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WISD presents Texas Academic Performance Report; board hears growth and concern areas
Summary
District assessment director reviewed the Texas Academic Performance and Reporting dashboard, highlighting growth metrics, areas needing improvement and interactive data tools available to staff and trustees.
Don Hilburn, director of assessment and accountability for Waxahachie Independent School District, presented the district nd campus-level Texas Academic Performance and Reporting (TAPR) dashboard at the board—usiness meeting Tuesday, describing both strengths and areas for improvement.
Hilburn said the TAPR dashboard shows district performance relative to Region 10 and the state and that the district is generally comparable with the region and state. He reported that about 61% of students showed overall academic growth year to year and highlighted that 32% of students moved from "does not meet" to "approaches" or higher, a change that the state weights more heavily in accountability calculations.
Why it matters: TAPR informs campus- and district-level planning, state accountability and local instructional priorities. Hilburn told trustees the dashboard is interactive and available to staff through WISD accounts for deeper campus- and grade-level review.
Key details from the presentation included: - Domain/growth metrics: Hilburn described the district nd campus star-score distributions and said the district is below the state on the highest performance level ("masters") and is emphasizing improvement there. - Growth examples: Fourth-grade reading growth jumped 15 percentage points year over year at one campus, a change Hilburn singled out as notable. - College and career readiness: AP participation and pass rates for 11th- and 12th-graders who take exams were reported as outperforming region/state averages, though Hilburn said the district needs to increase exam participation. - Dropout and graduation: The district ropout rate for grades 9—2 was 0.8%, compared with Region 10 at 2.5% and the state at 2.0%. Graduation-program metrics (foundation, endorsements, distinguished levels) were discussed as areas targeted for improvement to expand postsecondary options for graduates. - Early education and kindergarten readiness: Hilburn reported a kindergarten readiness rate around 51% on the assessment used and noted the district is pursuing strategies to boost pre-K participation and readiness. - Chronic absenteeism and staffing: Chronic absenteeism stood at 13.8% (lower than the region and state). Staffing and retention data showed a relatively experienced teacher workforce and a turnover rate below the state average (17.8% vs. 19.1%).
Hilburn told trustees the TAPR presentation is intended as both an accountability summary and a starting point for ongoing discussion; he offered to provide trustees with an interactive version of the dashboard via WISD email so they could drill into campus- and grade-level results. The public hearing portion of the TAPR item concluded without public speakers.
