An investigative report by Round Rock School District Principal Hafez Aziz, which was submitted to the school board before it voted to bring it back in March, recommended that it not be retained.
The American-Statesman obtained the report on Friday by requesting open records.
In the report, Ann Dixon, who was appointed on January 6 to conduct a third party investigation into the “essential conduct” of the protection order filed against Aziz, The supervisor said two active investigations were being conducted by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office in addition to an investigation by the Texas Education Agency.
In the report, Dixon also wrote that Aziz failed to inform the school board of the protection order or its extension, “leading board members to believe the issue was resolved.” She said he did not inform the trustees of the TEA investigation.
“I was unable to draw conclusions about the investigations by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office or the state board of teachers’ accreditation procedures,” he said. Dixon wrote in her report, “But the division it has created in the community due to Dr. Aziz’s behavior and Dr. Aziz’s lack of access to information has created a failure to establish a positive working relationship with the Board of Trustees.”
No charges have been brought against the Round Rock supervisor.
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A TEA spokesperson said on Friday that there was an open investigation into Aziz.
The report was made available to the school board on 8 March. Despite Dixon’s recommendation, the Board voted on March 24 5-2 to reinstate Aziz from paid administrative leave. Trustees Mary Boone and Danielle Weston voted against the decision.
The board deliberated for half an hour in an executive session on whether Aziz should be reinstated, fired or provided with a separation agreement before they made their decision.
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Aziz’s attorney, Mary Nix, said she had not yet seen the report and could not comment on it, but said the Travis County Sheriff’s Office told her several months ago that it had closed its investigations into Aziz. “I am not aware of any other active investigations,” Nix said.
When the trustees voted to return Abdulaziz, there was no active investigation or accusation, said school board chairwoman Amber Feller, in a statement on Friday.
“As Chairman, I believe the Board of Trustees made the right decision in the interest of the region. We can no longer be influenced by rumors and insinuations circulated by those seeking to fire Dr. Aziz for their own purpose,” Feller said in an email. “It is time to focus on the students and staff at Round Rock ISD and allow this seasoned teacher to do his job. This is nothing more than an unwarranted distraction perpetrated by those who seek to undermine public schools.”
In response to the release of In the report, Weston said on her Facebook page that in her “no” vote to bring the moderator back, she invoked “bad decisions” made by the board.
By definition, Weston said in the post, “By definition, it’s the majority of the board that calls all the shots. They hired the supervisor and then reappointed him. All I and my voice Boone could do was vote ‘no’ on their misguided priorities. Bad decisions are considered by the board of directors.” Management is routine as evidenced by the majority decision to reinstate the supervisor after reading the Dixon Report. Things are getting worse, not better, at the hands of this board majority.”
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Aziz has been on leave since Jan. 6 after the board, based on recommendations from the Texas Education Agency, authorized an independent investigation into a protective order issued against him.
A Travis County judge issued a temporary protection order against Aziz on July 30, and it expired on December 15, according to court records. According to Dixon’s report, Aziz agreed to a permanent protection order on December 13.
In the report, Dixon said she conducted three weeks of interviews with 22 people, and reviewed text messages, emails, police reports and other sources.
Aziz, who was previously a superintendent of the Donna School District in South Texas, was appointed in June 2021. He signed a contract with a three-year base salary of $350,000. That same month, he was named District One Supervisor of the Year by the Texas Association of School Boards.