Commissioner's Blog

The U.S. Department of Education announced the recipients of the 2019 Terrel H. Bell Award for Outstanding School Leadership. Two of our Texas principals received the national award, which honors school leaders who are committed advocates of education.

Congratulations to Rachel Ayala from Hubert R. Hudson Elementary School in Brownsville ISD, and Sandra Barrios from Jack Lowe Sr. Elementary School in Dallas ISD. You both exemplify the outstanding leadership we have throughout Texas.

The Texas Education Agency is proud to continue our annual partnership with the Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC) as we celebrate November as Military Family Appreciation Month. Together, the two organizations recognize the contributions and sacrifices made every day by military families.

On Aug. 15, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) released accountability ratings for school districts and district charters. Multi-campus districts received an accountability rating using the new A–F scale. On that day, I commended the work taking place in high-performing school districts statewide.

On Aug. 15, the Texas Education Agency released academic accountability ratings for districts, charters and campuses across the state. And for the first time, ratings for school districts and district charters are on an A-F scale.

On Aug. 15, the TEA will issue report cards for our schools. We do this for two main reasons. First, parents should know how well our schools are performing so they can better support their children. Second, educators benefit from having clear information about school performance, highlighting successes and challenges, to help improve support for students over time.

Texas students traditionally perform well on STAAR – this year is no exception. Most students successfully met grade level or achieved higher level performance on all five STAAR end-of-course assessments. The same can be said for students in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 taking STAAR math and reading.

Governor Greg Abbott recently released his comprehensive School and Firearm Safety Action Plan designed to strengthen security on public school campuses across our state.

Since becoming Commissioner, I have worked with staff at the Texas Education Agency to establish four strategic priorities to guide and focus our work on behalf of the more than five million school children in our State. One of those priorities is doing all we can to recruit, support and retain teachers and principals.

In recognizing the courage of military families, Governor Greg Abbott proclaimed April as the Month of the Military Child. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is proud to join Gov. Abbott and the Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC) in spotlighting April as the Month of the Military Child.

Following the recent tragedy in Parkland, Florida, there has been a renewed commitment to safety precautions for students, teachers, administrators and staff on all our campuses. Governor Greg Abbott has ordered immediate action on a number of fronts to be taken by state education leaders – including myself and staff at the Texas Education Agency – to help respond to and prevent such tragedies occurring in our state.