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Katy Independent School District, Texas
| Katy Independent School District |
|---|
 |
| Katy, Texas |
| District details |
| Superintendent: Lance Hindt |
| # of school board members: 7 |
| Website: Link |
Katy Independent School District is a school district in Texas that serves parts of Harris County, Fort Bend County and Waller County. The district was the eighth-largest school district in the state in the 2014-2015 school year and served 70,330 students.[1] The district had an operating budget of $650.9 million during the 2012-2013 school year.[2]
About the district
The Katy Independent School District is located in the city of Katy in eastern Texas. The city lies in Harris, Fort Bend, and Waller counties. Katy was home to an estimated 16,158 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[3]
Demographics
The city of Katy outperformed Texas as a whole in terms of higher education achievement between 2011 and 2015. The United States Census Bureau found that 33.6 percent of city residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 27.6 percent of state residents. The median household income in the city during the that time period was $70,526, compared to $53,207 for the entire state. The poverty rate in the city was 8.4 percent, while it was 15.9 percent statewide.[3]
| Racial Demographics, 2010[3] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race | Katy (%) | Texas (%) |
| White | 80.1 | 70.4 |
| Black or African American | 5.3 | 11.8 |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.6 | 0.7 |
| Asian | 1.5 | 3.8 |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| Two or More Races | 3.0 | 2.7 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 29.0 | 37.6 |
Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Superintendent
 |
This information is updated as we become aware of changes. Please contact us with any updates. |
The superintendent of Katy Independent School District is Lance Hindt. His five-year appointment took effect on August 1, 2016.[4] Hindt previously served as the superintendent of Stafford Municipal School District and Allen Independent School District.[5]
Past superintendents
Alton Frailey
Alton Frailey was the district's superintendent from 2007 to 2016. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in education from Stephen F. Austin State University. Frailey previously served as the superintendent of DeSoto Independent School District and Cincinnati Public Schools.[6]
School board elections
The Katy ISD board of trustees consists of seven members who are elected to three-year terms. While candidates run for specific positions on the ballot, they represent the entire district.[7]
| Katy ISD board of trustees | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Member | Position # | Term Ends | |
| Donald Keller Jr. | Position 1 | 2022 | |
| Lance Redmon | Position 2 | 2022 | |
| Ashley Vann | Position 3 | 2020 | |
| Courtney Doyle | Position 4 | 2020 | |
| William Lacy | Position 5 | 2020 | |
| Susan Gesoff | Position 6 | 2021 | |
| Dawn Champagne | Position 7 | 2021 | |
| |
This officeholder information was last updated on May 22, 2019. Please contact us with any updates. | |
Election dates
- See also: 2014 elections, 2015 elections, 2016 elections, 2017 elections, 2018 elections, and 2019 elections
Members of the Katy ISD board of trustees are elected by district to three-year terms on a staggered basis every year in May. Three seats were up for election in 2017, and two seats were up for election in 2018. Two seats were up for election in 2019.
Public participation in board meetings
The Katy ISD board of trustees maintains the following policy regarding public participation in board meetings:
| “ |
As long as the requirements of the Open Meetings Act are satisfied and the right of citizens to apply to the Board for redress of their grievances is not abridged, the Board need not provide a public forum for every citizen wishing to express an opinion on a matter. Reasonable restraints on the number, length, and frequency of presentations are permissible. The Board may limit the number of persons it will hear on a particular subject and the frequency with which they may appear, so long as the regulation does not abridge constitutionally guaranteed rights of freedom of speech and to petition nor unfairly discriminate among views seeking expression.[8] |
” |
| —Katy ISD board of trustees (2011)[9] | ||
Budget
From 1993 to 2013, the Katy Independent School District had an average of $340,387,381 in revenue and $381,910,667 in expenditures, according to the United States Census Bureau's survey of school system finances. The district had a yearly average of $614,986,048 in outstanding debt. The district retired $55,328,952 of its debt and issued $108,322,048 in new debt each year on average.[10]
Revenue
The table below separates the district's revenue into the three sources identified by the agency: local, state, and federal.
