F. Mike Miles is the current superintendent of Houston Independent School District. He previously served as the superintendent of the Dallas Independent School District (DISD) from July 1, 2012 to June 25, 2015, [1] and previously in Colorado Springs.
Miles was a ranger in the United States Army and worked in the U.S. State Department. [2] In his educational career he served as a superintendent for Harrison School District 2 in Colorado Springs. [3] Miles operated an educational consulting firm called Focal Point while in that position. The business wound down after he became Dallas ISD superintendent as his contract for DISD restricted his outside activities. [4] In Colorado Springs he tied teacher and principal pay to gains in student achievement. [3]
Miles created the reform effort Destination 2020 which asked for improvements to be made by 2013 and 2015. [5] Another plan, Accelerating Campus Excellence" (ACE) involved moving new principals and teachers into campuses and attracting high-performing teachers to needy campuses. [6] Mike Miles replaced Millard House II as HISD superintendent as part of a planned takeover by the TEA. [7]
Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price criticized Miles and called for his ouster. [5]
In 2013 the school board voted on whether to remove Miles from his position. Five members voted against and three voted for. [8] Miles' family initially moved from Colorado Springs to Dallas, but they returned to Colorado Springs in 2013 as a result of media attention on Miles' career. [9]
In 2014 Miles expressed a desire to get additional compensation in his contract. [10] Miles attempted to get amendments to his Dallas ISD contract but the board did not approve them. Miles resigned from Dallas ISD in 2015. [11]
After he resigned from Dallas ISD, he founded a new chain of charter schools in Colorado, Texas, and Louisiana called Third Future Schools. Third Future schools consist of 11 public charter schools. [12]
On June 1, 2023, Miles was appointed superintendent of Houston ISD as part of the Houston Independent School District takeover by the Texas Education Agency. [6] Miles started new Texas schools which were alleged to be losing money. Third Future Schools’ 2023 audit shows of the $25 million public tax dollars being spent on Miles’ three Texas schools, $15 million was spent on teachers and supplies. The other $10 million, about 40% of the budget, was spent on unspecified administrative costs and services. [9]
Miles had a controversial first term as superintendent. Issues protested included a lack of autonomy with teacher observations, pushing to convert libraries into discipline areas, [13] HISD employee terminations, and accusations of misuse of funds. Miles allegedly misused funds by funneling money to his aforementioned charter schools. [14] Protests occurred at Houston City Hall and multiple HISD schools. [15] [16] HISD has seen significant staff turnover since Miles' appointment, with more than 10,000 employees leaving as of June 2024. [17] [18]
The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is the largest public school system in Texas, and the eighth-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the city of Houston and several nearby and insular municipalities in addition to some unincorporated areas. Like most districts in Texas, it is independent of the city of Houston and all other municipal and county jurisdictions. The district has its headquarters in the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center in Houston.
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The Dallas Independent School District is a school district based in Dallas, Texas (USA). It operates schools in much of Dallas County and is the second-largest school district in Texas and the seventeenth-largest in the United States. It is also known as Dallas Public Schools (DPS).
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North Forest Independent School District (NFISD) was a school district in northeast Houston, Texas. Established in the early 1920s in a low-income white area, it later became majority-black and black-run. The district had a history of financial and academic issues from the late 1980s until 2013. On July 1, 2013, it was closed by order of the state and absorbed into the Houston Independent School District (HISD).
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Mike Morath is an American software developer and investor. He is the commissioner of the Texas Education Agency. Prior to joining the agency, he served as a trustee for the Dallas Independent School District, where he advocated for school reform and home-rule. Morath began his career in the technology sector.
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Waldemar "Bill" Rojas is a former superintendent at the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) and the Dallas Independent School District (DISD).
Eliu Misael "Michael" Hinojosa was the superintendent for the Dallas Independent School District (DISD) and formerly superintendent of the Cobb County School District.
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The Houston Independent School District takeover is a 2023 takeover of the state's largest school district by the Texas Education Agency, replacing the superintendent and elected board of trustees with a board of managers and a new superintendent appointed by the Texas commissioner of education.