Madison Munoz, Staff Reporter
On Monday, September 12, at the North East ISD Board of Trustees meeting, NEISD officials voted in favor of making Election Day – Tuesday, November 8 a student and teacher holiday.
Per the Texas Election Code, public buildings including schools are to be made available for use as polling sites. Alongside the district’s efforts to implement and enforce safety procedures and protocols, this decision protects the safety of students, staff, and visitors, as they will not be on campus at the same time as those casting ballots.
The latest proposal confirmed by NEISD Executive Communications Director, Aubrey Chancellor, has 40 different campuses acting as polling sites, many of which are elementary schools.
Security check-ins for visitors are necessary on school campuses, however it cannot be enforced for voters visiting campus polling sites. Meaning, there is no way of knowing who is coming in and out of the building. The locking of exterior doors is also not a NEISD security provision that can be maintained on election day.
In addition to the safety benefits, teachers and eligible student voters will also have the opportunity to use November 8 to cast their ballots without a disruption to their schedule.
“I am very grateful that now I don’t have to stay late after classes are done. Sometimes I’d make it to the polls at as late as 8pm and now I can make it at a normal hour,” said Eric Glassner, LEE High school math teacher.
As election day is not a federal holiday, most Americans either have to rush to the polls or try to carve out time in their busy schedules. The reality is voter turnout is heavily reliant on the ability to take off time or step away from jobs, which many working class citizens simply can’t do.
To maintain the 180-day calendar requirement, NEISD will push the last day of school one day back from Thursday, May 25, 2023 to Friday, May 26, 2023.
