October 12, 2023

HISD teachers...

Are you okay?

Volume 92, issue 48 October 12, 2023

NEWS

OBITS

JACKSON LEE vs. WHITMIRE

DIANNE POLLARD

A new UH poll takes a look at the two leading candidates for Houston mayor and where they stand.

The Houston community mourns the loss of the longtime TSU dean and active resident.

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DN To the POINT

Travis Scott performs at day one of the Astroworld Music Festival at NRG Park on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021, in Houston. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)

Managing Editor Message Travis Scott can’t catch a break

announced his conversion to Judaism, took a Travis Scott has been struggling to pick up contrary stance, denouncing African Amerthe pieces since the tragic Astroworld concert icans who do not support Israel. Stoudemire two years ago. Word in the streets is that the openly criticized the Black Lives Matter tickets for the rapper’s upcoming tour (which movement, asserting they were not contribisn’t coming to Houston, by the way) are uting positively. He stated, “For all y’all Black going for as low as $10. But its not that fans Lives Matter who ain’t saying nothing or ‘let are turning their backs. Part of the problem me figure out exactly what happened before I is a company called PFS Buyers Club, a site say anything,’ F. you. Figure out what? It ain’t for credit card points enthusiasts that offers never been cool to kidnap kids.” commission to buyers who help them source Despite this, a different social media user ReShonda Tate limited edition items (like high-demand conexpressed skepticism, asking, “When has cert passes, for example). PFS told members to buy tickets for anyone in Israel said to pray for the American Negro? Our Scott’s tour in any city and they would be reimbursed, plus Holocaust has been ongoing for 400+ years. Has Israel ever given a commission of $25 per ticket. Tickets went on sale Aug. told the USA not to send any money until after it repairs Black 31 and at first sold out, though Scott later added more dates. Americans? I mean, it’s biblical to take care of your own family The cheapest seats went for $65, plus fees, during the regular first.” Experts said the diverse range of opinions within the Black sale. But demand has plummeted for the shows, and tickets are American community underscores the complexities and mulnow going for as cheap as $10 in some places. Resellers who tifaceted nature of the ongoing debate surrounding the conflict bought into the tour stand to lose hundreds, if not thousands, in the Middle East and its implications for various social justice of dollars. PFS has now backtracked on its promise for the movements. Others in our community have simply paid the $25 commission, and told members the site expects to take a massacre no mind because “It doesn’t concern us.” Whatever “massive loss.” In the meantime, you know fans are going to your stance, as the situation continues to evolve, how these pertake that out on Travis, and that’s really sad. spectives will shape the discourse within the Black community and on the broader global stage remains to be seen.

Why Black America should care about Israel

Black Americans have expressed a range of emotions regarding Hamas’ recent and deadly attack on Israel, with many taking to social media to highlight what they perceive as a lack of support from Israel and some members of the Jewish community for the Black Lives Matter Movement. Numerous posts on social media platforms feature hashtags like #BLM and #PLM, underscoring the perceived parallels between the struggles of Palestinians and African Americans in their fight against systemic racism. One widely circulated message drew attention to what the author viewed as a lack of awareness about the treatment of Black people in Israel, saying, “If African Americans Knew How Israel Treats Black People, Black Lives Don’t Matter in Israel.” Former NBA star Amari Stoudemire, who previously

Will Hurd throws in the towel

Texas lawmaker Will Hurd has called it quits in his quest to be the next GOP presidential candidate. He says he’s out, but was he ever really in? Hurd could never seem to get the support to even make the debate stage, which was actually pretty sad since he seemed to be one of the sanest swimming in the GOP pool.

On the web

• Shining a light on breast cancer • Why a Houston woman is building a library in Ghana • Sports reporter Terrance Harris highlights Simon Biles’ latest feat

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DN News POLL

Houston mayoral race neck-in-neck Defender News Service

State Senator John Whitmire and Congresswoman Shelia Jackson Lee

Fresh polling in the race for Houston mayor indicates State Senator John Whitmire and Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee remain well in front of the field and headed to a likely run-off.

Those numbers from the University of Houston Hobby School indicate Whitmire is attracting 34% and Jackson Lee pulling in 31% of likely voters with longtime Councilman Jack Christie and former Metro Chair Gilbert Garcia tied for third with 4% each.

UH sits in both Whitmire’s Senatorial

district and Jackson Lee’s Congressional district.

With 22% of Houston voters still undecided, the UH poll indicates a substantial majority would lean toward Whitmire in a likely run-off.

Meantime, in the race for city controller, former Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins (29%) is leading former Harris County Treasurer Orlando Sanchez (14%) and Councilman Dave Martin (8%) with nearly half of voters still unsure who they prefer.

The election is Nov. 7.

Initiative addresses barriers for minority homebuyers Houston Public Media

A new program aims to bridge the gap for people of color becoming homeowners.

Own the HOU is a new initiative that addresses systemic barriers by educating and connecting new and existing homeowners with resources to help with purchasing a home.

Wells Fargo’s investment of $7.5 million through their Wealth Opportunities Restored through Homeownership initiative, started the program, which is led by Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC).

People of color sometimes struggle to buy a home because of multiple factors such as higher interest rates or being denied a home loan altogether. The program will provide potential homebuyers with housing counselors and resources to make the home-buying process easier.

According to a survey by the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University, prior to the pandemic, inflation rates rose approximately 2% every 12 months. Due to the pandemic and the worldwide supply-chain shortages, inflation hit a peak of 10.2% in June 2022, it lowered to 5.3% in Dec. 2022, but the rate of inflation is still twice as much as it was two years ago.

The current mortgage interest rates are 7.49% for a 30-year plan and 6.78% for a 15-year plan, according to the Houston Association of Realtors.

The hike in interest rates is a main barrier for people on the path to becoming homeowners, said Keith Bynam, the Director of the city’s Housing and Community Development Department.

“Everything we do is to try and develop affordable housing and affordable housing in today’s market is really, really, unreasonable,” said Bynam. “We’re hoping that this program will change the focus of individuals and allow them to start thinking about becoming a homeowner in order to create that generational wealth that we’ve all been talking about.”

Thao Costis, the Executive Director of the Harris County Community Services Department, talked about the city’s efforts to curb homelessness and how that also impacts the new initiative.

“It is a truly extreme challenge to the people who have been left out of the ability to afford housing first of all, much less own their homes,” said Costis. “We are all here in need

Own the HOU helps people of color in the homebuying process.Houston Public Media

for the people who have been traditionally left out, who have been systematically left out, to be included and to be able to have the opportunity here.”

The City of Houston and Harris County were able to bring down the homelessness rates by more than 60% over these last 12 years. However, 70% of the people who experience homelessness are Black or African American, while the population in Harris County is only 20% African American or Black.

