Each year, thousands of students apply for a seat at one of the top performing magnet high schools in the Houston Independent School District (HISD) through an open-enrollment lottery system. Regardless of their background, all district applicants have the same chance of being admitted to these elite schools if they meet the criteria for their specialized programs, including Houston’s storied Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (HSPVA).
But that opportunity could end under a proposal to turn seven of Houston ISD’s top public high schools into private partnerships under Senate Bill 1882—a state law that offers districts incentives to hand over public school campuses to private operators, including nonprofits, charter school operators, or higher education institutions.
On October 31, HISD announced that four of the district’s top performing magnet high schools—Challenge Early College High School, Energy Institute High School, Houston Academy for International Studies, and HSPVA—are moving forward with the district’s offer for “expanded flexibility and innovation opportunities” by creating a SB 1882 partnership by the 2026-27 school year. Three other top-performing magnet high schools—Carnegie Vanguard High School, DeBakey High School for Health Professions, and Eastwood Academy—are still evaluating the possibility.
