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Austin ISD board meeting, May 21, 2026

4 h 42 min · 46 public speakers

School closures ▶ 2:03:16Budget cuts and layoffs ▶ 2:15:56Enrollment ▶ 2:46:07

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 4 h 42 min.

  1. Who spoke · first speaks at
What happened

What happened at this meeting

Austin ISD board approves consent agenda items 4:36:58

  • Speakers at public comment addressed agenda items including Communities in Schools, item 14.1 and the March financial report. 40:55
  • A district staff member said the net change between projected expenditures, revenue and recapture had shifted from $181 million to $177 million and that about 73% of the total target had been identified. 2:16:23
  • The board approved the consent agenda, and after an executive session it approved item 14.1 with 5 in favor, none opposed and one trustee abstaining. 4:36:58
Item by item (10)
  1. Call to order and testimony procedures 0:16
    • The meeting was called to order at 6:04 PM, with a quorum of the board physically present at Austin ISD Central Office. 0:16
    • A speaker said 24 people had signed up to speak in person and 61 had left recorded messages, and each speaker was allotted 1 minute. 1:35
  2. Public testimony 4:07
    • Several speakers at public comment asked the board to continue investing in Communities in Schools, citing item 9.7. 21:25
    • Several speakers at public comment raised concerns under item 10.6 about proposed cuts to special education and bilingual stipends, staffing reductions and 7 out of 8 teaching schedules. 39:10
    • Several speakers at public comment addressed item 14.1, asking the board to look at the full picture or conduct a full investigation. 44:14
  3. Trustee comments on public testimony 1:43:58
    • Kevin Foster thanked community members and students and said the board has a responsibility to look at information that comes before it. 1:44:38
  4. President's report and recognitions 1:46:45
    • It was announced under the president's report that the district would transition from BoardDocs to Diligent Community as its board management software, with public access starting in July. 1:46:45
    • Kevin Foster recognized the Navarro High barbecue team for a state championship. 1:47:59
    • David Kauffman described attending community events at Clayton, Cowan and Becker. 1:48:48
  5. Mendez Middle School and consolidation transition 1:52:22
    • A district staff member said projected enrollment at Mendez Middle School for the '26-'27 school year is 432 students, with 236 currently confirmed. 1:57:01
    • A presenter said 67.2% of the 3,375 students in transition had completed registration and 82 students had withdrawn from the district. 2:08:56
    • Lynn Boswell said no board meeting is planned for July unless something unusual comes up. 2:15:22
  6. Budget update and trustee questions 2:15:56
    • A district staff member said identified reductions totaled $130 million, including $85 million at central office, $25 million in campus-identified reductions and $20 million in central office coded costs that support campuses. 2:20:59
    • David Kauffman asked about the bilingual speech-language pathologist stipend, and a staff member said the tier shifted from $7,000 to $5,000. 2:43:44
    • Kathryn Whitley Chu asked what adjustments had been made based on trustee feedback, and a district staff member said there had been refinements but nothing wholly taken off the list of recommendations. 3:19:22
  7. Additional recorded public comment 4:10:01
    • A speaker at public comment asked for more student days on the calendar and said taking away planning periods would be a blow to teachers. 4:10:15
  8. Intruder detection audit notice 4:11:12
    • A staff member said 24 schools were audited by TEA in April 2026, 6 had one or more findings requiring corrective action, and 100% of campuses had been audited to date. 4:11:28
  9. Special education and federal programs audit 4:12:04
    • Fernando Lucas de Urioste asked about community aspects referenced in the audit and the timeliness of its information. 4:13:05
    • A district staff member said the district had brought in in-house legal expertise to work with the special education team and intervene sooner on compliance issues. 4:27:41
  10. Consent agenda 4:32:54
    • It was announced that the draft superintendent contract item would move to the June information session and voting meeting and that the administration had pulled items 14.2 and 14.3. 4:32:54
    • Kevin Foster moved to approve the consent agenda items. 4:34:12
    • The motion to approve the consent agenda passed with all those on the dais and a trustee joining virtually voting in favor. 4:36:58

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

What was said

What board members said, in order

I wanna start with a couple of cautions. One, communication is not clear. Except for one, every parent that called in about CIS is from a Band 1 school. Every single one of these people are from a Band 1 school. Only one Band 2 school called in. So that communication is not clear.Candace Hunter · Board member3:00:00
Other meetings

Other meetings of this board

Video: posted by the district as “Austin ISD Board of Trustees Regular Voting Meeting: May 21, 2026”