The board of trustees adopted the district’s legislative priorities at a Dec. 12 meeting, weeks before state lawmakers are scheduled to reconvene for the 89th legislative session in January.
The overview
The district adopted legislative priorities focusing on the following areas:
- Curriculum
- Special education
- Educator salaries and retention
- Partnerships with parents
- State funding
- Voucher opposition
- School safety and mental health support
A closer look
Several of the district’s priorities focus on school funding, including raising the basic allotment of funding per student, which has remained at $6,160 since 2019.
The district is requesting increased funding for special education and educator pay raises. In the 2023-24 school year, the district spent $39.6 million beyond what it received from the state for special education services.
LISD is seeking to raise staff salaries to address “the ongoing challenges of retention, recruitment and morale in education,” according to district documents.
Some context
The district's legislative priorities come as it is projecting a nearly $29 million budget shortfall for fiscal year 2024-25 and an almost $30 million budget shortfall for FY 2025-26.
In requesting additional state funding, LISD’s priorities referenced staffing challenges, larger class sizes, and resource shortages due to underfunding and unfunded state mandates.
LISD’s legislative priorities state that increased school funding is necessary for parents to have the information and resources needed to “drive their child’s education.”
What else?
The district is opposing a voucher program that would allocate public dollars for private school tuition. District documents state that vouchers would “pose a significant threat to public education” by diverting funding from "already underfunded schools."
LISD is requesting that the state invest in comprehensive mental health resources, behavioral interventions and proactive safety protocols. The district's schools need legislative support to address growing safety concerns and mental health challenges, including anxiety, trauma and depression, district documents state.
The district is asking the state to maintain flexibility in curriculum that allows students to make choices in their learning and explore their interests. In November, the State Board of Education voted to adopt state-created textbooks, which have received criticism for featuring frequent biblical references.
How we got here
LISD developed its legislative priorities after receiving feedback through listening sessions and an online survey, LISD Area Superintendent Angela Hodges said.
The district held 31 listening sessions with 221 participants, including parents, community members, students and staff, Hodges said. The most frequent comments from participants were related to curriculum, teacher salaries and retention, school safety, special education, and state funding.
Something to note
On Dec. 4, Place 4 board member Anna Smith said she joined officials from local public schools and educational organizations to provide a presentation on special education to over 40 staffers at the Texas Legislature.
LISD officials plan to present to legislative staffers on school finance Jan. 31 and host a safety and security summit at the Legislature Jan. 24, Smith said.
"To be able to have a frank conversation and have those numbers and tell a story, that's probably the best thing that we can do to try to get those at the state Capitol to understand what is really happening in our district," Smith said.
