This action follows a lawsuit started by Kingsville ISD and other state school districts against the Texas Education Agency over a lack of transparency and failure to give districts adequate notice about changes made to the way accountability ratings are calculated under the new A-F accountability ratings system.
By passing the resolution, SCUCISD can show support for the other districts that are part of the litigation without the financial burden of filing a lawsuit, according to the April 16 meeting agenda.
The details
Chief Academic Officer Kelly Kovacs explained that the resolution is a response to the appeal from TEA that states only 10% of districts across the state joined the lawsuit. School districts across the state have adopted similar resolutions in support of the lawsuit.
“This is really about letting TEA know that we would appreciate a fair and transparent system, and that the midyear changes last year were maybe unfair for all of us across the state, and that we would like to have a holistic approach to ratings rather than one standardized test,” Kovacs said during the meeting.
What they’re saying
The board of trustees unanimously approved the item, and board President Ed Finley said it is a good thing for the district to show support for the lawsuit and solidarity with other school districts.
“We definitely have to make sure the state understands that this is unfair,” Finley said. “We do need lead time; we do need time to change our curriculum; we need time to get our students prepared for this, and to have everything boil down to one test has always been unfair.”
