THE MEETINGS AS WELL AS TAKE MINUTES IN THE MEETING.
AND SO ESSENTIALLY I RECEIVED A WRITE UP BECAUSE AFTER THAT INITIAL SET OF URGENT ARDS THAT HAD TO BE READY BY DAY ONE, WE HAD AN ADDITIONAL THREE THAT HAD ANOTHER DEADLINE IN THE SECOND WEEK OF SEPTEMBER. I THE FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL WAS THE LAST WEEK OF AUGUST.
I BELIEVE THE START DATE WAS AUGUST 28TH OF THAT YEAR.
WE WENT INTO THE WEEKEND, CAME BACK AT TUESDAY AFTER LABOR DAY, AND I WAS PRESENTED WITH MY FIRST MEMO OR WRITE UP. AND THIS WAS IN REGARDS TO THE URGENT ARDS AND BEING COMPLIANT WITH DATES AND ALL OF THIS. I HAD SHARED WITH ADMINISTRATION THAT I DIDN'T KNOW THE SYSTEM. THEY DID HIRE SOMEONE WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO COME IN.
UP UNTIL THAT TIME, I HAD SENT THE INVITATIONS AND SERVED AS SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT CHAIR AND ALSO SERVICED STUDENTS TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY.
ANOTHER THING WAS THE REASON WHY I HAVE THESE TWO BINS HERE.
THERE WAS A LOT OF PAPERWORK THAT CARRIED OVER INTO MY TENURE WHEN I ARRIVED.
AND THESE ARE TWO BINS THAT I WALKED INTO MY ROOM AND FOUND THAT HAD ZIP TIES TO TIE THEM DOWN. AND WHEN I CUT THE ZIP TIES, THEY WERE FILLED WITH STATE FOLDERS OF KIDS PAPERWORK, AND I HAD A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF LOAD ON ME. YES.
YOU ALL WILL SEE FOLDERS AND PAPERWORK ON A RUG WHERE I PLACED STICKY NOTES WITH ALPHABETS ON THEM.
AND AS I PULL PAPERS OUT, MY ATTEMPT WAS TO GET THEM ORGANIZED.
WE HAD STUDENTS WHO NO LONGER WERE IN OUR DISTRICT WHOSE PAPERS WERE INSIDE OF THOSE BANDS.
WE ALSO HAD STUDENTS WHO WERE CURRENTLY ON OUR CAMPUS WHOSE PAPERWORK WAS INSIDE OF THOSE BANDS.
THAT WAS DONE BEFORE I GOT THERE. AND SO, NEEDLESS TO SAY, EVEN THOUGH I SAW THIS, I HAD OR ATTEMPTED TO JUST TAKE THE DEEP BREATH, DIVE IN AND TRY TO GET THIS DONE, THINKING I WOULD HAVE SUPPORT ENOUGH FROM CAMPUS ADMINISTRATION. THE PRINCIPAL, MISS JONES, SEEMINGLY WAS SUPPORTIVE.
HOWEVER, MY APPRAISER AT THE TIME, MISS SAMUEL, THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, WAS NOT.
SHE BEGAN WRITING ME UP AND ALSO GIVING ME LOW PERFORMANCE SCORES.
WHAT IS NOT? WHAT WAS NOT MENTIONED BY ATTORNEY RUSH THOSE PERFORMANCE SCORES OR RATHER, I'M SORRY THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL I RECEIVED A TEXT MESSAGE THE SUNDAY BEFORE, AFTER HAVING TALKED WITH MS. SAMUEL ABOUT THE FIRST WEEK AND HOW THE FIRST WEEK WAS GOING TO GO, WHICH WOULD BE MY GOING AROUND INTRODUCING MYSELF TO STUDENTS AND THEN GOING BACK TO MY CLASS TO GET EVERYTHING ORGANIZED.
I RECEIVED THE TEXT MESSAGE FROM HER AFTER COMPLETING THE URGENT FIRST DAY ARDS THAT FRIDAY,
[01:10:05]
BEFORE THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL, I RECEIVED A TEXT MESSAGE FROM HER THAT SUNDAY, THE DAY BEFORE SCHOOL IN THE AFTERNOON, SAYING TEACHING WILL START FROM DAY ONE. SO AFTER HAVING TALKED WITH HER AND HAVING HAD AN AGREEMENT WITH HER, THAT I WOULD GO AND INTRODUCE MYSELF TO STUDENTS AND THEN WORK TO CONTINUE GETTING ORGANIZED, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING I WAS BAGGED DOWN AND BOGGED IN A LOT OF ARDS THAT HAD TO BE DONE BY DAY ONE TO GET THAT TEXT MESSAGE. IT WAS IT WAS A SHOCKER.IT WAS UPSETTING, DISAPPOINTING. AND SO, NEEDLESS TO SAY I SHOWED UP DAY ONE AND I CONTINUED EVEN THROUGHOUT ALL OF THE ATTEMPTS.
THANK YOU. THE PARTIES. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS TO THE COLLEAGUES? I'VE GOT ONE QUESTION. MA'AM ARE THOSE DOCUMENTS THESE TWO BINS, ARE THOSE YOUR EXHIBITS OR THOSE ARE THE? THOSE ARE YOURS. ARE THOSE STUDENT RECORDS? OKAY.
UNEMPLOYMENT HEARING DESCRIBING THE BINS. THESE ARE EMPTY.
THESE ARE EMPTY. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY. THE PARTIES HAVE COMPLETED THEIR PRESENTATIONS, AND IT'S NOW TIME FOR THE BOARD TO MAKE OUR DECISION ON THE ISSUES BEFORE US. WE MUST APPLY ONLY THE FACTS PRESENTED IN THE TRANSCRIPT TO THE APPLICABLE POLICY OR LAW, AND MAKE A DECISION. IF THERE IS ANY DISPUTE BETWEEN MISS SHIELDS AND THE ADMINISTRATION AS TO WHAT THE POLICIES AND OR PROCEDURES MEAN, THEN IT'S THE BOARD'S RESPONSIBILITY TO DETERMINE THE MEANING OR APPLICATION OF THE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.
THE RECORD OF THE LEVEL TWO HEARINGS MUST SUPPORT ANY ACTION WE TAKE.
THAT IS, IF THE RECORD SUPPORTS THE POSITION OF THE ADMINISTRATION OR THE POSITION OF MISS SHIELDS, WE MAY FIND ACCORDINGLY. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? ANYBODY NEED A CLOSED SESSION? OKAY. THEN DO I HAVE A MOTION? WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. MEMBERS PLEASE VOTE.
WELL, YOU NEED ME TO STATE IT. I'M SORRY. YEAH.
GO AHEAD. I MOVE THAT WE DENY ALL REQUESTED RELIEF NOT PREVIOUSLY GRANTED BY THE LEVEL TWO HEARING OFFICER, AND UPHOLD THE DECISION OF THE LEVEL TWO HEARING OFFICER.
OKAY. WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. PLEASE VOTE.
VOTING IS CLOSED AND THE MOTION PASSES. THE BOARD VOTE.
THE BOARD AT THIS POINT HAS VOTED AND WE WILL BE SENDING A LETTER NOTIFYING BOTH PARTIES OF ACTION OF THE BOARD AND THE ACTION OF THE BOARD SHALL BE PREPARED AND SIGNED BY THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE BOARD OF RELATIONS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
THIS HEARING IS CONCLUDED AT 2:19 P.M.. THANK YOU.
OKAY, BOARD MEMBERS, WE'RE NOW GOING TO ADDRESS ONE ITEM ON OUR BUSINESS AGENDA.
DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE ITEM FOUR? AUTHORIZATION TO NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE INTERLOCAL VENUE RENTAL AGREEMENTS WITH GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES AND TEXAS PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS OR HIGHER EDUCATION. WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.
ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? CAN I HAVE A SECOND? SURE. YOU KNOW, I JUST WANTED TO.
THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? OKAY. LET'S PLEASE VOTE.
MOTION PASSES. OKAY. WE ARE NOW GOING TO TAKE A BRIEF BREAK.
WE WILL RECONVENE AT I THINK WE'RE TAKING A 15 MINUTE BREAK.
CORRECT. OKAY. SO WE WILL RECONVENE AT LET'S DO IT AT WHAT WOULD THAT BE LIKE?
[01:15:05]
LET'S LET'S TRY, LIKE, 2:40. MAKE IT EVEN. OKAY.THANK YOU. WE STAND ADJOURNED. WE ARE. THIS MEETING IS RECONVENED AT 2:42 P.M.. WE WILL NOW ADDRESS OUR WORKSHOP TOPIC, THE 2025 2026 DISTRICT BUDGET.
SUPERINTENDENT MILES, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. SIR, I WILL GO UP FRONT.
MR. PRESIDENT, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, WE'RE HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE BUDGET.
AND THIS IS THE THIRD WORKSHOP. I WILL DO A PRESENTATION FIRST, IF YOU DON'T MIND.
AND THEN WHEN WE GET TO QUESTIONS AS I NEED TO CALL STAFF FORWARD, WE'LL CALL THEM FORWARD.
AND THEY CAN ADDRESS THE BOARD FROM, EITHER THESE CHAIRS OR THE PODIUM.
