Key Agenda Items

Board Of Education Meeting Agenda

August 11, 2022

*More details on each item and additional areas of concern during the COVID-19 pandemic can be found below the list.

(A.2) (Approved at Agenda Review on 8/4/22) Acceptance of Board Monitoring Update: Presentation of Goals 1 and 4, Progress Measures 1, 2, and 3
(A.2) Acceptance of Board Monitoring Update: Presentation of Constraint 5 Progress Measures 1, 2, and 3
(B.2) Receive and Discuss the Draft of the 2022 Community Engagement Plan from the Board Community Engagement Strategy Ad Hoc Committee
(B.3) Completion and Approval of the Board’s Quarterly Self-Evaluations and Review of the Board’s Staff Use Tracker
(F.3) Approval Of The 2022–2023 Code Of Student Conduct
(F.5) 2022 Accountability Presentation
(I.1) Vendor Awards for Purchases over $100,000
(I.2) Donations for Districtwide and School-Specific Programs
(I.3) Grant Funds in Support of District-wide and School-Specific Programs
(I.4) Approval of the August General Fund Budget Amendment.

Impact (I), Leadership (L), Equity (E), Stewardship (S), Collaboration (C)

A.2 (Approved at Agenda Review on 8/4/22) Acceptance of Board Monitoring Update: Presentation of Goals 1 and 4, Progress Measures 1, 2, and 3 (I)

The Board must approve the monitoring update for Goals 1 and 4, Progress Measures 1, 2, and 3.

Goal 1: The percentage of 3rd grade students performing at or above grade level in reading as measured by the Meets Grade Level Standard on STAAR will increase 8 percentage points from 42% in spring 2019 to 50% in spring 2024.

Goal 4: The percentage of students receiving special education services reading at or above grade level as measured by the Meets Grade Level Standard on the STAAR 3–8 Reading and STAAR EOC English I and II assessments will increase 8 percentage points from 21% in spring 2019 to 29% in spring 2024.

A.2 Acceptance of Board Monitoring Update: Presentation Of Constraint 5 Progress Measures 1, 2, and 3 (I)

The Board must approve the monitoring update for Constraint 4, Progress Measures 1, 2, and 3.

Constraint 5: The Superintendent shall not allow the District to operate without significantly increasing quality seats for early childhood education, including prekindergarten 3, prekindergarten 4, and kindergarten.

Core Value Evaluation: Impact

The Board has set a self-constraint to spend at least 50% of its time monitoring student outcomes (as recommended by Lone Star Governance) by the second quarter of 2022, which ended in June 2022. The monthly Board Monitoring Update at both agenda review and the regular board meeting is the Board’s almost exclusive opportunity to discuss student outcome goals. The Board did not meet their constraint target by the deadline they set in June 2022. In fact, in June the Board did not even have a presentation for monitoring student outcomes, likely due to the time taken up by budget discussions that month. Houston GPS calculates the student outcome time percentage for each month using both the regular and agenda review meetings, however, the Board often hosts additional meetings throughout the month that could cut even further into their student outcome percentage. In this new school year, the Board needs to reevaluate how they spend their time so they can demonstrate their commitment to student outcomes by meeting their own target metric.

B.2 Receive and Discuss the Draft of the 2022 Community Engagement Plan from the Board Community Engagement Strategy Ad Hoc Committee (I, L, C)

The HISD Board will consider an update from their Board Community Engagement Committee concerning the community engagement plan for the upcoming school year. The timeline provided includes a request for a community needs assessment and report from the administration, three community meetings per district this year, and a draft of Board goal updates by May 2023.

Core Value Evaluation: Impact, Leadership, and Collaboration

The Board formed the Community Engagement Strategy Committee in 2020 to guide their interaction with the public concerning the Board’s process for adopting new goals and constraints for the district. The purpose is to seek feedback from the public and hear the needs of communities in HISD so that the information can inform the Board’s decisions in selecting priority areas of improvement for the district. The goal drafting process in 2020 was longer and more complicated than it should have been, partially due to the pandemic. By starting early and having a clear path to seeking input, the Board has an opportunity to streamline the process and have the goals gain broader community ownership as they better reflect the needs of our students. As the Board discusses the engagement plan, we hope to see a clear sense of collaboration amongst the trustees to find the most equitable way to reach out to the HISD community and get real feedback on what students and families need in the district in terms of governance.

