Jump to content

State of Texas orders North Forest ISD to shut down


VicMan

Recommended Posts

The State of Texas has ordered North Forest ISD to shut down in 2012. The district management is trying to fight it:

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=8248590

It's about time that the district goes. Houston ISD will be the one picking up the territory in 2012.

The U.S. Department of Justice will have to approve of the closure. Since it approved the closures of Wilmer Hutchins ISD and Kendleton ISD (other small, mostly African-American school districts), I don't see it denying the closure of NFISD.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Standardized testing strikes again...

I have several friends who graduated from Forest Brook and Smiley and are successful in life as I hate to see this.....when the shift towards testing popped up in the school system it has become deadly...Humble ISD has atttracted alot of the alumni of NFISD who could've sent kids there and there isn't enough diversity to boost scores across the board.

If they close, will HISD absorb their facilities or they'll shift them to Kashmere?

But NFISD used to be predominately white at one time.....another district that has fallen victim of white flight inside the Beltway

Link to comment
Share on other sites

HISD hasn't stated what it will do with the campuses

Unlike Wilmer Hutchins, I think the NFISD campuses are in okay shape, so I think they will remain open.

This may be a blessing for Kashmere, though, as HISD could rezone Settegast to Kashmere and leave other NFISD areas zoned to NFHS.

If it were up to me I would redraw the boundaries of Kashmere, NFHS, and Furr so that some territory of NFHS goes to Kashmere and Furr- that way each school has about 1,000 students. - More or less I would rezone Settegast to Kashmere. The area around East Houston post office would remain NFHS. Dyersdale would remain NFHS. Lakewood.. it may go to NFHS, or it could go to Kashmere...

Standardized testing strikes again...

I have several friends who graduated from Forest Brook and Smiley and are successful in life as I hate to see this.....when the shift towards testing popped up in the school system it has become deadly...Humble ISD has atttracted alot of the alumni of NFISD who could've sent kids there and there isn't enough diversity to boost scores across the board.

If they close, will HISD absorb their facilities or they'll shift them to Kashmere?

But NFISD used to be predominately white at one time.....another district that has fallen victim of white flight inside the Beltway

Edited by VicMan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...

The TEA commissioner said that the TEA has revoked NFISD's accreditation and formally ordered it to close. HISD will annex the district. This pends the approval of the justice department.

http://www.khou.com/...-133715073.html

Many aspects have not yet been answered

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/North-Forest-ISD-nears-closure-2265052.php

Among the questions to be answered: Will HISD keep all the North Forest buildings or move some students? What, if any, debt will HISD have to assume? Will the district retain any North Forest teachers? Are the students properly identified as gifted or in need of special education?
Edited by VicMan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whether they'll say it in the open or not, I can't imagine that HISD administrators are too happy with the prospect of taking in NFISD's student population.

I can also imagine that they don't want the student population.

Personally I'm in favor of taking them NFISD. It will encourage homebuilders to develop northeast Houston. It will allow gentrification to more easily proceed in central Houston.

Also it looks like HISD will get its fourth stadium that way.

This will be good for other districts since they won't have to send as much Robin Hood money.

Edited by VicMan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Standardized testing strikes again...

I have several friends who graduated from Forest Brook and Smiley and are successful in life as I hate to see this.....when the shift towards testing popped up in the school system it has become deadly...Humble ISD has atttracted alot of the alumni of NFISD who could've sent kids there and there isn't enough diversity to boost scores across the board.

If they close, will HISD absorb their facilities or they'll shift them to Kashmere?

But NFISD used to be predominately white at one time.....another district that has fallen victim of white flight inside the Beltway

The problem is not testing or the teachers - its the parents. If you do not have parents who continually reinforce education as important then most (not all) children will take the more fun path of least resistance and ignore school work. If the school passes children from grade to grade just to keep their funding, it all catches up with them when the standardized tests come each year.

I took these tests when I was in school - they are the easiest most pathetic tests ever created. If a child can not pass the test - he/she has no business at all moving on to the next grade....they are extremely basic.

Sadly we can move these poor kids from district to district interrupting their groups of friends and busing them all over the city and it will not make any difference at all if the parents do not stand up and start parenting. You can not fix the home life these kids have...if their parents are not going to force them to work hard and behave the school certainly is not going to be able to do so.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On City Data I heard something about an apartment complex that NFISD built -- Testomo said that NFISD built an apartment intended for low income housing, but HUD refused to give funding because they believed the apartments were too upscale. Testmo said that's why NFISD lost money

Could anybody find more info on this?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I disagree. In spite of my parents best attempts, I never did jack **** back in school, and I turned out just....oh, well never mind.