Harris County will additionally be investing over $100 million over the next three years just for the homeowner side by using funds from disaster recovery funds, the American Rescue Plan, and the annual HUD endowment.

“Today, we take a significant step towards helping communities of color level the playing field when it comes to

homeownership,” said Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis in a press release. “Together, we can build a stronger and more equitable future by helping to provide an opportunity for Harris County’s residents to build generational wealth through homeownership.”

By 2025, Own the HOU aims to help 5,000 new households achieve homeownership while helping existing homeowners preserve their homeownership.

“Limited access to essential resources and tools has hindered the path to homeownership for people of color. This transformative initiative marks the commitment to empower and uplift people of color,” said Mayor Sylvester Turner, in a press release. “With Own the HOU, we stride together towards a more inclusive and equitable future, ensuring every individual can successfully own a home in our city.”

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DN News WILLIE POWELLS

Attorney sues Post Oak Hotel for discrimination Defender News Service

A sign at Edward Waters University shares a message about a prayer vigil on August 28, 2023 in Jacksonville, Florida. The University is nearby a Dollar General store where three people were shot and killed in a racially motivated attack. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

HBCUs unite after campus violence

By Raquel Rogers

Historically Black colleges and universities have once again found themselves vulnerable to attacks from white supremacists and troublemakers within their local communities because of an unsettling convergence of ongoing economic stressors, and racial tensions. Now, several of those colleges and universities are showing solidarity as they look for federal assistance.

The shootings are a sharp reminder of the vulnerability of HBCUs, some of which have open campuses, and half of which are in majority-Black communities where crime is a persistent problem that is made worse by more general economic stressors.

Among the recent strings of violence: • Shooting at Bowie State in Bowie, MD injured two teens on Oct. 8.

• Five people injured in shooting at Morgan State, in Baltimore, MD as homecoming festivities got underway on Oct. 3.

• White supremacist targeted Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, Fl, before being turned away by security and ultimately waging a racist shooting of three Black people at a nearby store in August.

• A vicious melee broke out on the campus of Howard University. While that violence wasn’t described as race-related, Howard beefed up security.

• Clark Atlanta University received a bomb threat in Oct., that

temporarily closed down the campus and resulted in a shelterin-place order at the university’s Oglethorpe Hall; the incident was a callback to 2022, when more than 50 HBCUs across the country received bomb threats that were apparently attributed to a troubled minor.

• Heavily armed white man was arrested on the campus of North Carolina A&T University in April with several guns, weaponary and more than 1,000 rounds of various ammunition.

senior vice president for public policy and government affairs, said in a statement. “This program must administer the funds directly to HBCUs, not by the state governments. This will help HBCUs to be protected against threats by increasing security, developing plans on how to respond beyond simply calling the police, heighten the use of technology to monitor campus entry points, and make our environments the safe haven for learning they should be for the sake—and mental health and security—of our students.”

The United Negro College Fund In August 2022, the Depart(UNCF), a historic organization ment of Homeland Security advocating for HBCUs that counts (DHS) expressed its commitment Edward Waters among its mem- to addressing bomb threats spebers, recently said cifically targeting that the next step H B C Us . DH S in securing Black has implemented college campuses various initiatives must go the legis- “All year long, to bolster security lative route. at some Black we have asked “All year long, colleges, includwe have asked Congress to ing $250 million Congress to pro- protect HBCUs, through the Nontect HBCUs, and and now is the profit Security now is the time to Grant Program pass the Home- time…” to enhance physl a n d S e c u r i t y LODRIGUEZ V. MURRAY, ical security for appropriations bill UNCF SENIOR VP FOR nonprofit orgawith language that PUBLIC POLICY AND nizations at high GOVT. AFFAIRS directs the Fedrisk of terroreral Emergency ist attacks. This Management Administration funding was allocated with $125 (FEMA) to provide $100 million million for nonprofits in desigfor HBCUs (annually) via the non- nated urban areas and another profit grants’ security program,” $125 million for nonprofits outside Lodriguez V. Murray, UNCF’s those areas.

A Houston attorney is suing the city’s Post Oak Hotel after he says he faced discrimination over his attire.

Willie Powells, 45 alleged in court documents that during a “casual business meeting at the “H Bar,” which is a bar inside the Post Oak Hotel,” hotel staff attempted to enforce a supposed dress code policy by demanding that Powells remove the hat he was wearing, which was from a masterclass for trial attorneys, his attorneys allege in court documents.

Powells was “the only African American in the bar” when he sat down for the meeting with another attorney, per court documents. “Three or so tables behind Attorney Powells in the corner was a large table with about seven Caucasian people. Almost all of them had some kind of hat on including cowboy hats,” Powells’ attorneys said in court documents.

“An employee of the H Bar then came up to Willie and stated he had to take off his hat or leave. The demeanor of

the employee was abrupt and rude. Willie pointed out that others were wearing hats but this did not change the mind of the H Bar employee. “[Dress codes] are a typical method used to discriminate against minorities or other people that you don’t want in your establishment,” said Randall Kallinen, the Houston attorney representing Powells in the matter. “Vague terms are used to exclude people by having a dress code, but after review of the evidence, there were several Caucasian people that definitely would not fit the bill.”

The Post Oak Hotel, which is located near the Galleria and bills itself as “Houston’s Newest Luxury Destination,” has not commented on the lawsuit.

VOLUME 92, NUMBER 48 - OCTOBER 12, 2023 Publisher | CEO Sonceria Messiah-Jiles

Education Reporter Laura Onyeneho

Strategic Alllance Clyde Jiles

Sports Terrance Harris Jimmie Aggison

Digital Content Manager Get Current Studios Managing Editor ReShonda Tate Associate Editor Aswad Walker

Social Media Jordan Hockett Ad Executive Jodie B. Jiles

The Defender newspaper is published by the Houston Defender Newspaper Inc. and audited by Alliance for Audited Media (AAM). Only digital subscriptions are available at: www.defendernetwork.com/subscribe No paper subscriptions available. All materials covered by 2023 copyright.

No materials herein may be reproduced without the written permission of the Publisher. 713-663-6996 | P.O. Box 8005, Houston, TX 77288

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DN News ELECTION 2023

Voting dates you need to know

By ReShonda Tate

Voters will head to the polls in just under a month to choose from 17 candidates in the race to replace Mayor Sylvester Turner, who couldn’t run again because of term limits.

Voters will also elect a Houston city controller and city council members.

Also on the ballot are two local ballot initiatives, 14 statewide ballot initiatives and a handful of suburban elections and propositions.

Important dates to note: Early voting begins on Mon., Oct. 23; In Harris County, 68 early voting locations will open from 7a.m.–7p.m.

Mon. through Sat. and noon–7p.m. on Sun.

Ballot-by-mail applications must be received (not post-

marked) by Fri., Oct. 27.

