Education
BY CHLOE YOUNG
Turnaround plans approved for 3 schools Three Austin ISD middle schools—Burnet, Dobie and Webb—will receive new principals, teachers and curriculum next school year as the district works to improve student performance. The details In May, AISD announced it would offer up to $20,000 in stipends to incentivize high-perform- ing educators to teach at the schools. According to AISD data, 61% of Burnet teachers were invited to return, followed by 47% of Webb teachers and 16% of teachers at Dobie. AISD will track student progress at these campuses through additional testing, including an interim STAAR test in the fall. If testing shows performance has not improved, the district may consider partnering with a charter school to manage these schools beginning in the 2026-27 school year.
AISD adopts $1.58B operating budget Austin ISD has adopted a $1.58 billion operating budget with a $19.7 million shortfall for fiscal year 2025-26. The details The district reduced its initial shortfall projection of $127 million after proposing $44 million in budget reduction strategies, including $9 million in additional state fund- ing following the 2025 legislative session. AISD staff anticipated paying $715.5 million in property taxes back to the state through a process known as recapture and save $15.3 million in vacant positions. A home with an average taxable value of $576,644 would have $4,040 in property tax in FY 2025-26 based on a tax rate of $0.9253 per $100 valuation, according to AISD officials. This would be a $317 tax reduction.
The plan Each campus will receive the following $1.7 million in changes: Five 70-minute periods per school day instead of four 90-minute blocks Extended school days for students and staff with after-school enrichment Literacy and math taught every day instead of every other day Nine additional full-time employees, including teachers, assistant principals, counselors, instructional coaches and content interventionists
Additional professional development and training for teachers and administrators
SOURCE: AUSTIN ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Quote of note “We can 1,000% do this,” AISD superintendent Matias Segura said regarding the plans. “We got to this plan... at these campuses with feedback we got from the community. This is not the easiest path to break the accountability chain. We feel strongly that this could be very successful.”
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