[Tiffanie N Harrison]

As a teacher, I seek to be a lifelong learner and as a trustee, a Lead Learner…a phrase I learned from the incredible principal of Wells Branch Elementary, Eliza Gordon.

I have learned to be measured with my words. The weight of my words as a trustee can be harmful. They can induce panic. They can be seen as a directive to staff members. I have learned to choose my words wisely and to be intentional with what I say.

I have learned to not engage in bad faith arguments. There is little to be gained from going rounds with those who lack basic respect for the rights, dignity, or autonomy of others. However, I do still listen and reflect on each and every piece of feedback I receive.

Initially I expressed concern about our very few choices for a Superintendent search firm, but I must say that I ended up being thoroughly pleased with Ray & Associates and would recommend them over and over again.

The timeline for the Superintendent search was laid out in early March (March 11th was the first draft) and at that time it did feel swift. However, I still felt that the process was fairly straightforward and clear. As someone who ran on the belief our district needed more transparency, I say this: If I had it to do over again, I would like for us to have set it up differently than the previous two searches and would’ve updated the community throughout the process even more. More on that in just a bit.

We engaged the community through a survey in six languages in late March and received quite a bit of feedback. I read and re-read every single one of the 70+ pages provided to us. We also hosted over 30+ forums to engage the community in the selection process. This included open forums for each of the learning communities. Some of these were not well attended even though there were multiple opportunities. I do find this curious and wonder about the participation of those who are now extremely vocal in their opposition of our lone finalist. In hindsight, I would have liked more feedback from students.

Contrary to popular belief, there have never been meet and greets in the 21 day waiting period of a lone finalist in Round Rock ISD. This search process was just like the last two. If I had it to do over again, I would like to have set it up differently and would’ve updated the community throughout the process.

We went from 48 candidates —> 12 candidates cultivated by the search firm based on community feedback. We had access to all application materials and could have pulled any of the 48 candidates into the first round of interviews but I do feel that the search firm did an exceptional job culling the original 48 down to 12 based on the criteria from the aforementioned community feedback. From there we went from 12 candidates to 7 first round interviews through forced-choice ranking and ultimately invited 4 candidates to interview in the final round. One of those candidates received a significant raise from their current board and pulled out from the interview process, a second candidate accepted a national education job offer that had been long-pending. Dr. Azaiez was high on my list from the beginning and consistently ranked highly as we proceeded through the forced choice ranking matrices and board discussion.

As I said before, if I had this experience to do over again, I would have updated the community at each step of the process.

Reasons why I chose Dr. Azaiez (in no particular order of importance):
-He is an instructional leader and coach. Based on the survey, teachers and support staff valued a superintendent who had classroom experience.
-He acknowledges that human capital is one of the most important parts of an organization.
-He was forthcoming about the SPED issues and the Gibson report in Donna. He brought this up in his interview. He wanted a critical analysis of SPED in his district. For years I have felt that we shy away from critically loving our district and I am eager to work with someone who is ready and willing to delve into problems of practice within our district with openness and humility.
-He understands opportunity and choice for all students and created more paths to success earlier in elementary and middle school. Students that struggle don’t start doing so in high school so it is important to capture them early. This critical understanding can create pathways to success to all of our RRISD students. He also has a focus on testing all students for GT/TAG.
-He prioritizes teaching and learning above all else.
-He was able to bring Donna from a $5 million deficit to a $17 million surplus in one year through focusing on attrition. He did this while raising the starting teacher salary to $51,500.
-I trust and am impressed with his improvement of Title I campuses. I feel that our similar campuses need the support and intervention he can bring.
-He dove headfirst into a complex situation in Donna ISD. He knew that the district (and really the board itself) was under TEA Conservatorship. Many people would run from this tough situation. I feel that we have a complex and divided board that borders needing intervention and oversight at times ourselves. I am looking forward to having a superintendent that is up for the challenge of working with us and more than anything hope that we can get our act together for the good of Round Rock ISD students.

Overall, I was very pleased with the quality of candidates presented to us and would like to reiterate that Dr. Azaiez was at the top of those candidates when ranked from the very first round through the end.

Some have asked what elevated him over the other final round candidate. For me, it was the student focus. The other candidate had a heavy focus on their various Chamber partnerships. I value our relationship with our Chamber and serve as the RRISD representative on their board. I have been involved with the Round Rock Chamber as a CTE teacher for years and am grateful for that partnership. However, again, Dr. Azaiez’ time in the classroom provides a broader focus and approach as superintendent I know will benefit RRISD.

Lastly, I want to focus on the role of the board. If we can stop our infighting, condescension and grandstanding (and I did say OUR) we will be able to set goals and constraints for our new superintendent. We are a diverse board with often diverging interests, however, we do have several points of convergence. I know these points of convergence include improving and supporting SPED services, identifying Dyslexia early and providing exceptional service and being sure that the success of RRISD extends to all students no matter their race, religion, gender, zip code, campus, etc. We set goals for the superintendent and tie their evaluation to these goals. This is the mechanism for accountability and this is where we need to be focused beyond today.

