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Board hears IDEA Travis improvement plan; directs negotiation of tighter contract accountability
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Summary
After a public hearing and a presentation from IDEA leadership, the Midland ISD board approved IDEA Travis’s 2025–26 targeted improvement plan and directed staff and counsel to negotiate contract amendments focused on board goals, teacher quality and progress reporting.
The Midland Independent School District Board of Trustees unanimously approved the 2025–26 targeted improvement plan for IDEA Travis on March 24 after a public hearing that included parents, students and an IDEA representative.
IDEA presenter Doctor Cottrell reviewed the partnership’s history with MISD, accountability measures and recent academic data for the campus known as IDEA Travis. He said the campus has seen historical variability in students “meeting grade level,” noting a low of about 8% in 2015–16 and a forecast around 38% for 2025–26, which he called “not good enough.” Cottrell described instructional strategies in use, including daily exit‑ticket analysis, frequent professional learning communities and targeted interventions.
Parents and students who spoke during public comment credited IDEA with meaningful supports: one parent described a son who, after a dyslexia diagnosis and delayed testing, progressed from below grade level to “a mastery student”; a student who has attended IDEA Travis since third grade said smaller classes and persistent teacher support helped her improve and remain at the campus.
Trustees asked detailed questions about finances, enrollment and performance. Board members pressed IDEA on the per‑pupil funding differential between charter and ISD models, transportation responsibilities and the share of IDEA Travis students who live within the campus zone. Cottrell acknowledged that the district provides some services under the 18.82 memorandum of understanding, and that philanthropic partners help offset capital costs. He agreed to provide a neighborhood‑versus‑non‑neighborhood student breakout requested by trustees.
In a separate but related action later in the meeting, the board voted to direct board counsel and the superintendent to negotiate proposed amendments to the IDEA contract. Trustee Fries framed the directive as an effort to bring the IDEA agreement “closer to how we govern our schools” on goals, teacher quality and progress reporting while recognizing IDEA’s statewide model. The board passed the directive by voice vote.
The board also formally approved the campus’s targeted improvement plan during the meeting. Trustees said they expect the negotiated contract amendments to return to the board for review.
What's next: District staff and board counsel will negotiate proposed contractual changes and bring the proposals back to the board for consideration.