B.3 Completion and Approval of the Board’s Quarterly Self-Evaluations and Review of the Board’s Staff Use Tracker (L, C)

In the past, the HISD board approved quarterly self-evaluation documents under the Lone Star Governance framework. This practice was paused during the course of the pandemic and has resumed as of last quarter at the end of the 2021-2022 school year. The new procedure for self-evaluations allows the board to receive a report that tracks the time administration spends devoted to board needs and requests and publicly collaborate to evaluate their commitment to their goals, constraints, and time spent on student outcomes.

F.3 Approval Of The 2022–2023 Code Of Student Conduct (L)

The Code of Student Conduct illustrates the rights and responsibilities of HISD students and the expected student conduct in schools. Additionally, the Code specifies the disciplinary consequences in response to student misconduct and the appeal options for parents and guardians in response to disciplinary consequences. Changes from last year include clarification of the notification procedures to parents and guardians when students receive detention outside of school hours, suspension, or removal to an alternative program. Additional changes list a specific department head to contact in the event that students with sensory impairings need additional assistance.

F.5 2022 Accountability Presentation (I)

The Board will receive a presentation from the administration on the state A-F accountability structure. This includes a breakdown of how districts are evaluated by the state and any changes that have been made while the system has been paused during the COVID-19 pandemic. HISD, along with all other districts in the state, will receive a rating for the first time since the 2018-2019 school year on August 15, 2022.

I.1 Vendor Awards for Purchases over $100,000 (S, L)

The Board needs to approve vendor awards greater than $100,000 and ratify vendor awards under $100,000.

Vendors: Labatt Food Service; BrightBytes Inc; Garda CL Southwest, Inc; DM Electrical and Construction, LLC; Earl L Warren dba Peace of Mind Comfort Solutions; Ohms Corporation dba Ohms Electrical Services; Todd & Troy Electrical Contractors dba TNT Electrical Contractors; Young Electrical Services, Inc.; Ion Wave Technologies, Inc.; Zonar Systems, Inc; Cambium Assessment, Inc.; NCS Pearson, Inc.; Region IV Education Service Center; Population and Survey Analysts, Inc. (PASA); Quizizz, Inc.; Renzulli Learning, LLC; WeVideo, Inc; Tools for Schools, Inc.; A Status Construction, LLC; JR Thomas Group, Inc.; Fiesta Mart, LLC; SchoolMint, Inc.; Pear Deck, Inc.; Shipcom Wireless, Inc; Motorola Solutions; College Possible.

I.2 Donations for Districtwide and School-Specific Programs (S, L)

All donations greater than $5,000 must be approved by the HISD Board of Education.

Donors: Enrichment Services Inc.; Family and Friends of Ashia Tircuit; FanAngel Foundation, Inc.; Future Stars of Houston; HISD Foundation; Mandarin Immersion Magnet School (MIMS) Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO); Port Terminal Railroad Association; Republic Service, Inc.; Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center (MSTC) PTO; Smart Financial Credit Union; The Discover Brighter Futures Fund via Goldman Sachs; Wharton PTO; William B. Travis Foundation, Inc.; WithMerci Foundation; Young Audiences of Houston; Office Depot.

I.3 Grant Funds in Support of Districtwide and School-Specific Programs (S, L)

All grant funds greater than $5,000 must be approved by the HISD Board of Education.

Grantors: City of Houston Health Department; DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Houston Endowment Inc.; Mobile County Public School System (MCPSS); Office of the Governor (OOG) / Criminal Justice Division; Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA); Texas Education Agency (TEA);

I.4 Approval of the August General Fund Budget Amendment (S, L)

The Board will consider the August budget amendment, which includes carryover expenses from last school year and budget-neutral amendments. Notably, the budget-neutral changes listed change money between accounting functions for changes in staffing positions.

