HOUSTON – HISD board members on Thursday released a list of 37 schools being reviewed as they work toward massive budget cuts.
The district has already said four of those schools – Grimes, Love, McDade and Rhoads elementaries – could possibly close. Now, 33 more schools are being reviewed, some of which could also be on the chopping block.
The potential cuts could put as many as 1,800 people – many of them teachers – at risk of losing their jobs. In addition to the teacher layoffs, the district could also lose more than 270 central office positions.
HISD said the cuts are necessary because of what could be as much as a $170-million decrease in state funds.
"We know that we cannot effectively teach children without enough funds. So the potential is there to have to consolidate and combine campuses as needed," Paula Harris with the HISD Board of Education said.
The new list of campuses under review includes 13 elementary schools, 19 middle schools and five high schools.
The elementary schools – McDade, Rhoads, Memorial, Paige, NQ Henderson, Port Houston, Gordon, Pleasantville, Stevenson, Houston Gardens, Grimes, Burrus and Love – all have about 400 students.
The middle schools (Ryan, EO Smith, MC Williams, Key, Black, Attucks, Fleming, Thomas, Cullen, Fondren, McReynolds, Woodson, Hogg, Holland, Edison, Deady, Revere, Jackson and Long) and the high schools (Jones, Kashmere, Scarborough, Washington and Worthing) all have fewer than 1,000 students.
District officials said many factors will be taken into consideration when deciding which schools will be cut.
"There are schools who will struggle with these smaller enrollments, having these smaller budgets and being able to offer services to their students," said HISD’s Melinda Garrett. "There are a number of factors, depending on where that school is located, how far they are from other schools. There are a number of factors that we will take into consideration."
The district said all decisions concerning the budget cuts will be made by June 30.
Meanwhile, parents and students alike are worrying about what’s to come.
"It’s a big concern for us," Houston mom Alexis Williams said. "I used to be a teacher, and I know what it can look like to have classes that are really big and where children can suffer when they’re not getting the attention."
Detric Cloud and Jymeah Calvin, both students at Booker T. Washington in Independence Heights, said students and alumni alike would be upset if their school closed.
"I mean, this is my school. My mother has been here. My uncles, aunts. My whole family basically been here. This school really means a lot to my family," Cloud said.
"This is like a bedrock, a foundation, you know? A lot of people, they care about this school," Calvin said.
Williams said if things get bad enough, she may have to move her family to another district.
"These children are the future of our country, and we want the best possible," she said.
