Education
BY ELISABETH JIMENEZ & CHLOE YOUNG
30 AISD campuses receive failing 2022 23 TEA scores Nearly 43% of Austin ISD campuses received a “D” or “F” rating from the Texas Education Agency in the 2022-23 school year. What happened The state agency publicly released its A F in 2023, more than half of those campuses were rated “B” the year prior, he said. Campus performance declined statewide
Some students to change bus pick-up Some Austin ISD magnet and choice-pro- gram students will no longer have neigh- borhood bus pick-up, according to a news release. What you need to know All Austin ISD magnet schools and Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders will use a “hub model” for transportation. The new hub model means that students will no longer be picked up in their individual neighborhoods and will instead be picked up at their nearest AISD middle or high school, called their “hub.” Families can nd their nearest hub on the district's website. Students will be assigned to their nearest “hub,” but families can call the transportation department at 512-414-0238 to change it. Families will be responsible for making arrangements to get their child to and from the hub location, o cials said. The new hub model will go into e ect for the 2025-26 school year. What else The decision comes as Austin ISD is work- ing to “address nancial challenges” with their operational budget, the news release said. The district is currently projecting a $110 million shortfall at the end of the 2024-25 scal year, as previously reported by Commu- nity Impact. The transportation hub model will reduce costs with bus maintenance, such as gas and mileage.
between the 2021-22 and 2022-23 school years. Of the 8,368 campuses given both 2022 “what if” scores and 2023 ratings, 44% received the same grade, 13% received a higher grade in 2023 and 43% received a lower grade in 2023, Texas Educa- tion Agency Commissioner Mike Morath said. “This is not just happening in Austin ISD,” school board President Lynn Boswell said. “This is a systematic reshaping of the yard stick that’s used to measure our state’s public schools.” The background Schools have not received complete A F ratings since 2019. Accountability ratings were not issued at all in 2020 or 2021, due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2022, schools that received a C or lower were deemed “not rated” as they recovered from pandemic-related learning loss.
accountability ratings for Texas school districts April 24. The release of the scores was stalled for two years after more than 100 school districts sued the TEA over 2023 changes to the A F rating system. “We know we have to do better, and we know we need to step up to meet the increase in demands, even in an imperfect system that will not capture the brilliance of all children as they go through their educational journey,” AISD Super- intendent Matias Segura said at an April 24 press conference. What they’re saying Segura said AISD saw a “drastic swing” in its ratings. While 30 campuses received an “F” rating
2022 23 AISD A F campus ratings Under the new 2022-23 rating system, many schools saw lower ratings.
All campuses
Elementary schools
Middle schools
High schools
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
A B C D F
A B C D F
A B C D F
A B C D F
SOURCE: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY COMMUNITY IMPACT
NOTE: TOTALS MAY NOT EQUAL 100% DUE TO ROUNDING.
Austin ISD considering school consolidations Austin ISD o cials are considering consolidating schools as a potential option to combat ongoing budget challenges, Plans for the consolidations are still being discussed. Voting for consolidation will happen December 2025. What you need to know
School utilization by percentage of student seats lled Open seats Filled seats Elementary
estimated 49 schools in the district to be considered, AISD o cials said. However, district o cials said all 49 schools being consolidated is only a theoretical estimate that produces the maximum amount of savings, not the “realistic” amount of campuses that could be consolidated if the board approves the action. AISD o cials were unable to provide the names of schools that could be considered for consolida- tion as of press time.
Middle school
29%
71%
36%
64%
High school
District-wide
15%
85%
27%
73%
Elementary schools with less than 500 students and middle schools with less than 750 students could be considered in the plan. That includes an
SOURCE: AUSTIN ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT
19
NORTH CENTRAL AUSTIN EDITION
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