IL Texas delays construction of permanent high school campus

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – Parents of IL Texas students were told weeks ago that the construction of Aggieland High School’s permanent campus would be delayed for a second time after House Bill 1 failed to pass during the legislative special sessions.

The first delay in January 2023 was attributed to supply chain issues preventing the timely production and delivery of HVAC materials.

Clay Smith, a father of seven IL Texas students, said he was left wondering why no other funding options have been brought forward after parents received an automated call announcing the delay. According to him, relying on a bill to pass for construction to start isn’t a long-term solution.

“They’re trying to make accommodations and running into challenges, but for the only solution to be a legislative bill passed in a year or two is not acceptable,” he said.

IL Texas Founder and Superintendent Eddie Conger said that financing for charter schools is incredibly complex, and HB 1 was an important part of that financing before it failed.

“We cannot operate on any deficit budget. It simply means that we have to be lean,” Conger said.

Public charter schools receive the same basic allotment from the state as traditional school districts, around $6,000 per student. Where traditional public schools have access to other sources of public funding, charter schools don’t.

Conger said the biggest difference is property taxes. Charter schools can’t levy property taxes and have to turn to other options to finance projects, like bonds and lines of credit.

According to him, HB 1 passing would have helped to close some of that gap, which would have helped build Aggieland High’s new building. They’re currently located in a remodeled police station, without a gym or cafeteria.

“There’s some facility stuff that we just cannot provide here. And again, if the education industry would have accepted that $3 billion-plus dollars from HB 1 we would have started turning dirt,”

The issue, according to Conger, has a massive impact on future educational growth.

“The education industry was successful in winning the battle, but they lost the war,” he remarked.