HOUSTON – Members of the Houston Educational Support Personnel union, along with other state and local leaders, on Thursday called proposed cuts to the Houston Independent School District’s budget “unfair.”
Rhonda Skillern-Jones, the chair of the HISD school board, was among those gathered outside the district’s headquarters who said they are worried about plans that would eliminate some bus routes and limit school cleanings to a few times a month.
The group said they believe the cuts should come from the top of the district instead of the bottom.
VIDEO: Group protests outside HISD
School district leaders said they were exploring the possibility of a so-called “zero percent deficit budget,” knowing that it would never get the votes to pass. While officials admit that the district needs to cut $208 million in order to achieve that goal, they called the union’s complaints premature.
The group protesting the changes on Thursday said that while they would like to live in a world where they don’t have to resort to budget cuts, they know that isn’t possible right now.
“Everyone is going to have to suffer some cuts,” Skillern-Jones said. “What I came today is to say to the state of Texas – it is egregious that we write a $238 million check back to the state of taxpayers' dollars that the taxpayers give to us to pay these people and to educate our kids. That’s where the problem is.”
The HISD board is expected to vote on proposed budget cuts in June.