Austin ISD details transition plan and a Jan. 12Jan. 23 "transition enrollment round," pledges dual-language continuity

Superintendent Segura and staff on Thursday laid out a transition plan for 11 Austin ISD campuses slated for closure or consolidation and announced a dedicated "transition enrollment round" to help families select alternatives.

The district said a family-information survey went to impacted families on Dec. 9 and that a more specific ranking survey will be open Jan. 12Jan. 23. District staff will process responses Jan. 23Feb. 6 and issue informal assignment notices Feb. 913; families will still need to complete official registration in the EnrollAustin system to confirm placements.

“From February 9 to February 13, families will receive an informal assignment notification via email,” Victoria O'Neil, executive director of family experience and enrollment, said, describing the timeline and steps for families. O'Neil said the transition round will run outside but in parallel to EnrollAustin and that the district will use published priorities and lotteries if applications exceed available seats.

The presentation emphasized a people-centered approach. GA Kimbatra, the district's executive director of board services, policy and compliance and the transition project lead, described five focus areas that prioritize students, families, staff and community supports and said the district has completed a campus toolkit and is preparing a comprehensive transition-plan booklet due in mid-January.

Kimbatra also told trustees that principals and campus-based transition teams will lead many engagement activities and that the district has visited principals at 18 impacted campuses to gather feedback.

Trustees repeatedly pressed the administration for clearer family-facing steps and measurable targets. Trustee Hunter asked for a simple, step-by-step checklist for families; Trustee Singh requested enrollment targets and KPIs that would let the board and public know whether the district's work is succeeding. “I would like to see both [aggregate and school-level targets] because that's how we as trustees can kind of stay in our lane and see that things are moving in a direction without micromanaging,” Singh said.

Administrators said they will produce post-implementation reporting and after-action reviews. Superintendent Segura said the district is "very, very close" to being able to guarantee continuity for students in dual-language programs at their zoned campuses but that the guarantee depends on family choices during the transition round. “If you're in the program, emerging bilingual or not, you will have the ability to continue on in your assigned school,” Segura said, adding that absolute guarantees are difficult until the district receives survey responses from families.

The transition plan also includes staffing supports: a talent-strategy survey of employees (about 1,700 responses to date) will inform internal matching rounds in February and March, followed by external hiring if vacancies remain. The district said it will provide mental-health supports, employee assistance and targeted staff-placement work as campuses shift.

The board asked staff to return with clearer family communications, defined KPIs for enrollment and transition success, and an after-action report that would quantify outcomes such as numbers of students placed via lotteries and measures of staffing impacts. Trustees and staff agreed to continue community engagement over the spring semester and to refine presentation materials to make options explicit for families.

Next steps: district staff will issue timelines and the transition enrollment ranking survey Jan. 1223, process responses through Feb. 6, and send informal notifications Feb. 913. Trustees requested a follow-up briefing in January on enrollment metrics and a post-implementation after-action report.