Hello families!
We’re officially hours away from Winter Break! From all of us at Austin ISD, we wish you a happy and safe holiday during the break.
Reminder: Winter Break is Dec. 23 – Jan. 3. Students are off Jan. 6 for a Campus Staff Development and will return to school Tuesday, Jan. 7. We look forward to welcoming them back in the new year!
It's officially nomination season! Think Oscars but for Austin ISD staff! Nominations are now open for Austin ISD’s annual Salute Awards. This event honors outstanding staff members who demonstrate unwavering dedication to student success and achievement across our district!
Now, let's get started with this edition…
Budget cuts can be scary! No need to panic. The district has a plan to save without making major impacts to operations and learning.
First, the cuts won’t happen all at once. Phew! There’s a plan in place to reduce the budget deficit over the next three years.
How is the district going to cut the budget by $92 million over the next three years you ask?
Well, it’s looking at several options including vacancies, finding operational efficiencies, and ensuring we are getting all the dollars we deserve for the services we provide to students.
Let’s review some of those options together!
Transportation: Over the next several months the district would like to rethink how it provides transportation to some of our magnet or application-based schools.
How could this save the district money?
The intent is not to cut transportation all-together but to explore streamlining routes, transportation hubs or reduced bus stops. This will save the district money on bus maintenance, fuel and staffing.
Master Scheduling: This would look at how our class schedules are built districtwide, ensuring we are making the most of the staff we have at each campus.
How could this save the district money?
Building a master schedule is like a puzzle that can be solved multiple ways — but some of the solutions are more streamlined and efficient. Consolidating where appropriate while also ensuring equitable distribution of resources can result in huge savings across. Note, we are not considering reducing teacher planning time or changing staffing formulas.
PEIMS Reform: Public Education Information Management System houses all data requested and received by the Texas Education Agency on public education, including student demographics and academic performance, personnel and financial information. This includes attendance, and any additional information that may impact funding, such as weights for special education and emergent bilingual students.
How will this affect the budget?
Accurately reporting student attendance and the services we provide ensures we receive every dollar our students deserve. Without strong systems in place to validate our data, we could be leaving money on the table.
Portable Reduction Strategy: Austin ISD operates the square footage of nearly two large high schools in portable buildings. Many are over 50 years old, are in poor condition and aren’t even needed by the campuses where they’re located.
How will this save the district money?
The cost to operate portables is not cheap. They’re exposed to the weather elements on all sides and aren’t even worth as much as they’d cost to remove. While it would take an initial investment to get rid of the ones we don’t need, over time we’d realize significant savings on utilities, maintenance and custodial costs.
I hope this helps serve as a guide on how the district is looking to save money and reduce its deficit. You can also learn more about the district’s budget reduction plan on the Austin ISD website.
We recognize many families rely on Austin ISD to access to healthy meals and other services. Thankfully we have several partners who are here to support our community while we’re on break:
Don't hesitate to reach out and ensure your family has what they need over the Winter Break.
Austin ISD trustees approved the calendars for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 school years during its Regular Voting Meeting Dec. 19.
The final calendar version for both school years were developed by the Calendar Task Force and include faith based and cultural observances and staff development days:
For the 2025-26 school year, the first day of class for students will be Aug. 19 and the last day of class will be May 28, 2026.
For the 2026-27 school year, the first day of class for students will be Aug. 18 and the last day of class will be May 27, 2027.
The total number of student instructional days is 169.
Background
The District Calendar Task Force is composed of 30 members ranging from campus staff, parents, central office departments and district leadership.
Five versions of the 2025-26 and 2026-27 calendars were created. The Task Force reviewed and approved two versions, which were then presented to the District Advisory Council and school principals for feedback and voting. Draft A for both calendars was selected as the final draft and submitted to the board for approval.
Don't panic! Our good friend Nayeli will return to our Family Newsletter in the new year. She's taking some well-deserved time off to be with her family.
This year I'll be traveling West to visit family for the holidays! I'll be in California where I'm told it's been cold and foggy! Wish me luck. Where are y'all headed? Anyone going out of the country? Wherever you decide to spend your winter break I want to send y'all positive thoughts and good health as we bid 2024 farewell!
Have a great weekend and If I don’t see you, happy holidays and see you next year!
-JJ
For questions or comments please email me at jorge.maldonado@austinisd.org.
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