Early voting ends on Fri., Nov. 3 Ballot by Mail must be received by 7p.m. on Tues., Nov. 7, or postmarked by 7p.m. on Election Day and received by 5p.m. on Wed., Nov. 8.

Here’s what’s on the ballot: Mayor Council Members: District A, District B, District C, District D, District E, District F, District G, District

H, District I, District J, District K, At-Large Position 1, At-Large Position 2, At-Large Position 3, At-Large Position 4, At-Large Position 5 City Controller Amendments: A proposition to amend Article VII, Section 3 of the City Charter to enable three or more Council Members to place an item on a regular City Council meeting agenda A proposition to amend Article IX of the City Charter to allow the City of Houston to remain in a Council of Governments or Metropolitan

Planning Organization only if voters on the governing board are apportioned proportionately on the basis of population.

The League of Women Voters of Texas has put together a non-partisan Voters Guide (lwvtexas.org) for the amendments, including arguments for and against.

For more information: Harris County: www.harrisvotes.com Montgomery County: https://elections.mctx.org Fort Bend County: https://www.fortbendvotes.org

MEMBER FDIC All loans are subject to credit approval.

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Talk to a Frost banker at (800) 51-FROST or visit your nearest financial center.

MORE DETAILS ON WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW, INCLUDING HOW TO CHECK YOUR VOTER REGISTRATION STATUS

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DN News HISTORIC BLACK COMMUNITY

Pleasantville hit with racial vandalism

By Aswad Walker

Pleasantville, the longstanding Houston Black neighborhood with national historical significance, is currently contending with something it has not experienced since its inception in 1948 – attacks and displays of racist vandalism.

“Can you imagine, the first racial slurs known in Pleasantville didn’t happen until 2023,” said Mary Fontenot, president of the Pleasantville Historical Society and the Pleasantville Civic League.”

Pleasantville residents, who recently celebrated their annual Pleasantville Reunion, are at a loss for who could be targeting this community known historically as the first master-planned community in the U.S. created to house middle- and upper-income Blacks and celebrated locally for being one of the highest-voting precincts in the state for generations.

Fontenot said City of Houston-produced signs welcoming visitors to Pleasantville have been defaced and torn down multiple times.

An area stop sign was also defaced with the words, “Broke money Ni**ers keep out.”

The signs were cleaned off by residents

Courtesy Mary Fontenot

and/or replaced only to be defaced again.

And most recently, the metal fixtures that held the signs in place were even cut. Fontenot and neighbors were even more outdone that vandalism visited a Pleasantville institution named after arguably the community’s most famous resident.

“They actually spray painted over the Judson Robinson Sr. Park sign. We’ve never, since the inception of Pleasantville, had to deal with racism,” added Fontenot.

Created in the aftermath of WWII specifically for Black people of means who were looking for a community in which to purchase homes with the latest

modern amenities, at a time when segregation blocked Blacks from all-white neighborhoods, Pleasantville became a beacon of hope and an example of Black excellence in all forms – entrepreneurship, sports, civic engagement and more.

The list of local and national movers and shakers with Pleasantville roots and ties is long and provides a proverbial “Who’s Who” of Houston-area difference-makers. Over the decades, this once all-Black community has experienced a demographic shift, where Latinx residents now make up nearly half of all residents. Individuals of Asian ancestry are seeing their numbers increase in

Pleasantville, as well.

“Everybody on our Pleasantville Facebook page was totally enraged after I posted pictures of the vandalism,” said Pleasantville-born resident Felicia Thibodeaux.

“However, we’re just kind of at a loss regarding why and who did this.”

Thibodeaux was in Pleasantville in 1961, moved away as an adult, but returned about 12 years ago. Her parents originally purchased a home in the neighborhood in 1957. Thibodeaux has personally witnessed the neighborhood’s changing demographics.

“I have Spanish and Asian neighbors around me, and we all get along. We’re a very welcoming neighborhood,” she said.

Still, Thibodeaux is fearful of more vandalism, specifically to the historical marker the neighborhood received last year.

“We’re trying to understand why, all of the sudden, this vandalism is happening,” said Thibodeaux, who thinks police could do more. “I believe if the officers reached out and talked to neighborhood kids they’d find out. Officers haven’t asked any residents about their ring cameras that may have recorded something.”

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DN InFocus

HISD teachers...

Are you okay?

You can’t woo teachers with money because we don’t get into the profession to get rich.”

Challenges, changes take toll on educators

T

By Tannistha Sinha

he Houston Independent School District has seen its share of changes over the past few months, and a new survey shows some of those changes are taking a toll on the mental health of teachers.

A slew of changes

The largest school district in Texas and eighth largest in the United States, HISD saw 880 teacher vacancies in August 2022.

Since then, HISD has gone through changes that have affected students and teachers alike. The Texas Education Agency intervened in the school district, citing poor academic performances, misconduct against school board members and the presence of a conservator as the reasons. A new superintendent, Mike Miles, and a board of managers were put at the helm of HISD in June.

Since the TEA takeover, teachers have grappled with being asked to accept Miles’ New Education System or be reassigned to a non-NES campus. Plus, facing a state-approved teacher evaluation system by the HISD board of managers that previously resulted in a lawsuit from the Houston Federation of Teachers as it would be used to evaluate teachers’ employment status and salaries. In addition, a questionable “performance” starring Miles and including HISD students who later admitted feeling duped by the district to participate, and confusion about their pay structure. These additional

stressors endured by countless HISD teachers only compound the traditional stressors endured by teachers nationwide.

According to a survey by the Charles Butt Foundation, poor pay, benefits, workloads, long hours, staff shortages, and the pressure of keeping students safe serve as sources of stress for teachers.

TEXAS TEACHERS

BY THE NUMBERS

77%

considered leaving their jobs in the last year

93%

gearing up to leave for jobs in other fields

58%

say their mental health is strong *Charles Butt Foundation

A teacher’s story

A 63-year-old pre-kindergarten teacher (who requested not to be named) at one of Miles’ New Education System Aligned schools, who has been teaching for 28 years,

MICHELLE WILLIAMS, PRESIDENT, HOUSTON EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

HOW TEACHERS CAN MANAGE STRESS

told the Defender this school year is different from any year in the past.

She teaches at Burrus Elementary, a school that primarily comprises a minority enrollment of 97.4%, with 65.9% Black students, 31.2% Hispanic/Latino students, 2.6% of white students, and 0.3% of students of two or more races.

When she began the school year, she realized that the NES Aligned pre-k curriculum was vastly different from what she expected.

Her training, for which she was paid a $2,000 stipend, was aimed at acquainting teachers with the pre-k curriculum and was even more confusing.

“It was a sharp contrast to what we were told at this training as what we were supposed to do in the classroom,” she said.

