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Austin ISD tells trustees it has completed 96 of 99 TEA agreed-order deliverables; district highlights new data system and family engagement efforts
Summary
Special-education leaders reported progress under a Texas Education Agency agreed order, saying the district has completed 96 of 99 deliverables. Austin ISD described adoption of a new Frontline special-programs system, intensified staff training, a parent advisory group and monthly reporting to the agency; trustees asked how to access submitted
Austin ISD administrators told trustees on Sept. 18 that the district has completed 96 of 99 deliverables required under a Texas Education Agency agreed order related to special education and governance.
Joshua Johnson, executive director of governance and accountability, and Dr. Cherry Lee, interim assistant superintendent for special education, provided the update. They said the outstanding items include a quarter-board self-evaluation scheduled for October and an ongoing obligation to post a three-month summary of board time spent on student outcomes and closed-session minutes, as required by their Lone Star governance commitments.
Dr. Lee described a major technical and operational shift: the district replaced its older special-programs case management system with Frontline Special Programs, going from project kickoff in January to a July go-live. The transition included multiple training sessions over the summer and ongoing technical assistance. Lee said staff have prioritized training because “systems change is not easy,” and acknowledged the “heavy lift” campus staff faced during the transition.
The district also described a layered professional learning program for special education staff: a new monthly learning-lab series for case managers (almost 700 special-education teachers attended a virtual session), campus-level PLCs led by campus support coordinators, and targeted sessions on autism supports, behavior intervention, dyslexia, functional behavior assessments and assistive technology.
On data and compliance, Lee said Austin ISD is working to ensure annual ARD meetings and reevaluations are timely and properly documented. The district will continue submitting monthly compliance reports to TEA and a summary to the board.
Priority 4 of the agreed order—family engagement and child-find—also showed activity. The district convened a parent advisory committee in January 2024 and plans six meetings in 2025–26. Officials added parent and teacher co-chairs to steward the committee’s agenda and invited parents to register for the group. The district also described a second annual in-person transition fair scheduled for Sept. 27 at Bowie High School to help families explore post-secondary and employment resources for students with disabilities.
Trustee Kaufman asked how the public could review documents the district previously submitted to TEA (continuum-of-services maps, protocols). Johnson and Lee said staff can make those submission artifacts available on request and that monitors had reviewed them.
Ending: Trustees thanked administrators for the update and asked staff to post materials and continue the public communication and parent-engagement work required under the agreed order.
