Katy ISD considers partnership with Simon Youth Foundation

Katy ISD Katy ISD could partner with the Simon Youth Foundation to help students who dropped out of the district get back to school and earn their diplomas.

The Simon Youth Foundation, a nonprofit created by Simon Property Management, partners with school districts that include a Simon property within district boundaries.

KISD Chief Academic Officer Christine Caskey said a 5,000-square-foot space has been identified should the partnership move forward.

The Simon Youth Foundation would contract with an architect and build out an academic setting at Katy Mills. The foundation would also pay the lease for the space for the duration of the partnership, which can be renewed every four to five years, Caskey said.

The district would pay for staff and technology. There would need to be five to six teachers, a counselor and a coordinator, Caskey said, along with a possible part-time social worker.

The district’s goal is to get the program up and running by fall 2016, she said.