What Alternatives Should AISD Consider?
We recognize that our school board members are unpaid volunteer public servants who deeply care about Austin students. This budget crisis isn't their fault—it's the result of decades of inadequate state funding. But before implementing a plan that closes 12 schools and redraws boundaries for 98% of campuses—disrupting 75% of all students—we hope the board will thoroughly explore these alternatives:
1. Expand and Elevate Fundraising Efforts
Austin's Opportunity: We're home to some of the world's wealthiest individuals and most successful companies. Let's leverage this for our public schools.
AISD already has an Office of Innovation and Development for donor cultivation—but most Austinites don't know it exists. It's not linked on the main website. It's never talked about. And the results show it: AustinEdFund reports less than $4M in donation revenue in recent years. For a city with Austin's wealth, we can do much, much better.
What AISD Should Do:
Dramatically expand and elevate the Office of Innovation and Development
- Make it prominently featured on the AISD homepage
- Launch a major public awareness campaign
- Staff it adequately with professional fundraising experts
- Give it a clear, ambitious goal: raise $15M+ annually (nearly 4x current levels)
- Make fundraising a district-wide priority, not a hidden office
Get the entire city behind it
- Public kickoff campaign with city leaders, business leaders, community partners
- Monthly fundraising updates at board meetings
- Transparency about goals and progress
- Make supporting AISD schools a point of civic pride
Partner with The University of Texas
- UT is a national fundraising leader
- UT benefits from strong AISD—future students, faculty families
- Joint initiatives, shared expertise, cross-promotion
Major corporate partnerships
- Tesla, Oracle, Apple, Google, Dell, Indeed, and others
- Strong public schools help recruit talent
- Naming rights, technology donations, matching programs
- Executive leadership councils
Major donor cultivation
- Austin is home to the world's richest person and numerous billionaires
- Strong public schools increase property values for everyone
- Personal outreach from board members and superintendent
- Recognition programs for major gifts
Learn from other cities
- NYC, Chicago, and SF have robust public school foundations
- Some raise $100M+ annually
- Austin has more wealth per capita than many of these cities
The pitch is simple: Strong public schools benefit everyone—even those without kids in AISD. Property values, workforce recruitment, community vitality, and Austin's reputation all depend on world-class public education.
Potential revenue: $10-20M+ annually if properly resourced and promoted—that's 2.5-5x current fundraising levels
This should be AISD's #1 priority before closing a single school.
2. Reduce Administrative Overhead First
We recognize AISD has already made some administrative cuts through RIFs (Reductions in Force) earlier this year. That was a painful process where good people lost their jobs. But there's still room to operate more efficiently—thinking more like a business.
What AISD Could Still Do:
Further consolidate Director-level positions
- Each Director costs $150,000-$200,000+ annually (salary + benefits)
- Look for redundancies and overlapping responsibilities
- Consolidating another 10-15 positions = $1.5-3M saved
- Zero impact on students in classrooms
Leverage AI for administrative efficiencies
- Deploy AI for front-line support: enrollment, scheduling, forms, multilingual assistance
- AI handles 60-80% of routine inquiries without human intervention
- Reduce administrative support needs by 20-30%
- Partner with Austin tech leaders to guide this transition (many would volunteer)
- Modern AI tools cost $50k-$100k/year vs. hundreds of thousands in staffing
- Potential savings: $500k-$1M annually while improving response times
Combined potential savings: $2-4M annually with better service for parents and zero impact on students.
3. Partner With City of Austin on Utilities
Austin provides AISD's electricity (Austin Energy), water (Austin Water), and waste services.
What AISD Should Request:
Reduced utility rates for school facilities
- Utility bills are the second highest operating cost for school districts
- Even a 25-30% discount = millions saved annually
- Texas law encourages intergovernmental cooperation—cities can provide fee waivers or reduced utility rates to school districts through negotiated agreements
Why This Works: City and school district serve the same taxpayers. Strong neighborhood schools benefit everyone.
Potential savings: $3-5M annually
4. Study 4-Day School Weeks
Districts save 0.4% to 2.5% of budgets by moving to 4-day weeks. Hundreds of districts across the country have successfully implemented this model, with potential benefits including reduced transportation and utility costs, improved teacher retention, and better student attendance.
5. Strategic, Minimal Consolidations and Boundary Changes (If Done Right)
If AISD must close schools or change boundaries, only do so if:
- Students move to HIGHER-performing schools
- New school is within walking distance or minimal increase in drive time
- Truly addresses underenrollment (not creating a manufactured crisis)
- Receiving schools have capacity
- Community genuinely supports it after a transparent process
Maximum: 2-4 school closures, not 12. Minimal boundary disruption—not redrawing 98% of school boundaries.
What concerns us about the current plan:
- 12 school closures PLUS boundary changes affecting 98% of campuses
- 75% of students disrupted
- Many students moving to lower-performing schools
- This will result in many families choosing non-AISD alternatives
Potential savings: $3-4M
6. Address the Real Problem: State Funding
The core issue: Texas ranks near the bottom in per-pupil funding. The state funding formula hasn't kept pace with inflation. This is a STATE funding crisis.
What AISD should do:
- Lead parent mobilization to lobby the Legislature
- Make school funding a voting issue
The real fight is with state lawmakers, not each other.
A Better Path Forward
Instead of disrupting 75% of students to save $13M:
Expand fundraising (make it visible, get the city behind it) = $10-20M+
Further consolidate central office + AI automation = $2-4M
City utility partnership (25% discount) = $3-5M
Strategic consolidation of 2-3 schools = $3-4M
4-day week pilot at select campuses = $7-15M
Total: $25-48M+ with far less disruption