001Hi, I'm the communications here and I'll just take you through a little bit of the presentation and then should be here shortly. So, here is the agenda. We just had our principal welcome um and we'll go through some review of the meeting norms and the purpose. Um we know these are really difficult conversations and a lot has been going on. of new ideas have come about and so that's why we're here to hear that feedback and make sure that any decision we make in that plan on frid of everyone and so we will provide that overview of the campus specific proposed changes and then really the majority of this time is going to be Q&A with a superintendent and we also have our assistant superintendent elementary school over I can take the cable. We know
002these are easy conversations, but we're going to start doing that, how we're going to incorporate all of this, especially the rules, to make sure we can have all the possible questions. We ask that you limit your time to one minute so that we can ensure we can answer your questions and respond to them at the appropriate time. Let's all honor ourselves, let's honor the process, let's be respectful, and again, let's do our best to answer all your questions and discuss our transition plan. We are going to continue working on this, we are going to honor the process and we are also going to be transparent and have difficult conversations. We're hearing a lot about the situation in Ostinicid and this is very helpful. Now we're going to... Here I have the rules in Spanish and
003we're here to answer questions. We already have the questions that you raised for your director. We'll answer those too. the proposed changes and how to incorporate this into the final document that we will release on Friday and that will be reviewed by the board on Thursday. The core of this plan is that all families must have access to a neighborhood, a neighborhood school that is excellent, and that every student must have access to this. So, we have a plan to ensure that all our students have the best possible school environment. The plan we're here to talk about is, as many of you know or have heard, on October 3rd when we gave the initial plan, we talked about having to shut down The Offsprings. Here is our superintendent. We were just starting to talk about
004the plan. I don't know if you want to resume. Yes, I can talk about it. Well, I'm really sorry I'm late, I'm in a rush, so thank you for the opportunity. Uh, the plan, as originally developed by the administration, included Offsprings and coming completely towards Blackshi. But one of the parts of this plan that we're doing, and several things that we're going to be talking about, one of the things absolutely to consider was that for the schools that had accumulated some, uh, good numbers to be able to support many of our schools, but there have been changes and challenges in how we can support the schools, and ultimately we're going to have to adapt to that. There are only a few ways we can give this rating. He says there are six ways in the
005state of Texas that we can do this. In our plans, they are made after the second year. In other words, imagine that a school after the second consecutive year, typically, the more familiar they are , they have one year to create the plan, one year to implement it, and then they will have 2 years if they break the chain. of responsibility because now the laws of Texas we have that are given in the spring of this year and then on the 24th and the 25th that fall on the same day of August 15th. So in 5 months we have 3 years' worth of ratings. So, how this happens is through the compression of all these plans that have to be delivered. Many schools lack the ability to develop a plan to turn things around and
006implement it within those two years. This was out of the question. It's happening everywhere throughout the state of Texas . There are hundreds and hundreds of schools in this situation. So there are six different things you can do if there are six different strategies for a plan for this is to reassign the school. Then they either reassign him to another school in Austin, or you can restart the school; that is, you can come in and meet certain requirements of the work team and prove that the principal has demonstrated the possibility of turning the plan around. This is a plan to turn things around . We have a charter, charter partner. This is similar to what we have seen in Méndez. It's a model we don't really like very much. We prefer to control our own
007education system, but that's another option. And we also have a new school or a new campus. And this goes something like, for example, a secondary school, changing it from 6 to 8, or from 6 to 12. We can do that too. Or in terms of school children, we can also implement a model where you can be intentional in the support you are prohibiting, but not in a situation where you can make a more aggressive intervention. And this is for schools. You can see tremendous progress and on the second day, second year, third year and/or close the school. So, one of the things we had to realize about Offsprings is, and we had the power, we had to see that we could respond to this plan and which of these strategies was best for us as
008a community and as a school district to be able to break this chain. And after reviewing and doing a lot of analysis, we recommended that moving Off Springs to Blackshier and having all the students combined and giving them the support and intervention and teachers and instruction was going to give us the opportunity to do this. So, if we combine the student body and take the STARTs—which are the state exams for the coming year—it gives us the ratings, the grades needed to be able to bring offsprings here, springs here. Uh, these are one of the solutions, this plan we also want to make clear that we are also looking at all the registrations in the area, programs, uh, the population. Yes, we are going to make a disruption and we want to see where we can
009divide our support to focus on students and provide adequately. This is the initial part. Since then, since I've been delivering, from day one, I absolutely want to make sure that feedback from the community is incorporated into everything we 've done. I hope you see that our work, whether it's bonds, taxes, elections, everything we've worked on, we've always worked in favor of the students. One of the things we heard as we were sharing this with the community was that there was a desire to explore having Oak Springs come to Blacksher and the two schools combine and then return to Oak Springs. One of the most important forces behind this idea, which came from the community, was the fact that students could return to a completely modern school. But what we know now is that the way
010of educating is very different now than it was 60, 70, 80 years ago. So now Oxsprings, the project is over and as we move forward with this process, we really need to think about securing the investments of the community and the students. We want the dollars that are taken to Springs to actually be contributing to the system. So, we want to have a conversation with the community and after listening to these ideas and the collective, share with you what is happening. And then something we want to make very clear is that the board voted next Thursday, will vote again next Thursday, and the 20th is to reassign the children from Oak Spring to Blackshi. That remains the recommendation because collectively what we are doing is combining what we have and where the school resides or
011what the boundaries are. It's not necessarily something we need to focus on because this is more of an administrative matter. The board is required by law to improve the limits and these and the budgets and what the part that results in this. I want to tell you that there isn't going to be an answer to this. We are not going to turn this meeting into a conversation to create a space where everyone has a voice. What we want is to make the adjustments, but the vote, the vote is more about voting on the possibility of Oak Spring students moving to Blackshi and we need quick results, but also incorporating all of this. I hope this makes sense to you and I would like to clarify it if you need it because some trust commissioners or