| Revenue by Source | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fiscal Year |
Local | State | Federal | Revenue Total | |||||||
| Total | % of Revenue | Total | % of Revenue | Total | % of Revenue | ||||||
| Click [show] on the right to display the revenue data for prior years. | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | $72,588,000 | 65.09% | $36,552,000 | 32.78% | $2,371,000 | 2.13% | $111,511,000 | ||||
| 1994 | $75,068,000 | 63.49% | $40,431,000 | 34.20% | $2,733,000 | 2.31% | $118,232,000 | ||||
| 1995 | $84,370,000 | 65.44% | $41,199,000 | 31.96% | $3,351,000 | 2.60% | $128,920,000 | ||||
| 1996 | $92,588,000 | 62.06% | $52,895,000 | 35.46% | $3,703,000 | 2.48% | $149,186,000 | ||||
| 1997 | $99,671,000 | 62.63% | $55,778,000 | 35.05% | $3,697,000 | 2.32% | $159,146,000 | ||||
| 1998 | $108,177,000 | 62.84% | $60,545,000 | 35.17% | $3,412,000 | 1.98% | $172,134,000 | ||||
| 1999 | $118,518,000 | 63.59% | $63,908,000 | 34.29% | $3,960,000 | 2.12% | $186,386,000 | ||||
| 2000 | $129,424,000 | 58.27% | $87,032,000 | 39.18% | $5,666,000 | 2.55% | $222,122,000 | ||||
| 2001 | $165,033,000 | 63.41% | $88,706,000 | 34.08% | $6,515,000 | 2.50% | $260,254,000 | ||||
| 2002 | $182,602,000 | 62.86% | $99,809,000 | 34.36% | $8,068,000 | 2.78% | $290,479,000 | ||||
| 2003 | $200,543,000 | 63.74% | $104,341,000 | 33.17% | $9,727,000 | 3.09% | $314,611,000 | ||||
| 2004 | $222,784,000 | 65.43% | $105,837,000 | 31.08% | $11,884,000 | 3.49% | $340,505,000 | ||||
| 2005 | $249,317,000 | 67.06% | $108,936,000 | 29.30% | $13,544,000 | 3.64% | $371,797,000 | ||||
| 2006 | $271,727,000 | 65.60% | $120,600,000 | 29.11% | $21,900,000 | 5.29% | $414,227,000 | ||||
| 2007 | $279,113,000 | 60.38% | $166,614,000 | 36.04% | $16,553,000 | 3.58% | $462,280,000 | ||||
| 2008 | $269,174,000 | 52.95% | $218,887,000 | 43.06% | $20,328,000 | 4.00% | $508,389,000 | ||||
| 2009 | $301,462,000 | 55.95% | $212,300,000 | 39.40% | $25,014,000 | 4.64% | $538,776,000 | ||||
| 2010 | $325,405,000 | 56.24% | $199,095,000 | 34.41% | $54,058,000 | 9.34% | $578,558,000 |
| 2011 | $328,030,000 | 54.76% | $214,508,000 | 35.81% | $56,482,000 | 9.43% | $599,020,000 |
| 2012 | $343,092,000 | 58.09% | $205,720,000 | 34.83% | $41,823,000 | 7.08% | $590,635,000 |
| 2013 | $362,682,000 | 57.48% | $229,009,000 | 36.29% | $39,276,000 | 6.22% | $630,967,000 |
| Avg. | $203,874,667 | 61.30% | $119,652,476 | 34.72% | $16,860,238 | 3.98% | $340,387,381 |
Expenditures
The table below separates the district's expenditures into five categories identified by the agency:
- Instruction: operation expenditures, state payments on behalf of the district for instruction and benefits, and retirement system transfers
- Support Services: support services, food services, and retirement system transfers for support service staff
- Capital Spending: capital outlay expenditures (i.e., construction, land or facilities purchases, and equipment purchases)
- Debt & Gov. Payments: payments to state and local governments and interest on school system debt
- Other: all other non-K-12 programs, except food services
| Expenditures by Category | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fiscal Year |
Instruction | Support Services | Capital Spending | Debt & Gov. Payments | Other | Budget Total | |||||
