Dobie, Webb and Burnet middle schools will be run by Texas Council for International Studies next school year, a high-stakes move that avoids a potential fifth failing accountability rating that could trigger a district takeover from the state.
After a brief debate over the group’s track record, Austin ISD board members voted unanimously Thursday night to surrender control of the three schools to the nonprofit for the next three school years, ceding day-to-day campus operations in an effort to reset performance. The decision temporarily shields the campuses from immediate state intervention. The vote came days before the March 31 deadline to apply to the Texas Education Agency under the Texas Partnerships program, which allows districts to turn over campus operations to an approved external partner.
Superintendent Matias Segura said the district was fortunate to find a partner that met the district’s expectations, and the search also exposed a need to bring in a technical advisory partner given the urgency of the turnaround effort. He said district leaders visited schools where Texas Council for International Studies already operates as a partner and consulted with TEA to receive feedback about what configurations work and how to ensure the partnerships are successful.
“After spending time with the partners and understanding their structure, having conversations with the staff at these schools, meeting with principals, I am confident this partner and this iteration will help us be successful,” Segura said.
Final approval could take months, possibly until May or June, Segura said.
TEA could still deny the application. If that happens and any of the three schools receive a fifth failing rating, state law requires the education commissioner to either close the school or appoint a board of managers to replace the elected school board, a move that could strip control away from Austin ISD.
Texas Council for International Studies focuses on supporting schools that use International Baccalaureate programs. The group operates more than a dozen SB 1882 partnerships across Texas in Edgewood, Longview and San Antonio ISDs with mixed results. Austin ISD had previously proposed bringing in Region One Education Service Center, one of 20 regional centers that provides consulting and training to school districts as an advisory partner. However, as of Thursday, Austin ISD administrators said the identity of the technical partner is yet to be confirmed or disclosed.
Austin ISD Trustee Kathryn Whitley Chu said she was grateful the district had taken time to present “the right partner” to the board. Chu said she recognized the effort of the current teachers and staff at Dobie, Webb and Burnet, adding the schools are moving in the right direction, even as pressure mounts to show measurable gains.
“I feel confident that this will be accepted,” Chu said. “It is hard to have something at the last-minute deadline but I would rather have something thoughtful brought to the board, that is good for the community, than something rushed.”
State pressure builds on struggling campuses
Current Texas law states if any school receives five failing ratings under the state’s accountability system, the state education commissioner can close the school or appoint a board of managers for the school district, replacing the elected board and diminishing local input.
All three schools have received four consecutive failing ratings, which are largely based on standardized testing scores. Earlier this year, Segura presented school-based assessment data to the board for the three schools, which showed significant gains, particularly in seventh and eighth grade math and reading testing at Burnet and Dobie middle schools. However, the improvements fell short of convincing board members the schools could improve the two accountability letter grades needed to avoid state intervention by the end of this school year.
The school district sought partners for the schools under a 2017 law commonly referred to as SB 1882, which allows districts to contract with approved external organizations such as charter schools or nonprofits to run campus operations. Campuses entering a partnership receive a two-year reprieve from state ratings while the external partner works to improve outcomes.
After Mendez Middle School failed to meet state educational standards beginning in the 2014-15 school year, Austin ISD entered a partnership with T-STEM schools in 2018 and then with Third Future Schools in 2022 to operate Mendez and get it to a passing rating.
Earlier this year, Austin ISD leaders announced the current partnership with Third Future at Mendez would end after the charter school partner met its established goal of getting the school to a “B” rating by the 2024-25 school year, a benchmark district leaders hope to replicate at Dobie, Webb and Burnet.
Proposed partnership and community response
During community meetings held at each school earlier this month, district administrators presented teachers and families at Dobie, Webb and Burnet with the potential partnership and what it means for the campuses, as families weighed uncertainty about staffing, academics and campus culture.
Austin ISD administrators said they understand Texas Council for International Studies does not intend to make educators and staff reapply for their positions.
At a March meeting at Dobie Middle School, Austin ISD leaders praised the Texas Council for International Studies work at similar campuses. District administrators said extracurricular and career-readiness programs would continue for students, and the schools would aim to transition to the International Baccalaureate program, an international curriculum that touts practical connections between studies and the real world.
Rodolfo Manzano, whose daughter attends Dobie Middle School, said he supports transitioning the operations of the school if it benefits both the short-term and long-term future of the campus and its students.
“If this is going to represent an improvement for the community, for a more prominent future, if we have to make sacrifices in order to see improvements, well then I do hope it will be for the better,” Manzano said in Spanish.