012some members would like to be part of this vote. But all of this has to be transparent. So, I've said a lot there. Is there anything else? No, I think we can start with the questions and answers. I don't want to go back. You don't have to stay close there with the microphone, so if anyone has a question, and I'm sorry, please speak into the microphone because we also have interpretation available here. Hello, my name is Emely Flowers. I have a question for you. I think one of the most important concerns we have is that we are very excited to welcome the students from Oxprens. We are all here, we are very very worried, but I think all this takes time to worry, to prepare. So, by saying that, we're either going to receive them
013or we're not going to receive them. Another concern is that I've heard that Oxpr is smaller than uh and that's giving us uh they've been telling us that the school is very small and that and that and that it also brings another community that they're going to bring us, but that they're going to bring them and then separate them from us. So, I don't understand how it works. The children will be connecting with the teachers and everyone, and then they will be divided up. Yeah? No, good question. I think I've heard that before. I want to close by answering your question. So that's fantastic. Yes, we want everyone in our schools to feel like they are part of a community, and for everyone to feel welcome. That's exactly what we want. My recommendation would be
014that it's going to include Oxpring coming, that Oxpring comes here so that we can put a plan in place, a plan so that it can make sense. We have talked about it being the opposite of blacker or sprints. So we're making a different decision, and that's definitely something. Now, as we come together and as we have done in the past, we want everyone to be combined. I don't think so, we don't want one school, we don't want two programs in one school, we want one, we want one that is a community. The timing of where to make those decisions and the importance is that we want whatever it is , whatever it is, the time it will take afterwards. We are not going to alternate between two different schools. We won't be able to support
015him coming to Black Cheer and then moving back and having them move back. And one of the things that we have in parts of Austin is that we have to reduce the cost we have to make sure that every student is receiving what they need and thus reduce everything collectively. That's why in the end we're going to see how it looks based on the opinions we 're receiving from the community. So we have different measurements. We have students who are taking their [something] and who are doing jumps like, I don't know how to say it, like two or a [something] because, because where is Oxprs? Because we are a little pressured by the place, by the situation where we are, but we feel confident that we have the service in the two schools. I have
016seen one of the things we want to do is to be able to make the final decision and say that in the end, maybe we want to return. What needs to be done with the seats we have, the empty spaces, all the work that has been done here? What should be changed to improve the experience? How do you respect that in each community? that we unite, that if we unite together, how how do we combine them into one, will it be? It will be a little different if we move in together, if we decide to keep the Sanchez story. It feels, it feels like we are collectively repeating historically what we can both have. All of this will come together, it will work for you. From now on. I would say that we're going to
017review the contract with the designers, compare it with the designers' opinions, and decide what the community says in order to make a decision as a group, whatever needs to happen. They're going to talk about something else, which is what's going to happen to the building. I'll be very honest. One of the reasons we're moving it this way and not the other is that it's a place where we're spending time in the community. There are many things that will be happening that are accessible and acceptable. Then, after that, we're going to Travis Elementary. We can do different types of programs, we don't have to be one or the other, but we would have to decide depending on what the community decides. Hello again. So I am a mother of two Blatcher students. Some concerns. The SD
018had the responsibility a year ago in August. This was not a surprise. It could have been planned last year if we had had the data from previous years. That's the first thing in the answer. Should I answer you right now or should I wait? Wait. So you mentioned, you mentioned breaking, breaking with the pattern of responsibility and that, and what happens is that the students have not been consistently provided with high- expectation material. All of this is essential. And the school district, if it hasn't had qualified teachers, it's the incompetence they 've had, but that's also been by choice. You can have teachers who can also be competent depending on where our students go. What are you going to do to make sure we have well-qualified teachers and high expectations throughout the district? Yes, I
019have different thoughts on those comments. The first thing I would say is that it's not all about responsibility. I have never said otherwise. What I 'm saying is that if we don't break that chain, the district is at risk; it has to be part of the consideration, it has to be part of this. If we ignore it, I promise that all of you who put us in a position of weakness will put us in a completely different situation than what you chose not to do. I'm not going to allow that. The other thing I'll say is that you said the data 23, 24, 25. I want us to understand where we were. On the 23rd, 24th, and 25th, we sold in a system together on the 23rd and 24th. We have some superintendents. I don't
020know if you remember that, we had our employees. It will be 80 or 84%. We have hired, we have hired directors, we have hired five this year. We have now had a deficit of 23%, now we have less. We want to create a system that aligns with who we are. At the time of the 23rd, 24th, 25th, when we knew we had work to do, we didn't have a resume which was a big problem, but we were, uh, we were a district. We heard from students that they had no responsibility in the 20% curriculum and there was no consequence; we didn't have a skill to be able to support them. It will be a big problem in 2023. And I say that because I was responding, because we have been moving into a system in
0212023 when, when we started, we did the curriculum process from K1 to Q2. Instead of having teachers go to the lecture halls, what we did was have our students do something, touch it, and work. in the spring instead of the summer in the 23rd in the 23rd 24th. the TA has been telling us that it's going to take over. That's something that has been happening. So, it's been a big problem that's been going on, and since then we've been, and apart from that, we're trying to support them from day one for a long time. We've been talking about it for a long time, but two years ago we couldn't do that. That was the reason, and we couldn't do that two years ago. So, what have we learned from that information? Now we know that
022there are intervention centers that need what we need to address, curriculum issues to support them in getting there. Now they did bring intervention content for 40% of the students who need intervention and we also adopted a high-quality curriculum that has persisted. We gave a presentation a week or a week and a half ago where we saw the 83% usage rate. What it has done is that it has created an increased literature on the development of that which has not moved in that it had not moved for years. In 2023, on the 23rd, in the, in the next year we are going to have a fraction. We have been working very, very hard to be able to do this; otherwise, we wouldn't have done that. It's a difficult job, but we're seeing that we're moving forward
023in the system. So yes, we have information, but if we acted in the way that led to the final development, then it was different. You can say, there are models, there are models, there are different models. If we have a school that has data, you can do things to lead students to success in the START exam. You can do it. Yes, you can do that. That's not who we are. We want a system that teaches them in the best way so that the most important things are the important grades and how we got there because there are more important things. We have decided, our board of directors has decided on a long-term system because, because of the demands, because of all these things we are doing, we knew that we were moving forward, that we
