Local voters would have to approve splitting up a school district while trustees\u2019 ability to break them up unilaterally would be stripped under a Texas bill debated Tuesday.<\/p>\n
A Fort Worth lawmaker proposed the change after Keller\u2019s board surprised many in the community by considering a controversial plan to divide its schools, citing financial concerns.<\/p>\n
Trustees\u2019 proposal to split the 33,000 student district earlier this year enraged the community, leading to a student protest, lawsuits and the superintendent\u2019s exit. Board members ultimately killed the plan in March, saying the move wasn\u2019t fiscally sound after all.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen [the proposed split] came to light, the community blew up \u2026 It seems that this board believes that, by resolution, they can avoid an election. I don\u2019t agree with that,\u201d Rep. Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth, said at Tuesday\u2019s House committee hearing.<\/p>\n
Residents worried the split down Denton Highway would exacerbate inequities: most of the district\u2019s top-rated campuses are to the east, while schools to the west serve a higher rate of low-income families.<\/p>\n
Parents and students repeatedly demanded the board allow residents to vote on the proposal and criticized the lack of transparency. But supporters of the split, including some trustees, argued that state law grants the board unilateral power to pass a resolution to divide the district, bypassing an election.<\/p>\n
Officials in Fort Worth and Tarrant County separately requested opinions from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on whether trustees could create a new district without an election, citing the state education code\u2019s \u201cgrammatically ambiguous wording.\u201d<\/p>\n
That \u201cconfusing and dangerous loophole\u201d allowed trustees to explore a split without the knowledge or consent of the families they serve, Keller parent Angela Hall said at the hearing.<\/p>\n
Geren\u2019s bill aims to clarify the law by scrapping trustees\u2019 ability to pass a resolution altogether.<\/p>\n
Under his proposal, 20% of voters in a district would first have to petition the State Board of Education to initiate a divide. A majority of voters in each portion of the divided district would then have to vote in support of a split to finalize it.<\/p>\n
Supporters of the bill said it would ensure community voices are heard when considering a district\u2019s detachment.<\/p>\n
Keller ISD trustee Joni Shaw Smith, who opposed the split, said Tuesday that the bill would create safeguards to prevent school boards from being \u201chijacked by a small group pushing a private agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n
But John Birt, vice president of Keller\u2019s board and one of the trustees who backed the plan, pushed back on that characterization.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no backdoor collusion,\u201d Birt said at the hearing.<\/p>\n
Birt and Chris Coker, another trustee that promoted the split, interpret current law as laying out two routes to detachment: a board resolution, which bypasses a vote, or a petition to the county commissioners signed by 10% of voters, which triggers a district-wide vote.<\/p>\n
Other districts were watching to see how Keller\u2019s proposed split played out because they were interested in potentially pursuing a divide as well, Birt said.<\/p>\n
Across Texas, districts are closing campuses, cutting programs and tightening other spending as they face rising costs and enrollment declines. Keller projected a budget shortfall of more than $9 million next year.<\/p>\n
Matthew Mucker, a Keller resident who is suing the district over the split, told the committee members that he worries other school boards facing budget challenges will attempt to split their districts down socioeconomic or racial lines if this proposed bill doesn\u2019t pass.<\/p>\n
Rep. John Bryant, D-Dallas, echoed this concern.<\/p>\n
\u201cWouldn\u2019t it be unwise of us to leave the door open to letting the school board come along and offload all of the students that have the greatest needs, and keep all the students that are most prosperous in one district?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The proposal was left pending in committee.<\/p>\n
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.<\/p>\n
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, Judy and Jim Gibbs, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Ron and Phyllis Steinhart, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Sydney Smith Hicks, and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab\u2019s journalism.<\/p>\n
The proposed Texas bill aims to give local voters a say in splitting school districts, ensuring that community voices are heard and preventing school boards from being hijacked by a small group pushing a private agenda. The bill would require 20% of voters in a district to petition the State Board of Education to initiate a divide, and a majority of voters in each portion of the divided district to vote in support of a split to finalize it.<\/p>\n
A: The proposed Texas bill aims to give local voters a say in splitting school districts, ensuring that community voices are heard and preventing school boards from being hijacked by a small group pushing a private agenda.<\/p>\n
A: The proposed bill would require 20% of voters in a district to petition the State Board of Education to initiate a divide, and a majority of voters in each portion of the divided district to vote in support of a split to finalize it.<\/p>\n
A: The proposed bill is necessary to prevent school boards from splitting districts without the knowledge or consent of the families they serve, and to ensure that community voices are heard in the decision-making process.<\/p>\n
A: Some concerns about the proposed bill include the potential for it to strip power from local citizens and their locally elected officials to administer education for their kids, and the potential for it to lead to unequal distribution of resources and opportunities for students.<\/p>\n
A: The proposed bill was left pending in committee.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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