CASE Report: National Implications Underscore HISD’s Turnaround

CASE is a collective of Houstonians committed to ensuring every student within Houston Independent School District (HISD) has the opportunity to receive a high-quality education.

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National Implications Underscore HISD’s Turnaround

The Houston Landing wrote about the HISD intervention, which has been a bold experiment in urban public education reform at a scale never seen before in the U.S. Rather than merely tweak around the edges, HISD has taken the approach of “wholescale systemic reform” and overhauled about half of its 270 campuses into “New Education System” schools with profoundly different ways of teaching students.

Because of the innovations employed by HISD’s new leadership, including merit pay for teachers, new instruction methods, adding additional educators to classrooms, lengthening of the school year, and differential learning, to name just a few, student test scores skyrocketed in the first year of the intervention.

HISD’s resounding successes so early in its turnaround effort has caught the attention of national spectators who say that Houston ISD could be building out a playbook on how to rapidly improve a large urban district.

The Houston Landing’s full story is here.

Why it matters: Many large, urban school districts around the country are facing similar issues of declining enrollment, stressed finances, teacher shortages, and persistent achievement gaps.

If HISD’s intervention is a success, then it may serve as a blueprint for other districts around the country that are facing many of the same challenges.

By the numbers: In the first year of the intervention, elementary and middle schools saw, on average, a 7 percentage point increase in the number of students scoring at or above grade level on STAAR exams. Other HISD schools saw a 1 percentage point increase, while state averages slid in math and remained flat in reading. This kind of rapid academic improvement is what state leadership envisioned when initiating the intervention and is what similarly situated districts around the country are looking to emulate.

What they’re saying: “If there have been substantial improvements in student achievement gains simultaneously with improvements in student attendance, I think that will grab a lot of attention nationally and will make people curious about the Houston reforms,” - Thomas Kane, economist with the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

HISD to Expand Pre-K by August

As demand for early childhood education has grown, HISD is looking to keep up by adding 1,600 more seats, several new classrooms, and dozens of teachers so that more students can access enriching learning environments at an earlier age.

The Houston chronicle’s story is here.

Why it matters: Early access to high quality instruction is critical for long-term student success. By starting off with a solid foundation in pre-k, students are better equipped to read, write, and do math once they enter elementary school.

By the numbers: HISD previously aimed to expand pre-k by 500 seats before August 2025 but has since tripled its projections due to high demand.

HISD’s proposed $4.4 billion bond would further expand pre-k by about 4000 new seats and would allocate $200 million toward building a new early childhood center and optimizing existing spaces for more pre-k students.

What’s next: For more information on pre-k at HISD, including how to enroll, please visit HISD’s informational page here.

HISD Board Hopeful for Bond

HISD’s Board of Managers drilled down on the district’s $4.4 billion bond proposal and last Thursday’s board meeting, getting into the details of where, when, how, and why money would be spent across the district.

HISD’s Community Advisory Committee and bond committee both provided feedback from the broader HISD community on the importance of the bond to students and families across the district.

Houston Public Media’s story is here.

Why it matters: HISD’s proposed bond would be the largest in state history, so people are understandably curious about how the money will be spent. By hosting open discussions with community representatives, HISD hopes to explain the severe need for investments and hear the public’s opinions on how the district should go about investing any new resources.

What they’re saying:"I just think that regardless of what your position is on the intervention, regardless of what your position is on policy ... our kids deserve great facilities and minimally safe – cool in the summer, warm in the winter – and a facility where they can get high-quality instruction. I have confidence the community will come through and invest in our kids," - Superintendent Miles.

What’s next: The board is planning to vote on August 8 about whether to place the bond proposal on the Nov. 5 ballot. District administrators have spent the last month providing community information about the plan.

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