In addition to this “web of confusion,” she was later instructed to annotate 35-45 pages of lesson plans every week, which was “very tiring.”

“A little bit more thought, training and clarity should have been put into the NES system before they put it into place. It was just thrown under us all at one time,” she said.

“It’s a constant snowball of confusion with

plenty of blame to go around for its impending failure!”

There is also pressure to finish the curriculum “a certain way” and “the dynamics of the NES system should not be applicable to pre-kindergarten children and to pre-kindergarten teachers,” according to her. Some teachers also have to arrive as early as 6:20am and leave around 5:30pm in the evening on some days without extra pay, especially now that Miles has made it clear teachers in HISD will not receive overtime pay.

Under Miles’ new rules, classroom doors must be kept open at all times and school administrators are constantly entering, looking at the board and the teacher’s folders. Last year, the teacher recalls, she had more autonomy - to encourage and challenge the students who were ahead of the class but this year, the lessons are set in stone. The pre-k students are expected to write full sentences and change details in stories.

“They [HISD] say they want to see a multiple response strategy with three and four year olds and they want you to keep a timer,”

the teacher said. “They [the students] pee on themselves more than they talk. These kids can’t write, they can’t even hold a pencil yet. What works for fourth and fifth graders is not gonna work for these kids.”

The first week of school, the teacher found herself teaching a bigger classroom with both pre-k and kindergarten students because the kindergarten teacher had quit.

The school support officer entered the classroom, observing her, after which she accused her of showing cartoons during social and emotional learning. She was subsequently written up.

The video in question was “Going to School with Bluey!,” which talked about the first week of school, while the teacher worked on her lesson plans. The quintessential school routine - “the backpacks, meeting new friends, lunch with friends, interacting with teachers, teachers reading a book out loud” - were part of the video.

- Establish goals - Reach out to a colleague for advice - Engage in stress-relieving activities - Prioritize health, family time and quality sleep - Set some time to relax - Determine their response to stressful situations “I wanted to give them [students] something constructive for them to watch. I make sure everything I do is education-related,” she said. “I wouldn’t dare do that now.”

The teacher has been vested with the responsibility of teaching four new curricula - Amplify, Eureka, Zearn and Amira - in which she has no training. She says she has continued to have issues - from being told she’s unprepared to to dispute over sick days.

Through all of the changes and challenges, she says her blood pressure rose to 183/121, but she has exhausted her sick days and her medical leave request was denied.

“That’s death, that’s stroke level,” she said.

The campus has since seen four more teachers quit. The teacher, who said she must work until 2025 to retire with benefits, at 65 years of age, said she, too, will request for a release of her contract if she does not receive training.

Tara Jones, a teacher who retired from HISD in 2022 after three decades in the profession, has been through it all - “the stress with COVID and bad leadership.”

The mantra she followed to take care of her mental health was simple: “therapy and meditation.”

Since the TEA takeover of HISD, Jones has “heard of teachers going in and checking themselves into various hospitals for psychiatric care.”

HOW PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE IS AFFECTING TEACHERS

“It’s not about school reform, as the superintendent is saying, it’s about dismantling public education as we know it,” she said.

Jones is now subst it ut i ng at t he Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District where she says she has noticed a lot of changes. “There is pedagogy in the schools.

The schools have PE teachers, nurses, librarians.”

What can teachers do?

A recent Gallup Poll revealed teaching was the top profession for burnout in the United States, with 55% of female teachers and 44% of male teachers reporting burnout. This has led to another concerning trend in school districts - a teacher shortage, owing to reasons like low salaries, political and academic pressures, health and safety concerns.

A study called “Psychology in the Schools” says teachers are becoming less able to cope with stress and are quitting the profession, which is also contributing to the teacher shortage across the US. The data used in the study correlates between stress and job satisfaction.

The increase in stress levels affects teachers in different ways - those with a high coping level were more satisfied with their jobs than those with a low coping levels.

Michelle Williams, the president of the Houston Education Association, says teachers need to take care of themselves first, for their mental and physical health.

“If there are ailments that are happening as a result of the toxicity in HISD, we have an employee assistance program where they can start seeing a counselor,” she suggested.

“They do not have to stay in HISD under these circumstances.”

Williams emphasized two solutions for teachers - become a part of a union and next, to file a complaint.

“Find the people that represent you, get some representation,” she said. “We cannot do anything or you can’t get anything done without filing a complaint.”

If a teacher is confused about which union to join, Williams suggests they opt for “whoever represents their core values.”

There are a few to choose from, among others - the Houston Education Association, an affiliate of the National Education Association, the Houston Federation of Teachers, an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers representing employees in Houston ISD and Spring Branch ISD, and Association of Texas Professional Educators (ATPE).

Williams says teachers in Miles’ NES schools in particular, are “not doing well,” citing a constant pile of paperwork and testing students.

“It’s taken its toll,” Williams said. “I have a member who constantly is going over lesson plans, internalizing lessons, she doesn’t have a moment’s peace. Sometimes they’re [teachers] working 10 hours a day and they don’t have any support.”

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DN Education TEACHER PAY, OVERTIME

HISD makes huge changes Defender News Service

Teachers across Houston ISD have received emails informing them they will not be receiving overtime pay for extra hours worked this school year, as they have in years past. The news came alongside changes to some stipends in the district.

This summer, state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles said that he would not change the district’s compensation manual, other than to increase pay for teachers at the district’s New Education System campuses.

“The manual has not changed,” Miles said.

“I’ve done nothing to the manual.”

However, according to this year’s version, stipends for positions that are hard to fill, like special education, and high school math and science, have been slashed by thousands of dollars. Last year, special education teachers who filled such positions received $5,000 stipends, while high school math and science teachers, along with career and technical

Caption Credit

education instructors, received stipends of $2,000. This year, however, each of those stipends has been reduced to $1,000.

Miles said the cuts are offset by additional stipends given to teachers at New Education System schools this year.

“At 85 schools, those changes are because those teachers are getting a $10,000 stipend, and at those 85 schools, about 1,000 teachers got a $15,000 increase to base salary,” he said.

However, the stipend cuts in the compensation manual will take effect district-wide, not just at the 85 NES campuses.

Teachers at other schools will not receive a raise and additional $10,000 to offset cuts to their stipends.

Meanwhile, teachers around the district received emails this week indicating they should not expect overtime pay this year.

“Teachers in HISD are professional and exempt employees,” the email read. “For exempt staff, completion of work assignment is a primary emphasis. Since there is no overtime pay for exempt staff, the number of hours is of secondary importance.”

It went on to explain that overtime pay is not required by federal law or local policy and is at the discretion of campus leadership.

Miles said, when it comes to overtime pay, he’s trying to change the mentality in the district.

