Texas School Officials Debate Need for Ombuds

An article in the Dallas Morning News surveys the debate among local school district administrators over the value of organizational Ombuds. Counting the number of school ombudsmen in Texas is difficult. But Beverly Reeves, an Austin school ombudsman, says there are about a half-dozen, including Arlington, Austin and Fort Bend school districts. Greg Gibson, superintendent of the Crowley Independent School District, says the number of formal grievances filed with his district has "significantly declined" since an Ombuds was hired. A sidebar to the article explains what a school ombudsman does and does not. (Dallas Morning News.)