Texas Education Agency rejects Austin ISD’s plan for failing schools

The Texas Education Agency rejected a partnership proposed by the Austin Independent School District to buy the district more time to avoid a state takeover. In a letter sent to Superintendent Matias Segura on Thursday, the TEA denied the district’s request to hand over three middle schools to an outside provider to run them under what is known as an 1882 agreement.

In March, the district proposed partnering with the Texas Council for International Studies to run Burnet, Dobie and Webb middle schools as charter schools. The three campuses have received four consecutive unacceptable grades from the state’s accountability system. A fifth failing grade could trigger a total takeover of the entire district, with the TEA replacing the school board with a board of managers.

The letter sent to Segura explains the operating partner must comply with three criteria: have at least three years of experience before taking over a campus; have managed multiple campuses for multiple years; and have significantly improved the academic performance of campuses. The TEA says TCIS only meets two of those three criteria, and it “does not qualify as an operating partner with the capacity necessary to successfully turn around campuses.”

The TEA argues TCIS has failed to prove a track record of improving campuses’ academic performance. TCIS has managed 16 campuses in San Antonio ISD, Longview ISD and Edgewood ISD. However, only five out of those campuses had a D or an F rating before being operated by the non-profit.

AISD Superintendent Segura said in a written statement to families on Thursday evening that the district remains confident that TCIS is capable of lifting student outcomes.

“While this response is disappointing, I want to assure you that this is not the end of the process,” Segura said in the statement. “TEA has explicitly invited Austin ISD to submit additional information to support and reinforce our application, and we fully intend to do so.”

If approved, the two-year 1882 agreement would allow the district to pause the accountability clock for these three schools. AISD and TCIS can still continue with the partnership, but if they choose to, the TEA said, Burnet, Dobie and Webb would not get the benefits of the 1882 agreement, including state funding and reprieve from state ratings.

When the partnership was approved during a board meeting in March, Segura said district officials were confident the TEA would approve it because they had talked with TCIS about expectations and had visited their schools. Segura said the district had also received feedback from the TEA about the plan and had adjusted the partnership accordingly.

“When we look at the timeline, we could see on May or June before we get a final approval. But we are not shy about asking questions and making adjustments where appropriate,” he said. “But if the agency does not accept after all of that we would appreciate the opportunity to make the adjustment, which is what we have seen them do.”

KUT reached out to the TEA to ask about when a final decision must be made, and has not heard back.

Ratings for the 2025-2026 school year have not yet been released. But in his message to parents Thursday, Segura said the district is seeing “promising accelerated student growth” across the district. He said district officials will continue advocating for a partnership.