Hello friends,

It’s been a busy week at Austin ISD. Be sure to keep up with the latest district news from the Teacher Incentive Allotment to the latest happenings at the board meetings with the Board Bulletin. 

ConnectFest is next Saturday, March 8 at Mendez Middle School. Volunteers are needed! If you’re interested in volunteering, please sign up through the ConnectFest website. 

A round of applause! Brad Carr was awarded with a Golden Rave this week by Superintendent Sugura. This week we celebrated Food Service and Warehouse Workers Appreciation Week. Congratulations, Brad, and thank you to all of our Food Service and Warehouse Workers for the work you do! 

Now, let's get started!

Another week, another Austin ISD board meeting. We’re back this week with the latest actions of the Board of Trustees at its February Regular Voting Meeting. 

This month, the board held a public hearing on the Texas Academic Performance Reports and inked a big deal with a local partner.

• First up, the Texas Academic Performance Reports, or TAPR. 

  • Each district receives this annual report that outlines demographics and academic performance. The data lags by one year, so the latest TAPR covers the 2023-24 school year. For college readiness, the data is focused on the 2022-23 school year. 

  • Some highlights of the report include the district’s graduation rate and college, career and military readiness rates, both outpacing regional and state peers. 

  • The CCMR rates, in particular, have Austin ISD students performing at significantly higher than the state and region with 70% of students showing college, career and military readiness. That’s compared to 48% at the state level and 57% regionally.

  • Additionally, these trends are mirrored in nearly every student group, including economically disadvantaged, African-American, Hispanic, Emergent Bilingual and Special Education students.

  • That data is backed by our tracking of Class of 2022 graduates, which shows 60% of those who enrolled in a Texas four-year public university in the year following high school graduation earned a GPA of 3.0 or better.

Go deeper...head over to our website for the full details.

Austin ISD is proud to announce the formation of a Girls Flag Football League, which will begin competitive play this Spring 2025, with support from the Dallas Cowboys organization. 

The details: Each Austin ISD high school will form a team to participate in the league. 

• Over the last nine months, Austin ISD and the Dallas Cowboys have partnered to form varsity-level 7-on-7 programs which will play competitively in the Spring. 

• Austin ISD is one of 11 districts to pair with the Cowboys, with a championship tournament taking place in May at Ford Center in Frisco. 

What they’re saying: “The life lessons and values these young ladies will learn from the game of football extend well beyond touchdowns and teamwork,” said Dallas Cowboys Co-Owner and Chief Brand Officer Charlotte Jones. “We are also thrilled that with girls’ flag football becoming an emerging sport at the collegiate level, the game can now provide these young women a path to continuing their education at a higher level as well.”

Each school district participating in the Dallas Cowboys High School Girls Flag Football Regional Leagues received grant funds to assist with coaching stipends and other start-up costs, team uniforms, equipment packages from USA Football, coaching education and general support from NFL FLAG.

Austin ISD celebrated its most promising educators at the Teacher of Promise Breakfast. These incredible teachers are just beginning their careers, but their impact will be felt for generations to come. The event celebrated 105 Teachers of Promise across all grade levels. 

Support the Austin Ed Fund March 5-6 during Amplify Austin! Learn more about that Ed Fund at austinedfund.org.

National African American Heritage Month - Feb. 1 to Feb. 28

Women's History Month- March 1 to 31

Destination… Life: Transition Conference- March 1

Austin ISD Educational Diagnostician Appreciation Week- March 3- 7

Parent Support Specialist Appreciation Week- March 3-7

School Social Worker Appreciation Week- March 3-7

Special Education Family Advisory Committee- March 3

Equity Advisory Committee (EAC) Meeting- March 4

Austin High School Vertical Team Trustee Conversation- March 4

Family Empower Hour: Social Emotional Learning- March 5

Navarro Early College High School Vertical Team Trustee Conversation- March 5

Family Empower Hour: Social Emotional Learning- March 5

Tools for Success/Why Does My Teenager Do That? The Science Behind the Adolescent Brain- March 6

For more events, please visit the Calendar of Events website.

Applications are open for 2025-26 Tuition-based Early Bird Enrollment.

Austin ISD joins state program to boost salaries for top-performing teachers- CBS Austin

Austin ISD eyes $1.5M YMCA lease to tackle budget shortfall- KVUE

Austin ISD teachers on the path to higher salaries through state program- Community Impact

Pease Elementary to reopen as a child care center, bringing kids back to the historic Austin school- KUT

Don’t forget…This Saturday, March 1 the district is participating in the Destination Life Regional Transition Fair and Conference! Families may RSVP to attend. The Conference helps Central Texas families prepare and support their student(s) with disabilities for life beyond high school.

Take care and have a great weekend!

-JJ

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For questions or comments you may email me at jorge.maldonado@austinisd.org

For languages other than English and Spanish, we use an AI-powered translation tool. As a result, there may be some contextual inaccuracies or other errors. We apologize for this. Please email translation@austinisd.org if you are in need of clarification. To change your preferred correspondence language, contact your school's front office. 

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