SO AS YOU KNOW, WE'VE DONE A COUPLE ALREADY. THIS TIME WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT JUST A BROAD OVERVIEW OF THE DEPARTMENT BUDGETS, THE SCHOOL BUDGETS, THE NES BUDGET, AND THEN SOME LEGISLATIVE UPDATES.
KEEP IN MIND THAT THE WORKSHOPS AT THIS POINT IN THE YEAR ARE AN OVERVIEW.
THEY ARE DRAFT AND THEY WILL CONTINUE TO CHANGE, AS WE SAID, BACK IN JANUARY OR FEBRUARY WHEN WE DID, THE METHODOLOGIES AND ASSUMPTIONS REPORT, THAT WILL CHANGE.
MOSTLY FOR TWO REASONS ONE, WE DON'T HAVE FINALITY ON THE LEGISLATIVE ALLOCATIONS.
SO THE REVENUE SIDE CHANGES. AND WHEN THE REVENUE SIDE CHANGES, THAT CHANGES WHAT WE HAVE TO CUT OR EXPEND. SO WE'RE IN DRAFT AND THAT'S WHAT THIS PRESENTATION IS.
ALSO IT'S A DRAFT OF THE BUDGET. CAN YOU EXPLAIN THAT A LITTLE BIT IN TERMS OF.
SO IF THE AVERAGE ALLOTMENT GOES UP BY X THEN THAT ALLOTMENT WILL FLOW THROUGH THE SCHOOLS.
YES SIR. SO FOR EXAMPLE, THE ONE YOU JUST INTIMATED WAS THE BASIC ALLOTMENT THAT IMPACTS THE PUA.
AND SO THE BOARD WILL RECALL THAT LAST FIRST OF ALL IN THE BUDGET METHODOLOGY AND ASSUMPTIONS REPORT THAT WE DID IN FEBRUARY, WE HAD TO TAKE A GUESS AT WHAT THAT MIGHT BE.
AND SO THAT IS IN THE HOUSE OR IN THE SENATE NOW HAVING PASSED THE HOUSE.
HOUSE BILL TWO. SO LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOING TO GET BETTER THAN THAT.
AND THEN AT THE IN THREE WEEKS AGO, BASED ON THAT ASSUMPTION OR THE LIKELIHOOD OF PASSAGE, WE INCREASED THE SCHOOL'S PUA BY $250 PER STUDENT.
IF WE GET MORE MONEY, THEN WE CAN INCREASE IT EVEN MORE.
IF YEAH, $75 PER STUDENT. BECAUSE IF THE BASIC ALLOTMENT GOES UP TO 50, THEN THAT THAT EQUATES TO $75 PER STUDENT FOR THE SCHOOL BUDGETS. IF THE LEGISLATURE COMES OUT WITH MORE, WHICH IS POSSIBLE, NOT LIKELY, BUT POSSIBLE, WE'LL INCREASE THAT EVEN FURTHER. IF THEY DECREASE IT BELOW 250 FOR THE DISTRICT, THEN MOST LIKELY WE'LL HAVE TO DECREASE THE PUA AMOUNT. THAT'S ALSO UNLIKELY, BUT THAT'S THAT'S HOW IT IMPACTS.
SO THAT'S WHY THIS IS DRAFT FOR ALMOST EVERY PART OF THE BUDGET.
ALL RIGHT. SO HERE WE ARE. THIS IS THE THIRD WORKSHOP.
THE HIGH LEVEL BUDGET, WHICH JIM AND TEAM ARE WORKING ON WON'T BE DONE UNTIL JUNE, BUT, I MEAN, THE BUDGET WON'T BE DONE UNTIL JUNE, BUT WE WILL GIVE THE BOARD A HIGH LEVEL BUDGET NEXT TIME.
AND THERE'S A TIMELINE, AS YOU SEE. SO BY STATE LAW, THE BOARD NEEDS TO PASS A BUDGET IN JUNE BEFORE THE NEW FISCAL YEAR. OUR GOALS ARE STILL THE SAME.
WE'RE SUPPORTING TRANSFORMATION. BUDGETS SHOULD FOLLOW ACTIONS.
SO YOU HAD A BRIEFING ON ACTION PLANNING. AND SO WE STAY TRUE TO THAT.
[01:20:06]
AS PART OF THAT SUSTAINABILITY, WE TOLD THE BOARD WE WILL TRY TO HAVE A BALANCED BUDGET EITHER THIS YEAR OR NEXT YEAR, AND WE'RE GOING TO STAY TRUE TO THAT. WHICH MEANT LAST YEAR WE HAD TO CUT A WHOLE BUNCH OF POSITIONS AND A LOT OF PURCHASED SERVICES, EVEN TO GET TO THE DEFICIT THAT WE HAD.WE'LL MOST LIKELY BE SIMILARLY MAKING SOME CUTS EITHER TO POSITIONS OR AND CONTRACTS OR PURCHASE SERVICES FOR THIS NEXT YEAR.
WE WILL CONTINUE TO KEEP CUTS AS FAR AWAY FROM THE CLASSROOM AS POSSIBLE, SO YOU WON'T SEE A HUGE INCREASE IN CLASS SIZE, FOR EXAMPLE YOU WON'T SEE A LOT OF DECREASE TO THE NUMBER OF TEACHERS, EXCEPT AS IT RELATES TO ENROLLMENT AND THINGS LIKE THAT. WE WILL PRIORITIZE RESOURCES, AS ALWAYS, WHEN WE HAVE SCARCE RESOURCES.
AND WE WILL KEEP IN MIND THIS NOTION OF LONG TERM FINANCIAL STABILITY, SUSTAINABILITY.
ALL RIGHT. SO LET'S TALK FIRST ABOUT CENTRAL OFFICE BUDGETS OR DEPARTMENT BUDGETS.
AGAIN I'LL SAY MAYBE THREE MORE TIMES THROUGHOUT THIS PRESENTATION.
THESE ARE DRAFT. BUT YOU SEE THE BUDGETS THERE ON THE LEFT THAT THEY CURRENTLY HAVE BUDGETED, FOR EXAMPLE. FACILITIES AND OPERATIONS $108 MILLION.
YOU CAN SEE ALSO THAT ALMOST EVERY DEPARTMENT IS BEING CUT.
I TALKED ABOUT SINCE FEBRUARY. $30 MILLION WORTH OF CUTS FROM CENTRAL OFFICE.
BUT YOU CAN SEE THAT EVERY DEPARTMENT IS BEING REDUCED.
NOW GIVEN THE SIZE OF THE BUDGET, THE REDUCTION IS FAIRLY SMALL RELATIVE TO THE SIZE OF THEIR CURRENT BUDGET AND ALSO RELATIVE TO THE CUTS THAT WE HAD TO DO A YEAR AGO.
AND THEN ON THE CHANGE, YOU CAN SEE THE CHANGE FROM THE TWO BUDGETS.
THE FIRST COLUMN OF FISCAL YEAR 25 VERSUS THE SECOND TO LAST COLUMN OF FISCAL YEAR 26.
YOU SEE WHAT I MEAN? SO POLICE IS NOT BEING REDUCED $17 MILLION JUST $17,000 A HUGE DIFFERENCE.
AND THEN THIS IS THE REST OF THE TEAM. SAME STORY.
AGAIN, IT ALL DEPENDS ON THE LEGISLATURE, BUT WE'RE STILL WORKING ON DEPARTMENT BUDGETS AS WE SPEAK.
BUT THIS GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF THE SCALE, AND THE SCALE IS NOT LIKE LAST YEAR.
REMIND THE BOARD THAT A YEAR AGO, WE CUT ALMOST 1400 CENTRAL OFFICE POSITIONS.
THIS YEAR YOU LOOK AT THE NUMBERS HERE AGAIN THIS IS GOING TO CHANGE.
YOU SEE THE 103. THOSE ARE 103 CUTS TO CENTRAL OFFICE STAFF.
SO WHILE THAT MIGHT BE LARGER, IT WILL BE NOWHERE CLOSE TO WHAT WE DID A YEAR AGO.
SIR, IF YOU. I'M DONE WITH THIS PART THE DEPARTMENTS.
MAYBE I SHOULD TAKE QUESTIONS, OR I CAN KEEP GOING.
SURE. BOARD MEMBERS ANY QUESTIONS? I HAVE A QUESTION.
ON THE CHIEF OF SCHOOLS OFFICE THAT SEEMS TO BE THE LARGEST PERCENTAGE CHANGE.
CAN YOU JUST TELL US WHAT'S WHAT'S GOING ON THERE, GENERALLY. JUST HIGH LEVEL.
YES. SO IN THIS I'VE TALKED TO A COUPLE BOARD MEMBERS ABOUT THAT OR TALKED TO THE BOARD BEFORE ABOUT DATA INTEGRATION TEAM. SO WE'RE AT THAT POINT IN THE DISTRICT.
[01:25:04]
IT'S BEEN TWO YEARS NOW WHERE WE'VE GOTTEN THE DEPARTMENTS FAIRLY STRONG.WE'VE GOT SOME WAYS TO GO TO MAKE SURE THE PROCESSES ARE ARE SQUARED AWAY IN EACH DEPARTMENT.