Lastly (for real this time), I want to express deep gratitude to Dr. Presley for stepping in as Acting Superintendent and steering the ship through the unknown of a global pandemic. He worked two jobs for several months and I simply do not have the words to express how grateful I am for his leadership during this time.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Trustee Bone,

We updated and approved the final timeline on March 11th. Molly from Ray & Associates provided us the approved final timeline by way of Patty via email on March 12th. This final timeline never included finalist forums. If this is something that we wanted, we all had time and the ability to advocate at that point. We have followed our agreed upon timeline with fidelity.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

In my order of preference:

Juanita Craft
Redbud
Bright Lake

I do really like all of them and am grateful for the work of this committee!

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Thank you for the update, President Weir.

I would like to discuss the aforementioned policies as a full board.

I have no interest in an “Appointment a new Board President” nor do I think it would be fruitful to consider a board officer reorg at the May 15th meeting.

I would like to see us refocus our efforts towards creating board goals and finding a strong leader through the superintendent search process.

This power struggle feels so unproductive and is counter to our forward progress.

I will be honest, I was apprehensive about Lone Star Governance before our first training but I am now fully on board and see why it is important. Student outcomes do not change until adult behaviors change. Hopefully we can reorient ourselves around student outcomes.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Almost started another thread but I believe this applies here.

I would like to see an external equity audit included. I know that we have yet to hear from the Chief Equity Officer but I believe it is important that this process is driven externally, rather than internally where we have long been complicit in inequity. AISD is in the midst of their equity audit process with IUPRA (Institute for Urban Policy Research and Analysis) at the University of Texas.

This afternoon we received yet another email requesting a SPED/504 Town Hall. I do not believe we should have to continually be reminded to accommodate SPED/504, English-learners, low-income families, families of color, LGBTQIA+ students and staff and more.

I’m extremely curious about how much we are paying out in compensatory education services as well as settlements for EEOC/Title VI/Title IX complaints. Some of this information is shielded from public view. There is a moral implication to our lack of equity. There is also a financial one as well.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Trustee Vessa,

I agree with you.

I would like to see actual data from community members about who would continue virtually, if offered, and would be in favor of requesting a survey to that end.

The vaccine rollout has been abysmal and I do not believe we will be out of the woods by August 2021. I feel that it is premature to say that we should and will not offer virtual learning in the Fall.

I would, however, like to see virtual and in-person options be completely separate instead of hybrid. Surely this is something that could be managed in a district of innovation…

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

I have been a member of the Chamber’s Entrepreneurship Council for 2 years. As a CTE Teacher I found the partnership with the Chamber to be incredibly beneficial for our CTE programs and beyond. I think it is important to have a representative but I also believe that it is important to have the right representative.

I know that there are opportunities for engaging The Chamber and its business and community resources in supporting multiple facets of our district. I am particularly interested in ways that we might encourage members of the Chamber to support schools with underfunded PTAs with time, talent and treasure.

We have fractured relationships in our community. There is also an intense air of mistrust with the Chamber and for some, the Council of PTAs. We could ignore these institutions or we can work to repair those fractures and build back strong relationships in the service of students and community.

I, for one, would like to act as the bridge builder and do hope that you all would consider me for the Chamber Board representative. The RR Chamber could also benefit from the multiple areas of diversity that I would bring.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Something else to bring into the conversation after speaking with community members…

Our questionnaire to sign up to speak is in English only. And after years of requests, we still have no translation services for both public comments and the meeting. I wanted to make note of this as we need to fix this to work toward being more inclusive.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

President Weir,

Thank you for starting this long overdue discussion!

I am in agreement with all of Dr. Bone’s clarifications but particularly #3. We should hold steady on the time allotted for public comment, particularly at regularly scheduled board meetings.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

I am open to exploring the audit process with a renewed understanding that a forensic audit is inappropriate at this time.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Dr. Xiao,

I was surprised and feel frustrated by your no vote yesterday. I have appreciated your reverence for science and your focus on vaccination opportunities. I do understand that parents should have planned ahead. But is it more important to teach those parents a lesson? Or to keep our students and staff safe? Unfortunately some people will not believe the reality of COVID19 until they personally impacted. I feel that now the circle of impact is now getting closer to home for many. I am starting to see those who were deniers either contract COVID themselves or have someone in their circle be impacted by COVID. With that in mind, I would like to still reserve the right to make adjustments, as needed. I will not hold moral high ground over safety of staff and students. The numbers on both our dashboard and the county dashboards were quite concerning yesterday.

I would like to see proactive planning going into the last 9 weeks and as I have said previously; would like to start seeing the district plan for compensatory education WITH educators and families. No more guessing and checking. The path to educational recovery needs to include stakeholders.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Trustee Vessa,

Thank you for starting this conversation.

I spent some time listening to the most recent guidance today. This guidance was part of the weekly Covid19 Update from Austin Public Health (KXAN Article from 12.29.2020 titled “Austin ICU doctor calls overwhelmed hospitals a ‘nightmare none of us want to come to’”)

They have specific guidance for schools starting around 21:40.

