Bastrop ISD earns highest fiscal accountability rating, Superior Achievement

Bastrop Independent School District earned the highest fiscal accountability rating under the Financial Accountability Rating System of Texas (FIRST) for the 2025-26 school year.

The gist

At a Sept. 15 Board of Trustees meeting, Chief Financial Officer Mike White announced that Bastrop ISD earned 98 out of 100 points, two points higher than last year, in the School FIRST audit. This is classified as a Superior Achievement in the rating scale, which the district has maintained for the last eight years.

Explained

According to the Texas Education Agency, School FIRST is used to assess the district’s financial management, improve the management of money in the district and increase financial accountability within the public education system.

The audit tests the finances from the 2024-2025 fiscal year, based on 21 indicators that cover timeliness of payments, debt, student enrollment and more. 

• A = Superior Achievement (90-100 points)

• B = Above-Standard Achievement (80-90 points)

• C = Meets Standard (70-79 points)

• F = Substandard Achievement (<70 points)

Bastrop ISD lost two points on indicator 12, which measures debt burden. The lower score is caused by the construction of new campuses over the past few years, during which a large amount of debt accrued over a short period of time, White said. The scoring was expected, and “there’s nothing we would do differently,” he said. 

Quote of note

“[The district is] moving in the right direction … It’s a source of pride,” White said. “Strong leadership at the board level, superintendent level and CFO level [goes] back as long as the rating has existed.”