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Some of the facts about the state of Texas taking control of the Houston Independent School District make the decision seem baffling and unfair.
Consider:
- None of the schools in Houston ISD got a failing grade in the most recent state assessment, although a number of schools were not given a rating. The district as a whole, which is the largest in the state, got a “B.” There are multiple districts in the state that got worse scores.
- The one school that set off the yearslong legal battle over the takeover, Wheatley High School, which had failed for multiple years leading up to 2019, got a “C” grade from the state in the most recent assessment.
- The superintendent, who will be replaced as part of the takeover, has overseen marked improvement, and even the Texas official finalizing the takeover has praised him.
- Houston voters already replaced most of the school board that was in office when the school got failing grades.
Rather than reward the improvement, however, the state is going ahead with the takeover. The state education commissioner, Mike Morath, says he has to follow the state law and replace the superintendent and board that weren’t there when the high school was failing from 2011 through 2019.
Bottom line: The state is taking over a district because of a school that is no longer failing, replacing the superintendent who improved things and an elected board of trustees that was largely not in office when the schools were failing.
CNN’s detailed report includes a good roundup of frustration among parents and local officials.
From afar, the Houston takeover feeds two national, political narratives:
- Republican lawmakers are keen to wrest the power of cities away from…
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