Katy ISD’s board of trustees came together March 20 for a special meeting to hear both from teachers and from district administration on the district’s alleged infringement on teachers’ planning time.

A number of teachers, or representatives who spoke for them in order to protect their anonymity, have raised concerns during public comments at recent board meetings.

Under the Texas Education Code, every classroom teacher is entitled to at least 450 minutes within each two-week period for instructional preparation, including parent-teacher conferences, evaluating students’ work, and lesson planning, according to the website for the teachers’ union Texas American Federation of Teachers (www.texasaft.org/resources/know-rights/planning-and-preparation/#:~:text=Under%20the%20Texas%20Education).

But teachers and district officials appear to have different interpretations of the law. The Katy Times reached out to KISD legal counsel Justin Graham for clarification on the differing perspectives but did not receive a response by press time for this issue.

Teachers believe that they are guaranteed planning time which cannot be interrupted.

“Your prep period must consist of at least 45 consecutive minutes on any given instructional day; it cannot be divided up throughout the day. During a planning and preparation period, a classroom teacher cannot be required to participate in any other activity,” according to the Texas AFT website. “Your planning and prep period is to be used at your discretion, and it cannot be hijacked by administrators without your consent. The Office of the Attorney General of Texas has ruled that during the preparation and planning period, it is unlawful to mandate attendance at group sessions or meetings.” Teachers are not prohibited from volunteering to participate in a meeting or planning session during their planning periods but cannot be coerced to do so during the allotted 450 minutes of planning and preparation time, the site says.

Guidance from the Texas Association of School Boards, which informs most districts’ policies, advises administrators not to make a request for voluntary participation in such a meeting during the teacher’s planning time, the Texas AFT website says, also stating that the Texas commissioner of education has ruled repeatedly in favor of teachers who were called for meetings, sessions, or additional instruction during their planning time, citing six cases ranging from 1986 to 2014.

District officials maintain that there are a number of reasons – including federal and state requirements -- that district or campus administration might schedule a meeting during a teacher’s planning period. According to the presentation by KISD assistant superintendents, these include ARD (Admission, Review and Dismissal) meetings, 504 meetings for students with disabilities, LPAC meetings for bilingual or ESL programs and MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Support) intervention meetings, all required by federal

regulations; and ARD meetings, 504 meetings, LPAC meetings, test security trainings, safety tracking and HB1416 meetings (which address accelerated learning requirements) as required by the state.

Following the presentations and discussion, school board President Victor Perez said that the board would form a committee to study the issue and to potentially provide campus administrators with additional tools to help with the issue, which could include the hiring of substitutes who could take over instructional duties while the teacher has their planning period.