NOW WE HAVE TO DEFINITELY ALIGN CROSS-FUNCTIONALLY.
WE'VE STARTED THAT, BUT NOW WE ARE AT A POINT WHERE WE CAN DO THAT IN EARNEST.
AND SO THE DATA INTEGRATION TEAM IS A DATA INTEGRATION AND ALIGNMENT TEAM TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE WORKING CROSS-FUNCTIONALLY ALIGNED AND THAT OUR BUSINESS RULES ARE IN PLACE AND THE SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENTS ARE IN PLACE. AND THAT CUTS ACROSS ALL DEPARTMENTS.
HENCE THE INCREASE IN THE CHIEF OF STAFF'S OFFICE, MEANING THAT THE CHIEF OF STAFF, MONICA ZDROJEWSKI, WILL OVERSEE THAT DATA INTEGRATION TEAM THAT'S WHAT THAT REFLECTS.
I'M SORRY, I MAY NOT HAVE SAID THIS RIGHT. I WAS ASKING ABOUT THE CHIEF OF SCHOOLS OFFICE.
AND THE REASON IS WHILE WE CUT 800 TEACHER POSITIONS A YEAR AGO BECAUSE OF DECLINING ENROLLMENT AND BECAUSE THERE WASN'T A CUT DURING THE ESSER FUNDED YEARS.
WE STILL DIDN'T CUT THE THE CHIEF OF SCHOOLS CENTRAL STAFF.
AND EVEN THOUGH THE ENROLLMENT HAD GONE DOWN.
SO KNOWING THAT WE HAD TO CUT CENTRAL OFFICE, WE ALSO CUT THE STAFFS AT THE DIVISION LEVEL, WHICH FALLS UNDER THE CHIEF OF SCHOOLS. THAT'S WHAT THAT IS.
OKAY. JUST A QUICK FOLLOW UP. SO THEN WHEN WE LOOK AT THE NEXT PAGE, WHICH IS THE ONE ON THE FTE, IS THAT DOES THAT ACCOUNTED FOR BY THE 49 PEOPLE.
THAT'S CORRECT. GOT IT. THANK YOU. GO AHEAD. THANKS, MIKE.
TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND. WHAT EXPECTATION COULD WE SHOULD WE HAVE AROUND THE POINT THAT THIS IS A DRAFT, RIGHT. AND THAT DEPENDING ON THE DIRECTION OF THE LEGISLATURE'S DECISIONS LATER THIS YEAR THIS WILL CHANGE, BUT IN WHAT WAY CAN WE EXPECT THESE CHANGES? IN OTHER WORDS, IS IT A PERCENTAGE UP OR DOWN, OR ARE THERE CERTAIN PROGRAMS OR TEAMS THAT WOULD SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE BASED ON THOSE NUMBERS CHANGING? YEAH, THANKS FOR ASKING BECAUSE IT GIVES ME A CHANCE TO CLARIFY A LITTLE BIT. SO THE DEPARTMENTS HAVE TURNED IN THEIR BUDGETS, BUT IT'S AN ITERATIVE PROCESS, MEANING WE'RE LOOKING AT THE DEPARTMENT BUDGETS, WE'RE LOOKING AT THE DISTRICT BUDGET AND WHAT WE'RE GETTING IN.
AND WE ARE LOOKING CLOSELY AT WHETHER WE HAVE TO CUT SOME OF THE POSITIONS OR SERVICES.
AND THAT'S ITERATIVE. AND WHAT WE ASK THE DEPARTMENTS TO DO IS TURN IN A 60/20/20 BUDGET.
AND BY THAT THEY HAVE ALREADY PRIORITIZED 60.
THE TOP 60% OF THEIR BUDGET IS THINGS THAT THEY ABSOLUTELY NEED TO GET THEIR JOB DONE AND MEET THE GOALS OF THE DISTRICT THAT HAVE BEEN SET. THE NEXT 20% IS SOMETHING THAT, IF WE WERE TO CUT, WOULD SIGNIFICANTLY THAT THEY WOULD STILL BE ABLE TO GET WORK DONE, BUT NOT TO THE LEVEL THAT WE NEED. WHEN YOU'RE IN A HIGH PERFORMANCE CULTURE, THE LAST 20% AND WE KNOW WE'RE FORCING IT.
THE LAST 20% IS IF WE NEED TO FIND MORE MONEY TO BALANCE THE BUDGET OR TO GET CLOSE TO A BALANCED BUDGET, WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING CLOSELY AT THAT BOTTOM 20%, NOT THE WHOLE 20%, BUT THINGS, ITEM LINE ITEMS WITHIN THAT BOTTOM 20%.
AND SO IN THAT WAY, WE'RE ABLE TO SAY, LOOK WE'RE I'M MAKING THIS UP.
THE LEGISLATURE DIDN'T COME THROUGH. WE STILL NEED $10 MILLION.
AND SO WE'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO LOOK ACROSS THESE BOTTOM 20% TO FIND $10 MILLION.
THEY'RE DOING THE SAME THING THIS YEAR. WHAT THAT MEANS IS SOME FUNCTION, SOME DEPARTMENTS, SOME SECTIONS LOSING PRIORITY VERSUS TO WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY TRYING TO DO.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, YOU REALLY YOU CAN'T CUT CURRICULUM THAT MUCH BECAUSE WE'RE STILL TRYING TO IMPROVE OUR CURRICULUM AND ADD MORE SUBJECT MATTERS THAT FALL INTO THE CURRICULUM.
[01:30:09]
SO THE SCALE IS ABOUT THIS YOU'RE GOING TO SEE.YOU'LL SEE MORE CUTS IN EITHER PEOPLE OR PROGRAMS, BUT IT WON'T BE.
EVERYBODY GOOD? OKAY. GO AHEAD. THANKS. ALL RIGHT.
AND AGAIN WE'RE GOING TO TALK MORE ABOUT THE OVERALL BUDGET NEXT TIME.
SO WE'LL HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT IT.
I KNOW RIGHT NOW THE SCHOOLS ARE DEALING WITH THEIR OWN BUDGETS.
THE SCHOOL BUDGETS ARE DUE APRIL 28TH. SO I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT.
YOU'VE GOTTEN SOME OF THE SPREADSHEETS THAT SHOW WHAT EVERY SCHOOL IS DEALING WITH, THE PUA SCHOOLS. AND SO THIS IS YOU'VE SEEN THIS SLIDE BEFORE.
THIS IS A QUICK OVERVIEW. AND 23-24 WE HELD HARMLESS.
THERE WAS THERE WAS NO TIME. WE JUST THE BUDGETS WERE ACTUALLY ALREADY SET WHEN MY TEAM GOT HERE.
SO THAT WAS HELD HARMLESS THIS CURRENT YEAR, WHICH IS THE 24-25 MIDDLE COLUMN THERE.
THE DIFFERENCE THIS YEAR, THIS CURRENT YEAR IS WE CAPPED THE LOSS.
IF THERE WAS A LOSS AT 12%. AND THEN JUST LIKE ALWAYS, WE TRUED UP.
WE DO A TRUE UP IN LATE OCTOBER AFTER THE PEIMS REPORT.
SO THAT WAS THIS CURRENT YEAR. THIS NEXT YEAR FOR THE SCHOOLS, AS WE TALKED ABOUT LAST TIME, WE MULTIPLY PUA AND WE DIDN'T CHANGE THE PUA TIMES ENROLLMENT.
PROJECTED ENROLLMENT TIMES ADA. AND THEN WE WILL TRUE UP AND THEN IF YOU LOSE MONEY, WE GIVE YOU 10% OF THAT LOSS, THAT DIFFERENCE.
SO WE ADD BACK ONLY 10%. AND OF COURSE WE WILL TRUE UP IN OCTOBER AGAIN.
WE THINK THAT'S A LITTLE BIT TOO HIGH. WE MAKE A GOOD ESTIMATION AND THEN WE MEET THEM HALFWAY OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT SO THAT WE GIVE THEM THE MONEY UPFRONT, EVEN THOUGH THE PROJECTION THAT LET'S JUST SAY THE PROJECTION IS 100 KID LOSS.
SO WE MAY HAVE CHANGED THAT TO 50. AND THEN IF IT COMES OUT THAT IT IS 100 STUDENT LOSS WE WILL TRUE UP IN LATE OCTOBER. YOU FOLLOW ME. SO SCHOOLS WOULD RATHER HAVE THE MONEY UP FRONT AND THEN LOSE MONEY IN OCTOBER, YOU KNOW SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR, THEN FOR US NOT TO GIVE THEM THAT MONEY SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO TRUE UP.
YOU FOLLOW ME? SO ANYWAY SO WE'RE HELPING ALL THE SCHOOLS, BUT WE WILL TRUE UP IN IN LATE OCTOBER.
AGAIN, THIS IS HOW IT'S CALCULATED. AND BY THE WAY, THIS IS HOW WE GET THE MONEY.
IT'S A PROJECTED ENROLLMENT OR IT'S ACTUALLY THE ACTUAL ENROLLMENT WE GET.
