State-appointed management of the Houston Impartial College District is shifting ahead with a sweeping consolidation plan that might shut 12 colleges throughout the district, a choice that neighborhood leaders warn might ripple far past lecture rooms and reshape already weak neighborhoods.
Superintendent Mike Miles says the proposal is pushed by declining enrollment and growing old amenities after years of infrastructure neglect. However critics argue the closures mirror a deeper disaster: A public training system the place Black and working-class communities have lengthy been requested to do extra with much less, and at the moment are being requested to soak up the disruption.
The district’s Board of Managers is predicted to vote on the closures Feb. 26.
Whereas HISD leaders describe the plan as a essential correction to monetary and operational realities, the proposal has triggered rising fears amongst households and advocates that faculty closures will speed up neighborhood disinvestment, improve scholar instability and cut back the presence of Black educators in communities the place colleges have traditionally served as anchors.
“It’s onerous to be a principal of a college with 150 youngsters,” Miles stated, noting that such campuses nonetheless face the identical staffing and compliance necessities as bigger colleges. “Sooner or later, you’ll be able to’t exchange the plumbing… or the air-con unit and issues like that.”
A closure vote and a neighborhood disruption
Beneath the plan, 11 bodily campuses shall be shuttered, affecting elementary and center colleges throughout Houston. Seven campuses will shut outright, whereas 4 shall be consolidated by way of co-location, which means two colleges will function in a single constructing.
The 12 colleges advisable for closure are:
Alcott ES (143 Black college students, 107 Hispanic/Latino college students)College students will transition to Mading ES
Briscoe ES College students will transition to Carrillo ES
Burrus ESStudents will transition to Kennedy ES
Franklin ESStudents will transition to Gallegos ES
Henderson NQ ESStudents will transition to Bruce ES
Port Houston ESStudents will transition to Pleasantville ES
Ross ESStudents will transition to Roosevelt ES or C. Martinez ES (household alternative)
Cage ESSchool and college students will transfer to the Lantrip ES facility (co-location)
Fleming MSSchool and college students will consolidate with McReynolds MS and transfer to the Mickey Leland Faculty Preparatory Academy for Younger Males facility (co-location)
McReynolds MSSchool and college students will consolidate with Fleming MS and transfer to the Mickey Leland Faculty Preparatory Academy for Younger Males facility (co-location)
Pastime ESGrades 1-5 will transfer to the Lawson MS facility (co-location); Pre-Okay and Kinder will transfer to MLK Early Childhood Middle
Gulfton Center CollegeStudents shall be absorbed into Liberty HS*
Per district slides, Gulfton Center Faculty’s distinctive campus quantity shall be closed, and college students will now attend Liberty Excessive College. Each campuses are at present co-located on the HCC Gulfton Campus, which is a non-HISD facility.
Two campuses, Gregg Elementary and Clemente Martinez Elementary, will as a substitute be repurposed as “Future 2” pilot colleges fairly than closed.
Declining enrollment is actual, however critics say the burden isn’t shared equally
Miles stated enrollment declines have been accelerating, citing Texas Schooling Company knowledge exhibiting that Houston ranks fifth amongst main city districts in enrollment losses since 2018.
“Enrollment has declined even sooner than after the intervention, nevertheless it has nonetheless been declining,” Miles stated.
He added that different Texas districts, together with Ysleta, Pasadena, and Alief, are dealing with comparable developments.
However opponents of the plan argue that enrollment numbers don’t inform the complete story, particularly in communities the place households have lengthy raised considerations about inequitable funding, deteriorating buildings, and power underinvestment.
Miles acknowledged the disproportionate impression on traditionally underserved neighborhoods.
“What bothers me most now could be that our colleges which have the very best FCI, the poorest amenities, are our underserved populations,” he stated. “That breaks my coronary heart.”
For a lot of households, the query isn’t merely why enrollment is dropping; it’s why the campuses of their neighborhoods have been allowed to crumble within the first place, whereas colleges in additional prosperous components of town stay secure and well-resourced.
Solely the start?
In line with the district, practically 23% of HISD colleges are working under 50% capability. On the identical time, 96 faculty buildings have a Facility Situation Index (FCI) over 65%, indicating important facility wants.
Rebuilding a single elementary faculty is estimated at $75 million, whereas a full renovation is estimated at $40 million.
Miles stated HISD can’t proceed to function severely under-enrolled campuses with main structural issues.
Michelle Williams, president of the Houston Schooling Affiliation, expressed blended emotions about HISD faculty closures, arguing that declining enrollment stems from Hurricane Harvey and COVID, not solely from present management.
She questioned why campuses have been focused, and Black scholar enrollment has declined considerably. Williams additionally criticized Miles’ management and added she was shocked that Fleming MS was advisable for co-location.
“I don’t assume he ought to have the ability to do it,” Williams stated. “And I believe the general public must push again on it.
Extra closures coming?