“Teachers teach, and they are exempt

employees. That’s the job. We are not clock-in, clock-out people,” he said. “There is no culture here where we’re going to pay teachers overtime hours for doing their job.”

Miles said, in general, the new compensation manual applies to all teachers, including those who signed their contracts before this year’s manual was released.

“Generally speaking, the compensation manual is the compensation manual for all teachers,” said Miles.

He added that teachers who do overtime work that involves an additional role, such as coaching a school sports team, will receive additional compensation.

Sunrise Center serves vulnerable HISD students

By ReShonda Tate

In the Houston Independent School District, there are 8,000 homeless students. It’s a disturbing statistic that officials are hoping to tackle with the openings of their Sunrise Centers.

HISD has now opened the second of six planned Sunrise Centers, this time focused on providing safety and stability to students who do not have a safe, stable place to be when they’re not in school. The first, opened in August at the West Orem YMCA. The second Sunrise Center to open will be housed at the Star of Hope Cornerstone Community Transformational Campus ® and will provide services and shelter to HISD students living in crisis.

“We know we have thousands of students who do not have a safe place to go when they leave our schools,” said Superintendent Mike Miles. “These students and their families cannot begin to think about studying and homework, when they must worry about finding shelter and food from day to day. We can build a network to support them.”

Sunrise Centers are intentional partnerships

The new Sunrise Center is at the Star of Hope.

with existing community organizations and service providers. Along with serving the Worthing feeder pattern, this center will focus on providing services to the growing number of homeless students in HISD. “Being at the Sunrise Center at the

Cornerstone community is going to allow us to support the families while they’re there but then after they leave this facility we’re able to keep in contact with them as they move around,” said Ilkka Rosada, Sunrise Center Coordinator, Cornerstone Campus. “We

offer support such as assistance with uniforms, backpacks, supplies, and hygiene. We also provide referrals to housing support that includes rental assistance and rapid rehousing, and we provide reports with referrals to mental health.

We try to compact the issue of food and security so we always have a food component.”

The Cornerstone Sunrise Center site will also provide: • Before and afterschool care • Case Management Rosada • Tutoring and Other Academic Supports • Enrichment The Cornerstone Sunrise Center launched with a panel discussion focused on what it takes to properly serve HISD’s homeless students and ensure their physical and emotional well-being; while providing them the kind of education that helps break the cycle of generational poverty.

HISD plans to launch four more centers by November 2023.

October 12, 2023 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

| 11

DN Business

Tina Elder-Cadoree

Turns empty nest into booming business

By Aswad Walker

Tina Elder-Cadoree became an empty-nester before turning her hobby of baking sweets into a business – Tasties by Tina. But once she made the move, she’s not only lived the sweet life, her customers have been able to taste it regularly via her baked goods. The Defender recently caught up with the native Houstonian to learn more about her start in business and where Tasties by Tina is headed in the future.

DEFENDER: How did you get started?

TINA ELDER-CADOREE: Well, I’ve

been baking ever since I was a little girl, like seven, eight years old. I was born and raised in Fifth Ward, in my big mama’s kitchen. So, I know how to cook as well as bake, but baking is my favorite. And baking is something I did when my children were little. Once they got grown, they convinced me to turn it into a business, taught me all about social media and what I needed to do to start it. So, I did my research and became a cottage baker.

DEFENDER: What are some of the places people can go to buy your goods?

ELDER-CADOREE: People can con-

tact me through my business phone, through Facebook and Instagram. I now have a website and I also have a baking cookbook, ‘Tastie Homemade Desserts,’ on Etsy that you could purchase. And we do delivery or we’ll meet you. We charge a small fee to deliver. We go to different popups. We come to the Shrine quite often. Actually, the Shrine’s Buy Black Marketplace is one of the places that I started. I do popups in Fifth Ward because I still have family in Fifth Ward.

DEFENDER: What are some of your specialties?

ELDER-CADOREE: Pound

cakes. I do a sweet potato pound cake and peach cobbler pound cake. I do peach cobbler. I started making sandwich cookies. I do a red velvet sandwich cookie, carrot cake sandwich cookie. I make many different tea cakes, cookies, a variety of different things. My favorite is the peach cobbler and the old-fashioned pound cake. My new favorite is the sweet potato pound cake. It’s really good.

DEFENDER: Do you have any advice for someone who wants to start a business?

ELDER-CADOREE: Don’t be afraid to

do it. I did this for a long time as a side hustle once I got divorced to make ends meet.

Sometimes I hate I didn’t turn it into a business sooner. But it doesn’t matter about your age. I’m older now, and to me now being older, I understand it better. I could’ve started sooner, but I didn’t. I didn’t have the courage at first. But once my children encouraged me to do it, I’m like, “Okay, I can do this.” Right now, I work a full-time job and do this, but my 2024 goal is to either get a food truck or quit my full-time job and have this going full-time.

DEFENDER: Do you have a mantra?

ELDER-CADOREE: I just constantly say

MORE ABOUT TINA ELDER-CADOREE What high school did you attend: Phillis Wheatley, Fifth Ward.

Favorite desserts beyond the ones you cook: Butter Pecan ice cream. And that’s something else I’m getting ready to start making, homemade ice cream.

Favorite food: Seafood.

Favorite music: I like a little bit of everything, gospel, country, Zydeco, R&B and even a little rap.

IG: @tastiesbytina Website: www.tastiesbytina.net Cell: 832-639-4254 Email: tastiesbytina@gmail.com

my prayers and thank God, because I thought this was gonna be hard.

It’s not hard at all. And I’m normally not a person that can speak in front of people, but it’s becoming easier and easier because in my prayers I ask God to guide me and order my steps. And with that, it brings you peace. It helped me to become more creative.

When you sit and spend time and meditate and just focus and ask God, you have to be patient and you have to listen.

12 | October 12, 2023 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Feature

NBUF leads Sankofa Caravan to the Ancestors portant for Black people? What can that do for us right now?

ORIYANGI: Well, I know spiritually it’s a

By Aswad Walker

The National Black United Front (NBUF), a grassroots, Pan-African organization working and organizing towards the advancement of all people of African descent, is hosting its 26th Annual Sankofa Caravan to the Ancestors on Saturday, Oct. 21. “ ‘Sankofa’ is a West African concept sometimes symbolized in the Adinkra symbols… which means ‘Go back to your past, retrieve what you have lost and bring forward to today past values that are needed,’ or put simply, ‘Go back and fetch it,’ ” said NBUF National Chairman Kofi Taharka, who added the Caravan is a sacred and special opportunity to reconnect with our history, culture, spirituality and current mission.

The Defender spoke with three of this year’s principal organizers, Taharka, Obafunso Gaidi, who was born the first year of the Sankofa Caravan, and Iya Oriyangi, a spoken word artist and spiritualist, about the Caravan.

DEFENDER: What actually is the Sankofa Caravan to the Ancestors?

