LISD did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The background
A lawsuit filed by more than 120 districts caused a delay in the ratings’ release. The districts argued the agency’s revamped guidelines did not follow state law. Although LISD was outspoken against the accountability ratings, it did not join the lawsuit.
In September 2023, a Travis County district court blocked the release of the ratings; however, the Texas Courts of Appeals ruled in April that the 2022-23 ratings can be released this month.
What to know
LISD scored an 80, which is a B overall. The rating system measures student performance in each grade and their preparedness to move on to the next grade as well as achievement on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness. It also helps to determine whether school districts prepare students for success after high school in college, the workforce or the military.
The score is calculated based on performance in three key areas, or domains—student achievement, school progress and closing the gaps. Respectively, these metrics calculate how much students know, their improvement compared to the previous year and other peer districts and whether performance gaps exist among different peer groups.
The changes made to the rating system in 2023 amended rating criteria. The what-if scores apply the new standards to 2021-22 results. LISD received a B rating under this measurement.
Across the state, almost 11% of school districts received an A, while 40% received a B, about 32% received a C, 14% received a D and about 3% received an F, according to the TEA.
Zooming in
The district scored an 81 out of 100 in the student achievement domain, which measures whether students met STAAR test expectations. It scored a 75 out of 100 in the school progress domain and scored a 79 out of 100 in the closing the gap domain, which measures how well a district ensures all student groups are successful.
In school finance, LISD received an A, scoring 96 out of 100. Individual school ratings were scored by TEA and can be found online. The district had over 60 campuses rated.
The district received a B rating in the 2021-22 and 2018-19 school years. Districts were not rated in 2019-20 and 2020-2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Quote of note
“Transparency drives progress, and when that transparency is blocked, students pay the price,” said Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath in a press release.
The TEA remains blocked from issuing ratings for the 2023-24 school year because of a separate lawsuit. Morath also said the agency intends to release ratings for the 2024-25 school year Aug. 15, as required by state law.
Hannah Norton contributed to this report.