| Total | % of Budget | Total | % of Budget | Total | % of Budget | Total | % of Budget | Total | % of Budget | ||
| Click [show] on the right to display the expenditure data for prior years. | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | $53,305,000 | 46.72% | $35,297,000 | 30.94% | $17,740,000 | 15.55% | $7,426,000 | 6.51% | $326,000 | 0.29% | $114,094,000 |
| 1994 | $56,613,000 | 49.50% | $43,469,000 | 38.00% | $7,198,000 | 6.29% | $6,756,000 | 5.91% | $342,000 | 0.30% | $114,378,000 |
| 1995 | $64,013,000 | 46.54% | $39,198,000 | 28.50% | $26,268,000 | 19.10% | $7,738,000 | 5.63% | $334,000 | 0.24% | $137,551,000 |
| 1996 | $70,843,000 | 46.33% | $41,210,000 | 26.95% | $32,159,000 | 21.03% | $8,266,000 | 5.41% | $446,000 | 0.29% | $152,924,000 |
| 1997 | $75,332,000 | 45.75% | $45,282,000 | 27.50% | $35,861,000 | 21.78% | $7,662,000 | 4.65% | $520,000 | 0.32% | $164,657,000 |
| 1998 | $79,769,000 | 40.20% | $49,853,000 | 25.13% | $56,031,000 | 28.24% | $12,370,000 | 6.23% | $384,000 | 0.19% | $198,407,000 |
| 1999 | $96,460,000 | 44.28% | $57,870,000 | 26.56% | $44,717,000 | 20.53% | $18,150,000 | 8.33% | $651,000 | 0.30% | $217,848,000 |
| 2000 | $120,754,000 | 45.29% | $69,979,000 | 26.25% | $56,438,000 | 21.17% | $18,729,000 | 7.03% | $700,000 | 0.26% | $266,600,000 |
| 2001 | $133,131,000 | 40.12% | $77,883,000 | 23.47% | $102,587,000 | 30.91% | $17,491,000 | 5.27% | $765,000 | 0.23% | $331,857,000 |
| 2002 | $152,326,000 | 43.28% | $84,411,000 | 23.98% | $93,907,000 | 26.68% | $20,439,000 | 5.81% | $904,000 | 0.26% | $351,987,000 |
| 2003 | $170,677,000 | 38.49% | $94,606,000 | 21.34% | $151,230,000 | 34.11% | $25,577,000 | 5.77% | $1,334,000 | 0.30% | $443,424,000 |
| 2004 | $176,079,000 | 37.07% | $103,306,000 | 21.75% | $158,098,000 | 33.28% | $36,183,000 | 7.62% | $1,382,000 | 0.29% | $475,048,000 |
| 2005 | $188,781,000 | 45.35% | $113,755,000 | 27.33% | $74,331,000 | 17.86% | $38,071,000 | 9.15% | $1,335,000 | 0.32% | $416,273,000 |
| 2006 | $217,258,000 | 51.60% | $124,413,000 | 29.55% | $39,746,000 | 9.44% | $38,138,000 | 9.06% | $1,523,000 | 0.36% | $421,078,000 |
| 2007 | $223,922,000 | 46.48% | $141,458,000 | 29.36% | $73,166,000 | 15.19% | $41,562,000 | 8.63% | $1,664,000 | 0.35% | $481,772,000 |
| 2008 | $257,694,000 | 39.38% | $155,724,000 | 23.79% | $194,298,000 | 29.69% | $44,944,000 | 6.87% | $1,792,000 | 0.27% | $654,452,000 |
| 2009 | $274,143,000 | 51.58% | $160,624,000 | 30.22% | $44,628,000 | 8.40% | $50,352,000 | 9.47% | $1,710,000 | 0.32% | $531,457,000 |
| 2010 | $297,910,000 | 55.53% | $171,833,000 | 32.03% | $17,828,000 | 3.32% | $47,219,000 | 8.80% | $1,703,000 | 0.32% | $536,493,000 |
| 2011 | $308,873,000 | 48.18% | $179,150,000 | 27.94% | $94,306,000 | 14.71% | $57,116,000 | 8.91% | $1,672,000 | 0.26% | $641,117,000 |
| 2012 | $293,139,000 | 40.84% | $170,346,000 | 23.73% | $202,321,000 | 28.19% | $50,163,000 | 6.99% | $1,746,000 | 0.24% | $717,715,000 |
| 2013 | $315,325,000 | 48.44% | $178,407,000 | 27.41% | $100,120,000 | 15.38% | $55,662,000 | 8.55% | $1,478,000 | 0.23% | $650,992,000 |
| Avg. | $172,683,190 | 45.28% | $101,813,048 | 27.22% | $77,284,667 | 20.04% | $29,048,286 | 7.17% | $1,081,476 | 0.28% | $381,910,667 |
Debt
The table below shows the amount of debt retired, issued, and outstanding in the district for each year.
