HISD sees no spike in teacher absences during protest

Houston ISD officials say that the district did not see a significant spike in teacher absences Thursday after over 100 teachers reportedly called in sick to protest state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles’ leadership.

Thursday’s “sick-out” involved over 100 teachers across the district, according to former HISD teachers who helped organize the protest. It was the first coordinated work stoppage at HISD since Miles was appointed to his position in

June, and the first since teachers held a similar “sick-out” in 2020 to protest return-toschool protocols during the pandemic.

HISD officials, however, said Friday that they did not notice more absences than usual.

“The district conducted a brief examination and identified no significant variation in teacher absences affecting instruction for April 4, 2024, “the district said in a statement.

The district did not say exactly how many teachers called in sick Thursday, or what the average number of daily absences has been over the course of the school year. Former Superintendent Grenita Lathan’s administration did not directly acknowledge the 2020 sick-out.

Thursday’s protest was meant to call attention to “hostile learning and teaching environments” the teachers said Miles has fostered during his first year in charge, which include strict leave policies and rigid expectations around instruction.

Carly Padgett, a former HISD teacher who resigned earlier this year, said the protest was organized by “rank and file teachers across HISD who are using their voice to stand up for students,” using a phone tree to verify teachers who were participating. She said that follow-ups with teachers, which were ongoing Friday, confirmed at least 120 teachers at 41 schools had called in sick or scheduled doctor’s appointments to come in late or leave early.

“It was only word of mouth. Many teachers who would have participated simply didn’t know about it,” Padgett said. “Still, it is an indication that teachers are willing to take action to call for change despite the district’s efforts to silence them.”

Neither of Houston’s two teachers unions were involved in Thursday’s “sick-out.” Chris Tritico, attorney for the Houston Federation of Teachers, said Thursday that the union “absolutely (did) not support or endorse any teacher walkout at all,” citing the Texas Constitution, which prohibits a public sector union from endorsing a right to strike.

Union President Jackie Anderson later said that HFT understood “with perfect clarity” why some teachers decided to take action, but reaffirmed that the union did not actively encourage participation.