A string of failing accountability ratings for Wheatley High School triggered the state takeover of Houston ISD.
If the new, upcoming ratings from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) are any indication, the district’s state-appointed leader says it could be sooner than later before HISD is returned to local control.
Superintendent Mike Miles unveiled preliminary, districtwide data to a crowd of teachers at Wednesday’s convocation at Delmar Fieldhouse – a week before the TEA releases its grades for districts and campuses across the state. HISD decreased its number of D- and F-rated campuses from 121 to 41, according to Miles, who said the number of A and B schools in the district increased from 93 to 170.
“I am working myself out of a job, and that’s what’s supposed to happen,” Miles said. “The reason why this is important, takes on more relevance than usual, is because the (state) intervention criteria is that we have to have zero schools … with multiple years of D and F ratings. So we took a big chunk out of this. I guarantee you no other district raised their accountability score or decreased the number of D and F campuses like Houston ISD did.”
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Miles did not reveal the forthcoming ratings for individual schools or the district itself, saying those would be released on Aug. 15 by the TEA. The information announced Wednesday was compiled by HISD based on data and methodology from the TEA, Miles said.
HISD compared its expected 2023-24 ratings to those from the 2022-23 academic year – the year before the state takeover – even though the TEA did not publicize accountability ratings for that school year. A judge blocked their release in October after dozens of Texas school districts sued the TEA over changes to the ratings criteria.
Based on HISD’s calculations, 20 of its schools that previously were F-rated will receive Bs when the new ratings come out.
“I probably shouldn’t say this, but I’m going to say it anyway: Only a handful of campuses in the state went from an F to an A, and they’re all in HISD,” Miles said.
Speaking to teachers who work at schools that are part of Miles’ New Education System (NES), where there are premade lesson plans, higher pay for teachers and greater emphasis on discipline and testing-based performance, the superintendent credited the improvements to his reforms and teachers’ buy-in. He did much the same after HISD showed improvement last year in its standardized test results.
Adam Zuvanich/Houston Public Media
The NES model will expand from 85 to 130 campuses for the 2024-25 school year, which starts Monday.
The number of NES schools with D and F ratings will decrease from 63 to 14, according to Miles, who said 53 NES campuses will have A or B ratings for the 2023-24 year after 11 earned such a rating for the previous year. The number of non-NES schools with A or B ratings will increase from 82 to 107, Miles said.
The superintendent’s changes also have contributed to widespread teacher turnover and the dismissal of popular educators. That sparked community protests last year, which was HISD’s first under state-appointed leadership.
Dawson Hassell, the band director at Furr High School, said his students have been a “little reluctant” in adapting to the reforms while acknowledging that they’re “probably a good thing for them.”
