TO: Northwest ISD Students, Parents/Caregivers, and Staff

FROM: Ryder Warren, Superintendent

SUBJECT: Superintendent Update

Let me first apologize for the tone of this Superintendent Update. With all of the craziness we have coming at us right now, we are dealing with a new challenge this week that, if left unchecked, could turn into serious issues for some of our students and families, and I am reaching out to all parents and stakeholders for help. As an educator, I understand how much the internet has positively impacted our lives, but when we have challenges like this, I truly yearn for the “old days” before our kids had access to these kinds of destructive ideas.
 
For the past week, schools in Northwest ISD have dealt with student vandalism as part of a TikTok challenge called “devious licks,” and I’m reaching out to parents, caregivers, and our students themselves to ask for assistance in stopping this. The social media trend challenges students to damage or steal school or staff property and post a recording of the result.
 
Please understand the #1 blessing we have in Northwest ISD is our children, but we do have some who are making very bad decisions right now. This specific challenge has already resulted in thousands of dollars of damages to our schools, and those who took part in these activities this week are being held accountable for their actions.
 
When families enroll their children in Northwest ISD, they agree to a basic set of standards as part of our Student Code of Conduct. Those standards include not intentionally damaging school property. Students who damage school property will face disciplinary consequences including in-school suspension, placement into an alternative school, or more severe penalties. We also expect students and their families to reimburse the affected schools or staff for damaged or stolen property, including both labor and material costs.
 
One of our beliefs in Northwest ISD is student success is a shared responsibility between our families, schools, community, and the students themselves. I’m asking for everyone’s help to ensure students are successful by talking with your child about good decisions and not taking part in anything so dumb that is being promoted on social media – truly our kids have to be smarter than that. Thankfully, the reason we’re aware of the perpetrators of these damages is because many students are reporting those responsible because they know how wrong this is. (Anyone can submit an anonymous tip or report a crime to our NISD Crime Stoppers from the district’s website.)
 
All of our kids also need to know that, while we prefer to limit disciplinary action to school-based responses, we will work with local law enforcement to press charges for students who cause significant damage to school or staff property. Some of these actions are so severe they could result in felony charges.
 
Let me be clear – this has to stop. This is damage to property purchased by taxpayers and hardworking educators, and it disrupts our learning environment. We have too much going on in our lives right now to start adding on to our challenges with these very bad decisions. This entire school district is blessed by the facilities our voters have allowed us to build and maintain – we will take pride in our schools and be above these juvenile actions.
 
Thank you to everyone for your continued support of our students and our schools. Everyone be very safe and well!
 
Ryder Warren, Superintendent
Northwest Independent School District