BISD History

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Historical Perspective

In order to have a better understanding of what has taken place inthe Beaumont Independent School District during the past ten years, it isnecessary to have some historical perspective of the past. This sectionwill address such an overview.

The Beaumont Independent School District was established in 1983through the merger of the former Beaumont School District (founded in1883) with the South Park Public Schools (founded in 1891). The originalschool districts began as schools within the township of Beaumont, and asthe city expanded its boundaries, each of the two districts grew throughnormal population growth and by incorporating smaller districts. Fromthe early beginnings of the two districts, information can be found toindicate that initially the wealth of the city was located in the originalBeaumont School District. But the discovery of oil in the South Park areaand a shift in residential patterns would eventually cause a shift of thewealth and diverse conditions between the two districts.Beaumont is part of the "Golden Triangle" in Southeast Texas. Foryears the economy of Beaumont was controlled by petrochemical giantsand oil refineries. The city had a port, shipyards, lumber, pulp and papermills, rice mills, and food processing plants. The agricultural economystill includes rice and livestOCk, along with soybeans, blueberries,crawfish, wheat, corn, sorghum and grain.

As the city of Beaumont grew (and each school district along withit), the schools were built around a neighborhood concept and segregationof the races existed. The student population peaks of the two districtsshowed the old Beaumont School District with an excess of 15,000


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2.students and South Park Public Schools with over 12,000 students.The Beaumont District represented the "old" money and South Parkrepresented" oil field" /blue-coliar workers. This Image would change, butinitial labels are important in understanding the perceptions that grewwithin the two districts.

In the late 1950's and 1960's, several things began taking place inBeaumont. The Justice Department was summoned because of theintegration movement within each of the districts, and expansion withinthe city (home building and shopping areas) began moving West and North.The Beaumont School District implemented a majority to minoritytransfer system to improve integration, transferred teachers to integratefaculties; intensified the hiring of black administrators; and elected blackrepresentation on the school board. The South Park Schools remained witha freedom of choice plan for student attendance along with busing blackstudents at the fifth-grade level into some white schools. Some teacherswere transferred and some black administrators were hired, but there waslittle to no black representation on the school board.

New housing patterns began to develop more predominantly in theWest end of the city (South Park Schools) and the white population beganto shift West, creating a noticeable difference in ethnicity within thedistricts. In addition to the tax base shift fo r homeowners (BeaumontSchools had many retired persons with frozen taxes), the tax base shiftedwith business and industry. As the two districts approached the 1980's,

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In an effort to meet the needs and "keep up with the Joneses"(South Park Schools). There was a shift in the racial makeup ofthe district with the black population of students becoming themajority.

South Park Schools had an excess of money. There werenew facilities, no portable buildings, and a constructionfund as part of the tax rate which collected in excess of $ 2.5million per year. This allowed for a pay-as-you-go buildingcontingency which was virtually unheard of anywhere else inTexas. White students represented 70 percent of the studentpopulation.

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Each district experienced some problems between white and blackcommunities, but the South Park Schools exhibited much more hostileblack community attitudes toward the schools. In 1981, after manylawsuits and complaints from the black community, a federal judge issueda mandate for the South Park Schools - an attendance plan for integrationpurposes based on a random" ping-pong" system. Neighborhood schoolswould house K-3 youngsters, then students would draw a ping-pong ball todetermine which 4-5 school they would attend. The 4-5 schooldetermined a feeder pattern for students, ensuring integration and equalbusing among races. The plan was to begin in the 1982-83 school year.Every student would participate in the integrated system unless he movedor transferred to private schools. "Anger" is a mild term to describe the. - ,white community; "vindicated" might come close to describing the blackcommunity. Of course, the former Beaumont School District was left tocontinue with the majority to minority transfer plan.


