HISD trustee ‘in it for the long haul’
Board president won’t quit after turbulent session
Long before critics began demanding she step down as Houston ISD’s board president, Rhonda Skillern-Jones shared the same passion for education activism as many of her current detractors.
As a parent and volunteer, Skillern-Jones was a consistent presence at board meetings, a vocal advocate for disadvantaged students on the city’s north side and a supporter of the district’s school choice system. When a seat on Houston Independent School District’s school board opened up in 2011, she ran for the position unopposed, starting a seven-year stint as the District II trustee.
Now, after drawing condemnation for her handling of a heated board meeting in April where two people were arrested and the entire public was temporarily kicked out of the building, the two-term trustee said she won’t step aside voluntarily.
Time will tell whether she’s built enough good will and promised enough change to keep her leadership post.
“I am hopeful that my board does not judge my leadership by that one meeting, that my work in totality is considered, that my track record from my last presidency is considered,” said Skillern-Jones, who also served as board president in 2015, in an interview this week.
HISD trustees must decide soon whether they believe Skillern-Jones can guide the board through unprecedented challenges facing the district: the prospect of severe state sanctions due to chronically low performance at 10 schools, a $100-million-
plus budget shortfall that will result in layoffs and continued frustration over perceptions of inequity at schools serving lower-income students.
So far, one HISD trustee has publicly demanded she step down, and several others on the nine-person board have been critical of her handling of last month’s meeting.
Even as tensions continue to swirl throughout the state’s largest district, Skillern-Jones said she plans to march ahead with her priorities. The top of the list includes lobbying the Texas Education Agency for a districtwide accountability waiver because of Hurricane Harvey — a reprieve that would stave off sanctions tied to the 10 schools and give HISD’s $15-million plan for struggling schools more time to take hold.
She also plans to usher through a leaner budget with as little impact on classrooms as possible and to seek ways to foster better communication between citizens and the board.
“I see my role as helping to rebuild trust and public perception, and I take responsibility for that,” Skillern-Jones said.
In recent months, however, roiling frustration among some community members has led to demands for more transparency and a culture shift among trustees — placing Skillern-Jones, the district’s second-longest-tenured board member, in the crosshairs.
The uproar has come as trustees contemplated a recommendation to surrender control over the 10 schools — all of which serve predominately black and Hispanic student populations — as a method for avoiding state sanctions tied to continued poor performance at those campuses.
The contentiousness peaked at an April 24 meeting where trustees were scheduled to vote on giving control of the 10 campuses to a charter school organization. During the public comment portion of the meeting, Skillern-Jones ordered HISD police to clear the room after community members ignored her calls to stop clapping and making noise. An ensuing scuffle between officers and members of the public led to the arrests of two women, who were held in jail overnight before being released without charges.
HISD police said the women physically resisted officers trying to clear the room, while critics of the police response said officers overreacted to a peaceful gathering of concerned parents.
Jamie Abrams, who attended last month’s meeting and addressed trustees Thursday, called Skillern-Jones’s actions an “undemocratic and shameful abuse of power.”
“Replace her with someone who will engage in the real work that’s ahead of this board, to educate our children and retain our teacher talent in this district,” Abrams told the board.
Fight not with community
Skillern-Jones, whose district includes six of the 10 schools at risk of triggering sanctions, has expressed regret that her order led to arrests and discord.
Before Thursday’s board meeting, she spoke about conflicting feelings she had when looking back on last month’s events. She said she understands the public’s passion, but added, “I wish the relationship was more cordial” between community members and the district.
She said residents should have time to speak during meetings — critics have said they deserve more opportunity to voice opinions — but state-mandated governance rules force her to limit public comment.
“We want the exchange to be respectful,” Skillern-Jones said. “We want them to feel like they can come and be heard without any animosity or vitriol. So we’re going to have to work on building that kind of relationship.”
However, some community members believe HISD’s board needs new leadership to achieve those goals. They have argued Skillern-Jones’s terse treatment of speakers last month and failure to stop the clash has damaged the district’s credibility. One of the women arrested, Kandice Webber, said SkillernJones is “no longer trustworthy” and should step down.
Other critics of SkillernJones’s leadership have faulted her for resisting calls to sue the state over a 2015 law that put state sanctions on the table. Only one trustee has urged the district to file suit, with others arguing litigation would be costly and unlikely to succeed.
Travis McGee, a parent of three children in HISD and a leading voice for a coalition of residents who have opposed several district actions in recent months, said trustees “will have to make a decision” on whether Skillern-Jones can guide the district forward.
“She’s not the only trustee up there,” McGee said. “I would be encouraging trustees to stand up and speak against the TEA. That’s what got us in this position. The fight is not with the community.”
Longtime activist
Skillern-Jones, a mother of five who joined the community engagement team of Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis last year, started her activism in HISD with her childhood in mind.
She grew up in the low-income Kashmere Gardens neighborhood on the city’s northeast side but attended schools in tony westside neighborhoods through HISD’s school choice system. She recalls her wealthier classmates getting more opportunities than her neighbors — a pattern she continued to see when her children began attending HISD schools.
Skillern-Jones became involved in several parent-teacher organizations and served on HISD committees, catching the eye of then-District II trustee Carol Mims Galloway. When Galloway decided to not seek reelection, she encouraged Skillern-Jones to run.
“I knew that she had tremendous commitment to kids and their schools, and she was always thinking about where they came from,” said Galloway, who now serves as Skillern-Jones’ campaign treasurer.
Throughout much of SkillernJones’s tenure as a trustee, the HISD board has suffered from fractious relationships among some trustees and dust-ups with its superintendents.
In 2015, when she served as board president, Skillern-Jones said then-Superintendent Terry Grier “probably has taken the district as far as it can go.” Grier announced days later that he planned to step down.
This year, in March, Superintendent Richard Carranza issued a parting shot as he announced his plans to become chancellor of New York City public schools, saying in an interview that “there’s been no indication that my contract was going to be extended.”
Some interpreted the comment to mean the HISD board, led by Skillern-Jones, didn’t act decisively enough to keep Carranza — though Carranza said he chose to leave because of the opportunity in New York. Skillern-Jones has noted Carranza’s contract did not expire for another 17 months, and that three new trustees had just been seated.
For now, Skillern-Jones is pushing to keep her leadership position. She was unanimously chosen for the presidency in January after other trustees in line for the post could not garner enough votes to ascend to the position.
Trustee Elizabeth Santos has called on Skillern-Jones to step down, saying a “change in leadership and an acknowledgment of wrongdoing is the minimum we can do to begin restoring public trust.” Several other trustees, however, have voiced support for Skillern-Jones remaining in place or said they are still contemplating their next steps.
Skillern-Jones said she’s “in it for the long haul.”
“The kids deserve it,” Skillern-Jones said. “So whatever backlash I face, I will. I humbly take the criticism, but restoring public trust and continuing to fight for the best education of kids is something I’m very passionate about.”
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