Tag Archives: HISD

Smaller cuts from the Senate

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Trail Blazers: The Senate Finance Committee on Thursday adopted a school funding plan for the next two years that would cut basic funding for school districts by nearly 6 percent – or $2 billion a year – to handle a … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Should we do away with school police forces?

Posted on March 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Grits makes the case. If public school budgets will be radically cut in Texas, a prospect which for the moment appears all but inevitable, which employees should be eliminated first? Judging from the ongoing debate, maybe campus cops. Jason Embry … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Should we do away with school police forces?

What the decision to use Rainy Day funds means for school districts

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From School Zone: As you might know by now — unless you’re tuning out the news over spring break — the House Appropriations Committee, with Gov. Rick Perry’s blessing, agreed to spend up to $3.2 billion from the rainy-day fund … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on What the decision to use Rainy Day funds means for school districts

Hamilton Middle School still designated as magnet

Posted on March 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Mostly of interest to folks in my neck of the woods, but worth noting that after receiving a lot of feedback from parents in the community, HISD has announced that it will keep Hamilton Middle School as a Vanguard program … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What would you do to help your school?

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Would you do as much as this third grade girl? To 8-year-old Elodie Giles, art class isn’t a budget extra. It’s what she looks forward to every week. She’s just not certain she can look forward to it next year. … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on What would you do to help your school?

Hard times for high school athletics

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

High school football may be a big deal in Texas, but high school sports are not immune to budget cuts. With school districts across the state facing major budget cuts, members of the Texas High School Athletic Directors Association met … Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Hard times for high school athletics

HISD starts cutting

Posted on March 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

HISD’s board of trustees began the budget cutting process on Thursday in anticipation of cuts to public education funding in the Legislature. Barring some really good news from the Lege, there will be much more of this to come. The … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD starts cutting

Hochberg’s “Let’s get real” bill

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Rep. Scott Hochberg has filed a school finance bill that he himself wouldn’t vote for. It’s to make sure everyone realizes what the proposed cuts to public education really mean. Under HB 2485, all school districts would be treated as … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

1200 teachers at risk in HISD

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That’s a lot of jobs. The Houston school board is scheduled to vote Thursday on Superintendent Terry Grier’s plan to reduce the amount of money the district doles out to each school, paving the way for layoffs in light of … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on 1200 teachers at risk in HISD

More on magnet schools

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Some further information about the proposed changes to HISD’s magnet school program made by Superintendent Terry Grier at Thursday’s public meeting. Funding would drop at 69 schools and increase at 53 under Grier’s preliminary plan. In all, the district would … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

HISD’s budget and magnet meeting

Posted on March 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A whole lot happened on Thursday evening with HISD. Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier proposed a major shake-up Thursday night to the district’s popular magnet program, calling for 25 schools to lose the special status and for funding increases or … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

HISD meeting to discuss budget

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Mark your calendars for this Thursday, March 3, at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, 4400 West 18th Street, at 6PM for an HISD board meeting that will include a discussion of the 2011-2012 budget as well as a … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

HISD’s opening thoughts on dealing with budget cuts

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not going to be pretty, no matter how you slice it. Fewer police officers would patrol school hallways, property taxes would rise, several campuses would close and about 300 central office jobs would be cut next year under HISD … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Consolidating school districts

Posted on February 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron’s Texas Politics blog has been running a feature called “Chopping Block”, in which it solicits suggestions from the audience about possible ways the stats could save a few bucks, then explores what the effect would be. As you … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

HISD may raise tax rate

Posted on February 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Texas may not be considering any revenue enhancements to deal with its budget shortage, but that doesn’t mean that other taxing entities, such as school districts, won’t consider them. Melinda Garrett, HISD’s chief financial officer, said the … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

The state of HISD

Posted on February 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

HISD SUperintendent Terry Grier gave his state of the school district speech this week. Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier announced plans Thursday to toughen the district’s curriculum and to expand access to college-caliber courses despite tight financial times. Grier, in … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Two more things you can do for public schools

Posted on February 21, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to the three things I mentioned on Sunday and the live HISD TV show tonight at 6:30 about the budget, here are two more things to put on your agenda for the public schools. First, via the HISD … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Three things you can do to help save Texas public schools

