Plano Star-courier > News
Lawmakers meet with Plano ISD
By Bill Conrad, bconrad@starlocalnews.com, @Bill_PlanoStar on Twitter
With less than a month before the 83rd Texas Legislature is sworn into session, legislators are making their rounds meeting with groups that want their voices heard in Austin.
The latest stop for three members of the Plano delegation was the Plano ISD Administration Building, where Reps. Van Taylor and Jeff Leach, and Sen. Ken Paxton met with school trustees and administrators Thursday morning.
Among the topics discussed were school finance and the state's accountability system -- two topics that are sure to receive significant attention come January. The meeting also allowed Leach and Paxton, who are new to their respective offices, to meet face-to-face with Plano ISD officials and learn more about the district.
"One of the things we want to stress, from an administration standpoint is that this business is all about relationships," Richard Matkin, Plano ISD superintendent, told the legislators. "We want to create relationships with you so you understand our concerns and issues. At the same time, we want to understand the things you are dealing with because it is a constantly moving target that has changing dynamics."
Matkin stressed to the legislators the need to return the state funding that was lost prior to the 2011-2012 school year, saying additional cuts will have a greater impact on students since 84 percent of the district's budget is spent at the campus level.
"We think we control costs very well because we have to," he said. "We lost $59 million in a two-year period -- that is a lot of money. As you hear about the growth in the state and the property value growth in the state, understand that we don't [benefit] from that growth. That all goes back to the state."
Taylor reminded trustees that the amount of money spent per student this year is the third highest in the state's history, and implied that simply spending more money on education would not solve educational problems. He also said that as a percentage of the total budget, the state has never spent more on education then it is right now.
However, he added that increasing funding for Plano ISD is something he would support.
Matkin responded that he didn't believe this was a fair comparison since a large number of new students in the state do not speak English and are often from families that live below the poverty line. This, he said, makes them more expensive to educate.
Trustees also stressed a need for more local control -- not only with their finances, but also with testing and graduation requirements.
One of the issues the trustees mentioned was the state's 4x4 requirement, which forces all students to take four years of English, social studies, math and science in order to graduate. This, they said, leaves little time for electives and doesn't necessarily benefit students who wish to attend trade schools instead of traditional colleges.
"We don't want all of the same type of students coming from our schools," said Trustee Carolyn Moebius. "Not everybody is going to go to college. I know Texas is doing better financially, but some kids have to go straight to work. Instead of being so focused on college readiness, we really need to consider what our kids want to do.
"You always hear college ready, college ready. Well, they need to be ready for life and whatever path they are going to travel."
Taylor said he understood Moebius' concerns, but pointed to districts such as Dallas, citing a report released by Dallas ISD Trustee Bernadette Nutall earlier this year, where only three out of every 100 black students are ready for college when they graduate. Districts such as Dallas, he said, are one of the prime reasons for the 4x4 requirement.
"Let's be really grateful that this is not the challenge we are talking about at this meeting, but clearly that is something that causes me to be very concerned," Taylor said. "I don't think you can have a successful Plano if you don't have a successful Dallas."
Trustee David Stolle suggested a compromise, where districts would have more control over their graduation requirements, allowing them to do what is needed to address specific situations.
"The solution must allow Plano ISD to continue to thrive, but provide Dallas ISD with the support to bring it up to a good level," he said. "But you can't fit both of those districts into the same square peg."
Paxton said he, as well as many other legislators, represent multiple school districts, so the solutions presented by the legislature are not often perfect for any one party. He said his philosophy is to listen to his constituents and then craft the solution that best benefits the people he represents.
The most contentious item of discussion was school vouchers, which Matkin said could take money away from public schools, further increasing the financial burden on districts.
Trustee Missy Bender agreed and attempted to use statistics which she said showed how the vouchers would hurt Plano. According to Bender, the vouchers could result in a 5 percent decrease in funding for each district. She also made the contention that the public money would be given to the private school with no strings attached, a statement that Taylor disagreed with.
"When I read this last night I was really disappointed," he said. "As far as I know, there is no voucher system anywhere in this country that looks like what you described. If you want to take a fake plan and put it out there and say, 'this is evil,' and [then] tear it down, that is what you have done. ... The example you brought up and the numbers you have cited -- it is fake. It is just not true or factual."
Paxton, who served in the state House for 10 years before winning his Senate seat, urged patience on the issue of vouchers, saying he didn't know whether he would support them since he was not aware of any bills being filed that outlined specific details of a potential voucher program.
"I am not saying there is a perfect solution, but I am generally not opposed to something without knowing what is being offered," he said. "I don't know if [Bender's] numbers are right, but it seems to me I should look at what is being proposed and then come back and say 'how does this affect you?'"