THERE IS A PROJECTION THEN ACTUAL ENROLLMENT TIMES ADA, TIMES PUA AND IN THIS CASE WE ADDED, REMEMBER, $75. SO THAT'S THE TOP LINE, 24- 25 ALLOCATION THIS YEAR MINUS WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT YEAR IS A REDUCTION.
WE TAKE THAT REDUCTION AND MULTIPLY IT BY 10%.
WE ADD IT BACK INTO THE ALLOCATION. SO YOU YOU ALL HAVE THIS LIST FOR EVERY SCHOOL EVERY PUA SCHOOL. AND SO I JUST WANT TO GO OVER FOUR EXAMPLES QUICKLY.
NUMBER THE FIRST EXAMPLE IS FIELD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
THEY ACTUALLY HAVE INCREASED PROJECTED ENROLLMENT.
AND SO YOU CAN SEE THAT THAT THIRD COLUMN THERE IS 37 THAT'S THE INCREASE THE CHANGE IN ENROLLMENT.
SO THEY'RE ADDING 37 KIDS. THEIR ADA IS GOOD BY THE WAY IT'S 96.2.
THAT'S AVERAGE DAILY ATTENDANCE. THAT'S GOOD.
THAT HELPS THEM GET MORE MONEY. SO THEIR PUA FROM 24 TO 25 YOU CAN SEE THERE'S $5,344.
[01:35:11]
AND SO THEIR ALLOCATION FOR THE 25-26 SCHOOL YEAR IS 2.8 MILLION.THAT'S AN INCREASE OF $255,000. THEY DON'T HAVE A 10% ADD BACK BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T LOSE ANY KIDS OR THEY DIDN'T LOSE ANY BUDGET, RATHER. ALL RIGHT. SO THAT'S EXAMPLE A THAT'S AN EASY EXAMPLE BECAUSE YOU INCREASE ENROLLMENT. THIS ONE IS THE SIMILAR ENROLLMENT. SO HERE YOU HAVE A LOSS OF ONE KID.
SO THAT'S SIMILAR ENROLLMENT. THIS IS BASTIAN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BY THE WAY.
SO YOU CAN SEE THEIR ADA, BY THE WAY, IS LOW 91.7.
SO THEIR BUDGET THIS CURRENT YEAR WAS ALMOST 3 MILLION 2.9.
YOU SEE THAT? SO THE PUA WILL CHANGE RIGHT? SO WE ADDED $75 TO THEIR LAST LAST YEAR'S PUA.
THAT'S WHAT THAT $5,049 IS. SO THAT'S $75 MORE THAN LAST YEAR.
AND THEN TIMES THE ADA AND PROJECTED ENROLLMENT GIVES YOU 2.939.
SO HARDLY ANY CHANGE AT ALL. AND THEN YOU CAN SEE THEIR TOTAL ALLOCATION.
AGAIN, WE DIDN'T HAVE TO ADD BACK ANY MONEY BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T LOSE ANY MONEY.
NOW THIS IS WEST BRIAR. THIS IS A DECREASE. THAT'S IN THIS CASE, LESS THAN $150,000.
SO IN THIS CASE, THE SCHOOL LOST 42 STUDENTS.
THEIR ADA IS AVERAGE BUT SO THEIR BUDGET THIS CURRENT YEAR IS 4.875 MILLION. THEIR PUA FOR THIS NEXT YEAR IS GOING TO BE $75 MORE THAN WHAT IT WAS LAST YEAR.
SO IT IS NOW $5,271. WHEN YOU MULTIPLY THAT PUA TIMES THEIR PROJECTED ENROLLMENT TIMES THEIR ADA, YOU GET. 4.731 MILLION, WHICH IS $143,000 LESS. BECAUSE THE BUDGET IS LESS WE ADD BACK 10%, SO WE ADD BACK $14,000. AND THAT GIVES YOU THE TOTAL ALLOCATION OF 4.745.
SO THAT'S WHAT IS THAT? THAT'S $125,000 SOMEWHERE AROUND THERE, $130,000. SO $130,000 IS WHAT THEY'RE LOSING.
THEY HAVE 952 ARE STUDENTS. SO THAT'S NOT I MEAN, SCHOOLS WILL THINK ANY DOLLAR IS A LOT, BUT $130 WITH A SCHOOL WITH A THOUSAND KIDS IS NOT THAT MUCH.
THEY'LL BE ABLE TO FIGURE THAT OUT. AND THEN THE LAST EXAMPLE IS THE 16 SCHOOLS THAT HAVE LOST MORE THAN $250,000 OUT OF 200 OR OUT OF ALL THE PUA SCHOOLS, 16, NINE OF WHICH ARE ELEMENTARY IN THIS CASE IS HERRERA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 687 PROJECTED ENROLLMENT.
THAT'S A DECREASE OF 35. AND THEN THE ADA IS 93.6.
BUT THE ADA LAST YEAR WAS 94.5 OR YEAH, 94.7.
SO THEY LOST NO. 94.5. THEY LOST ALMOST A FULL PERCENTAGE POINT.
SO REMEMBER THE THE TOTAL BUDGET THERE IS THE NEW PUA, WHICH IS 5,086 TIMES THE ENROLLMENT TIMES THE ADA, WHICH GIVES THEM 3,270,000, WHICH IS $301, SHORT OR NOT SHORT, DIFFERENT FROM THE YEAR BEFORE.
WE ADD BACK 10% OF THE LOSS AND THAT GIVES THEM 3.3 MILLION.
[01:40:02]
SO THERE ARE $270,000 OFF THEIR BUDGET FROM A YEAR AGO.AND WE HAVE 16 SCHOOLS IN THIS CATEGORY. SO I MEAN, YOU CAN GO THROUGH THE WHOLE SPREADSHEET.
WE ARE WORKING WITH A HANDFUL OF SCHOOLS THAT ARE STRUGGLING TO MAKE ENDS MEET, SO TO SPEAK.
AND T HE FINANCE DEPARTMENT IS HELPING THEM WITH THAT.
SAME WITH THE CHIEF OF SCHOOLS OFFICE THEY'RE HELPING TO SEE IF THEY CAN DO IT.
AND I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT THE SMALL SCHOOLS. I'LL BE TALKING ABOUT THAT IN A MINUTE. BUT THERE ARE SOME OTHER SCHOOLS THAT ARE HAVING A HARD TIME MAKING ENDS MEET WITH SOME OF THE CUTS. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT THAT. A LOT OF IT HAS TO DO WITH ENROLLMENT.
SO WE TALKED ABOUT A SCHOOL TODAY. THEY'RE LOSING 100 AND SOME KIDS.
SO WE'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO PROJECT ONLY 50 KID LOSS.
AND SO WE'LL LET THEM DO WHAT THEY CAN DO WITH ONLY 50 KIDS LOST.
AND THEN WE WILL TRUE UP IN OCTOBER. YOU FOLLOW ME.
SO THAT HELPS THEM WITH THEIR BUDGETING PROCESS.
ALL RIGHT. AND THEN FINALLY SMALL SCHOOLS. THERE IS A SMALL SCHOOL SUBSIDY THAT HASN'T CHANGED.
BUT I'M TALKING ABOUT OTHER SCHOOLS THAT ARE NOT SMALL BY DESIGN.
BUT ARE SO SMALL, LIKE THE 220 KIDS OR 196 KIDS, IT'S ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO MAKE ENDS MEET WHEN YOU HAVE SO FEW KIDS. SO WE ARE WORKING TO HELP THEM.
WE'RE NOT GOING TO RUN A SCHOOL AND THEN NOT SUPPORT IT TO MAKE SURE IT'S SUCCESSFUL.
SO THESE ARE THE SMALL SCHOOLS, FOR EXAMPLE, IN THE ELEMENTARY ORBIT.
SO BRISCOE, WE PROBABLY WILL HAVE TO HELP EVEN THOUGH THEY THEY'RE PROJECTED TO INCREASE ENROLLMENT BY 19, BUT THEY'RE STILL UNDER 200. SO WE WILL PROBABLY HAVE TO SUBSIDIZE THAT SCHOOL.
MEANING WE WILL FOR EXAMPLE, WE PROBABLY WILL GIVE THEM AN AP OR WE WILL GIVE THEM ANOTHER TEACHER OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT SO THAT THEY CAN HOLD ALL THE CLASSES. THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO FOR BRISCOE.
EVERY SCHOOL IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. SO I DON'T WANT TO SAY EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO FOR EACH SCHOOL, BUT WE WILL TAKE A LOOK AND MAKE SURE THAT THEY CAN RUN A GOOD SCHOOL ANYWAY, EVEN IF WE HAVE TO SUBSIDIZE THAT. THESE ARE THE MIDDLE SCHOOLS.
KEEP IN MIND THAT SOME OF THESE SCHOOLS ARE IN FACT, MOST OF THEM ARE SMALL BY DESIGN.
SO WE WANT TO BE CAREFUL. AND THEY'VE BEEN SUPPORTED AND THEY STILL GET THE SMALL SCHOOL SUBSIDY.
SO WE'RE NOT JUST GOING TO JUMP AT AND SAY, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO YOU WANT? AND WE JUST GIVE IT TO YOU. WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT EACH PROGRAM SPECIFICALLY.