024needed to continue. The things that have been done have created pressure on the system, but I don't want you to think that we haven't been working very hard. We've been working very hard. We have responded without any doubt. We have had, we have, very qualified students, sorry, teachers. This is now also by the State, which is seen as wanting to ensure that there is a relationship between teachers, observations, and evaluators at the end of the year throughout the classroom. That's how they want them to align. What we have done as parents, we haven't done in the school district. So now that we have it and we know how many teachers are 10 years old, how many are 10 years old? Those who are certified. I've seen different data that I've seen masters, masters in the
025first one we can't have, but if we have data that is going down or going up, it's something that we can't have. We are demonstrating that you are responding. We could have done more. I believe you can always do more. I think so . I think that in order to be able to carry the grades if you could if it would align with who we are, I would say no. That's the balance sheet. That's the balance sheet. I'd like to share more, but it's quite a lot that's been taken up, and I'm very proud of the teachers and directors, because you don't see everything that goes on, and that's what worries me. I have the following question. Hi, I'm Lolin. I spoke during the week on Saturday. I believe we have great teachers. I think
026they 've proven that. There are schools that have a C rating and that have had teachers who have been with our students. So that job, this school that has been around for many years, was not closed. So they are trying to carry on this legacy. So the question is, when will the school that has proven successful in breaking that chain... Why take students and move them here when success has already been demonstrated, and then move them all to another location during that 3-year period to maintain that level of accountability? How are we going to add extra changes for students and teachers? And who is going to oversee the move? So we're going to be moving the students so they 're together? It's something we're very open to, and we understand that it's a difficult thing
027for everyone. It's a change. We are going to receive the students. Welcome. We recognize that all schools are suffering, but we must go through this transition year for everyone and then another transition the following year. That's 2 years in a 3- year plan. So you add another year. Where does this leave us? To the students, to the teachers? and how they set them on the path to success. If we're thinking five years ahead and we're not back here. Yes. What I would say, and I want to be clear, is that there is no decision, no plan. That's why we're in the process of figuring out what it would look like. I understand what you're saying. As I've said before, I want you to listen, to understand, and for us to make an informed decision. No,
028no, we haven't made a decision. This is actually based on what we've heard from other people in the same community. I am committed to listening to other students who come to the school. I would say that there are things happening, there are great things happening in schools, and what we think about when we're thinking about a disruption like this is that how we keep students together is that we always have a goal. What if we move a school completely? Another one, or we divide it another one. The state of Texas strongly believes that you have done great things. Keep making them. If they are there, if they are there, the plan they are taking, B or C, is that they continue doing it. It's the same system, the same district, the same superintendent, but this
029school is based on different things or perhaps a lack of resources. has been able to succeed in this way. That gives us a little more flexibility in how that comes together, how all of that ultimately comes together in all situations. We're talking about a school that's starting up again having some very strict requirements, areas that should be effective. If we are talking about a new plan, it means we are talking about the district potentially disrupting everything that we are doing in schools that have different needs. That's how we're attacking it. Another thing I want to say is that the transition needs to be faced in the best way possible, and that's why we have n't made a decision, we haven't made it in the spring, we don't want to wait any longer, we don't want
030to do it in the summer, we want to do whatever we decide to do as a community. We are going to create the time to bring the communities in. We have this structure, we have the work for the details. That's what it should be for, for everyone, for the community, the collective community, for the transition period. That's why construction has stopped and by law I must execute the plan until the chain is broken. We can't start the plan and then not finish it and move. No, we have to make sure that the students have the responsibility and that at that point if we can, if we want to move back to the new school, it's understanding something else that we have to understand if we go back, we want the construction to continue. If not,
031then we need to stop and hold onto the funds. So that's how it would work. I think you have, I think we would have one, two, then it would have to work again to design it the right way. This is how it works. I'm going to go with you. Yes, just to continue with what you were saying with that question. So, how many considerations are we necessarily talking about for disruption? Because I believe that everything makes sense, the part about the 26th, 26th, and 27th, so that the schools can unite. But what considerations are they taking into account that for 202, for 2728, uh, what are they looking at? They are moving back, but even if it's in 2 years, what considerations are they taking into account for those disruptions? For this plan and these
032considerations have been thought out. Uh, if my question isn't clear, I'm sorry, but a very modern building is a type of infrastructure that can help students learn. Disruptions can also affect things that are already in place, things that we already have here, such as how the importance of that infrastructure is being considered for student success. And a modern building deserves credit for rebuilding that. Yes. One of the reasons is a good question. One of the reasons we modernize the places, the schools, is that, as the school system, because of the years we have, things get ruined and we know that the improvements have to come out of the budget. Some of the $14 million that has been paid in electricity, things that are capitalized, but so from 2017 to 2022 instead of paying $12 million
033to fix, then let's think about how to modernize the space, be able to get rid of all those maintenance problems in order to lower the cost and we could use that for teachers' salaries. So that was a general philosophy, and I also want to be very clear that there are things that older schools don't have. And I want to say that school is much more than a building. We're talking, we can be on portables, but that happens, we'd be fine. But the reality is that over time we want to make sure that if we have good air quality, that we have safety, the safety requirements that meet the expectations of the school system, safety, all those things that you would want to see in a school based on the context that is now incorporated into
034the design. Now we have the students, we want them to succeed, to have shelter, to have food, but also to be in line if the water isn't running. So, but also the safety of the students and the safety of the community, that's 90%, the building also contributes to that. We're talking about hundreds more than 150 buildings that we need the police chief to be working on . In the next 50 years, we want to be in a place where the system is complete. Have infrastructure that is safe to support that because it's not in 2025, it's not until 2025, it's not the building from 1910. It's basically just that. It doesn't mean we can't have schools, better schools. It happens all the time. It's just the system. The goal is generally to move, to move
035forward. You could do a big renovation and all that, yes, sure, but it limits you quite a bit in the corridors, the ways the seeds of how they are, but that doesn't mean it's one thing or the other, but as a system we continue to operate with very old buildings everywhere. That does affect it. That's generally speaking. It's the disruption part, as the person in front of you said. I think it's something we have to work on to move forward. If we get to that point , I'm not going to present something that doesn't work. We're not going to do that. Perhaps you can clarify so that we can understand it better, more broadly. Consolidation began to happen with the budget deficit and in the process we were doing development planning and can tell you
