Former DISD Superintendent Mike Miles under fire at Houston ISD after massive layoffs, reforms

Mike Miles, who resigned as head of Dallas ISD schools in 2015, is under fire at Houston ISD, where he was named superintendent a year ago as part of a district buyout by the Texas Education Agency and recently oversaw massive layoffs to help eliminate a huge budget deficit, Houston media reports.

Hundreds of people gathered at Houston City Hall on Saturday to protest what they see as hostile working and learning environments since Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath appointed Miles and a board of trustees to oversee the state’s largest district, the Houston Chronicle and other media outlets reported. . Saturday’s protest followed a work stoppage Thursday by some 300 district teachers from dozens of schools and a walkout Friday by hundreds of high school and middle school students.

Anger among community members, district workers and students has reached a boiling point in recent weeks with the firings and demands for resignations of hundreds of employees, including many beloved teachers and principals , as well as support staff such as librarians, maintenance and maintenance workers, and education. specialists, Houston news media reported.

Yolanda Garza, a Houston ISD parent and elementary school teacher, told the Chronicle she attended Saturday’s protest because of a controversial and burdensome work culture since Miles and the board of administration took over. She told the newspaper that district administrators punished teachers during point-in-time observations for “finicky” things like not using specific size index cards or unsharpened pencils in classrooms.

“We don’t have a lot of autonomy, and if you ask questions, it’s kind of like you go against (them) and you get kicked out,” Garza told the Chronicle. “We’re always nervous, thinking we’re doing something wrong, and it’s just bullying. I want us to have our say. I want the community to have a say.

At a board meeting Thursday, elementary school principal Amanda Wingard, who said she believed she was forced to resign not for teaching-related reasons but, among other reasons, for wanting to collaborate with other directors on the data, the newspaper reported.

“I ask questions respectfully, in the best interest of the students. For that, I am proud,” she said, quoted by the Chronicle. “We work in fear: fear of asking the wrong questions. Fear of not meeting unknown expectations. Fear of subjective failure.

A controversial reform plan

Miles has been criticized by some district employees and community members for the new education system, a reform plan he implemented in dozens of schools that serve largely black, Hispanic and low-income students. returned in an effort to improve performance, the Chronicle reported.

The model includes, among other things, a standardized curriculum, timed lessons, daily quizzes in homeroom classes, frequent spot observations of teachers by district administrators, a zero-tolerance policy for classroom disruptions and conversion of teachers. libraries into “team centers”. the newspaper reported.

Miles said the new education system is needed to improve teacher training and prepare students for the job market. But some community members say it has hindered expression and creativity.

” Do not answer. Don’t suggest anything. Your education is what I say it is,” district teacher Tammy Reed was quoted as saying by the Chronicle, signaling that she plans to leave the district in frustration next month. “There is no more creativity. No self-expression is allowed.

The district defends its decisions

Houston ISD reported a budget deficit of about $450 million — a deficit the district says stems primarily from declining enrollment for several years. At the end of October, HISD reported an enrollment of 183,900, down more than 6,000 students from the 2022-23 school year and down from the 10-year peak of about 216,000 in 2016-17 , the Chronicle reported.

The state of Texas funds schools based on average daily attendance. The current rate is $6,160 per student per year. The sharp decline in enrollment in Houston ISD has had significant financial implications, and the district said the recent job cuts were necessary to align staffing and finances with projected 2024-25 enrollment.

In defending the mass layoffs, Miles also said earlier this month that in the face of declining enrollment, the district’s previous administration used COVID money — which was set to run out June 30 — to cover the spending and teacher raises instead of cutting costs and finding money elsewhere. Houston NBC affiliate KPRC-TV reported.

“We will have prevented the district from falling into a fiscal cliff,” Miles said, as quoted by KPRC. “And it’s one of the most important things we can do.”

“It’s painful and if the community feels that pain, some people are going to be angry, and I understand that,” he said.

As for the principal layoffs, Houston ISD told the Chronicle the layoffs are part of the district’s plans to review employee contracts in an effort to ensure students receive the best instruction possible.

Echoes of the DISD mandate

Miles’ time in Dallas ended with his resignation in 2015 after the school board refused to approve changes he wanted to make to his contract, including prohibiting administrators from searching for a new district leader while he was still superintendent.

While working for Dallas ISD, Miles devoted millions of dollars to failing schools, revised teacher and principal evaluations, and ousted teachers who he believed were failing their students.

Some have earned him praise for his passion and dedication to education reform. Others found him stubborn and arrogant and chastised him for his frequent changes among teachers and principals, his constant administrative scandals and – in a state where superintendents are rated based on STAAR exam scores – lack of significant academic progress.