300 I'M NOT TOO WORRIED ABOUT SCHOOLS WITH OVER 350 KIDS.
BUT EVEN THOSE SCHOOLS MAY MAY NEED SOME HELP.
EXCEPT FOR THE HIGH SCHOOL AHEAD ACADEMY. BUT THAT'S A DIFFERENT BEAST.
AND SO THAT IS, AGAIN, SMALL BY DESIGN, AND WE WILL SUPPORT IT TO MAKE SURE IT CAN FUNCTION WELL.
THEY PROBABLY WILL NOT NEED HELP. BUT WE'RE LOOKING CLOSELY AT EACH ONE OF THEM.
WE'LL BE TALKING TO THE DIVISION CHIEFS AND THE PRINCIPALS TO SEE IF THEY NEED ANY HELP.
SO MOST OF THESE ARE SMALL BY DESIGN. I'LL STOP THERE.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SCHOOL BUDGETS. QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. SUPERINTENDENT, A LOT OF INFORMATION.
FIRST OF ALL, TO DIGEST. SO THANK YOU FOR THIS.
YOU MENTIONED SMALL SCHOOL SUBSIDIES. CAN YOU REMIND ME WHAT WHAT THAT AMOUNT IS? DO YOU GUYS HAVE THAT AMOUNT IN YOUR HEAD? IT'S A REVIEW WITH THE PRINCIPAL TO GO OVER AND COME TO AN AGREEMENT AS TO WHAT THEY NEED.
[01:45:02]
SO IT'S NOT JUST AN AMOUNT. SO IT'S NOT A SET RATE.IT'S VARIES BY SCHOOL. AND WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR WHEN YOU DETERMINE THAT FORMULA? WHAT IS IT? WHAT INFORMATION ARE YOU GATHERING AT THAT TIME? CONTINUATION OF PROGRAMS THAT THEY FIND THAT NECESSARY FOR THEIR MISSION.
AND DOES THE ALLOCATION THAT THE FORMULA THAT YOU SHARED, DOES THAT INCLUDE THE SMALL SCHOOL SUBSIDIES? CAN YOU GUYS. BACK IN SMALL SCHOOL SUBSIDIES. BUT SINCE THAT TIME, YOU KNOW THAT'S KIND OF BEEN LOCKED IN.
SO ANY MONEY WE GIVE IS GOING TO BE IN ADDITION TO WHATEVER.
I HEARD YOU. DID EVERYBODY HEAR HIM.
SO AGAIN SO IT VARIES BY SCHOOL. YOU HAVE A DISCUSSION, NOT A SET FORMULA.
WE NEED TO MAKE SURE WE'RE SUPPORTING THEM. RIGHT? YES, SIR. SO WHAT I WAS SAYING EARLIER, EVERY SCHOOL ON THAT LIST WILL LOOK AT CLOSELY TO SEE IF THERE IF THEY NEED HELP FINANCIALLY.
AND WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT THEY CAN RUN THEIR PROGRAMS AND THE ACTUAL DESIGN OF THE SCHOOL WITH MONEY.
AND I YOU KNOW, WE MADE A COMMITMENT NOT TO CLOSE ANY SCHOOLS THIS COMING YEAR.
SO NOT GOING TO LET YOU KNOW SOME OF THE SMALLER SCHOOLS THAT AREN'T SUFFERING BECAUSE OF PROGRAMS. RIGHT. BUT IT'S SUFFERING BECAUSE OF JUST LOW ENROLLMENT NOT TO BE ABLE TO RUN AN EFFECTIVE SCHOOL.
SO THAT'S WHERE THE SUBSIDY COMES IN. WHAT JIM WAS SAYING EARLIER IS THAT THE PUA AMOUNT INCLUDED THE SMALL SCHOOL SUBSIDIES FROM THE PAST, AND WE DIDN'T CHANGE THE PUA AMOUNT. BUT DESPITE THAT, THIS YEAR AND NEXT YEAR, WHEN A SCHOOL SAYS THEY DON'T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY, I'M TRYING TO THINK I'M PRETTY SURE IT'S PLEASANTVILLE AND PORT HOUSTON WHERE WE ADDED TO THEIR BUDGETS ANYWAY, EVEN THIS YEAR TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY COULD RUN THE PROGRAM, THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO RUN OR RUN A SCHOOL EFFECTIVELY.
AND SO WE'LL DO THE SAME THING. AND IF A SCHOOL ISN'T ON THIS LIST AND THAT FOR SOME REASON FEELS LIKE THEY CAN'T GET IT DONE, THEN WE'LL LOOK CLOSELY AT THAT. I MEAN IT'S NOT JUST FORMULAIC.
I MEAN, I KNOW SEVERAL SCHOOLS I WENT TO THIS YEAR WHERE I THOUGHT THEY SHOULD HAVE AN ADDITIONAL AP BECAUSE TO RUN A SCHOOL EVEN UNDER 300 THAT DOESN'T HAVE AN AP, EVEN THOUGH YOU SHOULD BUDGET FOR THAT. BUT IF THEY DIDN'T FEEL THAT THEY HAD THE MONEY TO DO IT, I INSISTED THAT THEY PUT AN AP THERE, OR AT LEAST A PRINCIPAL APPRENTICE.
AND SO THAT'S THE KIND OF SUPPORT WE'RE GOING TO GIVE REGARDLESS.
YEAH. AND I THINK THAT'S GOOD TO HEAR. BECAUSE TO YOUR POINT, SOME OF THE FEEDBACK, AT LEAST FROM I GO BACK TO THE HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR ENGAGEMENT, BUT THIS WAS LAST YEAR AS WELL. SOME OF THE THINGS THAT THEY WERE MISSING FOR SOME OF THESE SPECIALTY SCHOOLS WERE LIKE MORE COUNSELORS BECAUSE THEY HAD TO SHARE COUNSELORS.
IT WAS ACTUALLY THE DOCUMENT THAT WAS SHARED WITH US WITH REGARD TO LET ME SEE.
CURRICULUM FOR PUA. IT DOES SAY THAT. FOR ALL PUA CAMPUSES, HIS CURRICULUM.
I'M SORRY. LET ME GO BACK THERE. THE CENTRAL OFFICE WILL FUND CORE CURRICULUM.
SO DOES THAT MEAN THAT EVEN NON HISD THEY'RE GOING TO FUND NON HISD CREATED CURRICULUM.
CENTRAL OFFICE WILL STILL FUND THAT. SO THERE ARE THERE'S A LIST OF THREE CURRICULUM AND LANGUAGE ARTS, MATH AND SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES AND SO. I'M LOOKING AT KRISTEN.
CAN YOU CAN YOU COME UP HERE JUST IN CASE THEY HAVE QUESTIONS FOR YOU. AND IF THEY SELECT ONE OF THOSE, THOSE ARE VETTED THEN WE PAY FOR IT. BUT IF YOU HAVE ANOTHER CURRICULUM THAT AND IF YOU'RE A DEFINED AUTONOMY, THREE, FOUR AND THREE AND YOU HAVE A CURRICULUM THAT YOU PURCHASE THAT YOU WANT SINGAPORE MATH BECAUSE YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN USING SINGAPORE MATH, THEN YOU HAVE TO BUY SINGAPORE MATH. OKAY. DID I GET THAT RIGHT? THAT'S CORRECT. WE ESSENTIALLY FUND ANYTHING ON THE APPROVED LIST.
AND THAT'S I THINK THAT'S THE LIST THAT WE KIND OF APPROVED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR, THE HIGH QUALITY INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS. I THINK IT'S ON THAT LIST. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. PERFECT. AND THEN AND AGAIN, I ALWAYS WANT TO GO BACK TO BOARD.
RIGHT. SO OUTCOMES HOW DOES IT IMPACT OUTCOMES.
FOR ONE OF THE IT SAYS SUPPLEMENTAL CURRICULUM AND DIGITAL RESOURCES.
[01:50:03]
OR BY THE ADMINISTRATION TO SCHOOLS, BUT ARE NO LONGER GOING TO BE PAID FOR BY THE SCHOOL.SO I THINK ABOUT THIS. IT SAYS CENTRAL OFFICE WILL FUND THE FOLLOWING SUPPLEMENTAL RESOURCES. AND IT TALKS ABOUT ZEARN MATH RLA SUMMIT K THROUGH 12, BUT IT REFERENCES ONLY FOR NES CAMPUSES AND PUA SPECIAL FOCUSES.
SO WHAT OPTIONS WOULD THOSE SCHOOLS. ONE IS HOW DOES THAT TIE TO OUTCOMES? I CAN FROM EXPERIENCE I CAN SEE WHERE ZEARN MY KIDS USE IT.
SO IT HAS HELPED THEM. BUT THEY'RE NOT IN AN NES SCHOOL, NOT PUA SPECIALTY FOCUS SCHOOL.
SO FOR THOSE SCHOOLS THAT WILL NOT RECEIVE THESE RESOURCES, WHAT OPTIONS DO THEY HAVE AND HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE STILL OBTAINING THOSE OUTCOMES THAT WE WANT TO OBTAIN? YEAH. SO SO FAR THE WE ARE GETTING THE OUTCOMES WE NEED FOR PUA.
