Mansfield ISD recently became a District of Innovation.

The District of Innovation (DOI) concept resulted from an amended section of the Texas Education Code (TEC) which returned a significant amount of power from the state legislature to the district in the case of independent school districts.

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has responded by encouraging the districts to take full advantage of the newfound freedom, as well as providing resources to educate the districts about utilizing the freedom to provide new opportunities to the students.

“[DOI] sounds refreshing and exciting,” Principal Dr. Shelly Butler said. “This is a good opportunity for local districts to put their creativity to use for student success.”

In order to educate the districts further about the opportunities held within DOI and how to access them, MISD will host a DOI Institute at The Center on Nov. 7 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. This event will feature Keynote speakers Martin Winchester of the TEA and David Anderson of the Raise Your Hand Texas General Council. The cost will be $50 per person with lunch provided.

“Sometimes it feels like our hands are tied,” Academic Associate Principal Ms. Erin Frye said. “Hopefully this will make us not feel like we’re not so tied up with legislative limits.”