TEA says it will replace Houston ISD’s elected school board
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath notified Houston ISD officials Wednesday that he plans to temporarily strip power from the district’s elected school board and appoint a replacement governance team, a long-anticipated decision resulting from a state investigation into allegations of trustee misconduct and chronically low academic performance at Wheatley High School.
Morath’s decision all-but-finalizes one of the most dramatic state interventions in an American school district to date, putting immense power over HISD in the hands of state-appointed officials. In addition to selecting a new board, Morath also must decide whether to keep HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan or install a new district leader, an authority granted under state law.
In a letter to HISD officials, Morath said he is compelled to act “given the inability of the board of trustees to govern the district" and its "inability to address the long-standing academic deficiencies” at Wheatley. State law mandates that Morath close historic Wheatley or replace the nine-member school board after the campus received its seventh consecutive failing grade in August. In addition, Texas Education Agency investigators last week recommended the installation of a new board after substantiating several allegations of misconduct by trustees.
The announcement comes one day after HISD voters ensured four new trustees would join the board in January 2020. Voters delivered stinging rebukes of two incumbent trustees trailed by allegations of unethical behavior, including violating the Texas Open Meetings Act and making false statements to state investigators. The new trustees, however, likely will have their voting authority removed in early 2020, following the appointment of the new board and superintendent selection. The replacement board members likely would serve for two to five years.
HISD’s current school board plans to continue fighting the state’s planned actions, though success is considered a long shot. Lawyers for the board are suing the TEA to stop Morath from installing a board of managers, arguing Wheatley has not triggered any sanctions and that state officials overstepped their authority during the misconduct investigation. Opponents of the intervention also note that HISD remains a B-rated district
under the state’s own accountability rules and is on solid financial footing.
under the state’s own accountability rules and is on solid financial footing.
Immediately following Morath’s announcement, HISD Board President Diana Dávila said elected officials should be allowed to remedy the CONTINUE READING: TEA says it will replace Houston ISD’s elected school board - HoustonChronicle.com