23% of HISD campuses function under 50% capability
96 buildings have an FCI above 65% (important facility wants)
HISD estimates $75M to rebuild one elementary faculty
HISD estimates $40M to renovate one elementary faculty
The price of closing colleges
In lots of Black and working-class Houston neighborhoods, colleges are greater than locations the place kids be taught. They’re neighborhood establishments, areas the place grandparents volunteer, the place church buildings host occasions, and the place households collect for sports activities, performances, and father or mother conferences.
Closing a college can create a sequence response: Longer commutes, disrupted routines, elevated transportation challenges, and a weakening of the neighborhood’s identification.
Dad and mom have additionally raised considerations about how closures might have an effect on scholar security, particularly if kids are pressured to journey farther throughout main roadways or unfamiliar areas.
Past the quick disruption, some advocates fear the closures might contribute to a well-recognized sample seen throughout the nation: As soon as colleges shut, neighborhoods usually battle to draw funding, and deserted campuses can develop into symbols of decline fairly than renewal.
“Disinvestment disguised as reform“
Criticism of the proposal has been swift, notably as a result of lots of the campuses focused for closure are positioned in traditionally underserved areas.
Christian Menefee, who represents Texas’ 18th Congressional District, stated the proposal highlights the long-standing inequities which have formed public training in Houston.
“I believe it’s a travesty that our public training system hasn’t been higher invested in,” Menefee instructed the Defender. “Youngsters who stay in Denver Harbor or in Fifth Ward ought to have buildings that look simply as good as youngsters who go to highschool in River Oaks.”
Menefee additionally criticized what he described as an absence of transparency.
“I simply discovered about this a few hours in the past… you gotta have a course of,” he stated, urging district leaders to permit significant neighborhood enter. “Neighborhood members have to learn about this. They should have the chance to provide their two cents about it.”
For a lot of residents, that frustration stems from the truth that HISD is now not ruled by an elected faculty board.
As a substitute, the district is managed by a state-appointed superintendent and Board of Managers following the Texas Schooling Company takeover — a shift that critics say has weakened native accountability and neighborhood voice.
“People throughout our communities have to know that our training system proper now could be run by Governor Abbott within the state of Texas,” Menefee stated.
What occurs to Black educators and faculty management?
Past college students and households, faculty closures may reshape the HISD workforce.
Every closure or consolidation can set off instructor reassignments, job losses, and management reshuffling — elevating considerations about what number of Black educators and directors could also be displaced from the communities the place they’ve served as trusted mentors and cultural anchors.
In a district the place Black academics and principals have traditionally performed a important function in scholar assist and neighborhood stability, advocates warn that closures can unintentionally shrink the pipeline of Black management inside public training.
Even when educators are reassigned, the lack of a neighborhood campus can imply the lack of relationships constructed over years — relationships that usually make the distinction for college kids navigating poverty, trauma, and instability.
What’s subsequent?
HISD says it’ll maintain household conferences at impacted campuses, assign responsive assist groups, host transition occasions, and supply public FAQs and timelines by way of Feb. 25.
Last campus closures are set for June 4, the final day of faculty.
However for households dealing with the uncertainty of the place their kids will go subsequent yr, key questions stay unresolved, together with how transportation shall be dealt with, how scholar companies will transition, and what the long-term plan is for the closed campuses and the neighborhoods left behind.
What dad and mom have to know
In case your baby attends one of many campuses proposed for closure or consolidation, listed below are the important thing points to trace earlier than the Feb. 26 vote:
1. The place will college students go subsequent yr?
HISD has recognized receiving campuses for every faculty, however households ought to affirm:
the brand new campus task
whether or not siblings shall be positioned collectively
whether or not dad and mom can request a distinct campus
2. Will transportation be supplied?
Households ought to ask whether or not bus routes will change and whether or not transportation shall be assured, particularly for:
college students who stay exterior strolling distance
college students with disabilities
households with out dependable transportation
3. What occurs to particular training companies?
Dad and mom of scholars receiving particular training companies ought to request readability on:
whether or not IEP companies will stay constant
whether or not college students will hold the identical assist employees
how remedy companies and lodging will switch
4. Will college students hold their academics or applications?
Many households need to know whether or not educators shall be reassigned and whether or not key applications will observe college students, together with:
gifted and proficient applications
after-school tutoring
athletics and extracurriculars
counseling and wraparound companies
5. What occurs to campus employees?
Closures usually result in employees reassignments or job losses. Dad and mom might need to ask:
what number of employees positions are being reduce
whether or not academics and principals shall be reassigned
what occurs to counselors, librarians, and assist employees
6. What occurs to the varsity buildings?
Dad and mom and neighborhood leaders are additionally elevating questions concerning the long-term way forward for closed campuses, together with whether or not buildings shall be:
offered, repurposed, leased, demolished, transformed into various applications
7. How can households make their voices heard?
The district says it’ll maintain campus conferences and supply FAQs, however dad and mom may monitor:
Board of Managers assembly particulars and public remark procedures
campus-level transition conferences
timelines and posted district paperwork
Key dates to know
Feb. 17–Feb. 25: HISD transition conferences, FAQs, and household engagement timeline
Feb. 26: Board of Managers votes on closures
June 4: Last day of faculty; closures scheduled to take impact
