San Antonio, Texas Mar 23, 2026 (Issuewire.com) - [email protected]
Texas House District 124 candidate **L.D. Howard** is calling on Edgewood ISD trustees to reject the proposed partnership that would hand control of four neighborhood campuses to the Colorado-based charter operator **Third Future Schools**. Howard warns that the plan mirrors other recent charter experiments in San Antonio that ended in disruption, instability, and school closures.
Edgewood ISD and San Antonio ISD are both facing end-of-month deadlines to select a charter partner as a strategy to avoid potential state intervention, leading trustees to consider turning over operations to Third Future. Families have raised concerns about placing struggling schools into the hands of an operator with no roots in the community and a rigid, testfocused academic model. [1](https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/why-third-future-being-tapped-150000374.html)
Edgewood families deserve investmentnot disruption, Howard said. Instead of empowering teachers and strengthening our public schools, this proposal outsources our childrens education to an outside organization with a rigid, testdriven model that has already raised red flags across the state."
Third Futures founder previously implemented a model in Houston ISD characterized by scripted lessons, daily quizzes, and deep changes to campus cultureapproaches that drew criticism from educators and families concerned about their impact on students. [2](https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/edgewood-isd-board-may-charter-215721409.html)
Howard noted that San Antonio has already experienced the fallout of charter models that promise innovation but deliver instability. **Essence Prep**, founded on a similarly reformoriented philosophy, was ordered closed by the Texas Education Agency after posting repeated failing ratings, extremely low proficiency rates, and chronic absenteeism. In its final year, only **16%** of students met gradelevel standards, with **no fifth- or eighthgrade students** meeting expectations in science or social studies. [3](https://hoodline.com/2025/12/tea-pulls-plug-on-east-side-charter-leaving-hundreds-of-san-antonio-kids-scrambling/)
When a charter experiment fails, its our students, our teachers, and our neighborhoods that suffer, Howard said. Edgewood cannot afford another failed experiment. Our community schools deserve sustained, communitydriven supportnot quick fixes or outside control.
Howard calls for the state and local leaders to prioritize **evidencebased investments**, including
- Strengthening teacher recruitment and retention
- Adding counselors, reading specialists, and other student support personnel
- Expanding highquality tutoring and literacy programs
- Deepening family engagement and community partnerships
These are the strategies that produce longterm successnot highpressure charter contracts negotiated under the threat of state takeover, Howard said.
As Edgewood ISD prepares to vote, Howard urges trustees to stand with families, educators, and community stakeholders.
Edgewoods children are not a project, Howard said. They are the heart of our community, and I stand firmly with the parents and teachers demanding real investmentnot another destabilizing takeover.
**About L.D. Howard**
L.D. Howard is an independent candidate for Texas House District 124 committed to strengthening public education, supporting working families, and ensuring every child in Greater Lackland and San Antonio's West Side has access to a stable, highquality neighborhood school.
Media Contact
Team L.D. Howard for HD 124 Campaign
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Source :L.D. Howard for House District 124 Campaign
This article was originally published by IssueWire. Read the original article here.
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