Despite the 15%+ increase in fixed costs and the state’s (record high) $20 billion budget surplus still remaining, the Texas legislature has refused to increase funding for public education since 2019. As a result, the Spring Branch Independent School District (SBISD) has been forced to cut $35 million from its 2024 -2025 budget. As part of these budget cuts, the Librarian and Counselor positions were cut from all SBISD schools, including Hunters Creek, resulting in the loss of two vital and beloved members of our HCE community. Additionally, the support we received through the district-level Instructional Specialists has been cut. Fortunately, because of the past generosity of our donors, the HCE PTA is able to recoup some of these losses (e.g. the new counselor position fully funded by the PTA), and our PTA funded interventionists and specialists are able to “pick up the slack” left by the loss of the district level support personnel. In order to continue to provide the quality of education and school experience our families and students have relied upon, we must continue to solicit support for our school!