036what I'm getting at, can you tell us that finishing one building, moving the school, finishing another building, moving the school again is cost-effective and meets the goals. It fulfills the goals we want. Yes. Well, to be clear, there are many factors. You, let's be honest, have the responsibility, the order, the budget challenges, the government, how we should do things, as the impact of last year has been of many challenging decisions. Based on this, nobody wants to be in your shoes right now. That's it, you should know that, because well, for me, what do I have to see in the next 50 years, that's what we're trying to do, we're trying to have a 50-year vision. What we are doing as a system now is that we have to manage the responsibility aspect, the aspect of
037all the situations, the problems we have in the specific areas. Many, many things cause frustration in the community. We also have small schools; we have four that go all the way up to a single high school. If we look at this in 10, 20, 30 years, we will realize that all the damage caused previously will have an impact when we should have addressed the issues and resolved them. Throughout the district, all the programs we have are intended to serve a certain number of people, and the city has grown, and now we have schools that are 14, 15, 21% higher. And by law, the school district must have a certified teacher in each subject. Many of our classrooms now have other teachers. Sometimes we have, for example, subjects that require a teacher, and I'm taking it
038from a program that has the teachers but doesn't have the students. These programs are in a difficult situation and will be worse in a year or two. That's why we're trying to better position these programs for the days to come, for the years to come. These are the things. Otherwise, we cannot see one thing in isolation because we do not have the same solution for everyone. It is very important to talk about this, how we save funds over a period of time, because that is one of the things we contribute to and it is as important as the others. A cost of disruption is different from a cost of perpetuity. So, let's say I can sell properties, I can sell the properties for 20, but what we need to do is reduce costs year after
039year and also hire teachers and have more money for student support. Then there will be disruption. That happens every time we combine schools or build schools. This summer you're going to see more student movement than in the last 144 years because we're building the 2025 program and many in 2023, for example, we had many online and now they're back on campus. This happens all the time in TinD. What we need to think about is the business in 5 or 10 years , because I can't destabilize it in the long term due to initial local disruptions . So you may lose students because of these changes, but the argument is how many students aren't coming to Austin SD right now in the first place. And we know those numbers right now that they are going to
040charter schools or other schools because that's what they are doing . We should have all the resources to ensure that this school has all the support it needs to be a school that performs well, has all the resources, and is strong. And I know you probably want a more precise answer. This works, this doesn't work. But I see everything in general, across all campus centers and all the things that are working together. At the end of the day, we have schools that don't have the resources they need to be successful, and I don't have enough to give. Therefore, this is not a measure, but an instrument for success. It is the construction of the entire organization, all of this put together. Some, independently, require some things at different times than others, and that will reduce
041costs. Yes of course. But we have 20,000,300 more seats than others. institutions. That's just how it is. We have a lot in this, not just in this area. Uh, if we were to go to all the schools that have low student numbers, they would all be in East Austin, but they're not. Okay, here we are on this side. Hello, my name is Marco Parola. I am a parent of students here in Derser and you seem very confident that the new construction at Oxsprings can do this. Because? My question is, why wasn't it part of the initial plan and why did it happen spontaneously at a community meeting on a weekday? And the second part of this question is, was this designed to prevent us, to prevent people from doing what was done? Because that community
042could save Blackshiar. I respectfully say you're sure this can be done, but I haven't seen any evidence that this school can maintain the new construction, can do this again and again. Why not? If you're so confident that this could be done, why wasn't it done at the beginning of the plan? The first thing I'm going to say is, I don't do that. I don't try to think about how the community will respond. No, that's not it. Uh, every time the community is going to perform, I'm going to be there. That's just how I am . This is not who I am. Now, speaking of confidence, my confidence is not that this could work. I think it could work the same way. I do n't necessarily feel like I'm trying to change something I'm not confident
043in. This plan, I thought of this plan that could work from the beginning. So, leave me alone, but I'm confused about what the plan is. The first one was on October 3rd, which was Oak Springs asking Blackshi, that was the plan that I felt very confident that lately we were going to do amazing things at this school. And as I said before, I'm going to explore all the ideas that come up and I'm going to tell you that this idea came up with Reverend Lance at the East Side community meeting. Yes, I understand, but I wasn't with the Blackshi community. Yes, this happens in the city when ideas come and I say, well, yes, well, if this is something we can explore, let's explore it and go for it. And that's exactly what we were
044doing. That's exactly what I told you we were going to be doing right now, reviewing this process together. I saw it both ways, yes I did, but the problem is that I can't move Blackshier to a school that he hasn't historically performed well in. So, from that perspective, it wouldn't work that way. It could work if both went high- performance. Yes, but this, and the fact that I heard for a long time that Blackshier was a building that needed changes, and that this plan should be considered in order to honor what I had known as the historic Blackshier school. to value it in this way. It wasn't until the community told me about this different way of doing things that I took it into consideration. So, this is about listening, and I hope you listen.
045And I'm talking about myself, my family, and my children. I feel like this plan didn't take us into account at all. Yes, this was said by someone other than us. We have another question here, another one there, and another one over there. Hello, thank you so much for being here with us. My husband and I have two children here in Blackshier and we are also fans of Austin SD public education. We know you 're in a very difficult situation and your position right now is one that nobody would want. My question is more of a comment that I want to make, as Jennifer said at the beginning of the meeting, about the community here in Blackshi, and I hope you see the whole community here, including our teachers, our principal, the parents who support the
046neighborhood, and we are here because we want to understand that the community we have is not just the building. And we want Ol Springs to be here, we want to welcome them, to be part of the community, and in 5, 10, 15 years, for Austin and SD to be successful, especially in these neighborhoods that haven't been given much attention on the east side. I think your idea about short-term disruptions versus long-term benefits is valid. I agree with you because I want to, but I want you to consider the disruption that comes in many places from moving a community here. We want him to stay here and move everyone back to another building. How will this have an impact in terms of disruptions in transportation, for example? And then we have to reverse the plan again.
