Two Houston ISD campuses - The Rice School near the Texas Medical Center and Emerson Elementary in Sharpstown - opened the spring semester with new faces in the principal’s office. District leaders framed the changes as routine internal reassignments, but for many families and staff, they are one more turn in a revolving door that has reshaped daily life across HISD.
Montelongo steps in at The Rice School
HISD circulated a letter naming Alvaro Montelongo as principal of The Rice School effective Feb. 17. The letter and the campus page state that Montelongo brings more than 20 years of experience in education and roughly a decade as a campus principal. The school operates as a K–8 magnet near the Texas Medical Center, according to The Rice School.
Emerson names an interim principal
Emerson Elementary’s campus site now lists Dr. José Luis López as interim principal and outlines his goals for the school. The page also posts contact information for the front office and assistant principals, signaling that HISD has formally locked in the leadership lineup for the Sharpstown campus, per Emerson Elementary.
Part of a broader reshuffle
These low-profile swaps are just a small slice of a much bigger shakeup. Houston Chronicle reporting tallied at least 177 principal changes across 156 HISD campuses since the state’s takeover in June 2023. The Chronicle also noted that the district consolidated Las Americas Newcomer School as enrollment plunged and reassigned students from the Harper disciplinary program to other sites. District pages now show Rick Shore listed as principal at Secondary DAEP.
Why steady leadership matters
Research has not been kind to the idea that principals are easily interchangeable. Studies have found that frequent principal turnover can drag down student test scores and drive up teacher departures for several years after each change, a pattern experts say hits high-need campuses hardest. A Brookings analysis of principal mobility found that test-score declines and spikes in teacher turnover can linger for up to three years after a leadership switch, underscoring why families and staff keep pushing for stability at vulnerable schools: Brookings Institution.
