City hires consultant for charter school
The Marlin City Council hired former Waco ISD Superintendent A. Marcus Nelson was a consultant as the city explores options of opening a charter school system.
After a 55-minute closed session to review and interview consultants for the position, the decision to hire Nelson was unanimous.
Nelson will receive a monthly stipend that has been authorized to total up to $10,000.
“If we get to that $10,000 point and we still need him, we will have to re-evaluate,” City Manager Cedric Davis said.
Though Nelson was the only applicant for the position, administrators felt as though his years of education and experience were the perfect match for the job at hand.
“We were blown away,” Mayor Carolyn Lofton said. “We felt privileged to be in his presence. With his credentials, his background, his experience, his expertise, I feel honored and privileged that he’s willing to come to a district like Marlin and help us to create something better for our students.”
Before helping to create Transformation Waco, a five-school charter system that rescued Waco ISD back in 2017, he worked in Laredo ISD. While there, Nelson was a major part in implementing the Hector J. Garcia Early College High School at Texas A&M International University. He helped establish the Judson Early College Academy in the San Antonio area’s Universal City, while working in Judson ISD before that.
The educator resigned from Waco ISD after less than two years of service, following a drug charge in March of 2019 .
He was driving in the passing lane through Robertson County on March 6 when a State Trooper stopped him. The officer then found a small amount of marijuana, resulting in a misdemeanor possession charge and a trip to jail. He was released the next day, with the understanding he would be back.
The plea agreement that followed with the Robertson County District Attorney’s office wiped the charge from the 47-year-old’s record, pending completion of a 90-day diversion program. Since then, he has worked with Texas Can Academies, a charter school system with locations around the state centered on supporting students who had trouble adjusting to the traditional high school setting.
According to Nelson, he is currently drug-free and ready to go to bat for Marlin students.
“It all starts with what we do with kindergartners and what we graduate in 12th grade,” Nelson said. “At the end of the day, it’s all teaching and learning. We really have to come together and make sure that the future of public education in Marlin, Texas, is protected, and that’s my role.”
His first steps will be to visit with State Education Commissioner Mike Morath in order to connect with him on the current status of the district. He then plans to speak with Dr. Jean Bahney, Marlin ISD’s current interim superintendent, to explain how the Transformation Waco partnership is currently running and showcase the different options available. Nelson is determined to do in Marlin what he has done in countless towns before, which is build a future for the kids.
“I want to make sure 2020 is best year ever for the community,” he said. “The kids here deserve quality public schools and I’m focused on being part of the solution. I’m just looking forward to having conversations about how we can create opportunities and options for the kids of Marlin because the purple and gold in this city, that ‘Bulldog Mentality’, it’s something to be protected. There’s something about that tradition and that pride that I can believe I can be a part of making sure that it lives forever.”
No official decision has been made by the Texas Education Agency as of the fate of Marlin ISD. TEA commissioners will give their final decision later this year, in March. The idea of opening a charter system is just one of multiple options that can happen if the TEA makes the decision to close the district and city administrators are avidly working to have a back-up plan in place, no matter the outcome.