HOUSTON -- HISD Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra released the following statement Tuesday evening about the student walkouts.

"It is critically important that our children are in school and learning every day. While we respect and encourage students to express their opinions and to involve themselves in civic and government affairs, our students must follow the rules of conduct that require them to be in school and learning during the school hours.

All the students who participated in today’s walkouts will be disciplined. The parents of each student who participated will be contacted and informed of the student’s actions. Each student action associated with today’s events will be reviewed by school officials, and students may, at the discretion of the principal, be placed in detention or in-school suspension, and may also be subject to other sanctions.

If these demonstrations continue on Wednesday or another time in the future, the consequence for students who violate the standards of conduct will be more severe. A repeat of today’s demonstrations could cause students to be suspended for up to three days, or be removed.

Our schools are working closely with our young people to encourage them to find the right ways to express their feelings on these issues. Some schools are assigning students to write papers about the proposed legislation. Others are holding group meetings with students to talk about the issue. We want our students voices on these issues to be heard. But it is vitally important, for their own safety and their academic standing, that students be in school and learning during the school day, and that they follow the standards of conduct. Failure to follow these standards could result in a student not being able to graduate on time, or having difficulty getting into college and succeeding there.

We urge the parents of HISD’s students to talk with their children about these issues and to make sure their children stay in school every day."