047and how can you serve this community and go back and forth if you have a plan that has been working for a couple of years. We have teachers who are in the classrooms, who already know the students, teachers who are dedicated to their students in the community here, and we want to leave all of that and put it all in a new building. I'm not sure this is just a short-term disruption, but also a longer-term disruption for me, and I think many other members of the community feel the same way . Uh, we want consolidation, we are here and the children don't have resources, the teachers don't have resources. We need to consolidate in order to do this, and we believe it has to be done, but I think it has to be done in
048a considered way, thinking about how these actions will cause disruptions. You say this is short-term, huh, and that it's going to have a better long-term impact. But think about it the other way around. If you don't have this structure, this infrastructure from the beginning in our buildings and everything, everything we're going to do to minimize this disruption is going to have a long-term cost effect for up to 30 years. Yes, yes, I'm very grateful that this is real. We appreciate your feedback and we are really trying our best. Nobody, no one , we are all trying our best . So I think my overall answer to this is that we have evidence that we can do many things when we work together. For me, I'm here right now to make sure everything is in order
049at MCSC and the things that happen at OSTIN SD. That's why the ideas that have been brought to us have worked. We have consolidated schools and combined schools and brought from one place to another, and each generation is indeed a disruption. It's something we can work on together. I think so . And I've seen how it happens, it's happening today, and there are schools that are in this situation right now. It is important that we have all the staff, the directors on board to ensure that it is executed, executed according to plan. I think all of this needs to be taken into consideration, and it's something we take seriously in some cases. We have to do it and prove that we can do it. And in this way I'm going to return to the work
050team and we're going to talk about it because I think we should see if we continue with this step, if not, if it's not recommendations, if it is, but I want to speak honestly. We have four schools now that are far apart and they're going to be combined and they're going to achieve it. It can be done. I think it can be done. And we need to reassess whether it can be done here, but we have data that suggests it can . I have no doubt that it is being achieved. It's something that needs to be done with the community to change things, to see if it's something that has worked in the past. We have another question. My name is Mike Corinthian. I have a father, I have a son here like many of
051us. Thank you for being here. And it's also something we try to be here, but Blackar, as you can see, is a community of teachers, educators, support team, and parents for the support that we give to our children. I know we're talking about the cultural aspect. of this building which is a but I think you should consider how, where this building is located and how long it has been here. There are people here who are part of the family, who have been in this institution for 30 to 40 years, they live in this neighborhood or walk here, they have ties, they have access to the growth of the program, the support of the levels they are giving, but also of the local institutions here near the historic university that is here, which is very welcome,
052which is part of this school. So take into consideration the contents of the neighborhood, which is a historic building. And consider how these disruptions can impact not only families, but programs, everything that Blacker Black does. So I don't know how else. How else can I articulate this to make a point? But Black Cheer is a great place, not just because of how long it's been here in this place, but the fact that it's this specific place. Hello, John Flowers. My daughter is here. I have two questions for you. They are more short-term. The first is that the plan came out, the final plan, the official plan came out for consideration, as we were saying, and also certain changes within the school to do a trial run of how we could put it on hold. We've
053had two things that have been affecting them. We also have areas where mats come here as well. All this is happening, or we're going to. That 's a good question. What we want to do, what we are doing, is work with a team. We are seeing the limits of the transformation plan we were doing and are still doing it, we will continue the board has not stopped, but we did something comprehensive about the limits of the system that we wanted to implement. So there are boundary changes that are being used. So what I told the team when we were there, that it made sense, was that the changes need support for the plan for Blacker, and it's also a broad issue; the changes that need to be completed need to be finished by November 20.
054So we're talking about all the changes, and I'm not sure if I can say that I can get to December, if we even have to get to that point . We can't wait any longer. But that's the extension we're working on. The reason why we want to do this. We are trying to balance the entire system. We've been making some changes, but we'd have 96%, 97%, 2%, but what we're looking for instead of students transferring to other schools, what works is the fact that even though we're at 2%. Another thing is that, according to the calculations, it's a permanent infrastructure , not portable ones; we're talking about portable ones that are 32 years old, some that are 67 years old. That's not a short-term solution, so in the short term I want to make sure
055we have the capacity to make it work if we do, without having to use another option. It seems that's another answer, somewhere else . That's for the Oxsprings community that's going to come here, the one that's going to have the most effective change. I've heard that most of their concentration is nearby. They walk and they don't have any transportation, any transport. With these changes, they will be provided with transportation. I want to make sure they have transportation so they can come. I appreciate you saying that, that's one of the things we 've shared about why combining schools should be done there, because students need the community needs the proximity of the school. which students will be less affected or more affected. So that's something we were thinking of exploring in this idea, but we can
056provide transportation so that you can move or relocate, or if we have the authority to do so . We have five more questions. My name, we met back then. I don't know if it's possible. I was running very fast. I'm sorry . If you mentioned I'm sorry. They already talked about this before we came. You mentioned that much of this is an enrollment crisis. You ask me if closing schools like Blacker will have a major impact on navigating the challenges of the complexity of what is happening in the part of this where this school has excelled. When you close a school that has been doing what we need, aren't you afraid that it might discourage more parents from being counterproductive by trying to bring in more people? Yes, I've been in the district for 7
057years, in Austin for over 7 years. I have been here for 7 years, and I have been a superintendent for 3 years . One of the things I've always talked about is how we can raise those numbers that we 're relying on. Because they tell me, "Matías, if that happens, what will the impact be on the budget?" And my answer is, my answer is always first we don't want that to happen. We believe that the district will bring the best, especially. We need it, we have the resources, and that's something that's very important. While the students are discussing the student relocation, we're saying, "Matías, we had a survey about this, and just to be very honest, I also saw a survey from four years ago where they were talking about this happening. I also noticed
058that there are many times when the community leaves or returns to the system; it's not a vertical line. For example, the elementary school is consolidating, and many families are coming back. So, we have seen— we've looked at things, the financial aspects, like the students here. What would that look like? The counterpoint to that, and I'll be honest, is, what are families going to do if we have schools that are excelling, that we didn't have before? So, students who lived nearby, who chose not to be nearby. And why is that? One reason is that the schools aren't identified as excelling. We don't know how good the school is, or what's happening there, so they ca n't see it to make that decision, and it's Understandable. So if we can have the resources to make sure that
