Spring ISD trustees review midyear student gains, delinquent-tax update; approve storm‑pay and personnel actions

Spring Independent School District trustees met Feb. 6 for a work session that combined a detailed review of midyear student achievement with operational briefings and several formal board actions.

Board President Durant called the meeting to order at 6:03 p.m. Trustees heard a multi-part academic presentation — the district's Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) highlights and a December midyear (MOY) map-based update — that showed measurable cohort gains in early grades and middle school but persistent weaknesses in mathematics and college‑and‑career readiness indicators. The board also received a report on delinquent-property-tax accounts the district has turned over to outside counsel, and took votes on district business including a resolution authorizing pay for employees for two inclement-weather closure days.

The midyear data presentation, led by the district's academics staff and assessment team, emphasized growth measured in MAP (Measure of Academic Progress) and the district's internal progress measures tied to Lone Star Governance goals. Kesa Taylor, the executive director presenting the TAPR highlights, and district leaders described three-year cohort tracking showing improvements as students move from one grade to the next: for example, a sixth-grade cohort that rose in reading performance from third through fifth grade, and a ninth-grade cohort that showed gains across approaches, meets and masters levels.

But the board and staff flagged continuing concerns. District-level MAP-to-STAAR correlations prepared for trustees indicated that, based on the district's December MOY MAP results, an estimated 70% of students in grades 3'8 would be at the STAAR 'approaches' level in reading if tested at that time, with roughly 41% projected at 'meets' and 14% at 'masters.' Mathematics projections were lower. Superintendent Dr. Lupita Hinojosa and academics leaders framed the MAP results as an actionable signal: the district has already shifted interventions earlier and expanded professional learning, with principals reporting expanded PLC time, Saturday tutoring, and targeted intervention programs.

"We started providing Saturday school and after-school tutorials in September. We did not wait until February to start our intervention period," one district leader said, describing steps campuses have taken to accelerate learning.

The board discussed college- and career-readiness indicators, where AP and SAT/ACT performance drew particular scrutiny. Trustee Jensen said the district's AP and SAT/ACT results indicated a gap in course rigor and teacher preparation for advanced coursework. Superintendent Hinojosa said the district has increased support for advanced academics teachers, including partnerships with College Board and targeted professional development, and is piloting acceleration programs in high schools.

Special-population groups were highlighted: district presenters called out notable midyear gains among emerging bilingual students on early-literacy measures (MCAS/DIBELS-based assessments) and described concentrated supports for students receiving special education services following updated state participation requirements for STAAR. Assistant chiefs and principals described district coaching into classrooms, targeted PLCs, and teacher training measures intended to ensure IEP accommodations accompany students through intervention and instruction.

Delinquent-tax collection

Following academic presentations, the district's chief financial officer introduced two outside counsel from the law firm Purdue, Brandon, Collins & Mott to review the district's delinquent-tax collection activity. Justin Barlow, an attorney with the firm, said the total amount of accounts referred to the firm since December totaled about $6,800,000 and included tax years dating back to 1990.

Of those accounts, Barlow said a large portion is now in litigation, with other accounts in action-pending status or on partial-payment plans. He told trustees that roughly 39% of the delinquent-dollar total falls into the $10,000-and-up range and that many of those larger accounts represent business personal property (fixtures, inventory) rather than residential accounts. He also said deferrals (primarily homestead deferrals for taxpayers age 65 or older or disabled veterans) account for a portion of the district's unrecoverable roll, and that figure is roughly $1,000,000.

"This report serves as our report card, but we are talking about a small portion of the total tax roll — we're usually about less than 5% of the total tax roll," Justin Barlow said, explaining the firm's work is focused on the hardest-to-collect slice of the district's total levy.

Board members asked whether the largest-dollar accounts were commercial or residential; the attorneys said a large share were business personal property and that business closures or moves complicate collection.

Operational and program updates

Administrators also briefed the board on other items: Chief of District Operations Mark Miranda presented a guaranteed-maximum-price package for exterior fencing and related campus safety work that covers 41 campuses plus the administration building and includes renovation to the Gordon Anderson parking area. Miranda said fencing designs are intended as a deterrent but do not include barbed wire; the chief of police said such fences can slow or redirect intruders but cannot be guaranteed to stop a determined person.

Human-resources leadership described a grant-funded 'grow-your-own' teacher pipeline MOU with Sam Houston State University. Dr. Terrell King said the cohort program will prepare an initial cohort of 12 teachers for early-childhood and elementary bilingual or special-education certification; the tuition is covered through an external grant from the Houston Endowment, and the district said there is no direct cost to Spring ISD for the cohort.

School improvement and targeted plans

The board heard an overview of targeted improvement plans for campuses designated for comprehensive school improvement under the Texas Effective Schools Framework. Principal Mashanda Walker described Clark Elementary's turnaround work after its 2023 identification, listing priorities that included establishing a behavior-management system, strengthening school culture and relationships, extending PLC time to 90 minutes, and increasing coaching and observation cycles. Walker said the school moved to a twice-weekly PLC schedule last year (a total of 120 minutes weekly) and has tightened leadership meeting rhythms and data conversations.

"Turning around a failing school requires a leader with a clear vision, high expectations, a sense of urgency, and grit," Walker said, describing the campus's emphasis on culture and capacity-building.

Board action — votes at a glance

Trustees moved several formal items after the presentations, with each vote recorded on the public minutes.

- Resolution on winter-storm school closures: The board unanimously adopted a resolution authorizing pay for staff for two district closures (Jan. 21 and 22) related to Winter Storm Enzo, consistent with district policy on inclement-weather closures. (Motion: Trustee Jensen; second: Trustee McDaniel; outcome: approved unanimously.)

- Personnel finding and notice to SBEC: The board unanimously approved a superintendent recommendation to find that an employee, Patricia Greenleaf, abandoned her 2024'25 employment contract and authorized district notification to the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC). (Motion: Dr. Jensen; second: Trustee Adams; outcome: approved unanimously.)

- Probationary contract termination: The board unanimously voted to propose termination of Patricia Greenleaf's 2024'25 probationary contract and directed the superintendent to notify the employee. (Motion: Trustee Adams; second: Trustee Correa; outcome: approved unanimously.)

- Teaching permit authorization: The board unanimously approved the superintendent's recommendation to issue a district teaching permit for non-core CTE instruction to Dalton Hughes (criminal-justice teacher). (Motion: Trustee McDaniel; second: Trustee Correa; outcome: approved unanimously.)

None of those votes included conditions that change course descriptions or programs; the motions were procedural and personnel/policy actions recorded in open session.

What trustees asked next

Trustees asked several follow-up questions of staff: how quickly MAP MOY results are available to teachers (the platform provides immediate teacher reports and the district runs consolidated presentation reports that take additional time to format); why AP pass rates lag even with high participation (discussion centered on teacher preparation and the recent district policy requiring test-taking to receive AP weighted credit); and what is being done to reduce teacher turnover (stay interviews and an upcoming HR staffing presentation were cited).

The district said it will provide trustees with more disaggregated reports on topics requested during the meeting, including the performance of two-way dual-language cohorts, additional detail on AP/SAT/ACT follow-up, and the targeted improvement plan artifacts for campuses in the comprehensive support designation.

Ending

The board recessed into a closed session on several administrative matters and reconvened to record the votes noted above; the meeting adjourned at 11:18 p.m. following the recorded motions.

(Reporting note: quotes and figures in this story are drawn from the Feb. 6 Spring ISD board work session transcript and presentations.)