Bastrop ISD reports accountability gains, adopts updated student code of conduct and approves budget and policy items

Bastrop — Interim Superintendent Christy Lee and district staff reported academic gains, approved policy and budget actions, and updated voters and the public on bond construction progress at a Bastrop Independent School District board meeting held in August.

The most prominent item was the district’s finalized 2025 accountability results. Jennifer Eberly, a district staff member who presented the finalized TEA accountability data, said districtwide measures rose across multiple domains, producing a 10-point increase in the district’s overall accountability score to 71 (a C). "We're 1 of those guys, yay," Eberly said, noting Bastrop saw notable campus-level gains including a 14-point jump at Bastrop High School and a 17-point jump at Cedar Creek High School.

Why it matters: Eberly said the largest gains came in the "closing the gaps" domain (a 21-point increase), which translated into two full letter-grade shifts for the district when combined with growth in other domains. She also noted that three campuses — Cedar Creek Middle School, Lost Pines Elementary and Camino Real Elementary — were limited by a TEA cap rule (the meeting referenced the district’s 3F/3D rules), meaning their computed scores were capped at the lower thresholds (59 or 69) despite higher underlying calculations.

Operational, budget and policy actions

- Student code of conduct: The board adopted the 2025–26 student code of conduct as presented by Dr. Morris, the district’s director of student services. The updated code incorporates changes from the recent legislative session cited in the presentation, including prohibiting personal communication devices during the instructional day (except by approved medical exemption), adding authority to remove a student from class after a single significant disruptive or abusive incident, expanding the allowable length of in-school suspension to up to 10 days per offense (with requirements for comparable academic/behavioral services), and permitting expulsions for false…