Pasadena ISD reports gains on readiness, highlights record CTE certifications

Donna Summers, the district's executive director of program support and achievement, presented Pasadena ISD's required 2023-24 annual performance report during a public hearing and directed listeners to the district's website for full TAPR materials.

Summers said the class of 2023's college- and career-military readiness rate was at least 80% across student groups, a jump of about 20 percentage points from two years earlier. She also reported kindergarten readiness rose 7.5 points to 63.6% districtwide, and that among children who attended at least 80 days of pre-kindergarten the readiness rate was 73.4%.

"One of the most important things about this public hearing is to make sure that everybody knows where those reports can be found," Summers said, noting the Texas Education Code requirement and that some state accountability ratings were not released for 2023 and 2024.

Trustees asked procedural questions about how long the district must keep posted reports; Summers confirmed the state requires three years of availability and staff are migrating documents to a new district website but will provide printed copies on request.

The board also heard a longer career and technical education (CTE) spotlight from Tanya Hager, Pasadena ISD's executive director of CTE, who described robust CTE participation and outcomes. Hager said the district currently serves "just under 11,500 students district wide" in CTE pathways taught by about 170 instructors across 26 program options.

Hager reported a new district record of 5,918 industry-based certifications earned last year, an increase of 940 certifications from the prior year, and highlighted substantial percentage gains in specific credential areas (Adobe Premiere Pro, electrical, Autodesk Inventor, automotive). She said CTE students also outperformed non-CTE peers on state assessments in multiple subjects and had higher graduation rates.

The presentation emphasized teacher retention and experience: campus leaders average seven years, teachers average about 10 years of experience, and the district's teacher turnover rate was cited at 15.7%, lower than the state's 19.1%.

The meeting record shows trustees had no substantive objections to the report and did not take formal action to change the TAPR presentation; the materials will remain publicly posted and printed copies will be available at the central office.

Next steps: the district will keep the TAPR and related accountability documents posted for the required period and continue CTE program expansion and certification tracking.