YES, IT HAS IMPROVED. BUT THERE'S A FINE BALANCE BETWEEN DEFINED AUTONOMY AND RESOURCES.
MEANING THIS IF WE'RE NOT CHARTERED. BUT IF YOU WERE A CHARTER SCHOOL AND HAVE ULTIMATE AUTONOMY, THEN YOU PAY FOR EVERYTHING AND YOU HAVE YOUR OWN PROGRAM AND YOU FIGURE OUT A WAY TO GET THE OUTCOMES YOU NEED.
WE ARE GIVING X AMOUNT OF AUTONOMY. AND SO YOU KNOW, TO THE PUA SCHOOLS, ESPECIALLY IF YOU'RE AUTONOMY FOUR AND THREE AND YOU PUT YOUR OWN BUDGET TOGETHER AND YOU MAKE THE CHOICES TO TRY TO GET THE OUTCOMES YOU WANT BECAUSE WE YES, WE WANT OUTCOMES. BUT WE'RE GIVING YOU THE AUTONOMY TO PICK YOUR RESOURCES.
SO THE ANSWER IS IF YOU IF YOU WANT ZEARN, THEN YOU NEED TO PAY FOR ZEARN.
AND THAT MEANS YOU YOU DON'T HAVE SOMETHING ELSE THAT YOU THAT YOU WANT.
SO YOU COULD CHOOSE TO HAVE A FREE CURRICULUM THAT WE PAY FOR AND THEN PAY FOR ZEARN OR YOU CAN CHOOSE NOT TO HAVE A FREE CURRICULUM AND THEN THEN DON'T PAY FOR ZEARN OR THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO IT'S CHOICES THAT PRINCIPALS MAKE. AND WE WILL KEEP STRIKING THAT BALANCE BETWEEN YOU GET TO RUN YOUR SCHOOL AND RUNNING YOUR SCHOOL A CERTAIN WAY COSTS X AMOUNT OF DOLLARS.
OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR NOW. OKAY.
GO AHEAD. ALL RIGHT. THE LAST THING IS NES CAMPUS BUDGETS.
SO RIGHT NOW, I'LL COME BACK TO THAT SLIDE. WHAT WE DO IN THE NES ORBIT IS WE HAVE A PRETTY DEFINED STAFF STAFFING MODEL. TEACHERS, LEARNING COACHES, APPRENTICES.
THE MAGNET PROGRAMING. AND THERE'S NOT A LOT OF EXTRA STAFF.
VERY SLIM. THE MONEY COMES IN ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE THERE WHERE YOU SEE CENTRALLY FUNDED, THE BIGGEST DOLLAR AMOUNTS ARE THE TEACHER APPRENTICES AND THE LEARNING COACHES.
THERE IS ONE TEACHER APPRENTICE FOR EVERY 100 KIDS AND ONE LEARNING COACH FOR EVERY 100 STUDENTS.
AND THAT'S WHERE THAT'S THE DIFFERENCE IN THE TWO.
WE ALSO LOOK AT ADA. WE LOOK AT ALL OF THAT. AND WE AND THEN WE DETERMINE HOW MANY KIDS OR HOW MANY STAFF MEMBERS YOU SHOULD HAVE BASED ON THAT NUMBER. AND THEN AFTER WE GET THAT NUMBER AND OR AND WE KNOW THE REAL ENROLLMENT, THAT'S WHEN WE OR WE KNOW THE PROJECTED ENROLLMENT.
THAT'S WHEN WE HIRE A TEACHER APPRENTICES AND LEARNING COACHES.
WE DO A TRUE UP IN THE FALL OR SOMETIMES AS EARLY AS SEPTEMBER.
IF 100 KIDS DIDN'T COME, LET'S JUST SAY THEN YOU'RE GOING TO LOSE A LEARNING COACH AND YOU'RE GOING TO LEARN, YOU'RE GOING TO LOSE AN APPRENTICE. AND THAT HAPPENS EARLY ON IN THE YEAR.
YOU USE THE HISD CURRICULUM, WHICH IS DOESN'T COST ANYTHING AT THE SCHOOL LEVEL.
YOU GET APPRENTICES, YOU GET IT'S ALL FORMULAIC.
SO THAT'S HOW WE KNOW WHAT THE BUDGET WILL BE FOR NES.
AND WE'RE GOING THROUGH THAT PROCESS NOW. QUESTIONS ON THE NES BUDGETS.
I HAVE A QUESTION. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE I'M FOLLOWING.
[01:55:01]
ON TEACHER APPRENTICES, I THINK YOU SAID ONE PER 100 STUDENTS.AND THEN THE SAME IS TRUE FOR LEARNING COACHES.
CORRECT. AND THEN HOW ABOUT TEACHERS? WHAT IS THE RATIO? WE SHOOT FOR 1 TO 25. I'M LOOKING AT ANY DIFFERENCE THERE.
[INAUDIBLE], KRISTEN, SANDY. 1 TO 25. TEACHERS.
AND THEN OKAY. SO AND THEN ADMINISTRATION. WHAT'S THE? SO ADMINISTRATION IT DEPENDS. SO IN MIDDLE SCHOOL ALMOST ALWAYS THERE'S ONE PER GRADE.
AND THEN FOR OTHERS I THINK IT'S 1 TO 400. YOU GUYS HAVE.
BUT I MEAN, IF YOU'VE GOT IT, WE'LL TAKE IT. IF NOT, WE CAN TAKE IT LATER.
SO ONE PER GRADE LEVEL COUNSELORS ARE 1 TO 400.
AND THEN IN HIGH SCHOOL. APS WE DO 1 TO 200 WITH A MINIMUM OF FOUR. FOLLOWING THAT SAME RATIONALE OF ONE PER EACH GRADE.
WE CAN SEND THIS TO YOU AS WELL. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY, I HAVE ONE. GO AHEAD. OH, CASSANDRA. THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION, SUPERINTENDENT.
BACK IN, I WAS TRYING TO PULL UP ON MY COMPUTER.
BACK IN. I THINK IT WAS FEBRUARY. WE GOT BUDGET ASSUMPTIONS, AND WE WERE.
I HAVE A QUESTION AROUND ENROLLMENT. I THINK WE WERE PROJECTING.
WELL, LET ME ASK YOU, WHAT ARE WE PROJECTING AS FAR AS ENROLLMENT DECLINE? IS IT 6000 GUYS? SO I DON'T SEE IT RIGHT NOW. I THOUGHT IT WAS HIGHER THAN THAT.
SO THE BALANCE OF THAT WOULD BE THE, NES SCHOOLS I'M ASSUMING.
RIGHT. OKAY. SO FOR THAT, THEN WHAT ARE WE? DOES THE SMALL SCHOOL SUBSIDY ALSO APPLY TO NES SCHOOLS, OR IS JUST THAT SOMETHING FOR PUA? BECAUSE WE'RE SETTING THE BUDGET FOR NES SCHOOLS DIFFERENTLY.
WE'RE SETTING IT DIFFERENTLY, BUT THEY WILL BE SUBSIDIZED.
THE SMALL SCHOOLS ALSO WILL BE SUBSIDIZED. FOR EXAMPLE, YOU HEARD 1 TO 200 FOR APS OR 250, AND EVEN IF IT'S A SMALL SCHOOL IN NES, IT MOST LIKELY WILL GET EITHER AN AP OR A PRINCIPAL APPRENTICE.
THINGS LIKE THAT. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND DO WE HAVE A DO WE HAVE.
AND SO WE'RE CALLING A SMALL SCHOOL THREE 400 AND BELOW.
IS THAT WHAT IT IS BELOW 400. SO IN ELEMENTARY.
YES. AND FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL, I THINK IT'S 800 OR.
AND THEN FOR HIGH SCHOOL, IT'S NO. MIDDLE SCHOOL IS 600.
AND HIGH SCHOOL IS 800. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT.
BUT KEEP IN MIND, EVEN IF REGARDLESS OF THAT, IF THEY'RE STRUGGLING BECAUSE OF, LET'S SAY THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, 320, WE WILL STILL ENTERTAIN TO SEE IF THEY CAN.
WE CAN STILL RUN A GOOD SCHOOL. GOT IT. OKAY.
THANK YOU FOR THAT. I WANTED TO GO BACK. I WAS TRYING TO HOP IN AFTER ROLANDO.
TWO OF THEM HAVE F'S AND THE REST HAVE LOW D OR A D RATING C. BUT THERE ARE DIFFERENCES FOR WHY THEY HAVE THAT ACCOUNTABILITY RATING.
AND SO THOSE ARE THE IS IT 25 OR 24. 24. I THINK WE BETTER GET SOME CLARITY.
[02:00:05]
SO THE 24 SPECIAL FOCUS SCHOOLS ARE THE NON NES SCHOOLS THAT ARE C, D OR F.AND THAT WAS MAINLY BECAUSE WELL WE SHOULD DO IT ANYWAY BUT THE BOARD MULTIPLE TIMES IN BOARD MEETINGS LAST YEAR MADE A BIG PUSH TO WHAT ARE WE DOING TO SUPPORT PUA SCHOOLS? WE'RE DOING ALL THIS FOR NES.
WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR PUA? WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE C, D, F SCHOOLS DID NOT DROP.
