Midland ISD to end IDEA Travis lease after closed-session review; board orders campus solutions

The Midland ISD Board of Trustees voted unanimously to terminate the lease with IDEA Public Schools for the Travis Elementary campus after a closed-session consultation on the contract and campus performance. Trustees said the lease termination follows the school receiving three consecutive 'D' ratings, which the board characterized as a violation of the agreement. The board set a vacate target of June 1, 2026.

The action came after the board moved into closed session for attorney consultation and deliberations about the IDEA Travis contract. On reconvening, a trustee moved to terminate the lease on the grounds that the campus had been in one of the two lowest state accountability categories for three consecutive years; the motion passed 7–0.

The board also unanimously directed the superintendent to identify short- and medium-term solutions for the Travis campus and to return with options at a special board meeting scheduled for April 28. The directive requires administration to report alternatives for housing students, financial impacts, and any legal or timing constraints tied to the termination.

The district did not provide detailed financial modeling for the termination vote during open session; earlier in the meeting finance staff had presented hypothetical revenue and recapture scenarios related to the IDEA Travis 1882 partnership, including a staff clarification that the district’s net exposure under some assumptions could be on the order of several hundred thousand dollars. The board’s termination and the superintendent’s follow-up will determine next steps for student placement and the facility’s future use.