Posted on February 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

1. First and foremost, make sure you understand the scope of the issue and how it will affect you. Here’s an email that was sent out by the Spring Branch ISD to its parents: Why should you care about the … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Get your HISD budget questions answered

Posted on February 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the Inbox: HISD to Host Live Television Show to Focus on State Budget and its Effects on HISD Viewers can call in, email, and tweet their comments and questions about the district’s budget review and planning process What: “HISD … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Effect of exempting schools and churches on drainage fee would be small

Posted on January 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the drainage fee that will be collected to fund street and sewage repairs through the project formerly known as Renew Houston is intended to apply to all property that isn’t specifically exempted by state law, such as … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Still more on magnet schools

Posted on January 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

So what do we know about HISD’s magnet schools and that consultant’s report that recommended some hefty changes to them? Well, other than the consultants themselves, no one likes the report very much. The message was clear at Lamar High … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Still more on magnet schools

Cuts here mean hikes there

Posted on January 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The only problem with this AP story is the headline, “Texas budget cuts may shift burden to locals”. There’s no “may” about it – the Pitts budget would absolutely shift a huge burden to local governments. Cuts set off a … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

What school districts may do to respond to the budget cuts

Posted on January 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

They may raise taxes: Some school officials also are considering even more unpopular options – increasing property tax rates or eliminating special tax breaks. In some cases, even those moves aren’t expected to raise enough money to plug the worst-case … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Pitts budget

Posted on January 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Here it is, and if it is a shock to you, you haven’t been paying attention. The House’s starting-point budget proposal would provide for a total budget of $156.4 billion in state and federal money, a decrease of $31.1 billion, … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

More on the magnet schools report

Posted on January 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I guess it’s just as well that I never made it all the way through that audit on HISD’s magnet schools, because it seems that neither Superintendent Terry Grier nor the Board of Trustees are all that wedded to it. … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Too many tickets

Posted on January 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Texas Appleseed, via Grits. Class C Ticketing, Arrest of Youth at School is Introducing Thousands to Justice System, Says New Appleseed Report Schools Should Follow Lead of Juvenile Justice Agencies: Restrict Pepper Spray, Taser Use Austin, TX. – A … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The state of school food

Posted on January 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Bettina has a feature story in Houston Family magazine about the current state of school food, which takes into account recently passed legislation by Congress and what’s going on in HISD. She also has a report from an HISD “Nutrition … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on The state of school food

The audit on HISD’s magnet programs

Posted on January 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The long-awaited audit has arrived. Students in Houston ISD’s prestigious magnet schools could find themselves shopping for new campuses if district leaders act on a critical audit that suggests eliminating nearly half the programs. The long-awaited audit, released on Friday, … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A very early look at the 2011 elections

Posted on January 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Texas on the Potomac lists 11 national races of interest for 2011. Well, of interest to some – outside of the Dallas Mayoral race, none of these mean much to me, and that’s only if incumbent Tom Leppart leaves to … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

“Children of God”

Posted on December 28, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You really need to read this Houston Press story about homeless students and how one HISD elementary school tries to deal with them. Of the 800 kids at Grissom Elementary, 300 of them — or 37 percent — are classified … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Preparing to implement Prop 1

Posted on December 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Proposition 1, originally known as Renew Houston but now apparently dubbed “Rebuilding Houston”, was passed by voters last month, which means that the Mayor and City Council must come up with a way to raise the $125 million per year … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Will HISD close low-enrollment schools?

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As if there weren’t enough politically charged agenda items out there for next year. Like dozens of campuses in the Houston Independent School District, Jones is losing students and brimming with empty seats. HISD trustees must make politically tough choices … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Stipeche wins HISD Trustee runoff

Posted on November 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From School Zone: Juliet Stipeche has won the Houston ISD District VIII school board runoff election by 48 votes, according to the unofficial results. Stipeche, an attorney, beat Judith Cruz, a stay-at-home mom and former HISD teacher, with 51 percent … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Stipeche wins HISD Trustee runoff

Runoff Day in HISD VIII

Posted on November 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Today is the day of the runoff election for HISD Trustee in District VIII between Judith Cruz and Juliet Stipeche. According to School Zone, only about 1000 votes were cast during early voting, so if you live in this district, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Runoff Day in HISD VIII