At the Carroll ISD board meeting April 14, board President Cameron Bryan updated district residents on the status of SB 686, a bill that, if passed, would require school districts with capacity to allow open enrollment for students outside of their districts.

Bryan, who called the bill “horrible,” said that CISD residents have sent more than 9,200 emails to state representatives opposing the bill.

The gist

Bryan said that while SB 686, which passed the senate last week and is now under consideration in the house, aims to increase educational access and increase district funding, it “erodes local control and threatens the unique identity of Carroll ISD.”

“Our district was founded as an independent school district to serve the specific needs and reflect the specific values of our Southlake community,” Bryan said. “SB 686 undermines this authority by imposing a blanket mandate that ignores the unique needs of districts across the state.”

He added SB 686 threatens property values in the district, which is tied to the district’s reputation.

“Families move to Southlake and invest in our community because of the exceptional education Carroll ISD provides to its residents,” Bryan said. “Mandating open enrollment would dilute this distinct advantage.”

Zooming in

Place 5 Trustee Renee Bottom agreed that SB 686 would “absolutely take away local control.” She said the district has more than 70 empty classrooms—meaning the district has a significant amount of capacity for students outside of the district—which would be "very detrimental to the makeup of our district."

District residents wishing to contact legislative representatives concerning SB 686 can visit www.takeactiondragons.com.