By The Houston Independent School District held a public meeting June 13 at Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center Board Auditorium to vote on the school district’s budget.
The HISD budget proposal is projected to be roughly $2.1 billion for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, which represents a $110 million decrease from the district’s previous budget, as federal pandemic funds will expire this year.
$732 million of the budget is dedicated to expanding the New Education System (NES), which has positively impacted recent substantial gains in recently released 2024 STAAR test scores, which scored significantly higher in some grades and subjects when compared to 2023.
Dr. Doris Delaney, Texas Education Agency conservator for HISD, presented preliminary 2024 scores for the district’s high schools, and Superintendent Mike Miles gave a presentation on grades 3-8 test scores, and the results showed that HISD exceeded the scores of other urban districts in Texas.
Features of the NES portion of the budget include higher salaries for teachers in NES schools, additional support staff on campuses, and a standardized curriculum as part of the reform program.
Proposed budget
The three highest budget priorities the district outlined are as follows:
- Expand the number of NES schools to 130, and strenghten Special Education (SE) by allocating funds to support schools that do not currently have adequate resources to improve student learning.
- Increase the number of Pre-K classrooms for more students to ensure that students begin their K-12 educational experiences with a high-quality learning experience.
- Enhance the district’s College Career and Military Readiness (CCMR) program by improving high school curriculum that aligns with future job market predictions.