SO WE'VE PUT A LOT OF EXTRA EFFORT WITH SUPPORT, LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, TAKING THEM TO OTHER SCHOOLS TO SEE WHAT OTHER PRINCIPALS ARE DOING SO THAT THOSE SPECIAL FOCUSED SCHOOLS COULD IMPROVE.
IS IT ALL C CAMPUSES? YES. OKAY. SO C, D AND F, RIGHT? OKAY. I'M JUST I'M ASKING IF IT'S ALL C PUA SCHOOLS WITH A C.
OKAY. I THOUGHT WE HEARD. I THOUGHT I HEARD LOW C, SO C OKAY.
HOW MANY SCHOOLS DO WE ANTICIPATE WILL BE PURCHASING THEIR OWN CURRICULUM? I MEAN, IF WE HAVE A LIST OF HIGH QUALITY INSTRUCTION CURRICULUMS, THEN BECAUSE WE ARE TALKING ABOUT IT LIKE THERE ARE SOME SCHOOLS THAT WANT TO PURCHASE OR THAT WILL BE PURCHASING THEIR OWN. KRISTEN, DO YOU HAVE THAT NUMBER? I CAN, WHILE SHE'S COMING UP HERE. THE MOST OF THE SCHOOLS OVERWHELMING MAJORITY WILL EITHER WILL USE HISD'S CURRICULUM AND THEN THE MOST OF THE OTHERS ARE USING AMPLIFY OR THE APPROVED VENDORS.
DO YOU HAVE AN IDEA OF HOW MANY ARE USING THAT WILL BE PAYING FOR THEIR OWN CURRICULUM? IT'S GOING TO VARY BY CONTENT AND SOMETIMES EVEN GRADE, SO WE CAN VERY EASILY JUST PULL A REPORT FOR YOU FROM THAT LENS.
BUT I BELIEVE THE REPORT WAS 83% IN SOME WAY.
WE'RE USING HISD CURRICULUM. SO THAT GIVES YOU A LITTLE BIT OF A SENSE OF THAT.
BUT THOSE THAT'S 83% OF ALL SCHOOLS, NOT JUST PUA.
SO THAT WOULD BE NES PLUS. AND THE LATEST PRINCIPAL SURVEY HAD 95%.
WE'LL USE IT NEXT YEAR. BUT AGAIN, IT WILL VARY BY COURSE AND SUBJECT.
SO WE CAN PULL THAT FOR YOU AS A DATA PULL. OKAY, I THINK THAT'S ALL FOR NOW.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. ANYBODY ELSE? THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. AND I HAD A, I GUESS A COUPLE OF LITTLE FOLLOW UPS.
SOME OF THE QUESTION IS, IS REGARDING KIND OF THE BIG PICTURE, BECAUSE I WAS TRYING TO PUT EVERYTHING TOGETHER AND SORT OF AMALGAMATE, LIKE WHAT IS OUR TOTAL BUDGET THAT WE'RE GOING TO SEE REDUCTIONS.
SO ONE OF THE THINGS I SEE JUST AT THE BIG PICTURE IS WE'VE GOT 25 COMING FROM CENTRAL, EIGHT COMING FROM PUA, SOMETHING COMING FROM NES, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT.
WHEN WE ADD IT ALL UP, CAN YOU JUST SORT OF PAINT THAT PICTURE AT A HIGH LEVEL FOR THE TOTAL BUDGET? SO THE TOTAL BUDGET IS VARIES LITTLE BASED ON THE SCHOOL BUDGETS.
OKAY. DO YOU GUYS HAVE AN IDEA AS FAR AS THE SAVINGS OR CUTS FROM THE SCHOOLS? YEAH. YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, WITH THE TOTAL BUDGET IS IS REALLY DEPENDENT UPON WHAT OUR REVENUE STREAM IS COMING IN FROM THE STATE AND OTHER SOURCES LIKE I DON'T WANT TO GET TOO TECHNICAL, BUT THE STATE ALSO FORCES US DOWN IN TERMS OF OUR TAX RATE. AND SO THAT MEANS LESS MONEY COMING IN.
SO BUT, YOU KNOW, AS I SAY, WE WE ARE AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL, AND WE'RE NOT LOCKED IN YET.
I WISH I COULD SAY A, YOU KNOW, AN EXACT NUMBER AT THIS POINT, BUT IT'S, YOU KNOW, LEGISLATIVE YEAR.
I'M SORRY. LET ME TRY TO CLARIFY A LITTLE BIT.
I'M JUST THINKING OF DEDUCTIONS BASED ON THAT DECLINE IN ENROLLMENT.
[02:05:05]
YEAH. BIG PICTURE. WE HAVE REDUCTIONS IN THE TEACHING FORCE AND THE SCHOOL SIDE.IF WE LOSE 6000 STUDENTS, THAT MEANS WE'RE GOING TO LOSE TEACHER POSITIONS.
THAT'S WHAT THIS CROSSWALK IS ABOUT. SO YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME TEACHER POSITIONS MOVED OUT AND SOME CHIEF OF SCHOOLS OFFICE MOVED OUT. SO THAT'S ONE PORTION. AND AGAIN, THAT WILL VARY A LITTLE BIT BY ENROLLMENT.
WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE PUA BUDGETS RIGHT NOW, IF THEIR ENROLLMENT GOES DOWN, AS YOU SAW A COUPLE EXAMPLES, MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, THAT MEANS A TEACHER POSITION OR MAYBE TWO TEACHER POSITIONS IN A PUA SCHOOL LOSING ENROLLMENT.
AND BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE THE BIGGEST PART OF THE MONEY IS, I N SALARIES.
HAVING SAID THAT MOST OF THE MONEY THAT WE WILL BE CUTTING FROM EXPENDITURE SIDE WILL COME FROM CENTRAL OFFICE EXPENDITURES.
SO EITHER IN PROGRAMS, PURCHASE SERVICES OR PEOPLE.
SO WE'RE GOING TO BE WE'RE GOING TO BE LOSING QUITE A BIT ON THAT SIDE.
AND NOW WE RIGHTSIZE QUITE A BIT. WE'RE NOT DONE WITH THAT.
SO WE'RE GOING TO LOSE PEOPLE ON THAT SIDE AS WELL. SO THE COMBINATION BETWEEN CENTRAL OFFICE EXPENDITURES AND THEN THE DECREASE IN STAFF AS A RESULT OF ENROLLMENT AND MOST OF THAT IS IN THE NES SIDE.
GOT IT. GOT IT. AND THA T HELPS SOMEWHAT. AND IT WOULD BE GOOD.
IT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR ME. THE OTHER ASPECT OF WHAT I WAS CONSIDERING WAS AROUND SO WE'VE GOT A LOT OF SERVICES THAT WE DO AT THE CENTRAL OFFICE.
AND SO IT'S AN EXTENSIVE LIST THERE AS WE GO FORWARD.
THAT JUST SHOWS LIKE, OKAY, HERE ARE ALL THE THINGS WE'RE DOING, THIS IS WHY THEY'RE THERE AND HOW EFFECTIVE THEY ARE AND WHAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO DO AND HOW WE'RE MEASURING THEM FOR SUCCESS. AND PERHAPS YOU'VE DONE SOME OF THAT ALREADY, PARTIALLY OR IN FULL.
BUT IT'D BE HELPFUL IF YOU JUST SHARED A LITTLE BIT OF YOUR THOUGHT PROCESS THERE.
WE CAN DO MORE. BUT ESSENTIALLY THIS IS HOW WE GET THE OUTCOMES WE NEED, THE OUTCOMES THAT WE HAVE, THE BOARD GOALS AND THE OUTCOMES TO GET OUT OF INTERVENTION STATUS ARE AROUND STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT.
AND SO THE WHOLE ORGANIZATION IS TIED TO GETTING THE OUTCOMES AND SUPPORTING THE SCHOOLS.
SO THE METRICS YOU CAN'T TIE A METRIC IN THE GROUNDSKEEPING TO AN ACHIEVEMENT, BUT YOU CAN TIE THAT METRIC AROUND SUPPORT OF THE SCHOOLS. AND YOU CAN YOU CAN TIE THE METRICS AROUND TRANSPORTATION TO THE SUPPORT OF THE SCHOOLS AND GETTING THE KIDS TO SCHOOL ON TIME HAVING A CROSSWALK WITH HOW THEY GET THE ULTIMATE GOAL ACHIEVEMENT IS PROBABLY NOT GOING TO BE A RELIABLE STUDY.
STILL, WE'RE IN THE PROCESS. WE HAVE WE'VE DONE A GOOD JOB WITH DEPARTMENT GOALS, BUT NOW WE HAVE TO DO GOALS FOR INDIVIDUAL PEOPLE WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT, AND THAT'S HAPPENING. THAT'S ALSO PART OF OUR DATA WORK.
THANK YOU. OKAY. CAN I ASK A QUESTION ABOUT ENROLLMENT SINCE THAT'S WHAT DEFINES OUR BUDGET SO MUCH? I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND. I THINK YOU SAID THAT WE'RE WORKING TOWARDS 6,800 AS AN ESTIMATE OF LOSS OF TOTAL ENROLLMENT.
