The St. John’s and Rundberg community in Austin knows firsthand the heart, brilliance, and dedication of our students. We have also witnessed the systemic barriers they face — not because of who they are — but because of policies and decisions that continue to underfund, overlook, and now threaten to displace them.

For those of us who have lived, worked, and raised our families in East Austin — or dedicated our careers to East Austin ISD schools — Dobie Middle School is more than just a campus. It is a safe haven, a cultural home, and a vital resource for immigrant, refugee, and multilingual students who deserve stability and investment — not abandonment.

Today, Dobie Middle School is at risk of closure or charter takeover — not because our students lack talent or dedication — but because of a flawed, punitive accountability system that reduces children to test scores while ignoring the real challenges they face: housing insecurity, language transitions, high student mobility, and the lasting impacts of systemic inequities.

We are calling on Austin ISD leadership, the AISD Board of Trustees, and Texas lawmakers to:
→ Stop the closure or outside charter takeover of Dobie Middle School and embrace an equity-centered turnaround model that keeps Dobie’s partners with trusted community organizations (Austin Voices and ACE) 
→ Honor the $25 million modernization promised to Dobie students through the 2022 Bond — a project overwhelmingly approved by Austin voters and set to break ground this week.
→ Reject the harmful and outdated A-F accountability system that punishes schools serving our most vulnerable students.
→ Invest in proven community school models — like those supported by Austin Voices and ACE — that provide whole-child learning, family engagement, mental health supports, and wraparound services essential for student success.

 
Dobie is not failing — Dobie is being failed.

Displacing students does not solve systemic problems — it only uproots children, destabilizes communities, and erases the progress generations have fought to build.

This is bigger than Dobie. Schools across Texas — and across the country — are facing the same harmful policies. But right now, we are fighting for our school, our students, and our community.

 
We need your voice.
→ Stand with Dobie students.
→ Stand with Dobie families.
→ Stand for public education that invests in community, not punishment.

Please sign this petition to protect Dobie Middle School, hold Austin ISD accountable to its promises, and demand that Texas leaders choose investment over displacement.

Together, we can protect Dobie.
Together, we can protect public schools everywhere. 

#SaveDobie #SiSePuede #DobieStrong