ORIYANGI: So, 26 years ago organizations

came together to figure out a way to honor our ancestors. And it was supposed to be something that was educational, but it became something more spiritual as they started to bring awareness to how they wanted to honor and bring

Sankofa Caravan circa 2013. New Your Amsterdam News.

light to our African ancestors and also talk about liberation at the same time. Some people who started this out are now ancestors. We give thanks to them, honor our ancestors… understanding who we are and our ability to come together no matter what background we come from, or what religion we are; to come together on one common goal.

GAIDI: We’re venerating our ancestors, but not only our ancestors, we’re venerating ourselves, celebrating ourselves and how far we came through with the help of our ancestors, through the steps they made for us and how far we continue to go. That’s why we’re looking

back [Sankofa] to make sure that we’re moving in the same spirit, we’re moving in harmony.

Because that’s the only thing that got us this far in the first place; harmony and working together. There’s a lot of different religious faiths at the beach. We’re just trying to expose people to more traditional African practices and connect us to our culture and tradition, and undo all the work that’s been done these past few generations and bring us back to connection to the motherland.

DEFENDER: Why is this connection or reconnection to the ancestors so im-

major thing for us because the ancestors are our guides. They’re our healers. They see what we can’t see. And this is just from a spiritual standpoint of our practice and our tradition of Ifa and Orisha; having an understanding of Egun meaning “Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood.” Sankofa means to look back and retrieve the things that we lost. So, if we’re going back to get the things we lost, we need to go and look into our ancestors and find our way. We need to depend on the elders that are still here to give us the information that is valuable towards our future.

DEFENDER: If this is my first time going, what do I need to know?

TAHARKA: It’s a physical caravan of

cars from Houston to Galveston. We meet at the NBUF headquarters (2428 Southmore, Houston, 77004) at 6 a.m., depart at 7 a.m.

And people should expect to drive their own vehicles in an escorted caravan, which is about 45 minutes to an hour to the beach.

And then plan as if you are going for a day on the beach, where you gotta walk and be in the sand and all of those things. So, from a logistics standpoint, that’s what we’ll be looking at.

CLASSIFIED NOTICE TO BIDDERS The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas (METRO) is planning to issue the procurement documents listed in this advertisement.

IFB No. 4023000132: Central Store Fire Suppression System Rehabilitation. Solicitation will be available on or about 10/03/2023. Prospective bidders/proposers can view and download these solicitations by visiting METRO's website at ridemetro.org/Open Procurements. If you are unable to download the documents or are having difficulty, please contact 713-615-6125 or email Contracts/Property Services at propertyservices@ridemetro.org.

NOTICE TO BIDDERS The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas (METRO) is planning to issue the procurement documents listed in this advertisement.

CSP No. 4024000001: Northline Transit Center and Parking Garage. Solicitation will be available on or about 10/11/2023. Prospective bidders/proposers can view and download these solicitations by visiting METRO's website at ridemetro.org/Open Procurements. If you are unable to download the documents or are having difficulty, please contact 713-615-6255 or email Contracts/Property Services at propertyservices@ridemetro.org.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS HOUSTON DOWNTOWN MANAGEMENT DISTRICT MARKET SQUARE PARK TURF & DINING IMPROVEMENTS The Houston Downtown Management District (the “Downtown District”) will receive electronic proposals for Market Square Park Turf & Dining Improvements performed in Downtown Houston, Texas. Proposals will be received until 11:00 AM, local time on Tuesday, October 31, 2023, by the Construction Manager of the Downtown District. Proposals received after this time will not be accepted. Proposals are to be emailed to the Construction Manager, Dusty McCartney at dusty@downtowndistrict.org Beginning Thursday, October 5, 2023, documents will be available at downtowndistrict.org/procurement.

A MANDATORY IN-PERSON Pre-proposal Conference will be held at 2:00 PM on Monday, October 16, 2023, on site at Market Square Park, 301 Milam Street, Houston, Texas 77002. All bidders are required to attend. Late arrivals will not be admitted to the Pre-proposal Conference. Proposals will be ruled nonresponsive if received from a bidder who did not attend the Pre-proposal Conference.

Bidders shall comply with City Ordinance 95-336 (March 29, 1995) and Exec. Order No.1-2 (June 14, 1995), and City of Houston Affirmative Action and Contract Compliance Division Minority/Women Business Enterprise (M/WBE) Procedures (June 1995). The successful Bidder will be required to make good faith efforts to achieve an M/W/DBE participation goal of 25 percent.

NOTICE TO PROPOSERS The Houston Independent School District Purchasing Services Department located at 4400 West 18 th Street, Houston, TX 77092 is soliciting Request for Proposals (RFP) via the District’s electronic bidding portal. Proposers may login to view specifications and submit their responses at the following link https:// houstonisd.ionwave.net/Login.aspx until 10:0 0 a.m. (CST) Monday, November 6, 2023, for the following solicitation: RFP 24-09-06 Various Paper Pre-proposal conferences via Microsoft Teams will be held in conjunction with this RFP. Information regarding dates, times, and instructions to receive a link to join the meeting can be located within the electronic bidding portal under the “Event Details” tab specific to this solicitation.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR FOOD AND BEVERAGE FACILITY OPERATOR SELECTION MARKET SQUARE PARK THE HOUSTON DOWNTOWN MANAGEMENT DISTRICT The Houston Downtown Management District (the "Downtown District") will receive Proposals from experienced food and beverage service providers to occupy and operate the food services kiosk and associated facilities at Market Square Park, 301 Milam Street, in Downtown Houston. Hardcopy proposals only will be received until 12:00 P.M., local time on Friday, November 10, 2023, by the Houston Downtown Management District, 1221 McKinney Street, Suite 4250, Houston, Texas 77010. Please note only hard copies will be accepted. Proposals submitted after this time will not be accepted. Respective of this advertisement, telephone, mail, email queries or requests for information will not be addressed by the Downtown District.

Beginning Friday, October 6, 2023, this project's Request for Proposal (RFP) may be downloaded from Downtown District's website: http://www.downtowndistrict.org/procurement-rfpopportunities. A site visit for interested proposers is scheduled for 2:00 P.M., Wednesday, October 18, 2023, to be held at the Market Square Park Kiosk, 301 Milam Street, Houston, Texas 77002. RSVP requested to attend the site visit by contacting the Downtown District at MSPKioskRFP@DowntownDistrict.org.

Following this site visit, further queries or requests for information will be addressed by the Downtown District at MSPKioskRFP@DowntownDistrict.org and pursuant to the instructions provided in the RFP. Based on the Proposals submitted, an evaluation panel will identify and invite proposers to an interview to be held on or before Friday, December 1, 2023. The Downtown District's Board of Directors will award the contract to the highest-ranked Proposer based on the Proposal content and interview performance.

