The Fort Bend ISD board of trustees wants to explore the possibility of becoming a District of Innovation, a state designation aimed to give school districts in Texas more flexibility and local control.

The board unanimously passed a resolution allowing FBISD to start the research process at an Aug. 15 meeting.

“Sometimes we complain about all of the fetters that the Texas Legislature places upon us, and this is an opportunity to break some of those,” trustee Jim Rice said at an Aug. 8 meeting. “I think that we should move forward and pursue this.”

The state created the District of Innovation program during the 2015 legislative session under House Bill 1842.

The designation allows districts to operate more like charter schools in some aspects giving them more flexibility regarding educator certification, teacher contracts, school calendars and class sizes, among other items, according to the Texas Education Agency.

For example, having the designation could allow a district to hire a working industry professional, such as a welder, a machinist or someone in another technical field who lacks an education certification, to teach a course.

The designation does not allow districts to exempt in certain areas, including student assessments, curriculum, federal requirements or financial operations.

“I think this is an opportunity for Fort Bend ISD to shape its future,” trustee KP George said.

To become a District of Innovation, a school board must hold a public hearing and appoint an Innovation Plan Committee to write a comprehensive education plan for the district. The plan should include any changes allowed by the designation that the district wants, according to the TEA.

The adoption process requires another public meeting about the plan, majority approval by the committee and a two-thirds majority approval by the school board. The Texas education commissioner will also need to be notified of FBISD’s interest in becoming a District of Innovation.

Trustee Grayle James said she wanted to explore the issue, but also wanted to see community engagement.

“I worry a little bit about our capacity as an organization to take on a tremendous effort to engage the community to the level we would want to,” she said. 

Twenty-nine districts are listed on the TEA’s website as Districts of Innovation, including El Paso, Spring Branch, Humble, San Antonio, Harlingen and Grand Prairie ISDs. In the Greater Houston area, Tomball ISD is also considering the designation.

“It’s exciting to me and I think it really could be something that moves our district to the next level, so let’s move on,” school board Vice President Jason Burdine said.