IS THAT RIGHT? THAT'S CORRECT. AND WHY IT'S VARYING A LITTLE BIT.
IT'S THE INDIVIDUAL SCHOOLS THAT COME BACK TO US.
WE HAVE WE EMPLOYED A DEMOGRAPHER THIS YEAR WHO HAS MANY, MANY YEARS OF SCHOOL EXPERIENCE BEHIND HER, AND SHE HAS GIVEN US THE ORIGINAL, WHICH YOU ALL SAW.
BUT AS WE WORK THROUGH THE BUDGET AND WE TALK ABOUT PROGRAMS AND NEEDS AND THEN THEIR INPUT,
[02:10:06]
WE MAKE LITTLE ADJUSTMENTS. SO AND I THINK THE ORIGINAL NUMBER THAT WAS ONE OF THE ASSUMPTIONS WAS ABOUT 8,000.SO IT SOUNDS LIKE THAT'S COME DOWN BY ABOUT 1,200 JUST RIGHT NOW.
IS THAT THAT'S STILL A WORK IN PROGRESS I TAKE IT.
YES. AND SO BUT WE'RE PRETTY CLOSE. OKAY. AND THAT JUST WHAT MISS BANDY SAID A MOMENT AGO THAT THE PUA, WHEN WE GOT THE CHART, IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS A DECLINE IN ABOUT 1400 TOTAL STUDENTS.
IS THAT THAT'S BASED ON THE DEMOGRAPHER PLUS INPUT FROM THE PRINCIPALS.
MOST OF THE DECLINE WAS IN THE NES SCHOOLS, NOT THE PUA.
DO WE HAVE ANY CLARITY WITH REGARD TO THE NES SCHOOLS, WHETHER THAT'S PRIMARILY IN THE OLDER GRADES OR YOUNGER GRADES? IS IT DRIVEN BY DEMOGRAPHICS AND WHAT'S GOING ON? IT'S DRIVEN BY DEMOGRAPHICS. AND I THINK HER COMMENT TO ME WAS, I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW MANY BABIES AREN'T BEING BORN.
SO BUT WE CAN BREAK IT DOWN WHERE THE NUMBERS ARE COMING FROM.
AND SO I'M JUST WONDERING IF THAT IF WE'RE SEEING THAT TREND CONTINUE OR NOT.
I HAVEN'T LOOKED AT THAT, BUT I WILL PROVIDE THAT FOR YOU.
I CAN TELL YOU OVER THE LAST FOUR YEARS WITH OUR CURRENT PROJECTIONS, WE'RE DOWN ABOUT 17,000 KIDS.
THANK YOU. OKAY. I HAVE ONE FOLLOW UP. GO AHEAD.
WE MENTIONED ACTUALLY SPECIAL FOCUS SCHOOLS. I KNOW, DO SPECIAL FOCUS SCHOOLS CAN THEY COME OFF BEING CONSIDERED SPECIAL FOCUS SCHOOLS AFTER A CERTAIN. I DON'T THINK WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THAT PIECE BEFORE. SO LET'S SAY FOR EXAMPLE, THIS YEAR THEY BECOME AN A SCHOOL.
DOES THAT MEAN THAT THEIR BUDGET NOW MOVES DIFFERENTLY? HOW DOES THAT WORK? SO THE KNOW THAT THE PUA BUDGETS FOR THE SPECIAL FOCUS SCHOOLS FOLLOWS THE SAME METHODOLOGY.
WHAT WE DO THOUGH IS ON TOP OF THAT WILL ADD SUPPORTS IF WE SEE THAT IT NEEDS SUPPORT.
SO COMING OFF ISN'T THERE. THERE'S, STILL PUA.
AT THE SAME TIME, WE'RE PROVIDING SUPPORTS. SO WE'LL IF THEY STILL NEED THE SUPPORT, WE'LL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE THE SUPPORT AND THEY'LL BE A SPECIAL FOCUS SCHOOL. BUT WE'RE GOING TO FOR EXAMPLE, WE'RE GOING TO WAIT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS IN AT THE END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR, WE'LL LOOK AT THE MAKEUP OF THE STAFF AND LOOK AT THE RESULTS, THE ACCOUNTABILITY RESULTS.
AND THEN WE'LL DETERMINE NEW SPECIAL FOCUS SCHOOLS IF WE NEED TO.
AND THEN LAST PIECE, YOU MENTIONED ONE TEACHER PER 25 AT NES SCHOOLS.
DOES THAT SOUND RIGHT? YEAH. THE CLASS SIZE OF 25.
I THINK IT'S 1 TO 16 OR 1 TO 15. AND THAT'S BECAUSE YOU ALSO HAVE ELECTIVE TEACHERS.
THAT MEANS YOU ALSO HAVE, YOU KNOW, OTHER CLASSES THAT ARE NOT FULL THINGS LIKE THAT.
OKAY. THANK YOU. I THINK WE'RE GOOD. WELL, THEN THE LAST THING, SIR, IS LEGISLATIVE UPDATES.
YOU PROBABLY KNOW AS MUCH. LOOKS LIKE WE'LL GET A SCHOOL SAFETY ALLOTMENT.
WE NEED THE POLICE OFFICERS AND WE NEED SOME OF THE SAFETY INFRASTRUCTURE ITEMS PUT IN PLACE.
SO THAT WOULD BE A GREAT HELP IF THAT PASSES.
AND THEN HOUSE BILL TWO DID PASS OUT OF THE HOUSE.
IT'S GOING IT'S AT THE SENATE, I BELIEVE. IT DOES SHOW AN INCREASE IN THE BASIC ALLOTMENT FULL DAY PRE-K FUNDING AND HOLD HARMLESS. SENATE BILL 26 HAS YET TO BE ENTERTAINED.
THAT'S THE TEACHER PAY INCREASE. THAT WOULD BE.
IT'LL BE BUDGET NEUTRAL. BECAUSE WE WILL BE PAYING TEACHERS, INCREASING THEIR SALARIES.
IT HAS TO GO TO TEACHER SALARIES, SO IT WILL BE A GOOD THING FOR TEACHERS.
[02:15:07]
LIKE THAT IS GOING TO PASS. SO AGAIN, WE'RE GIVING YOU AN UPDATE.BUT REALLY YOU GOT TO WAIT AND SEE. OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS.
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. I HAVE QUESTIONS. GO AHEAD.
SORRY. WHEN WE TALKED EARLIER, YOU WERE TELLING US THAT THE 75 ADDITIONAL TO THE PUA NUMBER IS BASED ON THE ASSUMPTION OF $250. OKAY. AND SO WE DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN.
HOUSE BILL TWO HAS AN INCREASE OF MORE THAN $250.
DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS PRELIMINARILY ABOUT WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO WITH THAT ADDITIONAL $145.
SO IF IT INCREASES, WE'LL DO THE FORMULA LIKE WE DID THE $250.
SO THE REASON YOU GET $75 IS THAT 40% OF ANY INCREASE IN THE BASIC ALLOTMENT HAS TO GO TO SALARIES.
OF THAT 40%, 75% OF THAT OR IS IT 70%? 75% OF THAT 40% HAS TO GO TO TEACHER SALARIES. SO YOU MULTIPLY 250 BY 0.4 TIMES 0.75.
AND THAT'S WHY YOU GET $75. SO WE'LL DO THE SAME IF THE BASIC ALLOTMENT GOES UP.
WE'LL AND IF IT DOESN'T CONFLICT WITH SENATE BILL 26, WE'LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS THERE.
THEN WE'LL INCREASE THE BASIC ALLOTMENT OR THE PUA PER SCHOOL.
THE REST WE WILL. WE HAVE LOTS OF NEEDS. YOU KNOW, AND WE WILL PAY FOR CURRICULUM.
WE'LL PAY FOR CENTRAL OFFICE STAFFING, WE'LL PAY FOR HAZEL HEALTH, THINGS LIKE THAT WITH THAT MONEY.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. QUICK QUESTION ABOUT SENATE BILL 260.
I DO SEE THAT IT WAS PASSED OUT OF THE HOUSE, AS AMENDED.
ARE THERE ANY CONSTRAINTS ABOUT HOW THE ADDITIONAL FUNDING CAN BE SPENT? I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION, EXCEPT THAT IN TH E ORIGINAL LEGISLATION, MOST OF THAT HAS TO BE SPENT ON ACTUAL SECURITY, LIKE POLICE OFFICERS OR PERIMETER FENCING, VESTIBULES, THINGS LIKE THAT. I THINK LET'S WAIT TO SEE WHAT THE LEGISLATION SAYS IN THE END.
WE NEED A LOT OF PERIMETER FENCING. WE NEED VESTIBULES.
OKAY, THAT'S ALL I HAVE, SIR. GREAT. WELL. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT MILES. ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? I GUESS WE HAVE OUR NEXT MEETING COMING UP HERE.
JUST THANK YOU. I KNOW THIS IS A LOT OF WORK.
SO TO YOUR ENTIRE TEAM, THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS.
THANK YOU MA'AM. OKAY. IF THERE ARE NO OTHER COMMENTS, WE WILL ADJOURN THE MEETING.
TIME IS 3:46.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.