In a nutshell
Bastrop ISD is one of two school districts in Community Impact’s coverage areas in the Austin region to pass a balanced budget and provide raises for all staff for the 2025-26 financial year—along with Georgetown ISD.
Amid statewide enrollment and school funding challenges, the district’s student population is also one of the fastest-growing in the region.
Chief Financial Officer Mike White said the district’s growth-based funding model guided administrators in responsibly planning for the future. The district made $7.6 million in budget adjustments during the 2024-25 financial year to stave off a financial challenge, he said.
In addition to state-mandated raises for teachers with more than three years of experience, the district also approved pay increases for newer teachers and non-teaching staff. White said the raises are possible through state funding tied to enrollment growth and money freed up from budget cuts made last fiscal year.
“We do everything we can for staff, but there’s a lot of uncertainty when you go into a legislative session,” White said.
The conditions
Rocky Gardiner, director of school district consulting for demographics firm Zonda Education, said BISD grew by 1,900 students in the last five years, a 17.25% increase. In the next decade, BISD is projected to grow by about 6,000 students. Gardiner attributed this growth to housing and business development. White said this growth brings more state funding, accompanied by a need for new schools.
The details
Throughout the legislative session, many public school superintendents and advocacy groups called on the state to make direct increases to the basic allotment—a per-student funding source.
It was increased by $55 to $6,215, falling short of the additional $1,300 requested by some schools.
Max Rombado, legislative director for the public school advocacy organization Raise Your Hand Texas, said creating targeted funding allotments can be complicated in a state as large and diverse as Texas.
“While the impact may generally be positive, there are a variety of complexities and differences between school districts that might create challenges when you create these guardrails around this money,” Rombado told Community Impact on July 18.
White said the district’s costs for items usually covered by the basic allotment have increased by about 25% in the last four years.
Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, House Bill 2’s sponsor in the Senate, said targeted funding will help ensure a larger share goes to classrooms.
Several school districts in the area have approved smaller pay increases for staff who do not qualify for larger pay raises through HB 2, citing the legislation as a reason they were not able to provide more substantial raises.
What's next?
As the district plans to accommodate a projected 47.61% increase in enrollment over the next decade, White said the district is taking a “conservative, measured approach.”
“We’re just going to continue to remain diligent and do everything we can to protect our classrooms, [and] make every dollar count for our students,” White said. “A big part of that is having a handle on the projected growth because that will impact our funding for every future year.”
This strategy includes careful planning, he said, to avoid outspending growth.
“We’re setting budgets not just for next year—the decisions we make will impact two, three, four, five years down the road,” White said.
