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TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY
Quota policy kept secret for years Thousands of students denied special education Editor’s note: This is part two of a two-part series. Part one ran on the front page of last Wednesday’s Zapata Times. By Brian M. Rosenthal H OUSTON CHRONICLE
Districts also have deterred requests by falsely telling families they must pay for evaluations, that there’s a waiting list, or that kids can be tested only once every two years, according to parents and advocates. Maritza Woodard said that when she approached Klein ISD about her 16-year-old daughter, who has bipolar disorder, they gave her a list of
private schools that they said could help her better. Other parents have been ignored altogether. Jocelyn Baty requested an evaluation from Houston ISD in May 2014. The district received the written request, school records show. But despite the law, it never responded, even after Baty’s daughter had to repeat second grade and third grade. “I don’t understand why they won’t help,” said Baty, who lives in a southeast Houston housing project. HISD officials declined comment on the case but attributed reductions in the district’s spe-
cial education enrollment to improved instruction.” Teachers also have found it harder to request special education evaluations. Karnack ISD, in East Texas, responded to the PBMAS system by requiring teachers to hold three meetings with colleagues before requesting a student be evaluated,according to a Corrective Action Plan. In nearby Henderson ISD, the district took all of the evaluation-request forms out of the schools and put them in the central office, where they could be accessed only with permission from supervisors. Special continues on A11
Marie D. De Jesus / Houston Chronicle
Heidi Walker kisses her son Roanin Walker, 7, during a pause from studying math at their home in Kingwood, Aug. 25. Roanin has been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, anxiety and sensory processing disorder. His parents decided to pull him out of school after he was denied special education help.
SHERIFF’S OFFICE
SAN YGNACIO
FORT SEES RENOVATIONS
Raid in Zapata yields drugs By César G. Rodriguez THE ZAPATA TIME S
Billy Calzada / San Antonio Express-News
Restoration expert Frank Briscoe examines a door at the Treviño-Uribe Ranch fort, which was first built in 1830 in San Ygnacio. It has survived, largely intact, as a rare example of Spanish colonial architecture.
$269,000 face-lift revives Spanish colonial building By John MacCormack SAN ANT ONI O E XPRE SS-NEWS
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AN YGNACIO — About two centuries ago, a Mexican boy named Jose Villarreal and a companion were captured and taken by raiding Comanches north across the Rio Grande. After the two escaped, they found their way out of the hostile wilderness by following the North
Star. Decades later, in 1851, Villarreal, a blacksmith, built a simple iron sundial that was placed over an arched stone doorway of “El Fuerte,” the oldest structure in this colonial river town. According to local lore, the device, which keeps Mexico City time, was Villarreal’s tribute to the celestial body that had guided him and his companion to freedom. As San Ygnacio approaches the bicentennial anniversary of its founding in 1830, the old sundial still presides over the massive old fort, which, after decades of decline, has been lately bustling with carpenters, masons and other workers. “A year ago, the south stone wall was rubble. Now it’s quite lovely. This is a fabulous thing that you wouldn’t expect to see in a small town,” said Gigi Rodriguez of the River Pierce Foundation, a local nonprofit organization that owns the fort. The dramatic ongoing resurrection of the structure, the oldest in San Ygnacio, is being funded by a $269,130 grant from the National Park Service, plus nearly as much in matching funds from sponsors. Work began in June after five years of study and planning. If all goes well, the project will be finished by the end of the year. River Pierce officials hope the restored fort will stimulate a cultural and business revival in San Ygnacio, a sleepy settlement of whitewashed Mexican-style structures, modest houses and mobile homes about 30 miles south of Laredo. With a picturesque historic district and quiet streets where
chickens and stray dogs wander, San Ygnacio evokes another time. It is anchored by a classical Mexican plaza with a gazebo, benches and a tiny, alabaster Catholic Church that was built in 1875. Among the town’s better-known admirers was architect O’Neil Ford, who oversaw the renovation of San Antonio’s La Villita and designed the campuses of Trinity University and UTSA, among many prominent projects. He died in 1982. “He was quoted as saying this plaza was a very beautiful example of border vernacular architecture. He loved the space, the place and thought it was romantic as well,” said painter Michael Tracy, a co-founder of River Pierce. But the pulse of San Ygnacio has slowed with the years, and it now attracts few visitors. “In a month, I’ll probably run into two to five strangers, and they are usually coming to look for birds. When the weather cools, a few people drive through just to check us out,” said Christopher Rincón, executive director of River Pierce. “I’ve heard that 1,000 to 1,200 people live here, but I don’t know where they are. I’ve never seen them,” he added. Surviving raids and floods Despite nearly two centuries of trials, including raids by Indians and border bandits, war, accidental fires, hurricanes, river floods, ill-advised modifications and general neglect, the fort complex, which occupies half a city block, is largely intact. “The incredible thing about this project is that it was almost untouched. San Ygnacio didn’t even have a paved road until 1935. The only thing that has touch it lately is the oil industry,” said restoration expert Frank Briscoe, 53, working at the site last week. “This is all I do and it is probably the most challenging and gratifying project of my career,” said Briscoe, an architectural conservator. Fort continues on A10
A raid at a home in Zapata reported last week yielded over 300 pounds of pot, firearms, ammo and two arrests, according to county authorities. On Sept. 14, Zapata County CruzSheriff’s Office Rodriguez deputies and investigators assigned to the Laredo Homeland Security Investigations High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas task force Hernandez- and U.S. Border Gonzalez Patrol agents arrested two men after they discovered 14 bundles Raid continues on A11
ZAPATA
Border Patrol catches man By César G. Rodriguez THE ZAPATA TIME S
A man arrested recently was accused of transporting undocumented immigrants through Zapata County, according to court documents. Guadalupe Hernandez was charged with transporting five illegal immigrants. His arrest dates back to Sept. 7. At 4:50 p.m., an agent observing traffic spotted a green van Patrol continues on A11