| Debt | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiscal Year |
Retired | Issued | Outstanding |
| Click [show] on the right to display the debt data for prior years. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | $29,910,000 | $24,720,000 | $116,300,000 |
| 1994 | $6,940,000 | $20,000,000 | $129,360,000 |
| 1995 | $30,585,000 | $29,360,000 | $128,135,000 |
| 1996 | $9,785,000 | $30,000,000 | $148,350,000 |
| 1997 | $10,960,000 | $58,000,000 | $195,890,000 |
| 1998 | $24,698,000 | $45,695,000 | $216,887,000 |
| 1999 | $31,289,000 | $76,685,000 | $269,047,000 |
| 2000 | $6,764,000 | $65,000,000 | $339,810,000 |
| 2001 | $19,673,000 | $124,998,000 | $445,436,000 |
| 2002 | $25,847,000 | $71,140,000 | $487,481,000 |
| 2003 | $47,079,000 | $247,490,000 | $693,655,000 |
| 2004 | $27,030,000 | $150,120,000 | $818,333,000 |
| 2005 | $75,359,000 | $52,740,000 | $799,195,000 |
| 2006 | $25,880,000 | $0 | $769,433,000 |
| 2007 | $257,801,000 | $324,335,000 | $836,313,000 |
| 2008 | $102,210,000 | $246,785,000 | $986,867,000 |
| 2009 | $31,810,000 | $24,315,000 | $981,352,000 |
| 2010 | $112,128,000 | $80,535,000 | $950,265,000 |
| 2011 | $37,294,000 | $202,690,000 | $1,120,144,000 |
| 2012 | $213,611,000 | $297,155,000 | $1,206,641,000 |
| 2013 | $35,255,000 | $103,000,000 | $1,275,813,000 |
| Avg. | $55,328,952 | $108,322,048 | $614,986,048 |
Teacher salaries
Teachers in Katy Independent School District earn annual salaries based on years on the job as well as educational achievement. The salary schedule accounts for graduate degrees by providing higher starting salaries and greater potential salaries. The scale is set up using steps, those of which don't necessarily correlate with years of experience. The following table details the salary schedule for the 2013-2014 school year:[11]
| Salary structure | ||
|---|---|---|
| Degree level | Minimum salary ($) | Maximum salary ($) |
| B.A. | 47,000 | 71,502 |
| M.A. | 48,000 | 73,858 |
| Doctorate | 49,000 | 75,144 |
Schools in Katy ISD
Enrollment
Katy Independent School District serves 60,803 students. Katy Independent School District does not publicly archive enrollment data.[12]
District schools
Katy Independent School District operates 60 schools listed below in alphabetical order:[13]
| Katy Independent School District Schools | ||
|---|---|---|
| School Name | ||
| Alexander Elementary School | ||
| Bear Creek Elementary School | ||
| Beck Junior High School | ||
| Beckendorff Junior High School | ||
| Cardiff Junior High School | ||
| Cimarron Elementary School | ||
| Cinco Ranch High School | ||
| Cinco Ranch Junior High School | ||
| Creech Elementary School | ||
| Exley Elementary School | ||
| Fielder Elementary School | ||
| Franz Elementary School | ||
| Golbow Elementary School | ||
| Griffin Elementary School | ||
| Hayes Elementary School | ||
| Holland Elementary School | ||
| Hutsell Elementary School | ||
| James Randolph Elementary School | ||
| Katy Elementary School | ||
| Katy High School | ||
| Katy Junior High School | ||
| Keiko Davidson Elementary School | ||
| Kilpatrick Elementary School | ||
| King Elementary School | ||
| Mayde Creek Elementary School | ||
| Mayde Creek High School | ||
| Mayde Creek Junior High School | ||
| McDonald Junior High School | ||
| McMeans Junior High School | ||
| McRoberts Elementary School | ||
| Memorial Parkway Elementary School | ||
| Memorial Parkway Junior High School | ||
| Miller Career & Technology Center | ||
| Morton Ranch Elementary School | ||
| Morton Ranch High School | ||
| Morton Ranch Junior High School | ||
| Nottingham Country Elementary School | ||
| Opportunity Awareness Center | ||
| Pattison Elementary School | ||
| Raines High School | ||
| Rhoads Elementary School | ||
| Rylander Elementary School | ||
| Schmalz Elementary School | ||
| Seven Lakes High School | ||
| Seven Lakes Junior High School | ||
| Shafer Elementary School | ||
| Stanley Elementary School | ||
| Stephens Elementary School | ||
| Sundown Elementary School | ||
