Trustees report takeaways from TASB/TASA conference, warn of sweeping legislative policy changes
Summary
Board members and staff who attended the Texas Association of School Boards/Texas Association of School Administrators conference reported that recent state legislative changes will require substantial revisions to district policies; attendees described the conference as useful for governance training and relationship building.
Board members and staff returned from the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) and Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) joint conference and reported takeaways about training and the impact of recent legislation.
An unidentified board speaker summarized the legislative impact: "We have over 300 policies. And, due to the helpfulness of our 80 ninth legislature, over half of those policies are gonna have to be changed," the speaker said on the record. Trustees described the change as unprecedented in scope and said district staff and board leadership will need to work through the updates. The speaker added that the district’s leadership team functions to remove obstacles so staff can continue core educational work.
Trustees also described the conference sessions as valuable for governance, relationship‑building and training that helps board members enforce policy and understand operational impacts, such as how bond investments in technology affect students in classrooms. Several trustees praised the opportunity to exchange ideas with other trustees and administrators across the state and called the conference a reminder to avoid taking local strengths for granted.
No formal board action was taken on the conference report during the meeting. Trustees discussed next steps informally, including continuing policy review and coordination with cabinet staff to implement any required changes driven by recent legislation.
