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Harmony board approves calendar change to access extended‑day funding and a package of TEA amendments to add sites and postpone openings
Summary
Trustees approved a targeted calendar amendment for South Texas to meet HB2 eligibility for extended‑day funding, authorized multiple TEA non‑expansion and expansion amendments to postpone openings and add sites (including pre‑K partnership sites), and approved missed‑days waivers and facility grant certification.
The Harmony Public Schools board on Feb. 28 approved several administrative resolutions affecting calendars, campus openings and TEA authorizations.
Calendar amendment: The board approved an amendment for the Harmony South Texas charter district to revise the 2025–26 academic calendar to meet the state’s expanded additional‑day eligibility under House Bill 2; the amendment designates May 28 as an instructional day (agenda packet date) so the district may qualify for additional funding tied to extended instructional programming.
Postponements and transfers: The board approved non‑expansion amendments to postpone the opening date for a planned Harmony School of Excellence Fort Worth site to the 2027–28 school year and to transfer two Waco campuses from the North Texas district to Harmony Public Schools — Central Texas (they will keep their campus names but receive new campus numbers).
Expansion authorizations and site additions: Trustees also approved a package of expansion amendment requests to TEA that seek to increase maximum enrollments and add multiple additional sites across several Harmony districts. Administration said many of the new sites are intended to serve pre‑K students through partnerships (for example, Head Start partner sites) and that the TEA authorization process is a planning step that does not commit Harmony to specific vendors or locations until later procurement steps are complete.
Waivers and certification: The board approved submission of missed‑days waivers to TEA for instructional minutes lost during winter‑storm closures across seven HPS districts and adopted the required written certification for a TEA facility incentive grant attesting that no board members or close relatives derive disqualifying real‑estate benefits.
Votes at a glance: • Consent agenda: approved (minutes, committee ratifications, property resolutions). • Calendar amendment (Harmony South Texas): approved. • Non‑expansion postponement (Fort Worth): approved. • Transfer of HSA Waco and HSI Waco to Central Texas district: approved. • Expansion amendment package (multiple districts/sites): approved. • Missed‑days waivers to TEA: approved. • Facility grant conflict‑of‑interest certification: approved.
Board members asked for clarification about branding of partner sites and whether authorization equals commitment; administration repeatedly noted that TEA authorizations are required early in the planning cycle to secure ADA eligibility and that final partner agreements and site details will follow procurement and contract awards. The board approved all the presented resolutions by voice vote and adjourned at 11:24 a.m.
