This browser does not support the Video element.
Houston ISD bus drivers, support staff to address lawmakers about possible takeover
Houston ISD bus drivers and other support staff are heading to Austin to speak with lawmakers about the rumored TEA takeover of HISD and what it could mean for their jobs.
HOUSTON - Houston Educational Support Personnel (HESP) met early Monday morning at the HISD Barnett Transportation Service Center to take a group of an estimated 200 to 300 people to the state capitol in Austin.
The group says it wants to speak with legislators about what will happen to support staff jobs in the event of a TEA takeover of HISD. The travelers call themselves the "front-line workers of HISD" and include bus drivers, food service workers, lawn maintenance staff and custodial workers from the district.
MORE: NAACP Houston, city leaders march at Wheatley HS to protest TEA's possible HISD takeover
"Our employees are not just going to sit down and lay down and let the state take over them," says HESP President Wretha Thomas.
The union leaders say they are primarily concerned about job security and the privatization of their roles.
"Some of them have been driving like 15 years. They know their routes. They know the kids. Most of the employees have their own kids and their own grandkids at the school they’re working at," says Thomas.
The group is joining the Houston Federation of Teachers and is expected to meet with instructors from districts throughout Texas, including Fort Bend, Dallas, and San Antonio who are pledging their support.
Niecey Revels says she has driven generations of families on HISD busses for more than 30 years.
"We become their family because they are used to us. We are a team. All drivers, we help one another...we communicate," she says before boarding a charter bus scheduled to leave before sunrise. "Will we have that communication if they take over?"
MORE: Texas State Representative Ron Reynolds says TEA takeover of Houston ISD 'imminent'
Revels says some HISD bus drivers are already leaving the district in the midst of an ongoing driver shortage. Instead of dealing with the uncertainty, she says they would rather get hired with other districts or companies that require a CDL that may also pay more and offer more job security.
HESP leaders say they plan to use teams to track down and get in touch with legislators during their trip to the capitol, and at the very least, they want to communicate their priorities during their visit.
They also say they have a scheduled meeting with Texas Representative Harold Dutton of District 142 who helped author the bill allowing for a state takeover of any "failing" school district.