Adam Zuvanich/Houston Public Media
Houston voters will decide the fate of a $4.4 billion bond proposal for the city’s much-maligned school district after the state-appointed board voted Thursday to put the proposal on the ballot for the Nov. 5 vote.
Houston ISD board members voted unanimously for the bond package, which is the largest in Texas history and the district’s first since 2012. That HISD’s last bond issue was more than a decade ago was a major factor in supporting the plan, said Rolando Martinez, the only manager to speak on the proposal before the vote.
“Our schools need new buildings,” Martinez said. “We need them across the district.”
The proposal calls for $2.05 billion to rebuild more than 40 aging school campuses and renovate many more, with a focus on elementary and middle schools. The district also wants to spend $1.35 billion on safety improvements, such as lead and mold removal, replacing HVAC systems and creating uniform entrances at all 274 schools. Another $1 billion would be used for technology improvements, expanding preschool offerings and building three new career and technical training centers.
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In November, voters will see two bond-related proposals on the ballot: Proposition A calls for $3.96 billion for new buildings, renovations to existing buildings, and safety and security infrastructure, while Proposition B calls for $440 million for instructional technology and technology systems and infrastructure.
HISD Superintendent Mike Miles said the district does not plan to raise property taxes to pay for the bond, but elected trustee Myrna Guidry — who does not have voting rights on the board due to ongoing intervention by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) — expressed skepticism about the idea.
Guidry joined a large group of parents, community members and elected officials voicing opposition to the bond proposal at a time when many are upset over the state takeover that began last school year and a series of reforms and personnel shakeups under Miles. The superintendent and board were installed last summer because Wheatley High School received a series of poor accountability ratings from the state, triggering a state law mandating a takeover or campus closure.
“Until the citizens of Houston regain control over our schools and the use of our tax dollars, this bond should be rejected,” local resident Sean Leder told the panel.
Adam Zuvanich/Houston Public Media
Among the roughly 80 public speakers Thursday were supporters of the bond proposal, such as HISD campus principals, representatives from the nonprofits Environment Texas and Good Reason Houston, and former Greater Houston Partnership President and CEO Bob Harvey. Some of the district’s elected trustees also asked the board to put the bond on the ballot for voters to decide, as did members of HISD’s Community Advisory Committee, which was tasked with encouraging public involvement in the proposal.
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“This bond needs to be approved,” Marcos Rosales, a member of the community advisory board, told the board. “This has nothing to do with you. This has nothing to do with Superintendent Miles. This is about our children. If you put the children first, it’s the easiest decision you’ll ever have to make.”
HISD, the largest school district in Texas with about 180,000 students, may have a difficult time convincing enough voters to support the bond package. One of the most controversial components is the plan to build seven new campuses that would house a total of 15 schools in a so-called “co-location” format.
Some said Thursday that the plan would amount to closing schools in poorer neighborhoods that are predominantly black and Hispanic.
“Hiding a school closure in a bond vote is misleading, cruel and divisive,” said local resident Don Macune.
Democratic Sen. Molly Cook, who represents a large portion of Houston, said she would vote against the bond if the election were held now. With that in mind, she urged HISD leadership to build trust with both community members and local elected officials like herself, saying, “They’re going to have to earn our trust if they want us to help pass the bond.”
Judge Genesis Draper, another elected Democrat who told the committee she was speaking as a mother of two HISD students, expressed a similar sentiment.
“I will not support this bond and encourage my friends, neighbors and family to do the same,” she said. “No taxation without representation is a long-standing principle of our democracy. And while the state of Texas has seemingly abolished democracy, I have not.”
