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Unidos outlines recruitment plan, founders‑exception approach and lottery policy to TEA
Summary
Unidos told TEA it will run a heavy recruitment campaign to meet year‑one enrollment and said founding families connected to Soccer Central will not exceed the state’s 10% founders exception; TEA members probed the founders definition and enrollment screening policies.
Unidos told the Texas Education Agency it expects to recruit broadly across San Antonio and that realistic enrollment targets require outreach well beyond applicants who eventually enroll.
Board member Elliot Winn said new charters often “need to bring in closer to 500 student applications” to fill the 112 seats proposed for year one. The team described a recruitment strategy combining targeted social media, boots‑on‑the‑ground outreach at soccer tournaments and community locations, webinars, and family engagement events in Spanish to reach emergent bilingual families.
SBOE member questions focused on founders and enrollment exceptions. When asked about the founders exemption and how a founder would be defined for any lottery exception, Unidos said founding families who have engaged in planning (including some Soccer Central families and founding board members) would be identified in the community development process and that the charter would not exceed the 10% founders allocation. The applicants said enrollment would not be contingent on club membership; Soccer Central membership would not be a prerequisite to attend the school.
On transportation, applicants said the budget includes $120,000 to buy four vans to provide pick‑up service across San Antonio and to meet some IEP needs, and that they were also pursuing public‑transit routing and bus‑pass reimbursement options. TEA staff cautioned that certain vehicle types may not be eligible for state transportation reimbursement and asked applicants to clarify vehicle types, scheduling and any use of Soccer Central’s vans.
TEA staff and SBOE members asked whether Unidos would screen applicants on athletic skill; the applicants said no — the state prohibits athletic‑ability screening for admissions — and that the school will admit students without requiring soccer experience.
