Education
BY THOMAS LEFFLER
Judson ISD OKs TEA turnaround plans for 4 campuses Judson ISD’s board of trustees submitted four campus turnaround plans to the Texas Education Agency on Oct. 16. requiring the district to develop a turnaround plan for the campus.
$1.75M added to Judson ISD revenue following state audit Chief Financial Officer Tony Kingman said that an audit of the state’s 2024 property value study added $1.75 million to district revenue at the Oct. 16 meeting of the Judson ISD board of trustees. With the additional revenue, the JISD fis- cal year 2025-26 shortfall now sits at $27.57 million , according to board documents. How it works According to the Office of the Texas Comptroller, a school district property value study is conducted once every two years to determine a district’s total taxable value. This ensures equitable distribution of education funding, according to the comp- troller’s office. Districts with less taxable property value per student receive more state dollars for each pupil than districts with more value per student. According to the Texas Government Code, the comptroller’s office can audit a district’s taxable value upon request and revise the final district findings. A preliminary study released by the comp- troller in January assigned $14.92 billion of taxable value to the district, while the final study lowered the figure to $14.75 billion .
Mary Duhart-Toppen, deputy superintendent of teaching and learning, said several of the ratings were a result of a campus earning higher than an “F” but being assigned the grade due to failing three of four domains scored by the TEA. What else? The district had until Nov. 21 to formally submit the plans to the TEA. The agency will send a notifi- cation of approval or rejection of the plans back to the district Jan. 23. If the initial plans are rejected, the district would have until March 24 to submit a revised plan, with a final approval or rejection decided upon by the TEA by April 8, according to board documents. JISD is also working on targeted improvement plans for Escondido Elementary, Converse Elementary, Paschall Elementary, Kirby STEM and Judson High School. A targeted improvement plan aids underperforming individual student groups, according to TEA. The board will discuss targeted improvement plans in November, Superintendent Milton “Rob” Fields III said.
According to board documents, a turnaround plan is a comprehensive improvement plan required by the state for campuses that receive multiple unacceptable TEA ratings. Texas schools are rated on an A-F scale based on the criteria of student achievement, student progress and closing opportunity gaps, according to the TEA. Turnaround plans focus on key campus changes that address the TEA’s Effective Schools Frame- work, based on TEA tenets like strategic staffing and positive school culture. Digging deeper Kirby Middle School, Henry Metzger Middle School and Park Village Elementary School were given unacceptable, or “F,” ratings from the TEA for the 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years. This requires the district to implement a turnaround plan with the purpose of earning a “C” rating by the TEA within two years, according to board documents. Masters Elementary School received “F” ratings for 2023-24 and 2024-25,
Year
Kirby Middle:
Henry Metzger Middle: 59* 59 59*
Park Village Elementary: 54 59* 59
Masters Elementary: 57 64 (D) 59
School ratings The Texas Education Agency gave “F” ratings, scores that are 59 or below, to Judson campuses that now need to submit turnaround plans to the agency.
2022-23:
54 59* 59*
2023-24: 2024-25:
*NOTE: TEA ASSIGNED “F” GRADES BASED ON FAILING THREE OF FOUR ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM DOMAINS.
SOURCES: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY, JUDSON ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
SCUCISD takes first step toward selecting new high school math materials Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD, or SCUCISD, has begun moving toward Texas High Quality Instructional Materials, or HQIM, for high school math students. The overview
Georges-Penny said that the changeover to HQIM will be the first update to grades 9-12 math materials since 2015. The change also comes after the 88th Texas Legislature passed House Bill 1605, which brought requirements around instructional materials to “streamline the process,” she said. A shift in how math is taught is another factor in the switch, Georges-Penny said, with a move away from rote procedures like memorization to more real-world applications. “Remember back in the days, you’d memorize your multiplication facts. We don’t do that any- more. It’s really building the students’ conceptual understanding of why,” Georges-Penny said.
HQIM committee timeline Nov. 2025: Committee of teachers and campus administrators selected to review materials Jan. 2026: Committee members receive training on how to grade materials and begin selection process March 2026: Recommended material presented to board of trustees Feb. 2026: Instructional staff, community members provide feedback
Serena Georges-Penny, executive director of curriculum and professional development, told the SCUCISD board of trustees Oct. 23 that a com- mittee will be formed to vet the HQIM for grades 9-12 mathematics. HQIM are materials aligned to state academic standards and are approved by the State Board of Education, according to board documents.
SOURCE: SCHERTZ-CIBOLO-UNIVERSAL CITY ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
8
COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
Powered by FlippingBook