State revokes LaMarque ISD accreditation

[AggiesAreWe]

http://www.galvnews.com/free/article_73081160-ae24-11e4-b0d5-c377c6d5b6c1.html#.VNT9CILbVBY.twitter

LaMarque could/will close it doors by July. The district would be absorbed by neighboring districts.

[ronwx5x]

http://www.galvnews.com/free/article_73081160-ae24-11e4-b0d5-c377c6d5b6c1.html#.VNT9CILbVBY.twitter

LaMarque could/will close it doors by July. The district would be absorbed by neighboring districts.

Wow, some school(s) will get some great football players. Or will the school stay open but be part of some other ISD? North Forest ISD was closed but the high school still exists. Wilmer Hutchins was closed and students elsewhere.

[1st and goal]

They need to do the same thing to Hearne ISD. What a joke that they run as a school district.
Sorry for Lamarque.

[WOS87]

Hopefully LaMarque gets its act together. The school has such a rich history dating back to the 1930's. I would assume they'd just combine with Texas City ISD for the most part and possibly Dickinson if this were to actually happen. Also, that would leave only 3 schools in District 10-4A D2... Houston Kashmere, Houston Worthing and Houston Scarborough. Would that leave the #1 seed from 9-4A with a bye first round not that playing Scarborough already wasn't essentially a bye? This is really getting ridiculous.

[Aesculus gilmus]

It amazed me that this team didn't ever win State (I don't think) while down in this classification.

People in Gilmer were always expecting to run into this team in the playoffs eventually, but it never happened.

[lostaussie]

So sad........battle cry "We WERE LaMarque" just isn't right.

[TarponFanInNorthTexas]

That's terrible! It's most likely the kids will start going to Texas City. I know they are 5A currently, but if enough kids from La Marque ended up going to Texas City, would that bump them up to 6A?

Regardless, Texas City will be getting some very good athletes.

[hollywood]

It amazed me that this team didn't ever win State (I don't think) while down in this classification.

People in Gilmer were always expecting to run into this team in the playoffs eventually, but it never happened.

I agree. Their SC's came in the old 4A. They had a great run making several SC appearances. From '93-'98 they made 6 straight appearances, winning 3 of the 6. The 3 defeats came to none other Stephenville who won '93, '94, and '98. La Margue won 3 straight in '95, '96 and '97 and again in '03 and ' 06. Five total SC's in 14 years. Pretty impressive. The only losses in the SC games came against Stephenville. Sure would have been epic if they would have met in the SC game over the last few years. R.I.P. La Marque

[AggiesAreWe]

My sources tell me there is very little if no chance for LaMarque to win it's appeal. It is very rare for an ISD to win an appeal in this regard.

LaMarque is done.

[AggiesAreWe]

Hopefully LaMarque gets its act together. The school has such a rich history dating back to the 1930's. I would assume they'd just combine with Texas City ISD for the most part and possibly Dickinson if this were to actually happen. Also, that would leave only 3 schools in District 10-4A D2... Houston Kashmere, Houston Worthing and Houston Scarborough. Would that leave the #1 seed from 9-4A with a bye first round not that playing Scarborough already wasn't essentially a bye? This is really getting ridiculous.

That would put WO-S going 2 weeks without a game. Mustangs have a bye in final week of regular season and then would receive a bye in 1st round of playoffs. Of course I am assuming WO-S wins district like they always do.

[Be_Advised]

Man, I remember seeing some battles between Calallen and LaMarque in the 90's.

[YTBulldogs]

That would put WO-S going 2 weeks without a game. Mustangs have a bye in final week of regular season and then would receive a bye in 1st round of playoffs. Of course I am assuming WO-S wins district like they always do.

WOS had a bye in first round this year by playing Hou Scar. Nothing different in 2015 for them. They'll be use to it.

[ronwx5x]

That would put WO-S going 2 weeks without a game. Mustangs have a bye in final week of regular season and then would receive a bye in 1st round of playoffs. Of course I am assuming WO-S wins district like they always do.Not if they keep the existing school open and just make them part of another ISD. The only change would be in administration unless the new ISD rezones and gives them more students.

[AggiesAreWe]

Not if they keep the existing school open and just make them part of another ISD. The only change would be in administration unless the new ISD rezones and gives them more students.

School will close.

[Scoop27]

They have been airing stories about this on all the Houston TV channels on Sunday and Monday. Parents are looking for second chance but doubt this will happen. July 1 is the day the district will close says the report

[Rabid Cougar]

They need to do the same thing to Hearne ISD. What a joke that they run as a school district.


Why? They already all go to Mumford.

[pancho villa]

I wonder if they will field any spring sport teams? They were already down in all of them.

[Roughneck93]

Football coach tries to carry on as La Marque faces closure

By Angel Verdejo Jr. (http://www.houstonchronicle.com/author/angel-verdejo/)
February 9, 2015 Updated: February 9, 2015 10:35pm

LA MARQUE - It's Monday morning, and Mike Jackson is still working.