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4.In addition to this upheaval in South Park Schools, the issue of

consolidation of the two school districts began to be discussed by theBeaumont School District in January 1983. Tobe Duhon, a Beaumont Schooltrustee, began gathering signatures to petition the county judge to put thematter on the ballot. Beaumont School trustees favored the move butSouth Park trustees were in opposition. A merger of the two districtswould result in South Park becoming financially responsible for thebuilding/renovation of school facilities and an increase in the tax rate.The student population would also shift to approximately 55% white and45% black. South Park patrons were not willing to share the wealth, andthey were already upset over the new integration plan. The thought of anincreasing number of black students in district schools was veryunsettling to many patrons. Despite the vast differences of opinions Inthe districts, the consolidation issue was placed on the ballot for a cityvote on April 2, 1983. The consolidation issue was heated, creatingdivision between the two districts - between what some considered the"haves and have nots." The issue failed. Within a matter of one weeksome members of the Beaumont School board, administrators and patronsbegan discussing the dissolution of the Beaumont School District.


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Beaumont Independent School District-August 1983 to thepresent

On Saturday, August 13, 1983, voters in the Beaumont SchoolDistrict dissolved the district by a 58-42 percent margin. The followingweek Commissioners Court attached the dissolved district to the SouthPark School District. The South Park School board hired tile dissolvedBeaumont School District's employees. Tile superintendent of thedissolved district became a deputy superintendent in the new district andmany central office administrators served in dual capacities until theirretirement (which in most cases took place within a two to three yearperiod) . A letter from Raymond Bynum, Commissioner of Education,directed the newly created district to continue operating as two districtsduring the first year of operation (two separate budgetary and taxing unitsunder the control of the Board of Trustees of South Park Schools). Thedissolved district had continuing contracts for certified employees, butsince they had been hired by the South Park District they were given termcontracts used in South Park.

Each of the two districts had different attendance patternsestablished for desegregation purposes through court orders. Theseattendance patterns would continue for several years.

In viewing the new district for the next ten years, it is easier tonarrow the focus of what has happened when considering the concerns ofthe two districts before the dissolution. The concerns brought forth byadministration and trustees for the two districts were as follows:

South Park Public Schools (a position against merger of the twodistricts)


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2.1) A lax increase would occur; probably about $ .10 per $100 of

taxable property fo r South Park patrons, while taxes for Beaumont patronswould decrease by $ .13 per $100 of taxable value. This estimate did notinclude provisions for construction and repair of facilities in theBeaumont district, the cost of books and materials for extensions ofinstructional programs, nor the cost of additional busing.

2) Budgeted revenues per sludent in the two districts were $3,815for South Park and $2,770 for Beaumont. South Park students would loseper pupil revenue of $522.50.

3) A merger would make instruction less efficient, because thestudent population would indude a wider span of achievement levels and amore diverse educational background.

4) Basic skills would become the prime concern of the district,with less priority given to other areas such as enrichment.

5) There would be an extended period where teachers set new goalsand learned new strategies. As a result, the instructional program wouldbe uncoordinated.

6) A fter having so recently undergone massive changes because of acourt order, another such change would cause serious problems in moralefor teachers and students.

7) Unified community support might be lost, as the district, tryingto meet diverse needs, must compromise.

8) Instructional leadership would be interrupted.9) Increased busing might cause students to leave the district,

which would result in a loss of state funds for instruction.10) A merger could possibly result in a reduction of services to


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handicapped chlldlen, and to chlldlen served by Chapter I programs,because South Park funds and services would be diluted.

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11) Because the two districts operated under separate desegregationplans, a me. ger would probably result In a new comprehensivedesegregation plan being implemented.

12) Because Beaumont School District had a ratio of 62 percentblack students to 38 percent white students, and South Park had a ratio of59 percent white to 41 percent black, it was possible that the South ParkDistrict would be the source of wllite students assigned to bring racialbalance to hitherto predominantly black Beaumont District schools.

13) As a consequence of consolidation, South Park Schools wouldlose their identities, both in respect to the present studentconfigurations, and also in the loss of the district name.