059every student, and that we have the answer, and that we're already talking about, then you would expect that several will be back. Martin now has access to Killin. Some aren't choosing to go to Martin. I would expect that they would have the same access to Killin. So, like everyone, when we have like 70,700 students who come and choose, I want to make sure that we can attract the families. If we talk about it, if we vocalize it when we're here, but in everything , I'm not able to, we can't support everything. It's the... But if we do it right, we would have stronger schools and more successful students. Again, the challenges we have are all those 2,000 students who no longer have to do what they had to do. We lost 200,000 students from families
060who didn't migrate to Austin, who then decided to leave. That's a very, very large number that is part of these numbers. There are many things that are happening with things that we have to work on. If you You'd say, if you had told me last year that we were going to see this, I wouldn't have believed it, not until that moment. But with the federal government, the immigration changes, so it's a big response. We're reviewing it, we're monitoring it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but we are improving our system so that more families can come to Austin. I don't know if that's your answer. That's a very honest answer. I want to review, we're 15 minutes from the end, but since you started a little bit, let's add 10 more minutes, so I'm going
061to continue with you. First, I'd like you to come to our 150th anniversary at our school . Please come and celebrate with us. And I'd also like to talk about the identity of this school. We have great teachers here. Congratulations. We 're also next to killing. I'm very proud. We have little brothers, we have little sisters who sometimes come and take their students. So they come for His siblings, and that's something too. We're right next to the Cooper Library. That's given our community the space for our parents to be working-class parents. So please come and look at our school. So second, I'll say it . We've been waiting for the time. We haven't been told not to complain, but our schools are complaining. We're seeing schools doing fundraisers. Our school doesn't have the time to
062make these changes. We're going to welcome it with open arms. Our teachers need to be ready. We need a plan, and we're going to be successful with it because I believe in our leadership, I believe in our teachers, and I believe in our community, but we can't do it if they keep changing the plan. I want to be very clear, so no, that's not how it works. No, that's not who I am, just no. There are many voices all over the city of Austin. Our board and I are committed to staying true to who we are and being diligent with the work. Because on Friday, where we have the documents, you're going to see folders, folders of how the community is advocating. So I want to be very clear that that's not part of the
063two numbers. When we, when I'm 100% committed to doing exactly what I said, I need to listen, I need every idea completely vetoed, every plan with the limitations of the state of Texas when it comes to problematic movements, the foundations of why all of those things, because we can make progress. But the ones that are more difficult are those changes to the community's number limit. It's that in the balance of enrollments, that's a factor that's contributing to the closures, and there are schools, not all of them have the same kind of voice. That's not who the board is. I don't know who I am, if we have to have a conversation about all the things I could share with everyone, about how we're sustaining ourselves. We can have that conversation, but I'm not going to
064allow that to be, but that's who I am. It's not the administration, it's not our board. I do n't know what else to say. This is what it is. I want to make sure I'm listening to the voice of the community. This can be done in many other ways. It's been done in other parts of the state very successfully. I love the school district, I love our community, I love being here. You are here. I want to listen, and I want to improve, and I believe that the voice is what we need to hear, and that's what it is. And we're going to continue. We're going to continue with the consolidation plan. I'm not going to let my time as superintendent go to waste. The end of the day is that if we can do
065something right, if we can look back 20 years, we're going to have a great impact. And I never would have thought we'd be here. Hello. I was debating whether to ask the question or not, but I want to share a little bit. So, I grew up in this community, and I'm from this community. My mom was here, she was here at Bill, she also went to Houston Tilson and graduated from there. And the same with my dad. And the reason my mom graduated was, in a way, because there wasn't another option until the schools were integrated and that she was able to be in another school. And then she would talk about the schools we were integrating. My grandfather bought this property where I live now in 1930. When he bought this location, my father
066died a few years ago, and the whole community said it was going to be a moral. I think it was led by Kein and others. And it's a moral that my father and others put in place in the community. And as an educator in this community, what my mother did was make sure that every child in this community had an alternative to everything else that was going on around them. So, she did tutoring, and she also brought my father into the community. Now, what I do is make sure that everyone in this community has access and I give them the support they need, and that's what my organization does because now I do what I saw my parents do, not because they had a choice, but because they had to . So, when I see
067the community, I'm happy to see the community as it is now and to have the opportunity to meet all these people, but it was very different before when I was a child. It looks very different. Thanks to the fact that I have great neighbors, our block is very different from the rest of ours because we hang out and sometimes I go over. But I mean, I spend a lot of time in Old Springs and I understand, seeing into their homes, that the demographics have changed a bit. So I go over for the kids to make sure they have the same kind of options that I was given because my mother and others sacrificed. And when we talk about consolidation, I do n't want it to be us versus them that we 're talking about. This
068is really all about us coming together because it's about us as people trying to survive and making sure we do better and have opportunities to succeed and all the good things that come from this community. So, having said that, I think one of the most important things, and here's my question, is for us to have information from one another, from each other, but to build relationships, because we have to make some decisions that if we're not careful and we make decisions without being well- informed, without knowing how we impact people—I'm not just talking about the people of Uprings, but also of Here. What I want to propose and ask the superintendent is, thank you for everything. And would it be possible for us to have a meeting of Old Springs and Blacker, of both communities,
069so that we can understand each other, learn from each other, and come to a solution to this issue with all of this? Because this isn't a solution from beyond, it's from here, from us, it's always about East Austin. East Austin has a very rich history about how we can't have it against each other, because if we did, we wouldn't be who we are now. No, we wouldn't see ourselves as we truly are. Houston Tilson is right across the street, and they 're trying to embrace this whole community and are trying to take a step toward success for Black and Brown students. What we're trying to talk about now is a group of Black and Brown students who feel displaced because they were promised something new and rarely have anything. What we want to do is
070figure out how to bring people together and listen to everyone's voice. My question for you is, would you allow us to give ourselves the space for that to happen? So that we As a community, we can do this, and what's going to happen is... I don't want this to be done by just one group of people. I'm not just listening to Black people, but—and obviously I grew up on this Black side—I hang out a lot with people from the other side, from the next block. What I mean is, if there isn't a conversation, how are they going to feel? How are they going to take it? How are they going to know what it's going to be like? So, Superintendent, back to my question: Can we all get together? Well, yes, I think I'm committed
