HOUSTON — Houston ISD students return to school Monday, but it will be without several veteran administrators.
On Saturday, a panel of now-former principals said they were blindsided when the district asked them each to resign at the end of last school year. They explained to a packed audience why their optimism quickly floundered.
All the former principals who were on the panel have more than 100 years of experience combined, but they said that experience wasn't enough to save their jobs.
"We all had no notice that we were going to be asked to resign. We were completely caught off-guard," said Amanda Wingard.
She was the 2023 elementary principal of the year. By the end of the next year, she was out.
"It’s been probably the hardest months of my life," she said.
Wingard and others said state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles stepped into the role sharing promises and a vision they claim didn't pan out.
"Cautiously optimistic that things would go in a positive direction and the actions match the words that we were being told," said one of the former principals on the panel.
Supporters of HISD Magnets and Budget accountability organized the event on Saturday, giving the community a chance to hear directly from staff who witnessed firsthand what they call a lot of upheaval and turnover at the district.
"We have a very outside view, and they are right inside and have an inside view of what’s happening," said Tisha Ochoa.
Superintendent Miles has stood by his vision for the district, touting achievement scores and widespread reform, data-driven teacher and principal evaluations.
"While it caused the most angst and maybe the most, you know, adult pushback, the high-performance culture, yes, we're going to we're going to expose our own selves," said Miles during a news conference earlier in the week.
Miles said teachers have embraced the changes, adding that the schools and district are better for it.
"For all the initial complaints, it worked," said Miles.
While sharing their stories, the panelists do agree, they want the new principals to succeed.
"But we want to make sure that it is happening in the right positive way," said Wingard.