Desegregation order

The Ector County Independent School District's magnet program, district boundaries and majority-to-minority transfers are all issues that could be impacted if ECISD is released from a 1982 desegregation order.

Trustees will hear an update today on the district's compliance with the consent decree, an agreement between the district and plaintiffs in that 1982 case. The consent agreement includes guidelines for programs like magnet schools and majority-to-minority transfers. District lawyer Mike Atkins said Tuesday's meeting will solely focus on the district's progress on the consent decree with no action planned.

"It's just an update so the board sees how the district is progressing," Atkins said. He said Superintendent Hector Mendez would present the information.

Trustee Donna Smith said she thinks the report will show good things about the district's move toward equality in all areas.

"I expect to hear it's going as planned and most of the problem are worked out," she said.

A lot rides on what trustees do after tomorrow's meeting because programs required under the decree would go away. Magnet schools allow students from all across the district to attend campuses with special programs, such as an extended day or technology focus. As part of the consent decree, Hays Magnet was converted to a total (magnet only) campus.

In addition, the majority-to-minority transfer program is tied to that consent agreement. Under this form of transfer, a student representing the majority ethnic group at his or her home campus may request a transfer to a campus where that group is the minority in order to promote greater racial equality in the district.

The convoluted district boundaries also are a result of the district's court supervision on desegregation. For example, the district buses students from a large area near the south-central part of town up to Ross Elementary in the northeast part of town.

Since Jan. 1, the district has been eligible to apply for unitary status, which effectively means the 1982 desegregation order and later consent decree would no longer be in force against ECISD because the school system would be considered fully integrated.

"The district wouldn't have to make the regular reports to the court," Atkins said. He said he wasn't sure if going out from under the order would mean the district could do things like simplify attendance boundaries. He said the primary benefit would come from no longer having the extensive paperwork associated with court supervision.

By agreeing to the consent decree in 2006, the district and CRUCIAL largely resolved many outstanding issues related to the original desegregation order. ECISD agreed to take steps in all the areas the Supreme Court has established for review of unitary status, including faculty, staff, transportation, extracurricular activities, facilities and student assignment. At issue are district demographics and how schools treat students of all backgrounds.

Smith said her understanding is that the report will help the board determine if applying for unitary status is appropriate, but no action will be taken Tuesday.

In the past, Superintendent Hector Mendez has said that the district will not abandon consent decree programs like the Tri-Ethnic Committee even if the district achieves unitary status.

Tri-Ethnic Committee member Gene Collins said he felt there still was a sense of urgency to some issues, particularly his belief that reconfiguring the district in the middle school format would improve student performance. He said that Hays Magnet needs more monitoring so it can succeed as well. He said he would like to see solid numbers on how much the district spends on students of different races in academic classes.

"If we really want success, we need to put the resources into it," Collins said. He said he wants to see the district achieve unitary status, but some areas still need progress.

Though potential implications of unitary status are large, Tuesday's meeting will stay confined to how the district is working to comply with the consent order.

"Each facet of progress will be discussed," Steve Brown, assistant superintendent for secondary operations, said.

Collins said he's unsure how the meeting will turn out.

"It could be the biggest meeting in a decade or all fizzle and no bang," he said.

 UNDER THE MICROSCOPE
   >> These areas of ECISD operation will be under examination at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in the administration building, 802 N. Sam Houston. Superintendent Hector Mendez will report to trustees on how the district has complied with the consent decree related to the desegregation case against the district:
   >> Student assignment.
   >> Faculty and staff.
   >> Transportation.
   >> Extracurricular activities.
   >> Facilities.