Other agenda items to be voted on during the meeting:

(A.1) Approval of personal services performed by the Superintendent.
(B.1) Reappointment of an HISD Representative to the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone 18 Board of Directors.
(F.1) Approval of the application to participate in the Optional Flexible School Day Program for State Funding for the 2022–2023 school year.
(F.2) Authority to renew partnerships with AVANCE-Houston, Inc.; Gulf Coast Community Services Association; Harris County Department of Education; and BakerRipley for Head Start prekindergarten collaborative programs.
(F.4) Authority to renew an agreement with the City of Houston to provide a COVID-19 screening and testing program for students and employees.
(F.6) Authority to renew an agreement with Houston Community College for adult education programs.
(H.1) Approval of meal prices for the 2022–2023 school year.
(H.2) Authority to execute a lease agreement with the City of Houston for the City Park located on the Ralph Anderson Elementary School site.
(H.3) Authority execute a parking lot lease agreement with the Texas Medical Center for required parking at Michael DeBakey High School for Health Professions.
(H.4) Authority to execute a partial release of restrictions for a privately-owned property near David Burnet Elementary School and Ninfa Laurenzo Early Childhood Center for the purpose of constructing office and/or retail workspace.
(H.5) Authority to execute a partial release of restrictions for a privately-owned property near David Burnet Elementary School and Ninfa Laurenzo Early Childhood Center for the purpose of rehabilitating the building to be leased for office and/or retail space.
(H.6) Approval of an agreement with Harris County Department of Education to provide meals for the students at Harris County Department of Education.
(I.5) Authorize the Superintendent to obligate the district for excess revenue (recapture) contracts and agreements with the state.
(I.6) Approval of the report for disaster assistance—reduction in recapture payments for facility replacement.
(K.1) Approval of the proposed revisions to Board Policy DMA(LOCAL), Professional Development: Required Staff Development as recommended by the Texas Association of School Boards to be approved on first reading.
(L.1) Receipt of the Debt Management Activity Report

Areas of Concern:

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to be a challenge for the district in terms of student safety and learning. The Board must continue to address the effects of the pandemic, while still continuing regular district operations. Houston GPS would like to highlight the following areas of concern:

The main focus of the Board of Education should be improving outcomes for HISD students, with a clear emphasis on equitably closing gaps between different student groups. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent interruptions to HISD’s normal learning schedule exacerbated inequities amongst students. While recent data from the district shows that student outcomes are beginning to return to pre-pandemic levels, large gaps between student groups existed prior to the pandemic and persist today. As the board works through its community engagement and potential goal updates, it must hone in on how to guide the district in equitably providing students with what they need and eliminating barriers to education in order to address systemic inequities for our kids.

In June 2020, the Board made a commitment to examine the role of police in the district to confront systemic racism and police violence against people of color. Considering the disproportionate discipline and forced interaction with police that students of color, especially Black boys, face in public education, this continues to be a pressing equity concern. Despite interest in continuing this discussion, the Board has not publicly revisited it since a workshop in 2020. This month, the district seeks to obtain additional weapons and equipment for HISD police to address school safety concerns in the wake of the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas, which has prompted some trustees to revisit the role of police in the district but has also brought up significant issues of student safety from gun violence. District officials publicly stated that they are concerned the department is not prepared for an active shooter in HISD.

Our children deserve to learn without having to worry about their safety and families deserve to send their kids to school knowing they will receive the care they need. The Board must find a path forward that not only protects our students and families from violence but also recognizes and addresses the role that police often play in systemic oppression of communities of color. Both of these issues are necessities and not at all mutually exclusive. The Board must engage in meaningful dialogue amongst themselves, with the administration, and with the community to arrive at a solution and one that is proven to work. With the school year starting soon, the Board and administration must push forward quickly to have the right equipment, training, and procedures in place to ensure the safety of our kids.

The Board is currently in the process of redistricting, which they are required to do by law considering the shifts in population as outlined in the 2020 Census. As when any government body is engaged in redrawing voting district lines, the Board must take care to prioritize fair voting practices and not disenfranchise identifiable groups of people, especially communities of color. HISD is an incredibly diverse school district with a diverse voting population, which should be reflected in our elected leadership. As of August 4, 2022, the Board has selected two different options for redistricting, which it plans to seek community feedback on within the next couple of months.
HISD is long overdue for a bond election. Normally, districts have a bond election around every five years. It has been a decade for HISD, leaving many schools in need of repair or even rebuilding. The Board, along with administration, must work to set the district up for a bond election as soon as possible and have a clear procedure for how to select priority schools and utilize bond funds to improve the district.