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| CASE Report
Smart Brevity ®
count: 2.5 mins...634 words
CASE is a collective of Houstonians committed to ensuring that every student within Houston Independent School District (HISD) has the opportunity to receive a high-quality education.
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HISD Adds 500 Pre-K Seats
 What’s new:
In order to keep up with rising demand, HISD plans to add 500 pre-k seats by fall 2025.
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This aggressive expansion will boost enrollment (and its accompanying state funds), and allow for more students to receive high-quality instruction.
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Check out Houston Chronicle’s story here.
Why it matters:
As the article outlines, studies have proven that children who attended one or two years of pre-k in HISD were significantly more likely to be considered “school ready” than children who did not attend pre-k in the district. The strong educational foundation built in pre-k serves students throughout their educational careers, setting them up for success both in college and the workforce.
By the numbers:
About 70 pre-k spots have been added in the first half of the academic year. Later this year, 200 more will be added by August, and then 300 more will be added by 2025.
What they’re saying:
“High-quality universal pre-k narrows or virtually closes achievement gaps for Hispanic, Black, & low-income kids.” - Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers.
Take Action:
HISD’s pre-k applications are now available. For more information about the process, parents can contact the district’s pre-k department at earlychildhood@houstonisd.org
or 713-556-4393.
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Lessons from a Different State Intervention
In case you missed it:
Dr. Darryl Henson, a former HISD educator and administrator, and current Superintendent of Marlin ISD, sat down with Houston Public Media to talk about his experience during Marlin ISD’s current state intervention.
What was said:
Dr. Henson spoke about how Marlin ISD’s intervention provided the opportunity to radically change systems that were not producing student success. Now that there is alignment between the school’s culture, teaching systems, and leadership, Marlin ISD’s academic performance is right on track and the district is returning to local control.
“If I don’t agree with the way it’s being done, can I at least agree with the outcome? If the outcome is going to lead to students being more successful, then I think it will be more incumbent for us to get on board and try and support the way…let’s trust the leadership.” - Superintendent Henson.
Listen to the full interview here.
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Miles: Tie Compensation to Student Success
 What’s new:
HISD Superintendent Mike Miles recently published an article
explaining how teacher compensation can be modernized to elicit higher student performance. Miles makes the argument that if an organization values student achievement and the quality of instruction, then the compensation plan should support and encourage those goals.
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According to Miles, tethering teacher pay to student outcomes, in a transparent manner, “will ultimately benefit students.”
Why it matters:
Innovations in teacher compensation have the potential to bring greater alignment amongst teachers and their organizations, leading to greater career satisfaction, a cohesive culture, and improved student outcomes. When higher effectiveness can be rewarded with higher pay, the highest quality teachers feel valued and fairly compensated.
What they’re saying:
“I agree. The compensation plan needs to be overhauled. It definitely does NOT take into account a teacher’s work ethic, for example. When you say “mediocre” the teacher that comes to mind is the one that does not help carry the weight of a team. Tolerance of this behavior, for example, consumes others’ morale and feeds into a toxic culture.” Frances Martinez - Bilingual Interventionist at Spring Branch ISD
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