A Letter to the Editor From Herod Elementary Parents on Principal Selection

We, the undersigned, are not career politicians. We are real parents of students in HISD. We are moms and dads. We are small business owners, administrators, physicians, nurses, lawyers, scientists, consultants, engineers, educators, project managers, architects, and hard working employees of many of Houston’s well-known companies. We are taxpayers. The state-appointed Superintendent and the Board of Managers have made it clear that they are not listening to us, parents. This was clear on June 18th when we met with HISD leaders about selecting a new principal for our campus, Herod Elementary, after our last principal was abruptly terminated.

Our beloved neighborhood elementary school has now lost our principal and approximately 75% of our teachers. In our meeting with HISD administrators on June 18th we asked to have two parents from the Shared Decision Making Committee (SDMC) on the interview committee to select the principal as outlined in HISD board policy. We were told repeatedly that HISD does not follow that policy. We asked to have two of the remaining teachers from the Shared Decision Making Committee on the interview committee for principal selection as outlined in HISD board policy. Again, we were told repeatedly that the HISD does not follow that policy.

However, no other policy was or has been communicated to us. No one, not parents, existing teachers, or administrators, from Herod Elementary has a direct say in who the next principal will be. This is in direct violation of the Texas Education Code Section 11.251 wherein it states that the board shall establish “campus-level planning and decision-making process that will involve the professional staff of the district, parents, and community members”(Texas Education Code Section 11.251, article b). The current HISD procedures are in direct violation of both HISD published policies and the Texas state education code.

If we cannot trust the state appointed Superintendent and HISD Board of Managers and their administrators to abide by District and State policies, how can we trust them to provide the best education for our children? The lack of communication, lack of transparency and abuse of power must stop. As taxpayers and, more importantly, as parents, we have a right to have a voice in our children’s education.

Signed,
Parents of students of Herod Elementary

Dan and Amanda Walmer
Marko Maksimov and Sara Delclos
Luis Zavala and Navil Aguillon
Kevin and Hannah Villarreal
Ted and Caroline Walker
Carlos and Lisa Fernandez
Shawn and Amanda Shirley
The Fernandes Family
Jarrett and April Lidell
John McWilliams and Meredith Epley McWilliams
Jonathan Flanagan and Lisa Bouchier-Hayes
Ganesh Vijayaraghavan and Kyler Godwin
The Gallevo Family
Sarat Munjuluri and Andrea Randisi
Regi and Judy Nelluvelil
Amma Naki Asare and Amir Jaima
Kyle and Stephanie Kaspar
Robbie and Ashley McDonough
Conor and Natalie Johnston
Jack and Sarah Schnure
Neil and Jennifer Asmussen
Brain Smith and Tanya Meinecke Smith
Matt and Shannon Pedersen
The Daniels Family
Eduardo De La Torre and Michelle Nasser
Esan and Alyssa Savannah
Chinyere and John Eigege
Michael and Amanda Rosenhouse
Bruce and LaTosha Rhone
Coreena Cross
Gabriela Austgen and Cody Moore
Scott and Jayne Kalasinsky
Patricia and Freddy Flores
Dr. Julia and Robert Cope
Clair and Richard Jody
Roxana and Daniel Becker
The Franco Family
Marcela Perez
Kanstantsin and Nastassia Klimianok
Kelsey and Daniel Giltner
Amin and Zehra Madhani
Jonathan and Amy Alonzo
Gustavo Andres and Danielle Ward-Griffin
Sonal Pandya
Aby and Reni Abraham
James Schafer and Jane Lesnick
Jeanine Abuahmad
Rusty and Betty Hanna
James Schafer and Jane Lesnick
Reena Chokshi and Robert Brown
Cecilia and Ramses Sanchez-Lara
Claude and Katharine Jager-Rubinson
Leah Moten
Joshua and Angela Kisner
Jessica and Cesar Del Aguila
Hristijan and Celeste Risteski
Joseline Moreno and Toby Schwebel
Lindsay and Jose Hernandez
The Burnett Family
Atefeh Shaker
Carolina Cortes
Moshe and Andrea Wolfe
Monica Morales
Mark and Rhiannon Collette
Lisa and Shoney Thomas
Marcella Corbins
The Mendez Family
Keith and Catherine Hernandez
James and Rochelle Cabe
Stephanie Chavez and Luis Rivera
Aracely Espinal and Leonardo Arellano
Gabriela Gonzalez
Keith and Jawanza Hampton
Daniel Krohn and Sandra Parada
Elizabeth Rojas and Gustavo Reyna