Austin ISD reports sharp staff and teacher retention declines; PPFT appraisal and pay changes adopted for 2022–23

Austin Independent School District administrators told the board of trustees on Oct. 13 that the district is projecting declines in staff retention and presented a set of changes to the district—s PPFT teacher appraisal and compensation system meant to bolster retention.

Brandy Hozick, interim chief of human capital, said preliminary September‑to‑September figures project a 72 percent retention rate for Title I teachers when transfers and nonteaching moves are counted and about 67.3 percent using the district—s Title I‑to‑Title I, teaching‑position methodology — an approximate 12 percentage point drop from the prior year. Hozick said overall staff retention was preliminarily projected at about 77.5 percent, roughly an 8 percent decrease from the prior year.

The numbers are lagging indicators, Hozick cautioned; official figures come from the Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) and will be available in January. Still, she told trustees the figures indicate an urgent need for action on pay, workplace culture and onboarding.

Why it matters: Trustees pressed staff for concrete steps because lower retention and rising vacancies drive more work onto existing employees, particularly at high‑need campuses, which can create a churn that depresses both staff morale and student outcomes.

What the district is changing: Administrators described specific, board‑directed adjustments to the PPFT local evaluation and compensation program: - Final rating cut points were adjusted after the 2021–22 distributions review so the schoolwide value‑added component can no longer mathematically preclude teachers from a final rating category before the year begins. The oversight committee recommended and leadership accepted the change for 2022–23. - The informal walk‑through requirement for appraisers was reduced from four per semester to three, to balance feedback needs with administrative time commitments. - Enhanced compensation status was expanded: five additional campuses that were "not rated" by TEA were added to the enhanced compensation list for 2022–23; district leaders also proposed a three‑tier approach for Title I campuses (standard/Title I/enhanced) to begin in 2022–23 and reported strong oversight‑committee support. - The district continues to use cumulative PPFT compensation points that result in permanent, TRS‑eligible base salary increases; optional pathways and PD units remain part of the points system (examples discussed: PDUs worth three points; leadership pathways worth 15 points on completion).

Accountability and evaluation work: Trustees heard that the revised PPFT rubric (applied fully in 2021–22) returned to a full multi‑measure system — two formal observations by separate campus administrators, informal walk‑throughs, a professional growth and responsibility component, and state‑required student growth measures (district SLOs and schoolwide value‑added). Amy Ortiz, interim executive director of employee effectiveness, experience and sustainability, said the district is partnering with Texas A&M Education Research Center for an independent program evaluation of the revised system; results will be shared with the board when complete.

Retention work beyond pay: Hozick and Ortiz emphasized that compensation must be paired with culture and operational changes: better onboarding (not a one‑day event), improved principal coaching and distributed leadership, targeted supports for teachers of color, employee resource groups (ERGs) led by teachers, and central‑office professional learning so central staff can provide consistent, practical support to campuses.

Trustee questions and board directions: Trustees asked for more school‑level detail and for midyear pulse surveys; staff said campus‑by‑campus retention and TAPR snapshots are available and more granular Title I teacher surveys are under way. Trustees asked for follow‑up on calibration training for evaluators (interrater reliability) and for copies of the communications used to notify teachers about PPFT changes.

What was decided (formal outcomes reported in the meeting): Trustees accepted the administration—s monitoring report on retention and PPFT implementation at the Oct. 13 meeting (the board raised hands to accept the report). Several administrative adjustments described above have already been implemented for 2022–23 based on oversight‑committee recommendations and leadership approvals.

Next steps: Staff said they will deliver campus‑level retention data and TAPR‑based official rates when available in January, continue the PPFT evaluation with Texas A&M, deploy employee effectiveness teams to campuses for targeted support, and provide the board with updates on compensation proposals for the next budget cycle.