Austin ISD’s proposed changes to librarian roles that would move them into support roles to save money prompted backlash among librarians, parents and students view article

HUDSON — At its monthly meeting Thursday evening, the Hudson ISD board of trustees heard student presentations and set the district’s transfer fees, in addition to other business.  Four students from Katie Martindale’s first-grade class at W.F. Peavy Primary School presented their independent research projects on wild animals such as Komodo dragons, lynxes, raccoons and river otters. They spoke on the importance of glossaries and avoiding plagiarism and explained some terms used in their reports. Trustee Reagan McClenny complimented the students on their thorough research, speaking abilities and support of their classmates.  Sarah Bunn, who sponsors the Texas Association of Future Educators at Hudson High School, said TAFE is an amazing organization that gives opportunities to students wishing to go into careers in education. Last school year was Hudson’s first with a chapter.     view article

Starting next school year, North East Independent School District plans to open its boundaries to allow all students in the San Antonio region to attend its schools, following similar moves from neighboring districts.  Part of a long-term “efficiency” plan to save the district money and boost student enrollment, the school board approved the move in a 6-0 vote on Monday, with trustee Diane Sciba Villarreal absent.   view article

After initial reports in February suggested a potential $8 million budget deficit, Conroe ISD officials now say they do not anticipate a shortfall for the upcoming school year. Through proactive planning and targeted adjustments, the district aims to maintain its financial health without resorting to employee layoffs. view article

Houston Independent School District’s state-appointed board of managers has approved a key procedural step that could open the door to possible staffing changes across the district. During a meeting on Thursday night, board members signed off on a “reduction in force,” which allows the administration to cut and reorganize staff. Now, HISD administrators have permission to cut staff or reassign virtually all teaching positions and some central office jobs ahead of the 2026-2027 school year. view article

The Austin Independent School District is facing a budget deficit of $181 million for next school year. That’s according to the preliminary budget draft presented at a work session with board members on Tuesday night. The draft is an initial version of the budget used to guide decision making. Superintendent Matias Segura said to reduce the budget deficit, the district will have to make sacrifices, including some that will directly impact students, like teacher cuts. view article

More cuts are likely coming to Austin Independent School District campuses next year — including school-level staff layoffs and teacher planning time changes — as district officials seek to reduce a deficit that could reach $181 million next school year. view article

Austin ISD Superintendent Matias Segura is warning staff and families about deeper budget cuts as the district faces a growing financial crisis. view article

Austin ISD is projecting a $181 million budget shortfall in the 2026-2027 academic year. In a message sent Tuesday night to families and staff, AISD superintendent Matias Segura said declining enrollment, rising costs and a dip in Austin's property values are all factors behind the current projections. view article

The Waco school district is expected to be the latest to contract with the charter operator founded by Mike Miles, the state-appointed superintendent of Houston schools.   School bells and announcements are absent from the school day at campuses operated by Third Future Schools.   Teachers hired by the nonprofit charter firm tend to earn premium salaries, but they must stick to a tight script and work a longer school day and school calendar than their peers. The school doors are open from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., offering free before- and after-school care   Third Future and the districts that have hired it to turn around schools say the firm has a track record of success, but for a price. view article

Leander ISD officials are putting together the latest budget projections for 2026-27, and the district is estimating between a $6.8 million to $13.7 million shortfall. The projections are down from original estimates of a nearly $19.6 million shortfall.  The overview: According to executive director of business Gina Mitschke, LISD's demographer population and survey analysts is projecting an enrollment of 41,841 students next year, a decrease of 607 students from the current 2025-26 year. view article

Leander ISD officials are putting together the latest budget projections for 2026-27, and the district is estimating between a $6.8 million to $13.7 million shortfall depending on whether the board increases the budget deficit parameter to fund staff raises. The projections are down from original estimates of a nearly $19.6 million shortfall. view article

Round Rock ISD board members on June 17 adopted a $467.42 million general operating budget for fiscal year 2021-22. The general operating fund budget includes $444.53 million in revenues and $467.42 million in expenses, creating a deficit in this fund of $17.2 million, RRISD Chief Financial Officer Kenneth Adix said. view article

