A couple of explainers from the Chron. First up, this one about what has actually happened so far in HISD since Mike Miles took over.
Superintendent Mike Miles has made sweeping changes in Houston ISD since he was appointed by the Texas Education Agency in June to run the largest school system in the Lone Star state.
Nearly six months into his tenure, Miles has championed systemic reforms and swiftly implemented policies, some of which have sparked great pushback and turmoil among families, teachers and school communities across the district. For his part, the new superintendent says the drastic changes are necessary to significantly improve academic achievement, especially among Black and Hispanic students, by raising expectations and providing high-quality instruction.
The Chronicle has compiled below a recap of the biggest changes so far in HISD under Miles.
Most of what’s in there is familiar, but given how fast everything has happened and how many stories there have been about what’s been going on, you’d be forgiven if there were one or two things you’d forgotten or missed the first time around. I have a hard enough time keeping up.
Two, there’s this story about the District of Innovation stuff and what the relevant laws are that the district’s DoI application are meant to do.
Texas has dozens of laws governing how school districts must operate, but districts can opt out of almost all of them through the process of becoming a “District of Innovation.”
Since the Legislature established the status in 2015, nearly every eligible school district in the state earned the DOI designation. Houston ISD has been one of a few dozen hold outs, but the district is now on the verge of becoming a DOI after the District Advisory Committee voted Tuesday in favor of the plan outlining the exemptions the district wants to seek.
The HISD Board of Managers is expected to vote on the plan during its regular meeting Dec. 14. If at least two-thirds agree, it would go into effect immediately.
The plan would exempt the district from seven state regulations, including ones regulating the school start date, the certification of teachers and teacher evaluations. Here’s why education policy experts say these regulations exist and why HISD is seeking an exemption to them:
Again, you probably know most of this already, but you might have missed a few things in your attempt to drink from the firehose. If the net effect is that you feel dizzy and a little disoriented, I don’t think that’s accidental.