Teachers and other staff in the Houston Independent school district (HISD), which serves the fourth most populous city in the US, are calling for the state-appointed superintendent of the district to be removed amid a surge in resignations of employees, cuts to libraries and implementation of rigid school-reform curriculum.
The Republican governor, Greg Abbott, announced last year that the state of Texas would take control over HISD in June 2023 and replace democratically elected school board members with state-appointed ones. The move was criticized as part of Abbott’s agenda of expanding charter schools in Texas, as one of his legislative priorities – pushing a bill to expand vouchers for charter schools – failed to garner enough support to pass in 2023.
