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Spring ISD reports steep drop in disciplinary infractions after code changes and new supports
Summary
District staff told the board a multi-pronged strategy — coding changes, MTSS supports, new detection and a second‑chance Everfi program for vaping — coincided with a year‑to‑date decline in disciplinary incidents; administrators said more data work is needed to pinpoint causes.
Bridal Simmons, student success coordinator for Spring Independent School District, told the board on Oct. 3 that the district has seen a large year‑to‑date drop in disciplinary infractions compared with the prior school year.
"As of October 1st, the district overall has seen a decrease of 70% of the disciplinary infractions in totality," Simmons said during a work session presentation describing goals tied to equity and student well‑being.
The presentation, introduced by assistant superintendent of student success Dr. Efrain Olivo, framed discipline as a district priority with three goals: reduce total disciplinary infractions by 10% by 2027 (5% target this year), cut suspension rates for African‑American males by 10% and cut suspension rates for students receiving special education services by 10%.
Administrators credited several changes for the drop. They described a District of Innovation amendment that allowed the student code of conduct to split large, catch‑all offense categories (for example, separating possession, use and selling) and to create tiered responses; expanded Multi‑Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) that place teachers, student support specialists and behavior specialists in a tiered prevention model; improved detection technologies at campus entry points; and a new "second chance" pathway for some first‑time vaping offenses that uses Everfi modules and in‑school suspension instead of automatic DAEP placement.
"Everfi allowed us the opportunity to say … this is a curriculum for a student that has 1 day where it might be brief," Simmons said, describing how different modules and administrative training are used for one‑ and three‑day interventions and how repeat or more serious offenses still lead to DAEP and substance‑abuse counseling.
Board members probed whether the decrease reflects true behavior change, changes in how incidents are coded or reporting differences. Trustees asked if teacher reporting to the Aeries system remained intact and whether summer remediation, transportation barriers or other operational changes affect DAEP rollover counts. Administrators said teachers still enter discipline incidents into Aeries and that the decline is likely the result of multiple factors; they pledged to analyze the data further and return with a more detailed report.
The presentation also highlighted a student success story tied to the second‑chance program and noted a sharp drop in DAEP average monthly enrollment year‑to‑date (the packet cites a 74% decrease compared with prior years). Administrators said some of the decline includes students who completed assigned summer work and therefore did not carry DAEP days into the new school year.
Trustees asked for additional breakdowns — including the number of students affected, comparisons to pre‑COVID years and a specific accounting of how much of the decline is driven by coding changes versus behavior change — and staff agreed to provide those figures in upcoming board updates.
The board thanked the presenters and asked administration to continue reporting discipline metrics regularly as part of the district's lone‑star governance work.
The board did not take formal action on policy changes at the meeting; the report was provided for oversight and follow‑up.