Beaumont School District (a position favoring a merger of the twoschool districts):

1) By combining resources and by adopting the best programs ofboth districts, the result would be a stronger unified district. The newlarger district would allow implementation of a magnet school system.

2) By combining districts, all chi ldren would receive the samebenefits as other children throughout the city. The Beaumont Districtmust get into a position in the future where it could afford qua li tyeducation for all children by equalizing resources.

3) By merging, Beaumont District residents would be on an equalbasis with South Park District residents. SlI1ce there would be only one

district, people would not be encouraged to buy only in South Park.Beaumont District property value would increase where its taxable value


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4.would not.

4) Tax rates would go down. There would probably be a decrease intaxes for senior citizens. South Park provided a larger exemption thanBeaumont District.

S) The total value of taxable property in South Park was more thandouble that of the Beaumont District and yet Beaumont had to educate agreater number of students. Even with the lower tax rate, the South ParkDistrict had 37 percent more money to spend on each student.

6) A new law would take effect on September 1, 1983. This lawwould not allow attachment of Beaumont District to South Park Districtwithout South Park' s consent.

In short, Beaumont District had a higher tax rate, less money, moresenior citizens, a larger percentage of minority students, and facilitiesbadly in need of repair. The board had minority representation.

South Park District had a lower tax rate, much more money, a"haven" for white students, and newer and better conditioned facilities.The board was all white.

It has already been noted that during the first year of the merger,the districts functioned separately. There was some change with regardto the trustees. The Justice Department intervened on behalf ofminorities filing a lawsuit over representation. The newly createddistrict was ordered to establish a single member voting plan whichallowed for minority representation. After much deliberation, a fivesingle member district, two at large, voting plan was adopted by the boardand approved by the Justice Department. One year after the merger, thenew voting plan took effect and four minority members and three white


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S.members were elected. This vo ting plan would la l el be challenged andchanged to seven single member districts. The new voting plan wouldnever have minorities In the majollty on the board again.

As previously discussed, two attendance plans eXisted In the newlycreated district. Newspaper accounts and personal interViews indicatedthat business Interests in Beaumont wanted a Single assignment plan.Realtors complain ed about the difficulty in exp laining attendancepatterns, and it was thought that this "confused state" prompted people tolocate outside of Bea umont. With the normal shifts in population,discontent over busing, and the creation of a single attendance plan,students were moved several times during the past ten years. The lastassignment plan wa s implemented in the 1990-91 school year. K-3neighborhood centers were created. These primary schools fed into 4-Scenters which were matched for ethnicity purposes. Feeder patterns formiddle schools were established resu lting in one middle school closing.The middle schools set the attendance pattern fo r two ninth-grade centersand two senior high schools. This attendance plan was establishedthrough the work of a "Committee of 100." Committee members had beenrecommended by board members, thu s representing the seven singlemember districts. Additional members were added by the superintendentto ensure cross-sectional representation of the city. This plan remains Inexistence today, but there have been several attempts to change. Thefocus for change resulted from three concerns: 1) overcrowd-ing at the middle school level; Z) neighborhood schools and "white flight;"and 3) discipline in the schools and parent participation. Monitors fromthe Texas Education Agency (see newspaper articles in appendix) have


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6.been sent to Beaumont because of the discontent created over a newassignment plan - K-6 neighborhood schools - approved by the board. Thisplan was originally scheduled for implementati on in 1993-94, but hasbeen "scrapped" after extensive work with the board and the monitors(reports also noted in newspaper articles in appendix).

