Despite previous concerns of oversight and financial transparency, Fort Bend ISD administrators will move forward in using $29.3 million from bond contingency funds toward Madden Elementary slab repairs and a special education transportation center, after board approval at the July 28 board meeting.
Chief Financial Officer Bryan Guinn said budget approval does not authorize any construction work yet. Instead, it allows the district to move forward with soliciting and preparing contract proposals—a process that will require a separate board vote at a future meeting.
Trustee Adam Schoof was the sole vote against the Madden Elementary repairs, citing a lack of material cost estimates, although board President Kristin Tassin said the process complies with government agency protocols.
“It not only feels like—but we are in fact—putting the cart before the horse,” Tassin said. “It’s not how we would go out and budget as a consumer, and it’s not how the private sector might do it, but it is how we are required to do it.”
How we got here
The Madden Elementary repairs and a $19.24 million southeast transportation center were both approved by voters in the $1.26 billion bond in November 2023, Community Impact reported.
However, the transportation center was was deferred due to projected shortfalls last October, with the potential for a special education transportation center to be later approved, Community Impact reported.
The special education center was meant to consolidate staff currently spread across three sites—Julie Rivers, Hodges Bend and Lake Olympia—into one centralized location at Julie Rivers to improve special education transportation, Deputy Superintendent of Operations Kathleen Brown said at the July 21 meeting.
Meanwhile, the estimated Madden Elementary slab repairs required an additional $12.1 million on top of the $9.5 million allocated through the 2023 bond, per the district’s website. The campus, which was built in 2015, is experiencing structural issues with its original slab-on-grade foundation, failing due to expansive soils and inadequate fill material, according to the district’s website.
Designated “high need” by administrators, these projects—in addition to remaining funds required for the bond-approved aquatic center and facilities repairs—were candidates for the use of $63.6 million in leftover money from 2014, 2018 and 2023 bonds that were reserved for these purposes.
What they're saying
Daniel Bankhead, executive director of design and construction for FBISD, said the project will follow industry best practices and prioritize risk mitigation in vendor talks, but no formal guarantees—such as an extended warranty or structural guarantee—can be made yet to prevent future Madden Elementary needs.
“We will make it a priority to close the trust gap with vendors and incorporate protective language wherever possible,” Superintendent Marc Smith said.
Moving forward
Guinn said an additional $2.5 million needed for student relocation—including transportation, portable classrooms and temporary accommodations—will come from the remaining contingency pool and will be accounted for when the contract is approved.
With approval, district staff will begin the design phase with Huckabee Architects for the Madden Elementary repairs, while the transportation center design work will begin in the third quarter of 2025, per district documents.
Both projects are expected to go to bid in Spring 2026, an FBISD official said in an email.
