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Parent warns trustees of rat sightings at San Benito high school; superintendent says district is 'on it'
Summary
A parent told the San Benito CISD board there have been repeated rat sightings in multiple high-school buildings, including the cafeteria, and urged urgent action; Superintendent Fred Perez acknowledged the problem and said the district is addressing it but no formal remediation motion was recorded at the meeting.
A San Benito CISD parent raised alarms about rodent sightings at the district high school during the public-comment portion of the board's regular meeting, saying students and staff have seen rats in multiple halls and in the cafeteria and that some teachers have purchased traps to cope with the problem.
"There's been rat sightings across several buildings such as F Hall, G Hall, L Hall, D Hall, Cafeteria, and other parts of the campus," said public commenter Aldair Agueyes Abru, who added that staff and students had reported multiple sightings and that an odor of a dead animal lingered near a classroom. Abru told trustees the situation posed health and safety risks and cited portions of the Texas Health and Safety Code when urging immediate action.
Superintendent Fred Perez acknowledged the reports in his superintendent's update: "We do know about the problem that we have at the high school with the rodents, and we are on it. Just to let everybody know, it's been a nightmare. Those things reproduce very quickly," he said, describing district attention to affected campuses.
Abru also said some teachers had bought traps for classrooms and expressed concern about the presence of rodent droppings in areas where students eat and study. He warned that allowing unsanitary conditions in public buildings could raise legal and public-health concerns under state law.
Board members did not record a motion or vote to direct a specific remediation plan during the meeting; the superintendent's remarks described district awareness and ongoing work rather than a board-level directive. The board proceeded with the published agenda after public comment.
Trustees and district staff did not provide a timeline for complete eradication or a specific contractor award during the session. The superintendent indicated the district has identified campuses it is focusing on and said staff would continue efforts to resolve the issue.
