Texas Public Schools Missing Millions ...diverted to Colorado schools run by Houston Superintendent

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

Texas public schools are battling a huge budget deficit resulting in massive cuts. Spectrum News has discovered that millions of Texas tax dollars are being diverted out of state to a series of schools run by Houston Independent School District Superintendent Mike Miles.

Ovidia Molina, president of the Texas State Teachers Association, reviewed Spectrum's findings and is calling on state lawmakers to conduct a formal investigation. Brett Shipp attempts to get to the end of this money trail to see where Texas's tax dollars are really going.

[Snoopy 7]

1. We have schools

that are cutting teachers and not hiring if someone quits or retires. Our school superintendant has NOT done his job. His job is to take care of the schools in our city. All he has done is take instructions on what to do instead of asking questions and looking for reasons about the cuts. We need to spread this Texas wide but, the problem here in Texas is that those most affected don't vote we have about a 12% voting most of the time. I have done my part and gotten so many of my friends to vote, and or, registered to vote. Many have asked me "who" to vote for and I will inform them of the issues people are running on. Then I tell them to make up their own minds on who to vote for. I know for a fact that I got people to, vote who had never voted before, when trump lost. But alot of people will not vote on the "small"/down ballet elections. I will try to keep educating our electorates but the Democratic Party needs to step it up here in Texas.

[TexasBushwhacker]

9. He fired the 2023 Principal of the Year!

[Susan Calvin]

10. Actually, without looking it up right now,

I think he fired two of them.

[Lonestarblue]

2. Abbott and his sycophant legislature have two Dominionists supporting them who want to kill public schools.

They’re oil billionaires using their money to elect the most rabid, right-wing evangelical politicians they can find. Their goal is to turn all public schools into religious academies teaching their backward beliefs.

[Hotler]

6. +1. Christian dominionist are our Taliban. nt

[Beatlelvr]

3. I'd like to see how he did this

That's public money, and not easy to just divert it somewhere else. There are usually long paper trails and many sign offs for something like this. Right?

[radical noodle]

8. It seemed as though

he had publicly funded charter schools in Texas that then sent money on to his charter schools in Colorado. Once public funds find their way into corporate (charter school) hands, then they felt free to bail out his struggling schools in another state (Colorado).

Another reason why privately owned schools should not get public "voucher" money.

[senseandsensibility]

16. Charter schools always have been about funneling taxpayer money to

billionaires and breaking teachers' unions. Their advocates are lying to the public.

[radical noodle]

20. Of course...

but I don't think they've been caught sending the taxpayer money from one state into their schools in another state.

[senseandsensibility]

24. You're right

but since the objective is to skim off as many taxpayer dollars as possible we can expect constant variations on the theme.

[jaxexpat]

11. He moved the goal post for approval to allocate funds from $100,000.00 to $1,000,000.00

He took the money because he can. He changed the rules on payment approval so he could fire-hose the school district's money into wherever the hell he wanted. He got away with it so far because Texas is run by "Oil Baron Billionaires"" and they're too stupid to care.

Per the Houston Public Media:
Upon the announcement of his appointment, Miles simultaneously announced broad changes within the district.
These changes include:
Eliminating hundreds of central office positions
Raising the spending threshold requiring board approval to $1 million from $100,000
Reductions in consecutive vacation and sick leave for teachers
A waiver to allow for hiring non-certified teachers and administrators
A waiver for Mike Miles' superintendent certification
The creation of a "New Education System"

* "The Art of (Oil Field) Inheritance" or "You Can Get Rich Off the Crumbs Falling from Their Dinner Plate"

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

14. seems like he overlapped administrations for Texas and Colorado. They are trying to get paper trail

[KS Toronado]

4. WOW, hoping the nightly news picks up on this.

[Fla Dem]

5. Talk about corruption! Texas seems to invent a new type every year.

Public money should never go to private, for profit schools even in their own state. To go to private schools in a different state is outrageous.

[Jerry2144]

7. He's Republican, right?

I guessed that without even looking at the state

[Nittersing]

12. I've been trying to find another source for this info...

I *did* find this Colorado perspective. Kimberlee Sia won her board seat for my district... which is very blue... and she is all about charter schools. I think Denver will really regret this.

https://coloradotimesrecorder.com/2024/02/colorados-pk-12-enrollment-declines-while-billionaires-fund-charter-schools/60250/

[TBF]

