High School Allotment Program

• Purpose
• Eligibility  
• Performance
• Funding Information
• Laws and Rules
• Resources
• Contacts  

Purpose:

The High School Allotment (HSA) was created by the Texas Legislature in 2006 to:

• prepare underachieving students to enter institutions of higher education
• encourage students to pursue advanced academic opportunities
• provide opportunities for students to take academically rigorous courses
• align secondary and postsecondary curriculum and expectations
• support other promising high school completion and success initiatives in Grades 6-12 approved by the commissioner of education

Eligibility:

Funding amounts are based on the amount of $275 for each student in average daily attendance in grades 9 through 12. Estimated allotment payment reports are available through the School District State Aid Reports.

Allowable Uses of HSA Funds 

Districts may use funds for campus-level or district-wide initiatives for students in grades 6-12. Allowable uses include:

• professional development for teachers providing instruction in advanced academic courses such as Advanced Placement (AP)
• hiring of additional teachers to allow for smaller class sizes in critical content areas
• fees for students taking dual credit classes and ACT/SAT tests
• academic support, such as AVID and AP strategies, to support at-risk students in challenging courses
• credit recovery programs
• activities supporting college readiness and awareness, including transportation for college visits

Please see Commissioner's Rules Concerning High School Allotment for detailed allowable uses of these funds.

Performance

Districts are not required to report on the use of High School Allotment funds; however, TEA’s former Office for Planning, Grants and Evaluation released a report based on first-year uses of the High School Allotment Funds (2006-07 School Year). This report showed:

• The majority of school districts (72%) directed all funds to high school campuses. Those with more than one high school distributed funds based on highest needs.
• Approximately 38% of allowable funds were expended during 2006-07 school year.
• According to campus surveys, the most frequently cited allowable activities supported by allotment funds were:
• Technology for credit recovery (30%)
• Tutoring to help students earn a high school diploma (28%)
• Books/materials for dual/concurrent enrollment courses (25%)  

Funding Information

The Texas Education Agency distributes funds to districts as part of regularly scheduled Foundation School Program payments.

• 2006-2007 school year - $321,739,572  
• 2007-2008 school year - $327,550,940 
• 2008-2009 school year - $328,356,557 
• 2009-2010 school year - $334,148,586 
• 2010-2011 school year - $340,621,665
• 2011-2012 school year - $345,536,321
• 2012-2013 school year - $351,924,050
• 2013-2014 school year - $355,143,698 (preliminary estimate)
• 2014-2015 school year - $361,831,964 (preliminary estimate)

Laws and Rules

• Texas Education Code §39.234
• Texas Education Code §42.160
• Texas Administrative Code Chapter 61. Subchapter II  

Resources

The High School Allotment Guide provides information on the use of the High School Allotment.

TEC §29.918 requires school districts and open-enrollment charter schools with high dropout rates to submit a plan, the Dropout Prevention Strategy Plan, detailing how the district or charter school will use its state compensatory education allotment and high school allotment for developing and implementing research-based strategies for dropout prevention.