Houston Chronicle by Jacob Carpenter Nov. 14, 2019
Texas Education Agency officials faced sharper questions and criticism Thursday night during their second community meeting on the potential replacement of Houston ISD’s elected school board, as several impassioned residents argued the agency isn’t equipped to assist the district’s 209,000 students.
A crowd of roughly 75 people gathered at Wheatley High School, whose chronically low student performance has triggered the potential board takeover, frequently voiced skepticism that TEA officials understand the needs of Houston’s diverse community and come into the district with good intentions. Residents in attendance were decidedly more critical of the looming intervention than those at the TEA’s first community meeting, held Wednesday at Pershing Middle School.
Several implored the TEA to stay out of the state’s largest district and allow a newly-chosen school board to rectify issues — even as state law mandates that Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath must close Wheatley or temporarily replace elected trustees after the historic campus received its seventh consecutive failing grade.
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https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/TEA-faces-stiffer-pushback-against-board-takeover-14836749.php
