News Summary
The Austin Independent School District has initiated a turnaround strategy for Dobie, Webb, and Burnet middle schools following years of failing grades. With an urgent need to meet state accountability standards, AISD has approved a budget of $1.7 million per school to enhance resources and personnel. The measures include significant staff changes and reinforcement of assessment strategies to ensure improvement. Community concerns have arisen over the impact on students and staff, as similar issues threaten additional schools within the district.
Austin – The Austin Independent School District (AISD) has taken decisive action to address critical accountability issues at three struggling middle schools: Dobie, Webb, and Burnet. Following years of receiving failing grades in state accountability rankings, the AISD board of trustees recently approved turnaround plans aimed at elevating these schools’ performance to avoid potential state intervention.
These turnaround measures are crucial, as each school must improve its rating to at least a letter grade of D, with a target of achieving a C or higher by the start of the upcoming school year in August. If significant improvement is not demonstrated by December, the schools might be transferred to charter school management, which raises concerns among staff, parents, and the community.
The urgency of these measures is underscored by warnings from AISD Superintendent Matias Segura, who highlighted that Dobie is particularly at risk of failing to meet academic standards for five consecutive years. This scenario could trigger state intervention, including the removal of the elected school board in favor of state-appointed management, effectively placing the school under outside control.
The newly approved plans come in response to a districtwide crisis affecting multiple schools, with Dobie, Webb, and Burnet displaying chronic underperformance. To bolster efforts, AISD has allocated $1.7 million for each of these schools to secure additional resources aimed at improving students’ performance on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test.
To track progress, AISD will utilize MAP Growth assessments and interim STAAR tests throughout the fall semester, ensuring that the effectiveness of the turnaround strategies can be closely monitored. A vital component of the turnaround strategies is the implementation of the Accelerating Campus Excellence (ACE) intervention model, which is designed to transform low-performing schools into higher-achieving institutions within a two-year time frame.
The ACE model necessitates substantial personnel changes, requiring the replacement of the principals and assistant principals at Dobie, Webb, and Burnet, as well as the dismissal of approximately half of the teaching staff. Teachers will need to reapply for their jobs, and the rehire percentages vary by school, with 16% of teachers at Dobie, 47% at Webb, and 61% at Burnet receiving invitations to return for the next academic year. AISD officials have stated that they have already recruited most of the essential personnel needed for the upcoming school year.
Despite the potential benefits of the turnaround plans, some parents have voiced their concerns regarding the implications of staff replacements and the pressure placed on students during this transition period. Community engagement in understanding the importance of these interventions is encouraged as the effectiveness of these strategies can have far-reaching effects on the schools involved.
The issues at Dobie, Webb, and Burnet are not isolated incidents, with an additional 16 schools within the district also at risk of failing to meet accountability standards, which may necessitate similar turnaround efforts. The educational landscape in AISD is indicative of broader concerns regarding educational quality and the allocation of resources, revealing the challenges that many schools face in striving for improvement.
The AISD’s handling of these turnaround plans will serve as a critical test for its approach to managing underperforming schools, and the outcomes will be closely watched by parents, educators, and education advocates throughout the community.
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Additional Resources
- Austin Chronicle: Times Almost Up for Austin ISD’s Three Poorest Rated Schools
- KXAN: Map – How Your School is Rated as Austin ISD Faces Possible State Intervention
- Texas Monthly: Embarrassment of Riches
- Fox 7 Austin: Austin ISD Holds Virtual Meetings on Possible School Closures
- Community Impact: Austin ISD Board of Trustees Approve Academic Calendars for 2025-26 & 2026-27
- Wikipedia: Austin Independent School District
- Google Search: Austin Independent School District
- Google Scholar: Austin Independent School District
- Encyclopedia Britannica: Austin Independent School District
- Google News: Austin Independent School District
