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Spring ISD student advisory council recounts Austin advocacy, urges more funding for pre-K, special education and teacher pay
Summary
Members of Spring ISD's Superintendent Student Advisory Council described a legislative advocacy trip to Austin, where they pressed state representatives on school funding, teacher pay, pre-K and special education resources and fine-arts support.
Students from Spring Independent School District told the board on May 13 about a legislative advocacy trip to Austin in which they urged state lawmakers to increase school funding and protect programs that students said support academic and extracurricular opportunities.
Connor Briscoe, president of the Superintendent Student Advisory Council and a senior at Spring High School, said the student delegation met with state representatives to present legislative priorities developed by the students. “It hasn't been increased since 2019. It's just kinda stayed at $6,160,” Briscoe said about Texas' basic allotment per student, and he said the students asked legislators to consider an increase to approximately $7,600 per student to reflect current inflation.
Briscoe also told trustees that Spring ISD has cut over $20,000,000 from its budget in recent years, which students said led to reductions in some career and technical education and extracurricular programs. Other student speakers described priorities they advocated in Austin:
- Pre-K and special education funding: Student speaker Amari Robinson said Spring ISD is underfunded by about $3,000,000 for full-day pre-K (the district funds full-day pre-K but said it receives funding only for a half day). Students said research and their own experience show pre-K attendance correlates with higher EOC scores.
- Teacher pay and counselor resources: Speakers said the delegation pushed for better teacher compensation and more counseling resources to support classroom stability and student well-being.
- Fine arts funding and program benefits: Students representing fine-arts programs argued that arts programming improves student confidence, well-being and broader community engagement.
Students credited Raise Your Hand Texas and district staff for support arranging meetings and said several representatives were receptive and indicated they would look into the funding concerns the students raised. Trustee Natasha McDaniel and others praised the students’ preparation and said district leaders had reported positive feedback from the legislators they had met.
Ending
Trustees thanked the students for their advocacy and encouraged continued engagement; staff said they would support follow-up on the funding issues students raised.
