San Antonio ISD’s six-figure journey tab: Hawaii, conferences and a district in deficit

SAN ANTONIO – Top leaders at San Antonio ISD have spent greater than $120,000 on journey to conferences throughout the nation since 2024, in accordance with a evaluate of information by KSAT Investigates.

Last month, KSAT Investigates revealed the district spent greater than $36,000 on Superintendent Jaime Aquino’s journey since he started main the district.

KSAT Investigates discovered different district leaders had been additionally touring on the district’s dime.

Trips to Hawaii, parking at San Antonio International Airport

San Antonio ISD’s spent greater than $46,000 to pay for journey for seven members of its govt cupboard since mid-2024, information present.

The cupboard’s prime traveler is Dr. Shawn Bird, the district’s deputy superintendent. Records present Bird has gone on no less than 17 journeys on SAISD’s behalf.

Bird’s journey to a June 2025 convention raised questions. Records present the district paid for Bird to attend a convention on the University of Virginia to study management in training.

Receipts present the district initially purchased Bird a round-trip flight from San Antonio, which price $1,045.62. However, one other receipt confirmed Bird modified his flight to go away from Houston, then return to Kahului, Hawaii, totaling $1,070.57.

KSAT Investigates reached out to the district’s chief communications officer, Laura Short, to request an interview with Bird concerning the discrepancy. Short didn’t make him accessible to talk till KSAT stopped by the district’s places of work final week.

“Why not have the district pay for a one-way flight to Virginia and you pay for the one- way flight to Hawaii?” KSAT requested.

“You know, you bring up a good point, and I would not,” Bird mentioned. “That’s how I would do it in the future if I was ever going to travel personally after district businesses. That’s exactly what I would do.”

In an effort to take district’s $46 million shortfall head-on, some music packages — together with mariachi — have been minimize.

“Why are you and other district leaders traveling at all?” KSAT requested.

“Well, you know, that’s true,” Bird mentioned. “You’re right. We do have a budget shortfall, but we also need to make sure that the district is operating in a healthy manner. And my travel has really been related to improving outcomes for students.”

Records reveled Bird additionally took a flight from Houston to a different convention in San Diego, which price the district $1,023.96.

Unlike different district leaders, information present Bird had the district pay for his parking at San Antonio International Airport three completely different instances — totaling roughly $150.

Bird instructed KSAT he was a part of a program that required journey, which is now over. He mentioned that the district will “see the benefits of that for many years to come.”

“There will be no further travel,” Bird mentioned.

The price of enterprise?

Records present the district spent greater than $36,000 to ship six SAISD faculty board members to conferences throughout the nation.

“As sitting trustees, we take seriously our responsibility to remain informed on school governance, finance, legislative developments, accountability requirements, and best practices that impact public education,” SAISD Board President Alicia Sebastian in an e mail to KSAT Investigates. “The travel undertaken by Board members has been directly tied to those responsibilities and to continuous learning opportunities that support effective governance on behalf of SAISD students, families, and taxpayers.”

In complete, the price of journey for Aquino, the chief cupboard and the board has price the district greater than $120,000 — an quantity equal to 2 first-year academics’ salaries.

“That could have been to support staff helping, you know, tutor or doing other things that that the schools actually desperately need,” mentioned SAISD instructor Cynthia Beaver. “That’s a lot.”

Read extra reporting on the KSAT Investigates web page.