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Goose Creek CISD earns superior School FIRST rating, score rises to 96
Summary
District officials reported Goose Creek CISD received a 'superior' School FIRST financial integrity rating with a score increase from 94 to 96, marking more than two decades of top ratings according to district presenters.
Goose Creek CISD officials on Tuesday reported the district received a superior rating under the School FIRST (Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas) accountability system, with a total score of 96 — an increase from the prior reported score of 94.
Bridget Clark, presenting for the district, said the rating reflects the district’s financial management as assessed by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). Clark told the board the School FIRST score is based on prior-year audited financial data — in this case the 2022–23 audit — because TEA scores on a lag. She said the district received maximum points on 17 of 19 scored indicators; two indicators received less-than-perfect marks: long-term liabilities divided by total assets (indicator 11) and an administrative cost ratio (indicator 13). Clark said the district missed a perfect score on indicator 13 by 0.0032.
Clark also noted that a superior rating has been sustained for multiple years; she initially said 21 consecutive years and then corrected to 22 consecutive years. The School FIRST system includes a small number of “critical indicators” that trigger an automatic failing rating if not met — for example, timely filing of financial reports with TEA, an unmodified audit opinion, and timely debt payments. Meeting those critical indicators is required to achieve any passing score.
Board members asked clarifying questions about which fiscal year the score covered; presenters reiterated the rating is for the 2024 School FIRST cycle but is calculated from the 2022–23 audited data. Clark explained that TEA uses a single statewide scoring process to compare districts and that some indicators (for example, pupil projection measures) are newly scored again after a COVID-related pause.
Why it matters
School FIRST is designed to detect financial distress early and to provide transparency about district fiscal practices. A superior rating signals to the district’s board, taxpayers and lenders that the district met the statutory financial benchmarks TEA uses for oversight.
What’s next
Administrators did not propose immediate financial actions tied to the School FIRST report at the meeting. The district will continue to submit required financial reports to TEA and monitor solvency and administrative ratios identified in the report.
