Austin ISD presents special‑education strategic‑plan update, says district has been released from Reed order

Austin ISD administrators presented a quarterly update on the district's special‑education strategic plan at the April 9 information session, describing a shift from planning to sustained, systemwide implementation and five core quality standards for special education.

Director Dr. Jennifer Baker and colleagues said the district maintains five goals focused on shared ownership, high‑quality instruction, timely evaluations, high‑fidelity IEP development and resource allocation. Presenters reported that a majority of identified action items are completed or embedded in permanent systems and flagged one remaining item: formalizing special‑education policy standards as a district "north star."

Administrators reported evaluation volumes and described a centralized effort to handle increased referrals and evaluations — including initial and re‑evaluations completed during spring break — while noting private‑school evaluation demands create operational pressure and potential budget implications. Trustees asked for more disaggregated outcome data, year‑after dismissal metrics and clearer family‑engagement participation numbers; presenters said they would work to provide more granular pulls for future reports.

Presenters framed the plan as designed to maintain inclusion and progress across campuses, with professional learning, quality checks and family engagement built into the next phases. No formal board action was taken; trustees acknowledged the report and asked administration to follow up with requested data.