TEA installs monitor for Round Rock ISD, citing 2019 complaint against former board president

A Texas Education Agency Monitor has been installed at Round Rock ISD as part of a corrective action plan stemming from a complaint lodged against the board during the 2018-19 school year.

TEA monitors report on the activities of the board of trustees or the superintendent. According to documents made public by the district Sept. 15, a complaint against the district from October 2019 found that previous board president Chad Chadwell did not recuse himself from discussion about a grievance against himself, alleging a conflict of interest and board overreach.

This action, the letter states, violates Texas Education Code Chapter 11, Subchapter D-Powers and Duties of Board of Trustees of Independent School District. The letter states that the TEA requested documentation related to the complaint in August of 2020, which was then reviewed by TEA Special Investigations Unit Investigator Rebecca Clevlen.

According to the letter, Clevlen concluded that the district must complete a corrective action plan within a set timeline to close the complaint with the TEA. The letter was dated Aug. 11, with Superintendent Hafedh Azaiez and board President Amy Weir required to sign and return the agreement by Aug. 25.

"Please be advised that additional complaints relating to Round Rock ISD remain under investigative review by the Special Investigations Unit as well as the Compliance Review Unit," the letter states.

Under the RRISD corrective action plan:

• The district must agree to the installation of a monitor, which it has.
• RRISD will be formally monitored for a period of one year.
• The district acknowledges and understands that it may be subject to a "special accreditation investigation corrective action or sanction for any additional allegations of violations which are substantiated."
• RRISD also waives its right to an informal or formal review before the commissioner as well as "any right to seek removal or modification of the intervention provided for in the agreement, any right to judicial review of the agreement, and any other procedural rights that might otherwise apply."

This is an ongoing story that will be updated with a forthcoming statement from Round Rock ISD.