071to getting the community together to inform and to determine what the best solution is. But let's be honest about what I can do, what I can't do, and we've had that conversation before. The community can do this, this, this. Yes, there are things I can support and things I can't. And these are the reasons why. Absolutely. If they give us the space and facilitate the meeting, we can get together. I'm happy to participate, and I want the upcoming vote to be the first step. Let 's be the answer for this transformation plan and see what's included, what's not included, but really putting this plan to work. And what I mean is, starting with Oak Springs coming to Blackshi, and we're going to have those conversations afterward. I told my son I was going to let
072you know this. We are a Blacker community this year. We've been this community for 12 weeks due to a variety of circumstances. This is my son's third school. When he walked into this building the first time, yes, the way he lit up was incredible. There's light in these walls, and someone with a lot of effort accomplished this. My son wants you to know that this building, this little building, the walls, the art on the walls, everything makes him feel safe. And he's never been in a school with so excited and so engaged and so ready to come back the next day. Hi, I'm Aby Brown. My daughter is in PR here. My other two children are Isabela and the other one was at Brook Elementary. I 'm a teacher at McAlum High School, and I'm
073in the I've been to the meetings, we've sat together, and I keep hearing empty chairs, empty chairs, empty chairs for all of this. These are the communities, and I have a couple of observations, maybe not questions as such. One is, we've talked before about how kids return to school, they tend to return to a high school, they find a place, but I did a social experiment at my house because, well, my daughter is in preschool, and Zavala doesn't have after-school care. So, when a new community was absorbed and they told us it was coming to East Side, all of this, which didn't happen, and we had a 4-year-old who couldn't stay because we didn't have after-school care. All these programs, all of this, but if we don't recruit in the early preschool years, from pre-kindergarten
074onward, we're not helping the future of filling these seats and the financial problems that come with such a beautiful community. We've seen two wonderful communities, and I can tell you that my daughter thinks she could stay in Blacker all through elementary school because she 's part of this community. She does n't anymore. AustinD just needs to commit more to families so they stay in their community, to build within their community so they no longer have to move from one district to another or to other communities for their education, so they stay where they are in their communities. It helps us build and grow our enrollments from the early ages so they fall in love with their schools, and we're missing this segment of the population. And I would like to say that—I know we're talking
075about high school— but I think we need to listen to our PRK program. We have many areas in our program, and we saw that the biggest disruption is in fifth and sixth grade because our students in middle schools support us in a way that is balanced and ensures that we meet our needs: transition now, transition later. This is how we ensure that the children who move into the system, because once they find a loving school that welcomes them even before kindergarten, they stay with us, and I agree with that. We need to organize our enrollment platform in a certain way, but I want to say that one of these battles, and it's a big conversation we've had in The last few years it was urgent, urgent, urgent, urgent. We worked on the importance of sustaining
076this, and it's been difficult because of all these big things he's budgeted, the work on this, all these massive resources that we have to maintain. Our directors, myself, and all the teams are exactly where we need to go. I also want to say that the denominator, the total number of students in Austin, has changed. Yes, we're capturing students; the number has increased, but the number of students at Austin is what has changed. We have more density . We have studios, we have one- and two-bedroom studios. Now it's not what we saw before; it's not happening the way it used to. Charter schools are closing, other districts that had more money are closing, and the level of capture is different. Now we're trying to do the best job possible. The scenario for me is an area
077of total focus, and we can put a lot of energy into that space because it's what we should be doing in the last few months, and that's the intention, and that's the goal. And that we work together and that we continue together, and I can't mention this. Everything is difficult. We can do amazing things together, and we have to move toward the future. Good evening, Mr. Matias. Oh, I'm a custodian at this school. I'm very proud to be here. I've been here for over nine years, and all the kids are a family. They're happy when they're here. We are a family, and the only thing I've heard from all the parents is that they don't want us to stop because we're a family. We're just repeating the question that the lady asked. For those who
078know me, I'm going to tell you, and I'm going to keep telling you, every single person in the Austin district contributes to making everything run smoothly. I mean, our custodians, the bus drivers, and all the workers are part of the school system. You keep our students safe, and especially at the larger schools, our cafeteria workers— 56% of the students know 56% of the students— and when the bus drivers have a tough day, speaking here of Blacker, it's exactly what we want. We love it, we love each other very much, we're happy. that they feel this. That's why that's what The Blacksha does, a family. Thank you. Hello, I'm Rachel here from Blackar. I appreciate you taking the time to come and talk with us. I appreciate the work the district is doing, following through with
079the plan, which is very ambitious, right? We agree with those goals and the quick and decisive actions, and they really are huge, right? We know it 's very difficult, especially for people who want to have a say. Change is hard, so sometimes we want it to be quick. Our anxiety is the possibility that in a few years, one of the schools might move. It's like a community being wiped out and there being changes. We often hear about these schools moving from one place to another. We know it can happen, right? Some of our families here are here because they don't want to send their children in a way that makes them anxious about so much change. We've been focused on talking, on being united as families, and I think that every year, every month that
080there's this uncertainty, I could choose some other things, right? Instead of staying Here. We feel quite confident about this. We know this plan is challenging. I see that you are very confident in our teachers, in our leadership, that we will succeed. But this cloud that hangs over us, right? About these future moves. This school is old, very old, because you know that everything that is happening is an investment in our school. Talking about our playgrounds, these investments that the school has put into this school. One of the things I appreciated about the original plan was that it was very comprehensive, very holistic. If the decision that the Oxpren location ... had the transformation plan when you were doing this, it would look different, right? It's hard to think. Yes. Black is moving to Oxpren. How
081is this plan going to start? For example, the school, if it is rebuilt, I know that was a goal, right? We are talking about it operating efficiently with larger schools, right? And arts programs for our community are very important and successful because we are working on... we are working to bring in people and bring people from other districts too. Uh, that wasn't exactly my question, but I really wanted to say thanks for the work. We appreciate you taking the time to talk with us and listen to all our questions, and our community is excited to welcome you to Springs, but after having these conversations, right? How do we get our equipment back? our games, our battles, and we're starting to build these relationships. I have a comment regarding these scores, specifically point three concerning Black,
082where the school received a C. We are closing the gap by 2024. Your development, development, development, uh, development, which received an F. We are closing the gap. I'm going to 2025. Sorry. No need, I want you to answer. No, she has the numbers for 2025. Development, economic development. We are closing the gap. So my question is, because before I want to say, I came to Oxprens in third grade because since kindergarten we stayed at the school that's over there by the bridge between Plazan Valley. We moved to Angelina, so I was here in Blackchad for 2 years, so you're right, there's a lot of history in this school, but it wasn't just me, Placter, who came here, my mom and my grandma too, who was in Gregory Town. So there's a lot of history here.
