HOUSTON – Aug. 16, 2018 – The Texas Education Agency released its accountability ratings on Wednesday, earning Spring ISD an overall C as part of its new A-F letter grade system.

The formula used to calculate letter grades for districts is based on how districts perform across three areas: student achievement, school progress and closing the gaps.

Though technically Spring ISD was among 92 districts designated as Not Rated in 2017-18 because of Hurricane Harvey, its numerical score would have resulted in a C grade.

“As educators, we’re used to giving grades and recognize that A-F letter grades are easily understood by most people,” said Spring ISD Superintendent Dr. Rodney E. Watson. “At the same time, we know that a letter grade based on a single day’s performance on a standardized test doesn’t fully measure the hard work of our teachers and academic growth of our students over a full year of instruction. The A-F letter grades also don’t adequately tell the story of the district’s year-over-year improvement.”

In particular, Watson noted that for the first time since the 2010-11 school year, all of the district’s 26 elementary schools met standard. “We are very proud of the hard work of our elementary students and teachers, and we believe that we’re going to soon see similar results at our secondary level,” he said.

Specifically, the district is continuing to focus on strategic priorities in the areas of Literacy, Special Education, Performing and Visual Arts, Gifted and Talented education and attendance, In addition, the new EMERGE Fellowship program will strengthen the college-bound culture across Spring ISD by helping high-performing students from underserved communities attend and graduate from selective universities across the country.

The district is also expanding its professional development program for its nearly 2,200 teachers. Over the summer, more teachers than ever participated in these specialized trainings. 

Under its 2016 bond program, the district is also planning on opening two new middle school buildings in the 2019-20 school year, including a replacement campus for Roberson and a new Middle School in the north part of the district, known currently as Middle School #8.

In addition, the district is moving forward on the planning and design of three new 9th-grade centers under the bond program to ease the transition for middle school students moving into high school.

“We see a lot of opportunities to strengthen our secondary program so that all of our middle and high school students have a rigorous and personalized experience in our schools,” Watson said. “Our dedicated teachers and staff are committed to ensuring every student in Spring ISD gets the support they need to be successful.”

Toward that goal, the district is also working on expanding the number of parent volunteers and mentors available to students this year.  Any community members interested in volunteering at the secondary level, should visit www.springisd.org/volunteer.