Proposers shall comply with City of Houston Code of Ordinances, Chapter 15, Articles II, V, VI, and XI and the Mayor's Executive Orders No. 1-7 Pay or Play (POP) Program for Houston Public Works for the public procurement procedures of the City of Houston Office of Business Opportunity (OBO) established in March 2008 and the entity responsible for the administration of the Minority/ WomenOwned (M/WBE), Persons with Disabilities Enterprises (PDBE), and Hire Houston First programs.

The successful Proposer will be required to make good faith efforts to achieve an M/WBE and PDBE participation goal of twenty-five percent (25%).

October 12, 2023 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

| 13

DN Obits

Houston broadcast pioneer Charles Porter dies at 81

By Marilyn Marshall

Charles Porter Jr.

Charles Porter Jr., a Houston broadcast pioneer known for his “golden” voice, is being remembered as a multi-talented media professional and caring mentor.

He died Oct. 2 at age 81.

Porter began his on-air career at KCOH-Radio and was news director at KYOK-Radio in the late 1960s. He made history in the early 1970s at KTRK-TV when he became Houston’s first Black television reporter and producer.

He produced such specials as “The Sweet Bye & Bye,” a feature about Houston area Black churches, and “Barbara Jordan Goes to Washington,” where he reported on the congresswoman’s historic swearing-in. He hosted two of the first public affairs programs, “The Show” and “Black Outlook,” as well as “Interchange” on KUHT-TV in the 1980s.

Linda K. Brown, founder and CEO of Advantage Communications Group, met Porter in 1973 when she was hired as research assistant for Channel 13’s legendary consumer advocate Marvin Zindler.

“It was a new segment and venture for the news department…,” Brown said. “Charlie was very helpful to me during

that transition period and I was appreciative of his wisdom and guidance which helped me throughout my career.”

She said Porter should be remembered as a true trailblazer and pioneer whose “melodious voice was his on-air signature and was built for the broadcasting venue. His insightful news reports were always interesting because he was a great storyteller who could relate to diverse audiences,” Brown said.

Ralph Cooper, KCOH-Radio sports director, said Porter became his mentor in 1970 and encouraged him to pursue a radio career.

“I received hands-on training from him free,” Cooper said.

“To see him transition from KCOH-Radio to KTRK-TV was inspirational. His legacy was training countless journalists who impacted Houston media via radio and television.”

Porter was born in Arcola, Texas. He graduated from Houston’s Booker T. Washington High School and furthered his education at Texas Southern University. He enlisted in the Navy and was proud of his experiences as a frogman. Survivors include his children Charles III, Stacy, Phillippa and Jonas.

Last known Tulsa race massacre survivor passes away at 102 NNPA

Hughes Van Ellis, one of the last three survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died at 102. Known affectionately as “Uncle Redd,” Ellis was a WWII war veteran and a symbol of resilience in the face of racial adversity.

Oklahoma Democratic Rep. Regina Goodwin, who spoke on behalf of his family said, “He bravely served America, even as he spent a lifetime awaiting atonement related to the Tulsa Race Massacre, which occurred between May 31 and June 1, 1921, when white mobs violently attacked Black residents, destroying over 35 square blocks of the prosperous Greenwood District, known as “Black Wall Street.”

Goodwin, a staunch advocate for

reparations for race massacre survivors, emphasized Ellis’ unwavering commitment to the cause.

“Two days ago, Mr. Ellis urged us to keep fighting for justice,” Goodwin noted.

“In the midst of his death, there remains an undying sense of right and wrong. Mr. Ellis was assured we would remain steadfast, and we repeated to him, his own words, ‘We Are One,’ and we lastly expressed our love.”

Van Ellis leaves behind his sisters Viola Fletcher and Lessie Randle as the last known living survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre. Ellis’ death was deeply mourned by the Diaspora African Forum (DAF), which fondly referred to him as Uncle Redd.

Hughs Van Ellis

Dianne Jemison Pollard

FORMER TSU DEAN

Dianne Jemison Pollard mourned Defender News Service

Dr. Dianne Jemison Pollard, Ed.D, a longtime dean and professor at Texas Southern University, died Oct. 4. A homegoing celebration will be held Monday, Oct. 16 at 10:30 a.m. at Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, 500 Clay St. She retired from TSU in 2022 after 44 years of service. Her positions included: Dean of the Thomas F. Freeman Honors College, professor of Theatre in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts and chair of the Department of Fine Arts.

As an award-winning stage director, she directed over 50 productions from Greek and Shakespeare to contemporary theater, musicals and children’s theater. She wrote 18 religious pageants produced around the globe.

Her son, Houston City Councilmember Edward Pollard, said in a statement, “Dr. Jemison Pollard was a strong woman of faith, who loved her family, colleagues, friends and students. She was an extraordinary woman in many ways and will be missed but never forgotten.”

Her father, Rev. Dr. T.J. Jemison, was a civil rights leader, pastor and president of the National Baptist Convention USA, Inc. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Fisk University, masters degrees from the University of Wisconsin and Catholic University of America and Ed.D in Counseling from TSU. She was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and the Links Spring Cypress Chapter. Survivors include her son Edward, daughter Celestine, grandchildren E.J. and Nadia, sister Bettye Wagner and brother Ted Jemison.

14 | October 12, 2023 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Sports Prairie View senior defensive lineman Jamal Marshall recorded four tackles, two tackles for loss and two sacks during the Panthers’ 31-12 win over Mississippi Valley State.

SportsBriefs Simone Biles becomes most decorated gymnast

Houstonian and world class gymnast Simone Biles won the individual all-around title for the sixth time in her career at the World Simone Championships in BelBiles gium – where she won her first world championship 10 years ago -- to become the most decorated gymnast in history. This comes, of course, just two years after she pressed paused on her career to focus on her mental health after the Olympics in Tokyo. Biles shed tears as she stepped on the World Championship podium for the 21st time.

“Because 10 years ago, I won my first worlds. Now we’re back here,” she said. “So, it was emotional.”

TSU Tigers, PJ Henry pegged SWAC preseason honors

The Texas Southern men’s basketball team has been picked to finish first in the SWAC preseason poll for the fourth straight seaTravis son. Under head coach Henry Johnny Jones, the Tigers have won the last three SWAC Championships and enter this season looking for an unprecedented fourth straight NCAA Tournament bid. In addition to the Tigers being picked to win it all, senior guard PJ Henry has been named the 2023-24 SWAC Preseason Player of the Year.

Henry is the Tigers top returning scorer, having averaged 12.4 points per game last season.