083My grandmother was born in 1939. There's a lot of history. When I read the rating it's because you are bringing or sprinting here and here the third grade are having a disadvantage with Blackirt. My question is, how am I trying to see how we're doing? We are really trying to raise academic grades. I think you have a good heart, I think you're a good person, I think you want to do something good, but I 'm not understanding if you're going to bring them in, if they're going to consolidate what they have, and what will happen to the resources? Because I would expect schools to go from a C to an F, but not from an F to a D, from a C to an A, but not down. So I have one more thing because
084Burnet Weby made a start. You ca n't make a recommendation in those Oxprens because again they don't know what their school is going to be like. You can make a start too. Yes. Last question first, there are multiple things we're trying to deal with at the same time. The responsibility, the patterns, the transfer policies, the reality of it all is that there are empty seats in that area and we could start, or Springs, we could... a start, for those who don't know, is having a new principal, having the ability to move the school, move the school from a D to a B. The teachers need to be more... they need to be more committed. They should start from a plan that says we're going to start over. So you want to have three or four
085years of experience. We have your developments, your performance developments must be better or you have to be certified with the bar. One thing we're doing is seeing who can stay because the state can't allow us to do other things, because we would also have to hire staff who can do that. That can be done. Yes, it can be done. The challenge we face is that when we look at a comprehensive plan across the entire system , we still have empty seats. We would have different challenges, so we could do that, but we would still have empty seats. We can't give them exactly what they need if the seats aren't there. So, regarding academic performance, there are many things that are contributing to the changes in schools. You know, the changes in 2021, 2022, and 2023
086saw a decline in school rankings due to how the B schools changed from F to F. There are many things. 23, 24 and 25. We were looking at what we can do, but first we need to see and make sure that the schools have the resources they need. Make sure that they have instructional materials. We are going to bring the student population together to give them more support, to be able to build a partnership with the principal, to be able to give them more support, to be able to work with everyone as a community, to be able to ask what is needed so that we can have the best attendance in the classrooms. As we were sharing, we make these changes, we can allocate these funds, the rigor of the way we are doing it
087is that we are doing evaluations every year taking very expensive things so that at the end of the day we have these expectations for our students, we have high expectations and that we can better reach the schools in the school district and we see, we have a dinner, we see the data and we realize that once we review it, the rigor of each school, whether A or B, the material is very different. So that kind of autonomy tells us that we've reached a point where we're just reading, we're lowering expectations to reach the students' ability instead of doing what's needed, interventions, support to reach the level we need to reach. This is important to me because from the system we have been here, we have been doing that. The problem is that when you're creating
088that foundation, you're taking away autonomy from our schools. Autonomy is something many schools like to have. So we're building on things that are already happening in Blackip. We are working with these communities, with the facilities, with the staff of what we are, this is moving. There is no doubt in my mind. I'm not going to be part of a system that isn't moving in the direction we need. This is how it's developing. The other thing that has helped us a lot is that we have joined together in a technical way and have had observations in the schools. So in recent years we have changed how we support infrastructure. Our teachers have assistance. What happens here, what has happened is that the teachers arrive all at once, we take them to the central office and we
089give them the development and we go and give them instructions and we give them the study plan. And what we're saying is that the timely development in the present time what we're seeing is that they need support and that has created a big impact on our system. Now, as a director, what you could tell them is that we are being more intentional. Now our directors are the ones giving the instructions, and now what we're looking at is what I can do to make this student successful, and that's going to look like that because it wasn't like that 2 years ago. It's been a change that's been working, that's working, and it's working very well, and we're going to build on that again. I went back to the Lhouse to observe what we're doing. So what
090we're doing is having a school, having what is a lighthouse or beacon so they can observe, and it's not the teachers, it's the principal. They are going to have a conversation. We're going to talk and go back to our own schools and talk about the success of why we're seeing these numbers moving up, and it's going to be faster if we have higher numbers because my argument is that we could have schools that are succeeding in the classroom and it's something we 're seeing. So we need to demonstrate growth. We have to show that they are driving growth, regardless of whether they are at the bottom or not, so they can keep moving up. Our plan has been different from what we have done in the last two years. I'm the director, Jennifer and others
091know much better than I do about this school of numbers, but we're sure, I'm very sure. People ask me, "Do you think this plan will work for the school district?" Yes, it will work because of the responsibility, the budget, the resources, so I think it will take us in the right direction. We still have to do the city limits. It's something we're going to do. We're already past our allotted time, so I want to respect everyone's wishes so they can arrive at bedtime or dinnertime. You said quite a lot. I think it's fine. Yes, thanks. Thank you all, and we appreciate it. Yeah.