| Taylor High School | ||
| Tompkins High School | ||
| West Memorial Elementary School | ||
| West Memorial Junior High School | ||
| Williams Elementary School | ||
| Wilson Elementary School | ||
| Winborn Elementary School | ||
| Wolfe Elementary School | ||
| Wolman Elementary School | ||
| WoodCreek Elementary School | ||
| WoodCreek Junior High School | ||
Academic performance
The Texas Education Agency issues an annual accountability report for each school district in the state. This rating determines if district schools fulfill expectations in four categories of educational achievement during a particular school year. The following terms explain these categories:
- Student Achievement: Measures student performance on the annual Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test.
- Student Progress: Measures student performance in reading, math and writing courses at the district level.
- Closing Performance Gaps: Measures year-to-year performance among students in the lowest-performing demographics.
- Postsecondary Readiness: Measures student readiness for college, employment or military service after graduation.
Katy Independent School District received a Met Standard designation on the state's 2013 report. District schools met 100 percent of indicators set forth by state education officials and all four assessment categories. The following table details the district's accountability report during the 2012-2013 school year:[14]
| Performance Index Summary, 2012-2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Points earned | Maximum points | Index score | Target score |
| Student Achievement | 126,835 | 142,249 | 89 | 50 |
| Student Progress | 1,775 | 4,800 | 37 | 21 |
| Closing Performance Gaps | 1,230 | 1,500 | 82 | 50 |
| Postsecondary Readiness | 1,228.8 | 1,400 | 88 | 75 |
Issues
Board declines to join education coalition
In the fall of 2016, Katy ISD board of trustees Sergeant-at-Arms Henry Dibrell teamed up with Fort Bend ISD board of trustees President Kristin Tassin to start an education coalition in order to present a united front when speaking to state legislators about education issues. Though a total of 14 school districts had joined the One Voice for Texas Public Education coalition by April 11, 2017, Katy ISD never joined.[15][16][17][18]
The board was set to vote on joining the coalition in January 2017, but members George Scott and Charles Griffin expressed concerns that they had not heard of the coalition before the vote was scheduled to be taken. When it was revealed that Dibrell had been working to create the coalition for weeks without notifying the board or the district's legislative committee, some board members said Dibrell's actions had been unacceptable. They also took issue with board President Rebecca Fox's apparent approval of Dibrell's actions.[15]
The vote to join the coalition in January 2017 was postponed and then referred to the district's legislative committee. It was scheduled to be voted on at a board meeting in February 2017, but Fox removed the item from the agenda a week prior to the meeting date. Griffin, Scott, and fellow members Courtney Doyle and Ashley Vann expressed their frustration that the board could no longer discuss the coalition since it was no longer on the agenda. Fox said it had been pulled from the agenda due to a letter from the district's PTA.[15][19]
"We have a board member who broke policy, and we have a board president who knew of violations and failed to take actions to correct it," said Griffin at a board meeting on February 28, 2017. "If board members can't follow rules, or the law, how can we expect administration or students to do the same thing?"[19]
At that meeting, board members unanimously voted to dissolve the district's legislative committee and give all power to represent the district's legislative agenda to the superintendent.[15]
On its website, One Voice for Texas Public Education highlighted the state's changing demographics as a reason the school districts came together.