The legislative session begins Jan. 8.
The latest stop for three members of the Plano delegation was the Plano ISD Administration Building, where Reps. Van Taylor and Jeff Leach, and Sen. Ken Paxton met with school trustees and administrators Thursday morning.
Among the topics discussed were school finance and the state's accountability system -- two topics that are sure to receive significant attention come January. The meeting also allowed Leach and Paxton, who are new to their respective offices, to meet face-to-face with Plano ISD officials and learn more about the district.
"One of the things we want to stress, from an administration standpoint is that this business is all about relationships," Richard Matkin, Plano ISD superintendent, told the legislators. "We want to create relationships with you so you understand our concerns and issues. At the same time, we want to understand the things you are dealing with because it is a constantly moving target that has changing dynamics."
Matkin stressed to the legislators the need to return the state funding that was lost prior to the 2011-2012 school year, saying additional cuts will have a greater impact on students since 84 percent of the district's budget is spent at the campus level.
"We think we control costs very well because we have to," he said. "We lost $59 million in a two-year period -- that is a lot of money. As you hear about the growth in the state and the property value growth in the state, understand that we don't [benefit] from that growth. That all goes back to the state."
Taylor reminded trustees that the amount of money spent per student this year is the third highest in the state's history, and implied that simply spending more money on education would not solve educational problems. He also said that as a percentage of the total budget, the state has never spent more on education then it is right now.
However, he added that increasing funding for Plano ISD is something he would support.
Matkin responded that he didn't believe this was a fair comparison since a large number of new students in the state do not speak English and are often from families that live below the poverty line. This, he said, makes them more expensive to educate.
Trustees also stressed a need for more local control -- not only with their finances, but also with testing and graduation requirements.
One of the issues the trustees mentioned was the state's 4x4 requirement, which forces all students to take four years of English, social studies, math and science in order to graduate. This, they said, leaves little time for electives and doesn't necessarily benefit students who wish to attend trade schools instead of traditional colleges.
"We don't want all of the same type of students coming from our schools," said Trustee Carolyn Moebius. "Not everybody is going to go to college. I know Texas is doing better financially, but some kids have to go straight to work. Instead of being so focused on college readiness, we really need to consider what our kids want to do.
"You always hear college ready, college ready. Well, they need to be ready for life and whatever path they are going to travel."
Taylor said he understood Moebius' concerns, but pointed to districts such as Dallas, citing a report released by Dallas ISD Trustee Bernadette Nutall earlier this year, where only three out of every 100 black students are ready for college when they graduate. Districts such as Dallas, he said, are one of the prime reasons for the 4x4 requirement.
"Let's be really grateful that this is not the challenge we are talking about at this meeting, but clearly that is something that causes me to be very concerned," Taylor said. "I don't think you can have a successful Plano if you don't have a successful Dallas."
Trustee David Stolle suggested a compromise, where districts would have more control over their graduation requirements, allowing them to do what is needed to address specific situations.
"The solution must allow Plano ISD to continue to thrive, but provide Dallas ISD with the support to bring it up to a good level," he said. "But you can't fit both of those districts into the same square peg."
Paxton said he, as well as many other legislators, represent multiple school districts, so the solutions presented by the legislature are not often perfect for any one party. He said his philosophy is to listen to his constituents and then craft the solution that best benefits the people he represents.
The most contentious item of discussion was school vouchers, which Matkin said could take money away from public schools, further increasing the financial burden on districts.
Trustee Missy Bender agreed and attempted to use statistics which she said showed how the vouchers would hurt Plano. According to Bender, the vouchers could result in a 5 percent decrease in funding for each district. She also made the contention that the public money would be given to the private school with no strings attached, a statement that Taylor disagreed with.
"When I read this last night I was really disappointed," he said. "As far as I know, there is no voucher system anywhere in this country that looks like what you described. If you want to take a fake plan and put it out there and say, 'this is evil,' and [then] tear it down, that is what you have done. ... The example you brought up and the numbers you have cited -- it is fake. It is just not true or factual."
Paxton, who served in the state House for 10 years before winning his Senate seat, urged patience on the issue of vouchers, saying he didn't know whether he would support them since he was not aware of any bills being filed that outlined specific details of a potential voucher program.
"I am not saying there is a perfect solution, but I am generally not opposed to something without knowing what is being offered," he said. "I don't know if [Bender's] numbers are right, but it seems to me I should look at what is being proposed and then come back and say 'how does this affect you?'"
The legislative session begins Jan. 8.
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