Lake Dallas ISD outlines accelerated-instruction results, identifies math focus

Dr. Kelly O'Sullivan said at a public hearing Aug. 25 that Lake Dallas Independent School District provided accelerated instruction to students identified under state law and that program participation produced mixed year-over-year outcomes. "This is an annual public hearing that we present, the results and the progress and the evaluation of our accelerated instructional program in Lake Dallas," O'Sullivan told the board.
The hearing summarized how the district identifies students for accelerated instruction (including unsatisfactory STAAR/EOC performance, retention, chronic absenteeism and other state-specified indicators) and how services are delivered through campus intervention time ("Falcon Time"), targeted classes, tutorials, ESL/RTI supports and summer school.
O'Sullivan presented counts and growth measures the district tracked for 2024–25. In reading for grades 3–5, 118 students who received accelerated instruction met the district's growth measure the following year; of 154 students who received accelerated instruction in elementary math, 49 met the growth measure. In grades 6–8, 150 students who received accelerated instruction in reading met the growth measure for the year; 57 middle‑school students who received accelerated math supports met the growth measure. At the high school level, 70 students participated in accelerated instruction for Algebra I and 39 of those students met the expected growth measure.
Board members asked for clarification about the district's definition of "expected growth measure" and how that differs from passing a state assessment. O'Sullivan explained that meeting the expected growth measure can mean a student made measurable progress within a performance band even if the student did not cross the next performance category.
District staff said middle school leaders increased Falcon Time from roughly 30 minutes to 45 minutes for the 2025–26 year to allow standards-based instruction, periodic progress monitoring and richer small-group work. High-school leaders reported implementing regular benchmark assessments and other monitoring to measure progress across courses.
The district identified algebra and both English I and English II as focus areas after 2024–25 results showed declines in some end-of-course measures. "The high school administrative team, counselors, the instructional coaches have been partnering already with the CNI department and taking an intentional look at our students, our services, classes they are placed in," O'Sullivan said.
The hearing was informational; no board action was taken at that moment. Officials described next steps including continued emphasis on tier 1 instruction, targeted coaching cycles, progress monitoring and partnerships with Region 11 for professional development.