Houston Independent School District (HISD) has made a significant dent in teacher absenteeism this year, reporting a 40% decrease among staff who've been frequently absent. The district's Chief of Human Resources Jessica Neyman highlighted the decline during a Wednesday press conference, noting that the number of instructors with more than 10 days of absence dropped to 180 this fall from last year's 311, as reported by the Houston Chronicle.
Neyman credited the decrease to a districtwide crackdown on excessive absenteeism and stricter enforcement of leave policies. "The district is working hard and, with urgency to significantly improve instruction and academic achievement," Neyman said. "Obviously we cannot do this without our teachers present in the classrooms. There are only so many instructional days in the academic year. That means every single one of those days is precious, so teachers must report to work consistently," she further elaborated during the conference, as reported by the same Houston Chronicle article.
In addition to the press conference revelations, the district is looking at extending the school year under the 'District of Innovation' plan favored by HISD's board. Such a move, reported by Click2Houston, could put further pressure on the district's absence policy, with plans to increase instructional days from 172 to 185 for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Amid these policy tightenings, Neyman reassured that the allocated paid leave could still be taken at the employee's discretion, including other types such as temporary disability or bereavement. "Employees will not be written up for legitimately exercising their right to use every single day of their leave, but they may find themselves in a circumstance, in a future year where they are facing something unexpected — everything from a car accident or an illness — and they are finding themselves wishing they had paid leave," Neyman explained, again cited by the Houston Chronicle.
Some teachers, however, have expressed feelings of intimidation and fear of reprisal for taking legitimate time off, despite HISD officials regarding such communications as merely courtesy reminders of district policy. Nonetheless, Neyman stands firm, asserting that the consistent application of absence policies favors overall morale and, most importantly, the students' education. "We all know if you are the person that shows up, and you look to your left and you look to your right, and your colleague is once again not in attendance, that can have a negative impact on employee morale," Neyman told the Houston Chronicle. "I think actually employee morale for quality staff will be improved as well as the student outcomes."
