Conservators tapped to oversee changes in HISD’s special ed
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath has appointed two longtime special education administrators to oversee wide-ranging changes in Houston ISD’s delivery of services to students with disabilities, which last year cameunder withering criticism from state investigators.
The selection of conservators Molly Cordeau and Fred Shafer follows a stateinitiated special accreditation investigation completed in September 2020 that found HISD has failed to rectify “significant, systemic and widespread” issues in the district’s special education department. Cordeau and Shafer will have the power to order changes in the district, though much of their work likely will involve coordination with district staff implementing new policies and practices.
HISD’s special education department has remained under scrutiny for more than a decade from analysts hired by the district and families of students with disabilities. Following their 11-month investigation, state officials concluded HISD still is failing to identify all students entitled to special education services, provide legally entitled supports to students or hold district staff accountable for shortcomings, among other issues.
HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan’s administration called the investigators’ findings “factually and legally incorrect,” arguing they relied on outdated and incomplete information. District administrators also noted the Texas Education Agency’s role in creating a since-abandoned artificial cap on the percentage of students with disabilities who could receive services.
Jeff Cottrill, the TEA’s deputy commissioner of governance and accountability, addressed HISD trustees about the appointment Thursday, telling
“I’m very encouraged that you’ve got two of the finest in your region that will be providing that support.”
Jeff Cottrill, TEA deputy commissioner of governance and accountability
board members that the agency went through a “very deliberative” process to select Cordeau and Shafer.
“I’m very encouraged that you’ve got two of the finest in your region that will be providing that support,” Cottrill said.
Shafer and Cordeau have both spent about four decades working on education matters, with the vastmajority of time spent focusing on special education.
Cordeau worked for eight years as an education specialist and three years as director of special education services at the Region 4 Education Service Center, which supports nearly 100 traditional and charter school districts in the Houston area, according to her LinkedIn profile. She started a consulting firm in 2008 and served as a conservator in HISD following a 2010 state investigation into the district’s program for students with disabilities who were in the custody of residential facilities.
“I feel like I’m relatively familiar with at least some of the campuses and some of the issues that the special education department might be facing,” Cordeau told HISD board members Thursday.
Shafer spent about 40 years working in the public school field, including 10 as Katy ISD’s executive director of special education and three as director of special education solutions for the Region 4 Education Service Center.
Shafer later served as a stateappointed monitor and conservator in Beaumont ISD amid its financial turmoil in the mid-2010s, then oversawthe district’s special education department for two years.
During Shafer’s two-year tenure in Beaumont, which was marked by significant administrative upheaval and a 15 percent reduction in the teaching staff, the district received state-issued special education ratings of “needs intervention” and “needs assistance.” Following his departure, Beaumont received four straight “needs substantial interventions” ratings, the worst possible score.
TEA officials did not respond to a request for comment Thursday about Shafer’s performance in Beaumont.
Jackie Cross-Ecford, a longtime special education advocate who served on a committee examining HISD’s practices in 2017 and 2018, called Shafer “very much by-thebook” in her experiences working with him during his time as a Katy ISD official and TEA dispute facilitator.
“You might have to really fight to prove your case, but he has knowledge and experience,” Cross-Ecford said. “My only concern would be how long it will take him to come up to speed on the size, dynamics and diversity of the district.”
HISD has had another conservator, Doris Delaney, working in the district since 2016. Delaney’s responsibilities have centered on academic performance at Kashmere High School, which has made gains in the past few years after a decade of failing grades from the state, and low-rated campuses throughout the district.