Texas Supreme Court Clears the Way for Education Agency Takeover in Houston

School children wearing masks walk outside Condit Elementary School in Bellaire, outside Houston, Texas, on Dec. 16, 2020. (Francois Picard/AFP via Getty Images)

The Supreme Court of Texas has cleared the way for state-appointed managers to replace school board members in the state’s largest school district.

On Friday, the state’s highest court reversed a temporary injunction that blocked the Texas Education Agency (TEA) from taking over the Houston Independent School District (HISD), according to a decision released by the Texas Supreme Court. (pdf)

A yearslong battle between the TEA and the school district stems from allegations of misconduct by school board trustees and years of low academic performance at Phillis Wheatley High School.

The case, related to the authority of the TEA to take over the district under the Texas Education Code, was ordered back to the trial court for further proceedings.

“Under the governing law, the District’s claims do not support a temporary injunction against the Commissioner of the Texas Education Agency and his appointed conservator,” wrote Justice Jane Bland, who authored the opinion. “We therefore reverse the court of appeals’ judgment, vacate the temporary injunction, and direct the trial court to consider the Commissioner’s plea to the jurisdiction.”

The TEA first attempted to take over the district in November 2019, citing findings of the agency’s Special Accreditation Investigation and the district’s lowered accreditation status to “Accredited-Warned.” (pdf)

HISD argued that the TEA did not have the authority to impose power over the district.

In 2020, a Travis County judge granted HISD’s temporary injunction, halting TEA Commissioner Mike Morath from appointing a board of managers to oversee the district. The next year, the Texas Legislature passed SB 1365, which the TEA lawyers argued provided authority for the agency to proceed with the takeover. (pdf)

“After the court of appeals issued its decision, Senate Bill 1365 substantially changed the statutes that govern this case,” Bland wrote.

“We remand the case to the trial court, however, to permit the parties to fully develop the record in light of intervening legal and factual changes,” the opinion continued. “Accordingly, we reverse the court of appeals’ judgment, vacate the temporary injunction, and remand the case to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”

The TEA did not respond to a request for comment.

HISD Superintendent Millard House II said on Friday in a press release that the district’s legal team was reviewing the high court’s opinion.

He said that HISD had worked with the community to develop and implement an improvement plan since he took the helm in 2021.

“As Superintendent for the last 18 months, my team has been laser-focused on giving each one of our students the academic experience they deserve,” House said. “Guided by community input, the district developed and is executing on its five-year strategic plan. There is still much more work to be done, but we are excited about the progress we have made as a district and are looking forward to the work ahead.”

House also noted the district’s recent accomplishments, including academic progress and increased teacher salaries.

“We have raised teacher salaries by an average of 11 percent, improved college, career, and military readiness outcomes, and celebrated strong accountability improvements across our district,” he continued.

It is not immediately clear what action the TEA will take following the latest ruling.