-Suspend/Postpone Extracurricular and other activities within the school system where masking and social distancing are not possible
-In the event that activities are unable to be postponed or cancelled, they should be significantly modified in order to reduce the risk of transmission, including proactive testing.
-Middle Schools and High Schools should transition to virtual learning for the two weeks following the Winter Break
-Any student/staff who traveled or participated in social gatherings outside of their household are strongly encouraged to quarantine and be tested 7 days following the gathering or travel.

Dr. Mark Escott has admitted that schools have done a wonderful job of mitigating the risk *and* he has said that as the positivity rate increases in the community, the positivity rate at schools will follow.

I would like to consider an emergency meeting. It would be nice to not have to make a last minute decision. I know that we desire to keep schools open but I would like to be able to also keep students, families and educators safe.

Additionally, I have seen that there are ISD’s like Brazosport ISD that have been able to make vaccinations available to their staff. I would like to continue to advocate for vaccines to be made available to our staff. I believe with a round of staff vaccinations, we will be able to reach more of the in-person face-to-face education that many parents are seeking before the end of the semester. There will still be need for precaution but there will be more assurance of safety. I have more thoughts but am on a tight timeline so I will be back later with more. I have one other resource to follow up on. Thank you again for starting this discussion, Trustee Vessa.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Thank you for starting this in-depth discussion, Trustee Weston.

I am going to spend some focused time considering budget. I appreciate your top-of-mind questions as a start. I am in complete agreement with requesting a forensic audit.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Fellow Trustees,

I believe we should stay the course with virtual and in-person learning for several reasons:

1. The vaccine is on the horizon. In conferring with trustees from AISD, they are hoping that the vaccine will be available to their educators in March or earlier. I appreciate President Weir and Dr. Presley advocating for our educators to have priority access to the vaccine. Can we not stay the course to protect students, staff and families until we have vaccine access?
2. The pandemic is impacting learning. Not in-person vs. virtual. We actually have many reports from parents and students who are appreciative of the opportunity to learn virtually. When we look at the data from our own school district, virtual students are “outperforming” in-person students.
3. I do not believe in taking away parent choice in this matter. I do feel that backing off a virtual option could cause parents to pull their unenroll their children in favor of homeschooling.
4. I do not believe that we should eliminate the possibility of virtual learning for Fall 2021. We do not yet know if children will be able to receive the COVID19 vaccine in time for the 2021 school year. It may be a better option to plan virtual and in-person learning with more foresight for 2021 and have parents and students commit to one way or another.
5. Our dataset is incomplete as to the rate of transmission for secondary schools in RRISD. We did not receive this information during the last presentation. I have requested it multiple times since the last meeting and hope to receive that information this evening.
6. As I look at the vast number of job openings for our district, I am concerned about teacher retention. Sure, we are hearing that we have 100 additional teachers due to parents pulling their students from our district. However, are these staff members in hard-to-staff areas? The job board suggests that there is a mismatch. I see a great many openings for Special Education, dual language, high school CTE and math. We have already received several emails as a board from educators

We know that closely-followed safety protocols work. If you look at the CDC’s guidance on schools, we are already engaging in medium risk behaviors by having hybrid learning and allowing students to mix and move from class-to-class. To have RRISD advocate to bring more students on campus would go against the established safety best-practices and would place us in the highest risk category. We know that there are already campuses that are unable to maintain recommended social distancing guidelines because of the number of students who have returned. We also know that the CDC asks us to consider community spread. Wilco is at the highest level possible and Travis is approaching Level 5. We should be even more cautious as we approach January and should be prepared to monitor things well into the Fall of 2021.

For your reference and per the CDC, below is what constitutes the highest risk in terms of schools:

Highest risk:
• Students and teachers engage in in-person only learning, activities, and events
• Students mix freely between classes and activities
• Students and teachers freely share objects
• Students, teachers, and staff do not/are not required to follow steps to protect themselves and others such as proper use of face masks, social distancing, hand hygiene
• Irregular cleaning and disinfection of frequently touched areas

I do not understand what your proposed action would be in advocating for more students on campus. To do so safely we would need more educators and more physical spaces to allow for suggested social distancing. To do anything less is to be willing to risk the lives of staff and family members of students.

If we really wanted to be innovative and meet the needs of all students, we would allow for the complete separation of virtual and in-person learners and educators. And we would compensate those who teach in-person with hazard pay. That would allow for a more full in-person experience. I feel that the time has passed for this for the 2020-2021 school year.

I too want to see our “failing” students be supported. And I want to remind all of us…that we are in the middle of a global pandemic. We also need to be doing what we can to pay attention to the trauma, health and survival of this community, which is just as important.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Let’s do a workshop on this in January. We have a lot to discuss tomorrow. I do believe that this deserves full focus and I personally would like to hear a bit more by those most closely impacted by this decision. If we schedule a workshop for January, perhaps we can move this off of the agenda tomorrow.

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