AUSTIN, Texas — Many schools serve as polling sites on Election Day. Fresh memories of what happened in Uvalde earlier this year, along with increased polarization of voters, is leading many school districts across the state to close schools on Nov. 8.
Texas Election Code says schools must be used as polling sites if they’re needed. Normally, people vote at a school as students continue learning. But this year, schools across Texas are exercising caution by giving kids the day off.
“I think as things have changed over the last few years, and we’ve felt that a lot of people are just a lot more vocal about their beliefs. There seems to be a lot more polarizing issues. It’s different than it used to be,” said Aubrey Chancellor, the executive director of communications for North East ISD (NEISD) in San Antonio.
One safety expert said he thinks this is a good idea, especially since there’s so much anxiety surrounding elections and school safety after the tragedy in Uvalde.
“With all the school safety assessments we do around the country, it’s always been one of our key recommendations that schools do close on Election Day,” said Curtis S. Lavarello, the executive director of the School Safety Advocacy Council. “You have a recipe for things that can go terribly wrong, and it’s just not worth putting our kids and our teachers at risk when you don’t have to.”
It’s also harder to keep track of who’s in schools on Election Day.
“When we have polling locations, we can’t check to see who’s in our campus. On any other day, we would check everyone through a front office,” said Dr. Jacob Reach, the chief of governmental relations and board services at Austin ISD (AISD).
AISD will give teachers two hours of “civic leave” on Nov. 8 to vote if they choose to. Educators at Dallas ISD (DISD) will have a virtual professional development day. DISD Superintendent of Schools Dr. Stephanie S. Elizalde said the holiday also gives teachers an opportunity to vote.
“It’s really hard to get to vote on Election Day if you’re a teacher or a support staff member,” said Dr. Elizalde. “It’s really important that their voice be able to be heard at the ballot box, and I think that starts with ensuring that they have time to vote.”
District leaders think schools should still be used as polling sites in the future since voters usually know them well.
“So many of them know where their school’s located. They feel safe going to their school. It’s a welcoming place,” Dr. Reach said.
Dr. Elizalde said the same of DISD. She wants to make voting accessible, while keeping kids safe at the same time.
“Our schools are the closest place to our constituents. I want to partner with our communities. I want our schools to be able to be polling places. I want to be able to make sure our educators have an opportunity to vote. And I want to make sure everybody is as safe as possible,” she said. “Our board of trustees saw this as a win, win, win.”
Richardson ISD (RISD) is also giving students Nov. 8 off.
A representative wrote this in an email to Spectrum News: “This ongoing decision is driven by student safety. The majority of RISD schools are required to serve as polling locations, which can result in hundreds of visitors accessing a campus without being subject to the security and background check protocols otherwise required of visitors during a school day. The district and Board of Trustees that approve calendars were not comfortable with that potential safety risk and began including a student holiday on general election days in 2018.”
The representative added that one of RISD’s “2023 legislative priorities is to allow schools districts the option to prohibit school buildings from being used as polling places on any day school is in session, except on the November Election Day.”
Other districts in Texas are staying open on Election Day. In an email to Spectrum News, a representative of Grapevine-Colleyville ISD wrote in part: “Election Day has not been one of the main constraints or considerations as the district plans the instructional calendar… Like many other districts, we will be in school next Tuesday.”
Houston ISD, the largest district in the state, will keep most of its schools open, too.
DISD, AISD and NEISD all said they gave their parents ample notice to make child care arrangements on Nov. 8.