Houston ISD leaders met Wednesday at district headquarters in Houston with members of the Special Education Parent Advisory Committee (SEPAC) in an invitation-only meeting to discuss proposed districtwide changes to special education services that would consolidate supports into designated schools, according to a parent who attended.
Mireille Patman, a parent who attended the meeting, said the nearly two-hour session included six parents, special education parent liaisons, and district officials. She said participants discussed planned changes to how students access special education services across the district.
Patman said she left the meeting with unresolved questions.
Late last week, documents circulated online and on social media outlining proposed changes to special education in Houston ISD, the largest school district in Texas, which has operated under a state takeover since 2023. The documents describe a plan to consolidate special education services at select schools identified as “specialty schools.” The proposal would require some students to transfer from their current or zoned campuses to receive services.
Houston ISD has not responded to requests for comment about the leaked documents, the SEPAC meeting, or any proposed changes to special education services.
Patman said district leaders at the meeting acknowledged the documents and said they represented early drafts. She said district officials described the materials as incorrect and no longer applicable but said the district continues to plan changes that would consolidate special education students and services beginning in the upcoming school year. She said officials indicated the district could announce the changes publicly as early as next week.
Patman’s son, Teddy, has Down syndrome and has received special education services throughout his enrollment in Houston ISD. Teddy, who recently turned 15, will enter high school next year. Patman said the family had planned for him to attend Heights High School, located near their home.
Patman said the timing of the proposed changes raises concerns for families who have students receiving special education services. She said families need time to adjust to school assignments and service changes.
“The first thing I really did think about when I saw [the plan proposal] online was, ‘This is straight up segregation, however you want to look at it,’” Patman said. “This is segregating a population of people as you’ve designated, and putting them in a group to not be seen.”
Houston ISD trustee Maria Benzon said she also has concerns about how the district would implement any large-scale changes described in the leaked documents. Benzon said she has not received detailed information from the district about proposed changes.
“I’m really concerned about the lack of communication,” Benzon said. “There’s no communication from the district to the family, saying, ‘Hey, the right thing is this, and this is why we’re going to do it right.’ Like, there’s not even a justification for these changes that’s being made to families.”
Elected trustees in Houston ISD currently do not hold voting authority under the state takeover, and trustees said the district has not provided them with detailed plans for special education restructuring.
Patman said she has participated in previous SEPAC meetings and has worked with the district on her son’s education. She said she does not know whether she will be invited to future meetings. She said she had been told the committee meets monthly.
Houston ISD serves more than 20,000 students who receive special education services. The Texas Education Agency placed conservators in the district in 2021 to oversee special education compliance after a state review found systemic failures in the program. The agency found the district had longstanding deficiencies in special education services. State oversight remains in place as part of the district’s continued management under the Texas Education Agency.
Compliance with state and federal special education requirements remains one of the conditions for Houston ISD to regain local governance and exit state intervention.
Patman said she first encountered challenges with the district’s special education services when her son was three years old.
“It’s been a yearslong battle,” Patman said.
Benzon said families have raised questions about transportation, school assignments, and the effects of consolidating students into fewer campuses. She said the district should communicate any restructuring plans directly to families.
“This document is already circulating. It is out there in the public,” Benzon said. “They need to do their due diligence and they need to speak about it, what is happening and inform not just at the school level, but at a district level, what their plan is.”
