So are we about to see the beginning of the end of the Mike Miles regime?

Maybe.

With weeks until the deadline to announce a potential extension of the state takeover of Houston ISD, Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath expressed strong support Wednesday for the “spectacular” reforms that have occurred in the district since June 2023.

Morath must decide by June 1 whether to keep the nine members of the appointed Board of Managers in place for up to two more years or announce a timeline for the district’s yearslong transition back to elected board members.

He declined to say during a news conference at HISD’s Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts Wednesday whether the takeover would continue. However, he said it’s something he’s “actively considering” as he praised the district’s academic improvements on the 2024 State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness and state A-F accountability ratings.

“One year after the intervention, this is the largest academic improvement that has happened at this scale in the U.S.,” Morath said. “The amount of improvement in academic potential and lifetime potential for kids is pretty spectacular.”

[…]

For the intervention to end, HISD must meet three goals under the TEA’s exit criteria, which are having no multi-year failing campuses, complying with state and federal special education laws and improving board governance. Wheatley High School also must have a C or higher rating for two consecutive years, Morath said.

“We have seen progress on all three of (the main exit criteria,) but we also still see work that remains,” Morath said.

[…]

The reform program has faced vocal pushback from multiple HISD parents and community members since its implementation, who have criticized the model for contributing to rigid, stricter learning environments, rising principal and teacher turnover, and an excessive focus on test scores within schools.

“The NES model, in particular, is a very well-structured model to ensure that children always reach mastery on every concept, that they don’t just skip a topic. That instructional design is very intentional,” Morath said. “It does require certain adjustments in the school calendar (and) in the school approach, but I don’t have any long-term concerns about sustainability of that model in Houston.”

Whatever. I don’t have the energy to debate any of this right now. I just want to get this carpetbagger out of here and get back to having a Board that at least gestures at listening to public feedback and holding the Superintendent accountable. If we’re doing so damn well, put us on the path to that.

Said Superintendent doesn’t see himself as a short-timer.

Miles said he didn’t know what decision Morath would make, but he suspected that the commissioner would extend the state takeover. Miles also said he suspected he would continue to be the HISD superintendent for “a few more years” because he was asked to stay in his role while the intervention was ongoing.

Miles said the district’s teachers, principals and students have done “great work,” and he expects that they will continue to do so on this year’s State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness. However, he said it would be a couple more years before the district really hits its stride.

“You got to remember where we started, we had 120 D- and F- rated campuses, but more than that, a broken financial system and other systems that were broken in this district,” Miles said. “So to turn it around, it’s going to take more than two years. So we’ve got some work to do.”

“We’re doing great but we’re not at a point where we can take our foot off the pedal” is a perfectly reasonable and defensible position. The good cop/bad cop routine that Morath and Miles appear to have adopted to take that position is annoying, but not contradictory. If that’s where we are, then can we at least please get a look at the detailed project timeline and spell out exactly what markers we’ve achieved, what percentage of each goal we’re at, and roughly when we think we can transition back to normal business? You know, in the name of transparency? I don’t think that’s too much to ask. The Press has more.

Related Posts:

• Are we really gonna take this show on the road?
• TEA clears Third Future Schools
• More on the improper use of funds allegations against Mike Miles