Now in his fourth year as the athletic director and head football coach at La Marque, Jackson is sitting at his desk. A crowded e-mail inbox is on display on his computer screen, and assorted papers rest on his desk.

He has heard the same news as everyone else: The Texas Education Agency sent notices last week to three school districts, including La Marque, ordering their closures by the summer unless the district successfully appeals.

But by the afternoon, Jackson and his staff have the Cougars going through their offseason workouts. They're coming off another 11-win season, their fourth in five years, and are locked into getting better.

"Part of what football teaches you is you're going to get knocked down, you're going to have setbacks, and there's going to be obstacles put in front of you," Jackson said. "So what are we going to do on a daily basis? Are we going to lay down, curl up and hope everything is all right? Or are we going to take a step back, take a deep breath, evaluate what's going on, and then go back to work?

"Really, that's the only thing I know how to do."

At a special town hall meeting Sunday, La Marque superintendent Terri Watkins said the district plans to file its appeal Tuesday.

There haven't been any announced plans on what would happen to students should the district close. More than likely, a neighboring district or districts would take over.

That was the case with North Forest ISD, which Houston ISD took over on July 1, 2013, after the beleaguered district went through years of trouble and multiple attempts to stay open. North Forest High School is still in use, as are its athletic facilities.

But North Forest didn't have the athletic tradition La Marque does - few schools do - and that's what made Friday's announcement by the TEA so different.

La Marque's football program has five state championships since 1995 and 10 finals appearances since 1986. The Cougars were in the state finals as recently as five years ago. The boys basketball team reached the state tournament in 2011.

But Jackson acknowledges sports aren't the starting or ending point in an ordeal that isn't done.

"This is way bigger than football," he said. "When you first hear it, you hear shutdown. But there's a whole process that has to play out."

This didn't happen overnight at La Marque. Texas Education Commissioner Michael Williams' plan to revoke the district's accreditation and close the school comes after years of academic and financial struggles.

La Marque received the state's lowest academic ratings in 2011 and 2013-14 (no ratings were issued in 2012). It also earned a substandard financial rating for the 2011-12 school year.

The district also has dealt with shrinking enrollment. A number of Galveston County school districts have open enrollment, so it isn't unusual for students living in La Marque ISD, for example, to attend schools in Dickinson, Hitchcock and Texas City.

"We have operated with distractions, and that's one of the things I'm most proud of here," Jackson said. "We're 41-11 operating with distractions for the past four years. It's one of those things where you assume it's La Marque, so on the outside looking in, it might be easy to win games over here, when in fact, it's incredibly hard in the environment that we've operated under.

"That's why I'm very proud of the men that have been here the last four years."

For now, Jackson and his staff are still coaching, and the Cougars are still working. (Jackson declined to have his players available for interviews on Monday.)

"If my son was playing and in this program right now," Jackson said, "I would want the person sitting in this chair to do right by him and make sure that he's not only the best player but the best person he can be for the 2015 football season and get him prepared for that. So in that vein, nothing's changed - you don't just stop and feel sorry for yourself.

"You dust yourself off, you keep moving forward, and you see what comes around the corner."

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/sports/highschool/article/At-La-Marque-a-football-coach-and-his-team-carry-6071682.php?t=289604674ccba496f0&cmpid=twitter-premium#/0

[cougartino]

http://www.galvnews.com/news/free/article_e78e498c-de35-11e4-a7b4-535e76e1b81d.html

TEA gives LMISD a reprieve. I hope the folks down on Bayou Road take full advantage of this opportunity.

[cougartino]

UPDATE:

The TEA sent notice to LMISD today the district met the state's academic standards. There's still much work to be done but things are headed in the right direction.

[WOS87]

Yay! Look forward to seeing you again in the 3rd round hopefully

[HEMOTOXIC]

UPDATE:

The TEA sent notice to LMISD today the district met the state's academic standards. There's still much work to be done but things are headed in the right direction.

This is great news!

[chaingang]

Congrats! Wouldnt have been the same without LM. Hard work pays off. kudos to the teachers and kids making such a quick and drastic turnaround!

[cougartino]

A friend of mine, whose wife works in the registrar's office, told me today, 100+ new and/or returning kids between middle and high schools ages, enrolled with more scheduled the rest of this week. Looks like parents were waiting to see how thing progressed. Still a long way to go but at least things are headed in the right direction. The district is still owed millions in delinquent taxes, mostly from businesses who either left or dried up.

[chaingang]

A friend of mine, whose wife works in the registrar's office, told me today, 100+ new and/or returning kids between middle and high schools ages, enrolled with more scheduled the rest of this week. Looks like parents were waiting to see how thing progressed. Still a long way to go but at least things are headed in the right direction. The district is still owed millions in delinquent taxes, mostly from businesses who either left or dried up.


Thats tough. With the huge cuts at the state level, taxes is what these districts survive on. Sad.