State lawmakers were prepared for a budget crunch, since the COVID-19 pandemic slashed revenues from sales taxes, energy taxes, and other sources. The question they now face is how to close the shortfall without choking off long-term growth.  The answer is far from clear, but it’s certain to involve cuts to popular programs.  In fact, such cuts are what's expected this session. The state comptroller's office says lawmakers need to close a shortfall of nearly $1 billion in revenues. And Republican state Sen. Brandon Creighton of Conroe, who serves on the Senate Finance Committee, noted that Gov. Greg Abbott has asked state agencies to reduce budgets by 5%. view article

Bryan ISD's Board of Trustees have approved a one-time $500 supplement for their salaried employees. Teachers, counselors, librarians, nurses, administrators and professional staff receive their pay bonus on their Dec 15 paycheck. view article

Texas pre-K programs are just scraping by after losing millions of dollars last year — and without sustainable funding, they could see greater problems down the line, school officials say. During the 2017 legislative session, lawmakers decided not to fund a $118 million high-quality pre-K grant program that was created in 2015 and championed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. The money had gone to 573 districts and charter schools that pledged to meet measures such as setting a lower student-teacher ratio, avoiding Common Core curricula and reporting student progress to the state. view article

Burnet school district officials were probably expecting to get more than two years from the synthetic turf installed at Bulldog Field in 2015, but that didn’t happen and it’s now set the district back $150,000. Burnet Consolidated Independent School District Superintendent Keith McBurnett, however, said the district is looking to get $105,000 back from one manufacturer. Last year, officials noticed some turf fibers sticking up higher than others, so they took a closer look, McBurnett said. “To most people, it probably wasn’t noticeable,” he said. “We had all the experts look at the field, and they looked at the backside. It needed to be replaced.” view article

On Saturday, voters who live within the Houston ISD will go to the polls to determine how - or if - the district will pay the state millions in "recapture" fees. Whatever voters decide on Proposition 1, the Houston ISD will take a financial hit, officials say. Recapture, and school finance, can be difficult to grasp. To help, here are the answers to some questions about the ballot measure. view article

The Round Rock school district awarded $1.9 million in grants to 34 campuses to help foster innovation in schools through programs, models or initiatives that enrich learning. The grants range from $7,500 to $100,000 and support the district’s strategic goal of implementing, enhancing and reinforcing innovative teachings and learning models, according to a district news release. view article

Fort Bend ISD is going to begin serving up something different for some students who continually fail to pay for their lunches -- a cold cheese sandwich with a side of milk, and that's not sitting well with some parents. We're not talking about students who qualify for free school meals. But apparently, these repeat offenders have gotten so "forgetful" that it's draining the district's budget by hundreds of thousands of dollars. view article

The Garland school district’s $453.8 million budget for 2015-16 passed this week. Here are the highlights: Taxes are going up: There’s a 10-cent per $100 valuation tax increase tied to theNovember 2014 passage of a $455 million bond package. Garland ISD previously had the second-lowest tax rate among 16 districts that tax in Dallas County; the bond will bring that closer to the midpoint. view article

The Lampasas Independent School District met Monday to discuss the district’s fiscal year 2016 budget and proposed tax rates. “My idea was still to give everyone a tax break, but to make it 1 cent right now, and we could change it in a year if we need to,” board member Sam Walker said. “I think we are jumping the gun by dropping it 2 cents.” view article

Marfa ISD is taking a proactive approach toward its potential Chapter 41 status, which would classify the district as a “rich” school. Chief Financial Officer Victoria Sanchez discussed with the board of trustees at the June 15 meeting five different options they could possibly choose for the Chapter 41 status and heavily stressed that the board should consider each option carefully as three of them would have permanent repercussions. view article

The Dallas Independent School District presented a draft version of a comprehensive plan for facilities and academic improvement to the board of trustees on Thursday. The long-range plan, which calls for $1.5 billion in funding, would be directed at school choice, pre-k expansion and career readiness, according to DISD officials. view article

Duncanville ISD thought it was getting a great deal when, one year ago this month, it switched electric providers and signed on with the State Power Program through the state's General Land Office. Just like that, Duncanville ISD's price-per-kilowatt hour dropped almost 20 percent, from 7.3 cents to a maximum of 6 cents. view article

The Comal Independent School District is paying off bond debt early in an effort to save taxpayers money. The district's board of trustees voted Thursday night to pay off $6.5 million in bond debt ahead of schedule. view article