| “ | Forty-nine percent of children in Texas live in low-income families and by 2020, Hispanics will become the largest ethnic group in the state, making up 42 percent of Texans. By 2044, Texas will be a majority Hispanic state. Proposed state regulations, accountability and funding do not support the reality of this changing student population.[8] | ” |
| —One Voice for Texas Public Education (2017)[20] | ||
The coalition also expressed support for three issues: "Making School Finance a Legislative Priority," "Making Uniform Standards and Requirements for All State Funded School Systems a Legislative Priority," and "Making Accountability and Assessment a Legislative Priority." Those issues came from the legislative priorities of the six original school districts who founded the coalition, according to Dibrell.[17][21]
Specifically, members said they would like the state to provide funding for legislative mandates related to education. They also said they opposed programs for school vouchers and that they wanted the Texas Education Agency's A-F accountability ratings to be repealed.[21] The A-F accountability ratings grade districts based on four categories: student achievement, student progress, closing performance gaps, and postsecondary readiness. Districts are also graded on a fifth category that is chosen by the school district.[22]
In December 2016, the Katy ISD board of trustees approved a set of legislative priorities that were proposed by a committee led by Dibrell. Those priorities matched the coalition's.[19]
Scott said he did not take issue with the coalition itself, but how Dibrell handled the district's involvement with it. “Ninety-nine percent of this has occurred outside the public’s view,” said Scott. “If [Dibrell] had come to the board and said I want us to join with six other school districts and I would like this to go through our legislative committee and there was a vote and it was approved by the board then I would not be raising these issues on governance."[23]
Dibrell said he had done nothing wrong. "What law has been broken?" Dibrell said. "If a law has been broken, then that means every one of these school districts has also broken the law. I've done nothing wrong. I'm disappointed that KISD is not a part of it, but I'm thrilled that the One Voice movement is continuing to march and having success. My whole effort in this was to bring unity."[19]
In the 2017 board of trustees election, Scott endorsed Vann and Doyle in their bids for re-election, but he endorsed Dibrell's challenger. Scott said he no long respected Dibrell and that he would vote for his opponent William Lacy "to thoroughly, convincingly and importantly defeat incumbent Henry Dibrell."[24] Griffin also donated money to Lacy's campaign.[25]
Dibrell said he did not care about Scott's endorsement of Lacy or Griffin's contribution to Lacy's campaign. "People can do what they want with their finances," said Dibrell.[25] Fox and fellow board member Bryan Michalsky endorsed Dibrell.[26] Lacy defeated Dibrell in the election.[27]
Board approves charter for bond committee
The Katy Independent board of trustees in January 2017 approved a charter for a committee to look into putting a bond for the school district on the November 2017 ballot. District officials said a bond was needed due to increasing enrollment. The district's demographer Population and Survey Analysts said Katy ISD was expected to have 10,000 more students in the 2021-2022 school year compared to the 2016-2017 school year. It was also expected to grow by another 7,000 students after that by the 2026-2027 school year.[28][29]
The timeline for the bond research included meetings by the committee members in April and a survey sent out to district residents in July.[28] On August 21, 2017, the board of trustees unanimously voted to hold a bond election on November 7, 2017. The bond package proposed building six new schools, renovating and expanding schools, and updating tools. The bond totaled $609,204,553 and was not projected to raise taxes.[30][31] The bond passed with roughly 65 percent of the vote on November 7, 2017.[32] More information can be found here.
