In a move that shocked parents and went against previous administrations, Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles announced earlier this summer that librarian and media specialist positions would be eliminated at the 28 underperforming schools being overhauled under his reform program, New Education System (NES).
According to the Houston ISD website, The New Education System Schools are priority schools in HISD that will be provided resources and support to improve outcomes for their students dramatically.
The libraries at the NES campuses will be repurposed into “team centers,” where students who have been removed from class due to behavioral issues will be placed to watch their classes virtually.
This decision caught the scorn of parents and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who spoke out against Miles’s plan.
“You cannot have a situation where you are closing libraries for some schools in certain neighborhoods, and there are other libraries in other neighborhoods that are fully equipped.” remarked the Turner. “What the hell are you doing?”
In a letter dated July 26, Superintendent Miles fired off a response that invited the Mayor to join him on some campuses during the first week of school to “see first-hand the unique attributes of this model and its ability to support student achievement.”
Currently, there are 28 schools will be a part of the NES campuses, with an additional 51 campuses that have opted to be in the plan.
School is slated to start for HISD students on August 28.