Your idea of not doing jack ----- in school is likely VERY different than the NFISD kids idea of doing jack ---- in school. Your probably bothered to show up because your parents forced you too...and despite trying not to learn - you probably still did...when they even bother to show up to school they literally do nothing, and many are just distractions to those who are trying.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I disagree. In spite of my parents best attempts, I never did jack **** back in school, and I turned out just....oh, well never mind.

And, I highly suspect that early on you had an intelligence level that many (if not most) of the general student population in HISD (and surrounding area school districts) do not have. You did turn out just fine, IMHO.

But, I do agree that it takes parental participation for the most part.

I also believe that not all kids are born 'smart'. Some will be average and some not even that. And, try as they may, even good teachers cannot make a kid learn when there is no incentive to do so. To hold teachers wholly responsible for kids' test scores is a laughable concept to me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It was a self-depricating joke; not particularly untrue (before or after), but nothing more. And don't get me wrong, it flatters me that y'all think that I'm a success, but you have no idea how little I get paid these days.

At least you aren't standing around City Hall demanding we pay your way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It was a self-depricating joke; not particularly untrue (before or after), but nothing more. And don't get me wrong, it flatters me that y'all think that I'm a success, but you have no idea how little I get paid these days.

So what you are saying is you even failed at being ironic.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So what you are saying is you even failed at being ironic.

Unfortunately, I am serious. I suck at doing nothing.

You see, I didn't realize that all unemployment benefits would stop the moment I enrolled for community college accounting classes with the expectation that they might at some point make me marketable to employers again (which they didn't). And because I owned real estate in the form of a half-completed money-pit, which didn't produce income and was unsellable during the financial crisis, the very thing that actually created a need for food stamps also financially disqualified me from receiving them.

If only I had just sat around all day and drank beer for a year and a half, my life would've been soooo much easier.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unfortunately, I am serious. I suck at doing nothing.

You see, I didn't realize that all unemployment benefits would stop the moment I enrolled for community college accounting classes with the expectation that they might at some point make me marketable to employers again (which they didn't). And because I owned real estate in the form of a half-completed money-pit, which didn't produce income and was unsellable during the financial crisis, the very thing that actually created a need for food stamps also financially disqualified me from receiving them.

If only I had just sat around all day and drank beer for a year and a half, my life would've been soooo much easier.

Our government and its programs truly are brilliant! They say welfare is not intended to hold you down - but they discontinue it when you goto school....We have many employees who decline their pay raises because it would disqualify their welfare benefits and their kids chip program insurance.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

One thing is that people need to think about how the school boundaries and alignments will change. After looking at the geograophy, I believe that B. C. Elmore Middle School needs to be changed from 6-8 to K-8. That way kids in Settegast will not have to take a bus somewhere to go to elementary school.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 months later...
  • 1 year later...

Now North Forest has been shut down for good. It closed on July 1, 2013. Kashmere High School and Key Middle School will be getting many North Forest kids, but Forest Brook Middle and North Forest High remain open.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 9 years later...
On 7/14/2011 at 11:30 AM, VicMan said:

The State of Texas has ordered North Forest ISD to shut down in 2012. The district management is trying to fight it:

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=8248590

It's about time that the district goes. Houston ISD will be the one picking up the territory in 2012.

The U.S. Department of Justice will have to approve of the closure. Since it approved the closures of Wilmer Hutchins ISD and Kendleton ISD (other small, mostly African-American school districts), I don't see it denying the closure of NFISD.

Any new developments in the North Forest ISD situation ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

38 minutes ago, Blue Dogs said:

Any new developments in the North Forest ISD situation ?

North Forest doesn't exist any longer. All of the kids are in HISD now. There was an agenda item in 2018 regarding settling the lawsuits in Federal court brought by former North Forest employees. What other issues were you wondering about?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...
On 11/29/2022 at 8:57 PM, Ross said:

North Forest doesn't exist any longer. All of the kids are in HISD now. There was an agenda item in 2018 regarding settling the lawsuits in Federal court brought by former North Forest employees. What other issues were you wondering about?

Just found out the TX Education Agency taking over Houston ISD beginning next week according to Fox 26 KRIV-TV Houston & Houston Chronicle. 

Sounds like the beginning of the end for HISD Superintendent Milton House & the elected members of the HISD School Board of Trustees. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...