Public schools across the state were rated based on a variety of factors, including academic performance and how prepared students are for college and careers after high school.
Why now?
Ratings for the 2022-23 school year were delayed by lawsuits, and released April 24 following an April 3 ruling in which Texas' 15th Court of Appeals overturned a 2023 injunction that prevented the release of the accountability ratings for more than a year.
In September 2023, more than 100 Texas school districts joined a lawsuit aimed at preventing the release of these ratings, as changes in the methodology for how letter grades were calculated were made mid-school year.
In an April 24 news release from the district, RRISD stated that the new methodology was not announced ahead of the start of the 2022-23 school year. This meant the district, and many of its peers across the state, were unable to adjust classes, curriculum or teaching practices to meet the higher standards.
In a nutshell
The A-F rating system was created by the 85th Texas Legislature to provide clear and consistent performance tracking data for public schools and ensure students are prepared for the next grade level. Per the TEA, the focus areas of student achievement, school progress and closing the gaps were intended to drive continuous improvement in public schools.
According to an April 24 release from the TEA, various factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic and lawsuits, have left an incomplete set of ratings for families to understand how their public schools are serving students.
“For far too long, families, educators and communities have been denied access to information about the performance of their schools, thanks to frivolous lawsuits paid for by tax dollars filed by those who disagreed with the statutory goal of raising career readiness expectations to help students,” Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said in the news release.
The 2022-23 updates to methodology were made to "more accurately reflect performance," according to the TEA.
In the district’s release, RRISD Superintendent Hafedh Azaiez said staff and students are continuing to work toward improving, and highlighted the district's performance.
“We are so incredibly proud of all our students, teachers and families for their hard work and achievement,” Azaiez said in the release. “We’re always reaching for the next level, and we’ll continue to do so. This shows how well our students can do, even when the rules change in the middle of the game.”
The breakdown
Statewide, about 11% of school districts received an "A" rating for the 2022-23 school year. District with a "B" rating accounted for 40%; districts with a "C," 32%; district with a "D," 14%; and district with an "F," 3%, according to the TEA.
At the campus level in 2023, 1,646 campuses earned an "A"; 2,873 campuses scored a "B"; 2,107 campuses received a "C"; 1,264 campuses received a "D"; and 649 campuses scored an "F", according to the TEA’s statewide summary report.
According to the district, about 70% of schools in the RRISD that were rated received an A or B, and no RRISD schools received an F.
TEA data shows:
- 23 earned an A
- 13 earned a B
- 11 earned a C
- 5 earned a D