18. The Houston Chron finally has it tonight

sorry the link is long - I'm a subscriber so I'm gifting the article


https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/education/article/houston-isd-mike-miles-charter-school-funds-19457863.php?utm_content=hed&sid=59a7095024c17c0f2e6c6f43&ss=A&st_rid=1cebd2c3-0280-4cdc-b85a-e69e8cbf1fab&utm_source=marketing&utm_medium=copy-url-link&utm_term=&utm_campaign=article-share&hash=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaG91c3RvbmNocm9uaWNsZS5jb20vbmV3cy9ob3VzdG9uLXRleGFzL2VkdWNhdGlvbi9hcnRpY2xlL2hvdXN0b24taXNkLW1pa2UtbWlsZXMtY2hhcnRlci1zY2hvb2wtZnVuZHMtMTk0NTc4NjMucGhw&time=MTcxNTcyODkyMDAzOA%3D%3D&rid=MWNlYmQyYzMtMDI4MC00Y2RjLWI4NWEtZTY5ZThjYmYxZmFi&sharecount=MQ%3D%3Dow&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3barEKE8pPkUGKalCvBQLXbZ3omNGP2AS2uWb9gINt8IgHTT5md-O9Cns_aem_AftGEvMw5NuTiUpCyvWALp5mRXQ9sSGACxwuHvaxndKzpA18i7oXcxt9-W_ipxfpPVzjy3DGBxy2FjIX0SOTCM8K

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

19. thx

[Backseat Driver]

13. Banking buddies? - UMB, n.a. has economic hubs in both TX and CO...and other states.

Last edited Tue May 14, 2024, 12:11 PM - Edit history (2)

https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/texas/who-is-mike-miles/285-44ef62a0-d90d-44af-9071-3b9720f55b6c

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2023/06/01/who-is-mike-miles-texas-education-agency-picks-houston-isd-superintendent-commencing-state-takeover/

"Later, he served in the U.S. State Department as a Soviet analyst and member of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research. He then served as a Diplomat to Poland and Russia at the end of the Cold War, finishing his state department work as the Special Assistant to the Ambassador to Russia.

https://tea.texas.gov/about-tea/news-and-multimedia/news-releases/news-2023/tea-announces-charter-school-decisions-after-state-board-of-education-vote

https://coloradoleague.org/partners-vendors/premium-sponsors.html (Scroll to bottom of page to see bank info).

https://blog.umb.com/institutional-banking-economic-development-financing-tools-for-municipalities/


Hmmmm...a possible (I hedge plausibility) trail of breadcrumb connected civic banking buddies...?

[Uncle Joe]

15. Kicked and recommended

Thanks for the thread BlueWaveNeverEnd

[TBF]

17. This is in the Houston Chron tonight --

will try to gift the article here

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/education/article/houston-isd-mike-miles-charter-school-funds-19457863.php?utm_content=hed&sid=59a7095024c17c0f2e6c6f43&ss=A&st_rid=1cebd2c3-0280-4cdc-b85a-e69e8cbf1fab&utm_source=marketing&utm_medium=copy-url-link&utm_term=&utm_campaign=article-share&hash=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaG91c3RvbmNocm9uaWNsZS5jb20vbmV3cy9ob3VzdG9uLXRleGFzL2VkdWNhdGlvbi9hcnRpY2xlL2hvdXN0b24taXNkLW1pa2UtbWlsZXMtY2hhcnRlci1zY2hvb2wtZnVuZHMtMTk0NTc4NjMucGhw&time=MTcxNTcyODkyMDAzOA%3D%3D&rid=MWNlYmQyYzMtMDI4MC00Y2RjLWI4NWEtZTY5ZThjYmYxZmFi&sharecount=MQ%3D%3Dow&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3barEKE8pPkUGKalCvBQLXbZ3omNGP2AS2uWb9gINt8IgHTT5md-O9Cns_aem_AftGEvMw5NuTiUpCyvWALp5mRXQ9sSGACxwuHvaxndKzpA18i7oXcxt9-W_ipxfpPVzjy3DGBxy2FjIX0SOTCM8K

[B.See]

21. My impression of Texas in general (politically and economically speaking)

Is one big radically FAR right dominated entity whose laws and institutions are crafted by and for the benefit of the wealthy, big business, and the politically well connected.

Hell, The state has been governed by an attorney general who's been under indictment for alleged criminal activity for, how long?

And the MAGA right wingers in Florida, Mississippi, and Louisiana are on the same track. They seem to be in a footrace to join Texas by trying to out-Maga each other.

The South shall Reich again.

[Patterson]

22. And that Attorney General skated a couple months ago.

[TBF]

23. The rural areas anyway. But remember Texas has several

cities that are in the top 25 in population: (4) Houston, (7) San Antonio, (9) Dallas, (10) Austin, (13) Fort Worth, and (22) El Paso. That's a lot of people and most of these are in blue counties (Fort Worth is pink I believe - it's not the same as Dallas although they are near each other) if you look at recent voting results.

If I were a democratic party leader, I'd be very focused on retaining Hispanic Americans in the party. Leadership roles, outreach, etc.

Texas has been democratic in the past (remember Lyndon B. Johnson?) - there's no reason it can't be again.