Austin public schools face reckoning as state takeover looms
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An eighth grade math class at Martin Middle School in 2024. Photo: Jay Janner/The Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images
A state takeover of local public schools looms as Austin ISD struggles to right failing campuses.
Why it matters: A takeover would mean governance of schools would move out of the control of a locally elected board of trustees.
- Critics of a takeover say it could open the way for policy changes not necessarily aligned with the wishes of voters — but proponents argue that it could free the district to pursue reforms free of the pressures of local politics.
The latest: Late last month, the Texas Education Agency rejected a proposal by Austin ISD officials to partner with an outside nonprofit to take over failing schools, making a takeover more likely.
- The school district is appealing the decision.
How it works: Under a 2015 state law aimed at prodding local school boards to address failing schools — when at least one school receives an F for five years in a row — the state education commissioner must either order the campus closed or take over the entire district.
- The commissioner can replace locally elected school board members with a board of managers of the commissioner's choosing.
- In other school districts, that has meant local, connected professionals — chamber of commerce types, for example, or activist parents.
The intrigue: The state-appointed board of managers would stay in place a minimum of two years, though that can be extended if the state commissioner thinks the district hasn't shown enough improvement.
State of play: In Austin, three middle schools — Burnet, Dobie and Webb — have received four consecutive failing grades from the state's accountability system.
- A fifth failing grade, which could come this August, might prompt a takeover.
- An F means at least 65% of children at the school tested below grade level.
What they're saying: Austin ISD's current leadership "has spent years making excuses for its academic failures, especially for its poorest children, while deflecting accountability onto the state," Kendall Pace, a former AISD board member, tells Axios.
- "How can it not benefit us?" Vanessa Gamez, mother of a Webb Middle School student, told the Austin Current about the prospect of a takeover. "If we are where we are, what can be worse? I don't think there can be worse."
The other side: While the state is "tasked with supporting our schools, our local leaders are the ones actually on the ground doing the hard work to ensure student success," the Central Texas legislative delegation said in a statement after the AISD turnaround plan was rejected.
- "We still believe they are best suited to foster the academic achievement of our children."
School board president Lynn Boswell did not respond to Axios' request for comment.
- A spokesperson for Superintendent Matias Segura said Segura was unavailable to comment but pointed Axios to his statement in the appeal letter from last month.
- The district aims to "ensure our resources are strategically allocated to support systemic improvement across all campuses, especially where our students need the most support to reach their highest potential," Segura said.
Zoom out: On Monday, Democratic gubernatorial nominee Gina Hinojosa, a state lawmaker from Austin who formerly served on the Austin school board, said that "it is never the right answer to struggling schools to take power away from parents and communities."
- Hinojosa vowed to end state takeovers if she were governor.
The big picture: The prospect of a takeover comes as the district grapples with a massive budget shortfall and school closures.