Parents, alumni and students raise instructional time, graduation seating and CTE support during Manor ISD public forum

Several residents and students spoke during the public forum at the Manor Independent School District board meeting Feb. 18, addressing instructional time lost to testing, graduation seating limits, CTE/FFA recognition and a call for greater community engagement on juvenile justice.

Instructional minutes and testing: Michelle Ponish, a middle school teacher, told the board testing and mandated digital programs are eroding instructional time. Ponish said eighth graders at her campus have taken multiple assessments (beginning- and mid-year I-Ready, fall interim assessments, PSAT and February interims). She estimated that concentrated testing has cost students roughly 2,600 instructional minutes at her campus and urged reconsideration of required I-Ready reading minutes if a district initiative called Beable continues to require class time.

Graduation seating: Parents Shakira Seeley and Don Bradford both asked the board to reconsider graduation venue and ticket allotments. They said an announcement grouping multiple high schools for a single ceremony and limiting families to eight tickets would prevent many out-of-town relatives from attending. Seeley said her son is the first grandchild in the family to graduate and that the ticket limit would force difficult family choices.

FFA/CTE and student leadership: Nathaniel (Nate) Jackson, a 2020 Manor Early College High School alumnus now working at Double R Hat House, and a former Manor FFA officer, thanked the board for supporting CTE and said Manors FFA and CTE programs provide professional and leadership opportunities that help students succeed beyond high school. Jackson noted local and national recognition of current FFA students.

Student group and juvenile justice concerns: Sydney Butler, co-president of Manor High Schools Girls Empowerment group, described the organizations mentoring and workshop activities and asked the board to consider ways the district can partner to expand support for young women. Community member Anthony Walker urged the district to increase transparency and community engagement to prevent juvenile crime, saying some students in alternative programs lack access to mental-health resources and are at greater risk of involvement with the justice system.

Public-comment rules and limits: The boards public-comment procedures, read at the start of the forum, reminded speakers that board members may not answer questions during public comment and that grievances involving individual employees should be submitted in writing to the superintendent.

Provenance: Remarks summarized here are drawn from the public forum section of the Feb. 18 meeting transcript.