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Students and families urge board to halt Paredes closure; trustees hear emotional testimony
Summary
Multiple in-person and recorded callers told trustees the proposed Paredes reassignment would harm students and communities; testimony included a Perez student who said the school made him "be myself" and calls for trustees to reject the closure.
Several students, families and former staff used the public-testimony period to urge the board to oppose the proposed Paredes modification. A Perez Middle School student, Emery Guerrero, addressed trustees directly: "I don't want Perez to close because it's a built in home for me. It makes me wanna be myself," he said, describing teachers who had supported his growth.
Other callers—both in-person and recorded—said closures have occurred with little community input, cited distrust about budget savings figures and argued that closures disproportionately harm vulnerable Southeast Austin neighborhoods. An anonymous Austin ISD staff member said Paredes had long-run staffing shortfalls and cited three math vacancies during the past year, which the superintendent acknowledged during his presentation.
Trustees and administrators acknowledged the community’s pain; several trustees asked for more transparent communications and for the administration to return to the board frequently with implementation updates if the motion passed.
