(ABC 6 News) – Though it wasn’t an official item on Monday’s Austin school board agenda, the issue of the district’s climate was still top of mind for many.

“Thank you to everyone who felt comfortable to reach out to me to share their personal testimonies, concerns, ideas and data,” said board member Carol McAlister. “While not every communication I received was negative, many of the communications expressed heartfelt concerns.”

Ahead of the board meeting on Monday, ABC 6 received screenshots of the Austin Education Association’s 2025 climate perception survey by an educator who wished to remain anonymous.

That data shows about 70% of staff don’t feel the school board values their feedback, and 63% say the same about Superintendent Dr. Joey Page.

“This examination of Austin Public Schools started with an elementary issue, but many of these concerns are systematic,” said retired APS teacher Shirley Morgan as she addressed the board.

Parents and teachers banded together at the April 14 school board meeting to address their grievances over veteran teachers being involuntarily transferred between schools and not feeling supported by district leaders.

RELATED: Austin teachers sound off over involuntarily being transferred to other schools in the district

Since then, district leaders have sent the message they’re listening to the concerns.

“I think it’s good for us to just listen and hear, understand where we all stand,” said board member Dan Zielke.

However, the community doesn’t feel any real change is being made.

“I feel like there’s not alignment. I don’t feel like everybody’s on the same page, and it’s hard because we’re talking about people, about human beings, and so when we aren’t feeling like there’s that unified support, it hurts,” said Rachel Stange, the Science Specialist at Banfield Elementary.

Stange was one of the teachers who spoke at the April 14 board meeting and is planning to leave the district at the end of the school year due to the lack of support from leadership.

ABC 6 has reached out to Dr. Page for an interview on the issues of the involuntary transfers and district climate several times since the April 14 meeting, but each of those requests either did not receive a response or were declined.

In lieu of an interview, Dr. Page sent an email on Friday saying:

“We understand there’s been some concern in the community regarding recent teacher transfers, and we appreciate those who have taken the time to share their perspectives at recent board meetings.

“It’s important to understand that under the Master Agreement, teacher transfers are recognized as a management right. The District is responsible for making staffing decisions based on the evolving needs of our schools. While sometimes difficult, these decisions are made thoughtfully and are not subject to the grievance process.

“Every year, the District carefully reviews staffing assignments in light of enrollment trends, program changes, and long-term goals. These transfers, which typically occur in the spring and summer, are part of that ongoing planning process. While no policy changes have been made, the District is committed to supporting staff through these transitions and continually evaluates ways to strengthen that process.”

In response to another interview request and follow up questions regarding specifics of how often transfers occur and how many staff members the district is losing as a result, ahead of the board meeting on Monday Dr. Page referred any further questions to the district’s Human Resources team, saying it’s because “some of this could relate to individual personnel matters.”

At the time of publication, ABC 6 has not heard from the HR team.

School board members say talks on the district climate will continue at the next study session on May 24.