Educators in Hutto ISD will see a different pay structure in the 2027-28 school year, district staff and administrators shared in a July 23 board meeting.
In a nutshell
Funded by a three-year Texas Education Agency grant, the district is part of a second cohort of school districts developing a new performance-based banded compensation structure. Marking a shift from the traditional "ladder" style of compensation, in which teachers are paid according to longevity and credentials, the new model will ensure teachers are rewarded for their ability to grow students, Chief of Schools C.J. Lowery said.
"I don't think anybody says, 'I'm going to go get rich and be a teacher,'" Lowery said. "But I do think we owe it to some of the people that have the greatest impacts on our children, on our communities, to make sure that they can drive a car that gets them to and from work, live in a house in a safe neighborhood, all those things."
How it works
Lowery, joined by district teachers who helped create the plan, presented the structure for the future pay model based on teacher performance. These scorecards will not be based on one exam or one year of data, he said. Rather, teachers will be placed into performance bands ranging from Tier 0, with no certification, to Tier 5, a Master teacher.
The performance scorecard will be calculated along these lines, he said:
- 70% from student academic performance growth, although the TEA gave the district some feedback that this could be reduced to 55%. This measure will not be based on just one exam, Lowery said.
- 20% from evaluations of teacher instruction and classroom delivery
- 5% student experience measured through a survey
- 5% from another factor not yet determined
It will also integrate the existing Teacher Incentive Allotment, allowing educators to potentially earn six figures, Lowery said.
The Teacher Incentive Allotment is a program that was created by the state in 2019 to keep teachers in the classroom by increasing teacher pay as a performance-based mechanism. Per the Texas Education Agency, qualifying teachers were awarded a total of $145.2 million in incentives in 2023.
Hard-to-fill positions such as dual language, special education or Career and Technical Education will feature a higher entry point or stipend to compete with salary offerings in the private sector, with a performance scale just like other teachers.
The program would reallocate existing district funds for payroll to teachers driving student academic growth, he said, not requiring HISD to come up with additional funds to increase compensation.
Managing the impact
Under the new performance-driven compensation plan, teachers could also see their pay go down. Lowery said the intent is not to drop any teacher pay significantly in one year. Performance will be calculated using a two-year rolling average to ensure fairness, and it would take two consecutive years of poor performance to move teachers down a compensation band.
Teachers trending downward will also receive support first, such as additional training and mentorship, to help them remain at their compensation level or improve.
He said the district is also creating guardrails for teachers experiencing major life events, such as long-term illness or maternity leave.
What's next?
Lowery said the district will spend the 2026-27 school year finalizing the scorecard and compensation bands, with the program rolling out in the 2027-28 school year.
