The Houston Independent School District (HISD), Texas' largest, kicks off its second school year under state control today, amid a landscape that could be generously described as tumultuous. The student body is approximately 9,000 leaner than last year, after a year that saw the introduction of a new standardized curriculum, extended school hours, and the high-profile reassignment of numerous teachers and principals, as reported in a Houston Chronicle article.
The exodus from HISD is partly attributed to a new education model known as the New Education System (NES), which has prompted some parents to seek alternatives, such as private education or online schooling. Parents have reported a drop in morale and dissatisfaction with the system, as the NES model appears to rigidly standardize the teaching process, prompting families to look for more flexible and personalized education options for their children. Sarah Malik, whose daughter attended Lantrip Elementary School, chose to move to The Kipling School, a private campus, after experiencing a year of changes and teacher reassignments under the NES model that left her feeling blind-sided. Another parent, Arianne Newcomer, who switched her children to Texas Virtual Schools, told the Houston Chronicle “I feel like 100 pounds have been lifted from all of us, and I feel like we didn't even want to admit to each other, or know, how heavy our backpacks, so to speak, were, but it’s so much easier on every level.”
Meanwhile, Virginia Snodgrass Rangel, an associate professor at the University of Houston’s College of Education, noted to the Houston Chronicle that the culture shifts in HISD schools have indeed driven some students out. The trend is not isolated to HISD; it's a phenomenon faced by urban districts across the nation. But HISD's plight is punctuated by its persistent dwindling of enrollment, which this year appears on track to dip below 180,000 for the first time in a decade. This drop translates to less funding from a state education system that allocates monies based on student attendance.
To compound matters, the state-appointed superintendent Mike Miles acknowledged in a Houston Public Media interview, that HISD is grappling with infrastructure issues such as air conditioning outages and overdue landscaping—just the sort of problem no beleaguered school district wants as it tries to maintain stability and growth amidst such transition. Miles, in an attempt to tackle these and other challenges, is fronting a $4.4 billion bond proposal for a vote in November. Such funding is crucial as HISD undertakes the herculean task of attracting back its student base while also ensuring that the physical environments are conducive to learning. Backing these attempts, Miles stated, "So we'll do everything we can to keep the schools open."
Miles stands by his NES reforms, crediting them with improvements in standardized testing scores—a claim supported by the anticipated release of higher accountability ratings from the Texas Education Agency. Indeed, HISD expects a notable leap in the number of A- and B-rated schools. However, skepticism persists among the public, especially as the district commences with 850 uncertified teachers and a reduced number of full-time teaching staff, resulting largely from a significant cut in central office positions and the fallout from 'performance issues.' Critics like Nadia Pervez, an HISD parent, worry about the negative impact of having a significant number of uncertified teachers in classrooms, saying "I think it's a bad idea in general. The certification process exists for a reason," in a statement obtained by Houston Public Media.
