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Cedar Hill ISD TAPR: special education rated 'needs intervention'; district to submit state improvement plan
Summary
At a board public hearing, district staff presented the Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR), saying Cedar Hill ISD’s special education determination under TEA results-driven accountability is "needs intervention" in three areas. Staff outlined required next steps and told the board the district will file improvement plans with the state.
Cedar Hill Independent School District officials on Thursday presented the Texas Academic Performance Report for 2023–24 and said the district’s special education program received a Texas Education Agency results-driven accountability determination of “needs intervention.” Dr. Meldner, a district staff member presenting the TAPR, said the determination rests on three areas: STAAR performance in science and social studies, the percentage of time students placed in special education spend outside general education, and disciplinary outcomes for students with disabilities.
The TAPR is the state’s annual public report on academic and financial performance. Dr. Meldner said the district posts the TAPR on the district website and that campus TAPR pages will appear on individual campus sites. The presentation also reviewed STAAR participation rates, attendance, graduation and dropout rates, college- and career-readiness indicators, student and staff demographics, and the financial summary linked from TEA’s portal.
Why it matters: a results-driven accountability determination requires the district and the special education department to write and submit specific improvement plans for TEA review. Dr. Meldner said those plans are separate from the district’s standard campus improvement plan (DIP) and cannot be fully replicated inside the DIP document because TEA requires an RDA plan with different elements for submission.
Board members asked how the TAPR information will be reflected in the district improvement planning process and whether campus-level interventions will be identified. Dr. Meldner said the TAPR and linked RDA report are public and that campuses will post required documents; staff also told trustees that the RDA plan must be submitted to TEA and that the district has targeted supports already described in local plans. Trustees pressed staff to ensure the district improvement plan acknowledges the RDA status and shows where resources will be allocated so the two plans are not perceived as separate efforts.
The presentation noted other limits in state data: several statewide data sets are a year or more behind, and some postsecondary enrollment data have gaps dating to before the COVID-19 school year, a lag Dr. Meldner said the state is still resolving. The TAPR also contains a glossary of terms intended to help nontechnical readers interpret indicators and definitions used in the report.
District staff said they will provide the board follow-up material requested during the hearing, including: (1) a campus-level breakdown showing which campuses are driving the district’s RDA determination; (2) an historical look at special education performance and the interventions implemented since the COVID period so the board can see trends and earlier responses; and (3) an explanation of the updated STAAR Alternate rubric that may increase the number of alternate-assessed students this year and how that change could affect accountability percentages.
Ending: The public hearing closed after questions and staff responses. Staff noted the TAPR is available on the district and TEA websites and that the district will file required state plans for the special education determination.