The ethnic composition of the school district, and individualschools, has also been a concern from the beginning. As housing patternschanged in the city, so did the ethnicily of schools. The constructionpattern fo r schools had been a neighborhood concept. Separation of raceshad been the norm, and with the intervention of the Justice Department inthe 1960's, additional shifts occurred. The former Beaumont SchoolDistrict grew in black student population. Some of the change wasprobably caused by normal growth patterns, but some of the change wascertainly created by "white flight. " In all of the material studied, i tbecame apparent that the primary concerns in the white community duringthe last ten years centered around busing, discipline, basic skillscurriculum, and a lowering of standards. While not directly stated, thewhite community felt their children were being used for integrationpurposes resulting in a less than satisfactory school setting. The blackcommunity felt that their children had been denied equal access toeducation andlor were used for years for integration purposes. Now wasthe time for vendication. Since 1983, ethnicity shifts went from 55percent white, 45 percent black to over 60 percent black, less than 40percent other. Fifty-one percent of the students today are catagorized aseconomically disadvantaged. The total enrollment has not changedsignificantly with approximately 20,400 enrolled in 1983 and


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I.approx imately the same number enrolled today.

Another area targeted for this study wa s finances. rax rate and thecondition of facilities wei e main reasons tor consolidation noted by theformer Beaumont School District. The opposite was true fo r South Park.Their racilities were in relatively good condition and the constructionfund included in the tax rate provided tor a pay-as-you-go plan withbUilding and a large surplus of money for future needs. The merging of thetwo distri cts resu lted in raising the South Park School's tax rate from $.83 (which included $ .08 that was set aside fo r a construction fund) to$1.38 ($ .486 local and the remaining from CEO). There IS no constructionfund included at the present time; the district has no outstanding bond.Since the merger, three new elementary schools have been bui lt and paidfo r and many additions andlor renovations have occurred. The CJistr ict isstill in need of replacing at least one middle school and providingadditions and/or renovations for others. Beaumont Independent SchoolDistrict has lost millions of dollars in State equalization monies; thedistrict no longer ha s a surplus of funds. With the new funding bill, thedistrict stands to lose several million more dollars and will havefinancial difficulties which may cause staff and program cuts, as well asa reduction in sa laries (the district pays well above the state scale). Twobond issues for building co nstruction have failed.

The final issue that was reviewed in this case study wasachievement. There was concern that with the merger of the twodistricts would come mediocrity. For my investigation, TEAMS and TAASscores were used. Scale scores for the district were used rather thanIndividual campuses. The years 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 199 2


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8.were used and the general results as well as a composite of the findingsare included in the appendix. The passing score for the TEAMS test was700 and the TAAS test is 1500. Generally, there was slight growth ineach area (Math, Reading, and Writing) at all grade levels. The mostsignificant growth is noted at the third grade level in Reading and Writingfor 1991 and 1992. 1he most significant loss was at the seventh gradelevel during the same time frame for Reading and Writing. The averagescale score fell below the passing grade for the first time since thedistricts were merged.

Summary

The focus of this case study was primarily on superintendent-boardcommunity relationships during the ten year period from 1983 to thepresent. Historical background was given to establish a basis ofunderstanding. Other issues were examined in relationship to theconcerns voiced by the two school districts prior to the merger, and eachissue was viewed ten years later.

Three superintendents have functioned during this span. All threehave had difficulties with members of the board and with bringing thecommunity together. Board members have changed, but some of theoriginal members have remained. Board members have also had troublebringing the community together. From the viewpoint of this study, it isdifficult to determine whether trustees were interested in bonding thecommunity or whether overriding territorial interests prevailed.

There remains a division between black and white, between the


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9.former Beaumont School District and South Park Schools, and betweenthose parents, both black and white, who feel there has been unequaltreatment, primarily with facilities.

There is a deep-rooted feeling of mistrust between thesuperintendent, board, and community which has not subsided, even underthe leadership of a superintendent from outside the state. It isinteresting to read the newspaper accounts of what is taking place at thepresent time between the superintendent, board, and the community over anew student assignment plan and possibly a new bond issue for facilities.

While many of the negative concerns have indeed come true, it isdifficult to correlate the cause and effect within the district. There havebeen many changes in education in Texas during this same time frame;many of the state changes have created some of the problems in theBeaumont Independent School District. In spite of the state problems, itis obvious that the Beaumont District has its own unique problems withgovernance and community concerns. It will be interesting to review theoutcomes in another ten years.

Documents

BISD History