Bo Porter Academy to host celebrity golf classic as fundraiser

The Bo Porter Academy is set to launch its inaugural Celebrity Golf Classic on Jan. 15, 2024 at the SweetBo Porter water Country Club in Sugar Land. Some of the scheduled guests include Astros manager Dusty Baker, Mayor Sylvester Turner, former NBA star and Willowridge HS and UT alum TJ Ford and former MLB great and UT alum Roger Clemens. The funds raised will go towards helping to fund the academy’s various endeavors.

For more information contact info@ boporteracademy.com.

Designated hitter Yordan Alvarez logged his first postseason multi-homer game (two home runs) during the Astros’ 6-4 win over Minnesota during Game 1 of the ALDS at Minute Maid Park.

HBCU THREAT Student-athletes transfer portal offers pluses, minuses

By Terrance Harris

The NCAA transfer portal has made it so that student-athletes can easily move from one school to another with immediate playing eligibility, and schools have been able to quickly fill needs as a result.

This sort of college free agency is going on at all levels of college athletics. But for HBCU football programs, the transfer portal is quietly becoming an issue because they have become fertile grounds for bigger schools to swoop in and pluck their top-performing athletes after they have developed them.

HBCU coaches see the good and bad of the transfer portal, but either way it’s a system they are stuck with.

“The transfer portal is here to stay,” Texas Southern coach Clarence McKinney recently said to The Defender. “As coaches we have to adjust and adapt to it. We are going to lose some players and there are going to be some positions where we need to tap into the transfer portal and improve our team.”

Certainly, it has been a two-way street where the transfer portal and HBCUs are concerned. Student-athletes have always been able to transfer from Power 5 and Group of 5 FBS schools to FCS or HBCU programs and have immediate playing eligibility, but now players can jump from FCS school to FCS school and even within the SWAC without having to sit out any length of time.

But the real damage has been seeing student-athletes from a HBCU program hop to a bigger FBS school with more exposure and more bells and whistles after having an impressive season. Just this past year, we saw Bethune-Cookman quarterback Jalon Jones head to Charlotte and North Carolina A&T running back Bhayshul Tuten is now playing for Virginia Tech.

Jackson State is where we saw an unprecedented number of players move on to bigger programs. Sure, Jackson State had extenuating circumstances, because Deion Sanders sold some high-level recruits the dream before moving on to the Pac-12 and University of Colorado. Several players, including his son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders and cornerback Travis Hunter, the one-time No.2 overall recruit in the nation, followed Coach Prime to Colorado.

Other Power 5 schools like Louisville

Texas Southern head coach Clarence McKinney during the second half of an NCAA college football game against UTSA, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2022, in San Antonio.

(AP Photo/Eric Gay)

and Auburn have also swooped in and landed JSU receivers Kevin Coleman Jr. and Shane Hooks, respectively.

New Jackson State coach T.C. Taylor last December inherited a team that was a shell of itself because of the portal, but he was also able to restock the program because of the free movement allowed by the transfer portal.

“I think it can be a gift and curse, a little bit,” Taylor said. “For us, it’s been great with so much turnover we had on our roster.

Coming out of December, we had to rely heavily on it. But that’s what it is nowadays.

It’s the game we are into.”

The game has been made tougher for HBCUs to deal with because student-athletes can now be compensated for the use of the name, image and likeness (NIL). Bigger schools and their boosters have formed collectives and use that entity to lure athletes away with payments that range from thousands of dollars to millions.

Suddenly, it’s an arena that HBCUs find hard to compete in.

“Everybody is going into this portal, the NIL deals,” said Prairie View coach Bubba McDowell. “Kids want to get paid, so it becomes about ‘Who is going to give

me the most money.’ That’s how we lost a lot of top-notch kids that we offered first, but because of the NIL deals we didn’t have the money to give to them so they went somewhere else. If we had had at least five of those dudes that we had, it would be a different story down here.”

Coaches like McDowell say there needs to be more structure put in place by the NCAA when it comes to how freely student-athletes can move around. McDowell would like to see it be just one time thing where a student can transfer while in college.

The NCAA did recently implement a regulation that will limit the number of days in a calendar where athletes can jump in the transfer portal to 45. There is a 30-day period after the season and another 15 days in the spring.

“I think it’s good for the game, but I still think it needs to be a structure where they can’t move so easily,” McDowell said.

“From my understanding, maybe a onetime transfer rule and I don’t care if you have already graduated. Let it be. Transfer one time whether you are an underclassman or whether you are a graduate, stay there. I think that will help us quite a bit.”

October 12, 2023 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

| 15

DN Sports

Avery Lazard stands with Furr head coach Cornell Gray. Credit: Jimmie Aggison/ Houston Defender

AVERY LAZARD FURR WR

Possesses great skills, support system

By Jimmie Aggison

Furr junior wide receiver Avery Lazard is one of the young men Coach Cornell Gray has inspired.

Lazard is part of a varsity program that is proof that playing in 4A-1 Region III District 11 can be a challenge. With a record of 1-2, one may think there isn’t anything going well for the program, but Gray and his players would argue otherwise. Football is more than wins and losses, its an opportunity to reach, teach and inspire a group of collective young men.

“Through football, I try to teach them how to be accountable and respectful so they can grow up to become great fathers and men in society,” said Gray.

Added Lazard, “I started playing football in the seventh grade at Holland Middle School, but I didn’t take football seriously

until I met Coach Gray,” said Lazard, who met his current head coach during Lazard’s freshman year.

“Even though I wasn’t the best student in the classroom and sometimes I acted out of character, Coach Gray never gave up on me. He told me I was going to be great, and that inspiration led me to where I am now,” said Lazard.

Once Lazard began to believe the possibilities within himself that Gray saw many years prior, he locked in and began to sharpen his craft.

“I began to work hard every day in practice. I made sure I competed and made sure my teammates competed too so they could give me a good look,” said Lazard. “After practice, I pushed the sled and every week I went up in weight so I could increase my speed.”

Lazard also began to practice more with his wide receivers coach, Coach Hill, where they worked on his releases off the line of scrimmage.

Lazard’s game resembles Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Quentin Johnston.

“I watch him because I can relate to him a lot; not too fast, not too shifty, but has great hands and can run great routes,” said Lazard.

At the wide receiver position, technique is key. Lazard’s willingness to key in and improve his technique has allowed him to be seen as he attended the Prairie View football camp for defensive backs and the UTSA football camp for wide receivers.

“Football gives me a reason to live. It gives me a reason to stay off the streets and do something positive with my life,” said Lazard.

ABOUT AVERY LAZARD Class: 2025 IG: @cant6ixx Twitter: @cantguard6ixx_ Position: Wide receiver Height & weight: 6-feet-3, 170 pounds Player he studies: Quentin Johnston (Los Angeles Chargers) Status: Uncommitted Favorite artist: Alex Jean (Gospel) Favorite subject: Math Shout-outs: Coach Gray and my dad

16 | October 12, 2023 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

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