Would someone explain to me why EPISD actually needed a $668 million bond issuance in order to “right-size” (their words, not mine) the district when nearly 30% of their existing schools are operating at 65% of capacity or lower?
They knew these schools were underpopulated when they asked for the bond money.
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
to increase salaries in a time when they should be decreasing and to deflect their neglect of the infrastructure that was mainly due to giving themselves raises. next they will do walk-outs to get raises. none of this was about teaching kids
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Don’t blame the teachers. Blame all the people that occupied school board seats and the superintendent’s “cabinet” over the last 20 years.
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Ask Dan Wever. I’m still waiting for his explanation of why closing the schools is a terrible idea, other than the teacher associations lose members. I’m sure the argument will be that the schools are part of the neighborhood that is raising the idiots, er, ah, students. Closing the schools should have occurred before a bond was proposed.Then an audit of why routine maintenance on schools for 15 years was deferred or simply ignored needs to be performed. Giving constant raises to all, not just teachers, makes no sense when deficits are expected and student performance continues to slide downward. Could you imagine a corporation telling its stockholders that all employees are getting raises, even though its buildings are falling apart, the return rate of defective widgets is 60%, 50% of its widgets fail to perform at all, and none of the innovative projects have worked to improve widget reliability?
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Obviously they hustled that bond issue through before the tax payers realized what the reality was in their district. I’d say that constitutes some kind of fraud, but what do I know?
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I think taxpayers understood the cost and the situation in EPSID. Unfortunately, because the public sector is the largest employer here and the majority of our citizens don’t vote, public sector employers are able to easily stack the deck for their initiatives. “We need a bond issue to add the infrastructure that will help you keep your job and advancement opportunities,” is a powerful sales pitch. Teachers head to the polls, construction companies get rich, taxpayers get screwed. Later on, teachers realize they were thrown under the bus, as well. More debt isn’t the answer. Until EPSID figures out the formula for improving its performance metrics, these dollars are totally wasted—slick marketing campaigns won’t change that.
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It was never “for the kids”. They were just a convenient tool for passing the bond. Just like Rosa Guerrero and Jeff Teacher of the Year John Gable were “pawns” by the Rising El Paso” super PAC to get votes.
Check out my March 12, 2017 blogpost “We’re going to need your $$$ again.”
http://www.judburgess.com/james-no-bond-blog/2017/3/23/sos-were-going-to-need-your-again
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Just like the Children’s Hospital wasn’t about the kids, but Veronica protected King Valenti til the bitter end, which was a very sweet deal for him.
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They have to pay those over paid superintendents and all their excessive over paid staffs
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EPISD didn’t need $668MM. The local architecture, engineering and construction companies did. It was never about the students but one more example of the trickle-up economy of El Paso doing its job of debt, spend and tax.
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ditto
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But, but, but ” The almost BILLION$$$ Bond was for the CHILDREN”. That’s what all the GULLIBLE people who voted for the Bond thought, were led to believe. Was never really anything but a “Slush Fund” to improve Cabrera’s “Life style” and for the School Board, “Trustees” to BLOW-OFF as they like. THEY can ALWAYS INCREASES TAXES again when THEY WANT MORE money..
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… Dawgy … where are you? Haven’t heard a woof.
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