Latest news with #MikeMiles
Yahoo
7 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Houston ISD Faces Extended TEA Control Until 2027, New Board Appointed
(Texas Scorecard) – Houston Independent School District will remain under the control of the Texas Education Agency through at least June 1, 2027. Alongside the extended timeline, TEA also announced the replacement of four members of the state-appointed Board of Managers. TEA took control of Houston ISD in 2023 after years of chronic student underperformance and governance failures. The state replaced the elected school board, appointed Superintendent Mike Miles, and implemented a series of aggressive reforms. Since the takeover, Houston ISD has reduced the number of D- and F-rated campuses from 121 in 2023 to 41 in 2024, according to preliminary reporting. Despite progress, TEA Commissioner Mike Morath emphasized the need for continued state involvement to ensure long-term improvement. 'Houston ISD has always been a district with some of the highest performing schools in the country, but it was also a district that allowed some of its schools to fail students for over a decade,' Morath said. Ultimately, two years has not been enough time to fix district systems that were broken for decades. The extension of this intervention will allow the district to build on its progress and achieve lasting success for students once the board transitions back to elected leadership. To conclude the intervention, Houston ISD must eliminate all multi-year failing campuses, fully comply with state and federal special education laws, and demonstrate effective board governance. Earlier this year, Houston ISD spent hundreds of millions of dollars without the required board approval. Community reactions remain divided. Parent and advocacy groups praised the focus on student achievement, while critics have questioned the transparency of the appointment process and urged greater community input. The new Houston ISD Board appointees are: Edgar Colón: Legal expert and political science lecturer Lauren Gore: Harvard Law graduate and general partner at LDR Growth Partners Marty Goossen: Retired vice chairman of J.P. Morgan Private Bank Marcos Rosales: Trial lawyer at Beck Redden LLP Brina Morales, director of communications for the Greater Houston Partnership, celebrated the TEA extension, writing, 'Commissioner Morath is right to extend the period of reform to ensure these improvements take hold long-term, significantly impacting generations of students.'
Axios
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Houston ISD downgraded in state's new ratings
Dozens of Houston Independent School District campuses received failing grades in the 2022-2023 school year under a new state rating system, per data released Thursday. Why it matters: The A-F ratings — whose release had been delayed by legal challenges — come as public school advocates are fighting for resources from state lawmakers who appear close to establishing a $1 billion private school voucher program. Catch up quick: More than 120 school districts tried to block the release of the 2023 ratings, saying the Texas Education Agency had not given them enough notice before revising their standards. Among other things, the updated standards require high schools to send 88% of their seniors to college, a trade or technical school, or the military, compared to 60% in the past. Districts said this increased metric would result in unfair drops in their ratings. An appeals court earlier this month cleared the way for the ratings' release. What they're saying:"Every Texas family deserves a clear view of school performance, and now those families finally have access to data they should have received two years ago," state education commissioner Mike Morath said in a statement. Zoom in: Houston ISD dropped from a B rating in 2019 to a C in 2023, with 56 schools identified as failing. The state officially took over the district for the next school year, when state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles began his district changes. Zoom out: Overall, more than 40% of the nearly 8,400 rated schools in Texas received a lower rating in 2023 compared to 2022, per an analysis by the Houston Chronicle. 13% of Texas schools improved their ratings between 2022 and 2023. The remaining 44% had no change, the Chronicle reported. Between the lines: The new standards come as public school advocates fear the state is undermining public education. The Legislature is poised to spend nearly $8 billion to increase per-student funding, but Democrats argued that it isn't enough and doesn't match 2019 levels. The big picture: HISD's C rating — issued just before Miles took over — essentially sets a baseline for measuring the impact of the takeover.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
HISD introduces new pay for performance model for teachers
HOUSTON - Houston Independent School District has introduced their new Pay For Performance (PFP) compensation plan for the next school year. Get news, weather and so much more on the new FOX LOCAL app This new plan would tie teachers' pay to their primacy on student success. Superintendent Mike Miles and Chief of Schools Sandi Massey sat down to share more information about this new model. What they're saying Houston ISD teachers will be evaluated on the Teacher Excellence System, which was approved at the last board meeting. The categories include 45% quality of instruction, 35% student achievement, 15% planning and professionalism, and 5% campus action plan. "HISD is making the fundamental choice to tie compensation to teacher effectiveness and not years of experience." What we know Next year, HISD will use the TES evaluation system. New Education System schools use hospital models, which differentiate pay by subject. For example, language arts would earn more than teachers who teach electives. For next year, HISD will be evaluating educators using the TES evaluation at the end of the year and use those scores and pay them under the new PFP system. Non-NES campus teachers will receive a base salary starting at $70,000, if they meet a Progressing I rating. Their salary increases if their rating is higher, with the highest salary going up to $92,000 for Exemplary 1 rating. If an educator drops in evaluation, they won't drop in salary. Teachers who teach non-core classes at an NES school, according to the HISD model, will make an extra $3,000 in addition to their base salary depending on their TES effectiveness rating.. Core class educators at NES campuses would make an additional $9,000, on top of whatever their base salary is depending on their effectiveness rating. For the 2026-27 school year, teachers coming into the district brand new or without previous teaching experience will have a salary set. If a teacher has less than three years of experience or if they're not certified, they will begin at Progressing I base salary of $70,000. New teachers at Houston ISD with at least three full years of experience will start at Progessing II base salary of $74,000. The Source Information from this article gathered from Superintendent Mike Miles and Chief of Schools Sandi Massey during an HISD NOW sit-down,
CBC
17-02-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Londoners dig out after massive snow dump as bitter cold, heavy wind creeps in
