Austin ISD released from TEA oversight over special education
TEA oversight ends at AISD
Austin ISD says it has been released from state oversight of its special education services.
AUSTIN, Texas - Austin ISD says it has been released from state oversight of its special education services.
AISD has been under TEA oversight since approving the plan in late 2023.
What we know:
AISD announced it completed all required actions under its Special Education Agreed Order with the TEA on Tuesday, Feb. 17.
Prior to the appointment of state monitors, it was discovered that AISD had over 600 initial evaluations which were out of the timeline for students.
The district also had 43 open special education investigations, 40 of which led to discoveries of non-compliance with the law. The TEA also found ineffective practices in how AISD was collecting, managing, and reporting special education data. In addition, the district failed to meet the requirement of multiple Corrective Action Plans.
Austin ISD approves TEA plan for state oversight of district's special education program
By a vote of 8-1, the Austin ISD school board approved a plan to establish state oversight of the district's struggling special education program, avoiding an all-out takeover.
What they're saying:
"This has been a long road for us and getting here required a tremendous lift in collaboration with our entire Austin ISD community," says Superintendent Matias Segura, who spoke alongside AISD officials at St. Elmo Elementary.
"Our central office team members partnered with campuses to build sustainable systems. And our compliance team members worked tirelessly to submit reports and monitor performance metrics," says Dr. Cherry Lee, the Assistant Superintendent of Special Education Programs.
When it comes to preventing future backlogs, Segura says thousands of evaluations have been taking place to ensure it doesn’t happen again.
"We've completed over 10,000 evaluations and meetings to ensure that every student receives tailored support and services without delay," he said.
The Superintendent also said on Tuesday that they’ve added more than 250 specialized providers and evaluators, all supported by 120,000 hours of professional learning.
Though the district is no longer under the state’s oversight, AISD Board of Trustees President, Lynn Boswell, says their work is far from done.
"We are not just moving past an order, we are moving forward toward a future where every student in Austin ISB has the tools and support necessary to thrive," Boswell said.
Why was Austin ISD under TEA oversight?
The backstory:
In March 2023, the TEA said it intended to assign a team of conservators to oversee AISD's special education services, in particular a troubling district-wide backlog of initial evaluations, prompting the district to request an informal review.
In August 2023, the TEA gave AISD the option of monitors over conservators, provided the district complete specified corrective actions in a timely manner.
The district's board of trustees voted in September 2023 to approve the plan for monitors in an effort to avoid an all-out takeover by the TEA.
AISD approves plan for state oversight
By a vote of 8-1, the Austin ISD school board approved a plan to establish state oversight of the district's struggling special education program, avoiding an all-out takeover.
In October 2023, the TEA appointed Sherry Marsh and Lesa Shocklee as monitors to oversee the work of the special education department, including monitoring and supporting a corrective action plan and participating in a required external audit, says the district.
Austin ISD has since published reports on the progress of the approved order, and by September 2025, reported it had completed all but three of the required actions laid out by the TEA.
The Source: Information in this report comes from Austin ISD and previous reporting by FOX 7 Austin.