Mastodawn

Taylor Lorenz Jul 27, 2023

The largest public school district in Texas is eliminating librarian positions and converting the libraries into 'discipline centers' at 28 schools this upcoming year https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2023/07/26/hisd-to-eliminate-librarians-turn-libraries-into-discipline-centers-at-28-campuses/

HISD to eliminate librarians, turn some libraries into discipline centers at 28 campuses

Houston Independent School District will be eliminating librarian positions at 28 schools this upcoming year and utilizing some of the libraries as ‘Team Centers” where kids with behavioral issues will be sent, the district announced.

KPRC Click2Houston

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Alex Wild Jul 27, 2023

@taylorlorenz Worth noting this is happening because the state government used a technicality to wrest the school district away from local, democratic governance and hand it to Republican apparatchiks. Houston doesn't want this. At all. But they aren't even allowed to vote on it.

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Nick Stefanski 🐦‍🔥Jul 27, 2023

@alexwild @taylorlorenz thanks for the additional context. For others who want to read more, I found another article that goes into more depth on the technicality they used to wrest control: https://www.edweek.org/leadership/whats-behind-texas-takeover-of-houston-schools/2023/03

Students will suffer because of this. How can they even pretend this is for the public good?

What's Behind Texas' Takeover of Houston Schools

State takeovers of districts began in the 1980s but have waned recently following limited evidence of academic benefit.

Education Week

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E. Chang

@tzarfenix @alexwild @taylorlorenz It’s not for the public good. This is for the purpose of expanding the school-to-for-profit-prison pipeline. Gotta line those donors’ pockets somehow, and majority-minority schools are the perfect target for them.