People across London and the surrounding region, much like people across Ontario and Quebec, were faced with digging themselves out of multiple days of snowfall as the Family Day holiday got started Monday. That process began as the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) warned of bitter cold and Environment Canada warned of heavy winds and blowing snow that could make for hazardous driving conditions. In east London, that cold, wind and snow didn't stop residents from clearing the way so they could begin enjoying their holiday. "Actually having a winter this year feels a little unusual," said Londoner Mike Miles as he shoveled snow at the front of a large commercial property on Princess Avenue. "I feel like we're kind of getting a little bit of what we used to get back in the day." Ontario, Quebec digging out from massive snowfalls Miles's property was flanked by boulevards with snowbanks as tall as two metres — the result of heavy snowfall that came from back-to-back winter storms. The storms covered the region from southwestern Ontario to Quebec and took place throughout Saturday and Sunday. The conditions, while difficult, did bring out the kindness and warmth that often shines through Canadian winters, Miles said. "It's kind of part of the culture. Here in Canada, we're super nice people. If we see somebody that needs help, we're not afraid to get out there and give them a hand," Miles said. Those in need certainly appreciated the helping hands. Jessica Justrabo found herself — and her car — stuck in a snowbank at the end of a driveway after taking the risk of plowing through it in an attempt to park. "Everybody on the street is [blocked] out," she said. "The sidewalk plows blocked us in our driveway, then the street plows block the end of the driveway." It wasn't long before neighbours took notice, and within 20 minutes the car was free. "Whenever I've gotten stuck, people have always helped me at some point. It helps that I'm a girl," Justrabo joked. For other Londoners like Paul Cieslak, the shoveling was a less than ideal but ultimately necessary process. "I feel like we haven't had this much snow in probably close to 10 years. The problem with this is we're getting a storm after storm after storm ... It's just a pain to shovel it, and we have nowhere to put it," he said. City plows working on overdrive The scope of the snowfall that hit the city over the weekend was felt firsthand by the City of London's snow plow operators. Joel Gillard, the city's division manager of road operations, said while operators work in rotating shifts, some of his fleet of plows and salters had been on the roads for close to 72 hours by Monday. The city's 70 road plows, 50 sidewalk plows and 28 salt and sand trucks primarily work on arterial roads and bus routes before fanning out to cover other areas. "It's been a challenging event to manage," Gilliard said, pointing to the city-wide scene of two-metre tall snowbanks and cul-de-sacs with mountains of snow in their centres. "There's [typically] no problem pushing that snow to the side of the road, but now those snow banks are getting quite significant. We're having to bring in additional equipment to get that snow up and out of the way," he said. Cold, wind causing concerns Now that the dust has mostly settled, a bitter cold and heavy winds are taking hold. The Middlesex-London Health Unit issued a cold alert Monday morning, noting the low temperatures with windchill values as low as -30 C forecast for overnight. In response, on top opening warming centres, the City of London activated a temporary overnight emergency warming centre at Boyle Memorial Community Centre. At the same time, Environment Canada issued an extreme cold warning and a blowing snow advisory, warning of strong wind gusts that could blow snow across roads, resulting in near-zero visibility, especially in rural areas.
Axios
05-02-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Houston schools try to reassure families but offer little ICE guidance
Houston-area districts have offered little guidance on potential encounters with immigration officers on campus, leaving educators and parents without clear assurances. Why it matters: Immigration enforcemen t in schools could be widely disruptive. Even the threat of arrests on campus could result in some students staying home, which would impact school funding. Over 40,000 undocumented kids ages 3 to 17 live in Harris County, per the Migration Policy Institute. Catch up quick: The Trump administration last month announced it was ending the policy of avoiding arrests in schools and other "sensitive" areas. Some districts in Denver and San Diego, among others, have vowed to protect student from enforcement on campus. State of play: The Houston Independent School District did not respond to Axios' requests for comment about its plan and guidance to teachers and administrators for immigration enforcement at schools. In late January, HISD superintendent Mike Miles said in an email to the community that student records, including immigration status, are protected under federal law and cannot be accessed without the district's legal services department's approval. He added that campus administrators and front office staff are trained to engage with law enforcement. "We want to assure you that our policies have not changed, and they align with Houston ISD's mission to provide a safe and nurturing learning environment for all students," Miles said in the statement. As of late January, HISD teachers had received no guidance on how to handle U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on campus, the Houston Federation of Teachers told the Houston Chronicle. Alief ISD and other districts have also emphasized the laws protecting student records. Alief's superintendent on Jan. 23 and Jan. 31 requested that parents update their children's emergency contact information and encouraged students to continue going to school. The latest: Community Voices for Public Education (CVPE) and HISD parents are planning a sickout Wednesday — similar to the sickout last May — partly in protest of Miles' leadership and the state takeover and partly because of "Miles' weak response on immigration safety in schools," organizers said Monday. Ruth Kravetz, who is organizing the sickout, tells Axios that as many as 3,000 students across at least 118 campuses are expected to participate. What they're saying:"Schools should be safe spaces for students to learn, not hunting grounds for ICE. Mike Miles is not sending a strong enough message of support to immigrant students and needs to take a stronger stand," parent and organizer Briana Mohan said in a statement. Mohan, whose children will participate in the sickout, tells Axios Mile's letter regarding ICE was not reassuring. The other side: "The safest place for our students to be during the school week is in school," Alexandra Elizondo, HISD chief of public affairs and communications, said in a statement online in response to the sickout. "It is entirely irresponsible for CVPE to cynically exploit people's legitimate concerns about federal immigration policy to push their own political agenda about the state intervention. Encouraging students to skip school only hurts students." What we're watching: More than two dozen Democratic state lawmakers in late January asked the Texas Education Agency to issue guidance for districts on how to prepare for immigration enforcement actions. It's unclear if TEA responded or is working on guidance. Go deeper: What schools can and can't do to stop ICE enforcement
