Belton ISD outlines Teacher Incentive Allotment implementation and proposes 90/10 spending split

Belton ISD administrators briefed the Board of Trustees on the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) implementation status, saying 2025-26 is a data-capture year and outlining next steps ahead of a spending plan the board will consider in November.

Todd Schiller and Gabby Nino told trustees the district is collecting two required data elements for TIA: student-growth measures (using STAR Renaissance assessments) and teacher-evaluation data (the district's T-TESS instrument). The district will submit data to Texas Tech University for validation; administrators said they expect first payments in June 2027 if the data and validation process proceed as planned.

Schiller summarized projected allotment dollar bands released for 2024-25 and cautioned that TEA sets the per-teacher dollar amounts annually; figures shown for recognized and master levels are illustrative and subject to change. He and Gabby said the district's budget committee discussed a spending-plan approach that would direct 90% of TIA funds to teacher compensation and reserve 10% for administrative costs, professional learning and assessment development. Administrators said the 10% holdback is intended to cover costs of growth-measure development and program administration as TIA expands to more content areas.

Trustees asked about eligibility, potential caps and how supplemental state amounts translate to individual paychecks; district staff emphasized the amounts are state-set, taxable and that net take-home pay will differ from gross allotment figures. Administrators also said there is no cap on how many teachers at a campus can qualify; eligibility is driven by student growth data and evaluation designations. The board will receive a formal spending plan for action in its November meeting.