Board changes media policy
The Katy Independent board of trustees changed a board policy that allowed only the board president to speak to the media in January 2017. The change came after board members George Scott and Charles Griffin expressed their opposition to the policy in the fall of 2016.[33][34]
Scott threatened legal action in November 2016 against the former media policy that had been approved more than 10 years previously. "Katy ISD is a government, and if a government tries to restrict the ability of a trustee to speak to the media, it is simultaneously restricting the freedom of the press," said Scott. "There is nothing that should exist to squelch that right, but there has been an effort in Katy ISD to filter the public discussion."[34]
Scott said that board members had been scolded in closed meetings for speaking to the media. "It's not the board president's job to police us. It's the community's," said Griffin, who served as board president from 2015 to 2016. "Let the community decide what's good or not."[34]
Tom Gregor, a Houston attorney whose law firm worked with the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas, said the board's policy was not illegal, but he also said that board members should not be discouraged from speaking to the media, according to the Houston Chronicle. Fox said that all of the board members had agreed to the policy. "It's one of many, many procedures we have agreed upon. It's not an infringement on our rights," said Fox. She did, however, say she was open to changing the policy.[34]
In January 2017, the board changed the policy to allow other board members the ability to speak to the media, though the president was still named as the board's spokesperson. "There's nothing in (the new procedure) that intimidates me like the (old procedure) did," said Scott.[33]
Fox said the new policy was more specific. "I'm happy with this one. I was happy with the other one, but this is fine, too."[33]
2013 bond proposal
In the November 2013 election, Katy ISD voters turned down a $128.5 million bond proposal aimed at building a new stadium, agriculture facility and science center. Fifty-four percent voted against the measure, with a vote of 9,011 against and 7,458 for the bond issue. No tax increase was planned with the proposal. According to George Scott, an education advocate and bond critic, the defeat shows that "Katy ISD administration and school board have become institutionally arrogant" and that "they lost sight of the fact that people in the community are dedicated to public education but also care about spending money wisely."[35]
Contact information
Katy School Board
6301 S. Stadium Lane
Katy, TX 77494
Phone: (281) 396-6000
See also
| Texas | School Board Elections | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data, file ccd_lea_052_1414_w_0216161a, 2014-2015," accessed November 16, 2016
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Financial Transparency," accessed November 29, 2013
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 United States Census Bureau, "QuickFacts: Katy city, Texas," accessed March 10, 2017
- ↑ DocumentCloud, "Contract of Employment Superintendent," July 1, 2016
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Katy ISD Superintendent Dr. Lance Hindt," accessed January 30, 2017
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Superintendent," accessed March 4, 2014
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "School Board," accessed March 4, 2014
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Public Participation," May 23, 2011
- ↑ United States Census Bureau, "Public School System Finances: Historical Data," accessed December 1, 2015
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Teacher Salary Schedule 2013-2014," accessed March 4, 2014
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed February 18, 2014
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Campuses," accessed March 4, 2014
- ↑ Texas Education Agency, "Accountability Summary 2013," accessed June 24, 2014
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 Covering Katy, "Four Katy School Board Members Scold their President and Sgt. at Arms," February 28, 2017
- ↑ One Voice for Texas Public Education, "Coalition Members," accessed April 11, 2017
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 The Courier of Montgomery County, "Fort Bend school districts condemn A through F accountability ratings, school vouchers," February 7, 2017
- ↑ San Antonio Express News, "More Houston-area schools back public education coalition," March 31, 2017
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 The Katy Rancher, "How a pro-public school coalition became controversial in Katy ISD," March 6, 2017
- ↑ One Voice for Texas Public Education, "About Us," accessed April 17, 2017
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 One Voice for Texas Public Education, "Home," accessed April 11, 2017
- ↑ Community Impact Newspaper, "Ratings review, and other things you missed from this week’s Fort Bend ISD meeting," January 10, 2017
- ↑ Covering Katy, "KISD Board Member Questions Transparency," January 30, 2017
- ↑ Covering Katy, "Katy ISD Trustee makes Endorsements in School Board Race," April 3, 2017
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 San Antonio Express News, "Katy school board trustee contributes to campaign opposing fellow trustee, April 25, 2017
- ↑ Henry Dibrell Katy ISD Board of Trustees, "Endorsements," accessed April 17, 2017
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Katy ISD Board Election Tabulation May 6, 2017," accessed May 6, 2017
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 The Katy Rancher, "Katy ISD headed toward 2017 bond referendum," January 23, 2017
- ↑ Katy Independent School District, "Bonds," accessed April 17, 2017
- ↑ Community Impact, "Updated: $609.2M bond for Katy ISD placed on fall ballot, Election scheduled for Nov. 7," August 21, 2017
- ↑ Katy ISD, "Community Bond Advisory Committee: Bond Package Recommendation," accessed September 5, 2017
- ↑ Houston Patch, "Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner Praises $1Billion Bond Passage," November 8, 2017
- ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 The Katy Rancher, "Katy ISD board changing rule that restricted free speech," January 10, 2017
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 34.3 Houston Chronicle, "Katy ISD trustees: Freedom of speech restricted by school board," November 13, 2016
- ↑ Houston Chronicle, "Katy ISD stadium bond issue falls," November 5, 2013
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