As part of a Texas Education Agency requirement, the Northside ISD board of trustees approved a series of campus targeted improvement plans, or TIPs, for 12 campuses throughout the district March 24.
These TIPs are developed for any campus that receives an F rating, consecutive D ratings or if a campus is a Comprehensive Support and Improvement campus during the TEA’s annual A-F accountability ratings.
The overview
According to district documents, there are eight elementary schools, one middle school and three high schools that require TIPs. During the presentation, Janis Jordan, deputy superintendent for curriculum and instruction, laid out the components of a TIP, which includes a school improvement strategy, instructional support strategies, support and capacity building, performance management, and stakeholder feedback.
NISD schools requiring TIP:
- Carlos Coon Elementary School
- Colonies North Elementary School
- Howsman Elementary School
- Knowlton Elementary School
- Linton Elementary School
- McDermott Elementary School
- Passmore Elementary School
- Rhodes Elementary School
- Rayburn Middle School
- Holmes High School
- Jay High School
- Stevens High School
Jordan said a TIP is similar to a turnaround plan, or TAP—which is a more intensive, multiyear plan for schools who have consecutively received F ratings from TEA—but it is an earlier iteration implemented for first-year issues and is less invasive. She noted that the main difference is the length of time, a TAP is a two-year plan, while a TIP is a one-year plan.
“You can be required to submit a TIP plan for two reasons,” Jordan said. “One’s through state accountability, ... or it can be your first F rating in terms of the federal accountability, [or] if you’re designated what they call a comprehensive improvement and support campus, [which occurs when a campus is] performing in the bottom 5%.”
Jordan said though the district has been implementing the TIPs since August, board approval was still a requirement. She also emphasized that since their implementation, the campuses have seen improvements.
Looking ahead
The district will continue implementing the TIPs across the campuses for the rest of the school year, with a goal of removing the campuses from TIP status and preventing them from moving into TAP status. Future accountability releases will determine whether these campuses exit TIP, require another year of support or get escalated into TAP status.
