Hello Friends,
I hope everyone is well and enjoyed their Spring Break!
This week was Athletic Trainers Appreciation, Skilled Trades Appreciation, and Austin ISD Pride Week! Plus, we also celebrated our teachers! Check out the Teacher of the Year Finalists below.
Reminder...this Monday, March 31 is a student and staff holiday in observance of César Chavez and Dolores Huerta Day!
Let’s get started….
We’re deeply engaged with budget planning for the year, with a June deadline to approve our 2025-26 school year budget and important work underway. Thank you to all in our community who are engaging with this process.
In this Board Bulletin, we’ll dive into some budget recommendations and strategies presented to the board during its March Regular Voting Meeting.
Let’s get to it…
The meeting included two budget-focused presentations: The Gibson Cost Savings Audit and a general Budget Update.
School consolidations were a major topic during both conversations about closing the district’s $100M+ budget deficit.
The district currently has more than 95,000 seats for students, however, nearly 25,500 of those are empty. Consolidating schools could potentially save tens of millions of dollars over time, according to the Gibson Audit, which named consolidations its top cost-savings opportunity.
Trustees shared questions about the assumptions made in the audit and the scale of the potential savings as we consider consolidations as one way to reduce our costs.
As we face increasing costs and decreasing funds, budget conversations are increasingly focused on minimizing cuts that will impact the student experience (i.e. cutting programs, services, teacher planning time, etc.) and planning for difficult decisions about operating with fewer, more well-resourced schools to help protect our quality of education.
The administration will move forward with robust community engagement, including developing a process and tool to assess which campuses may be candidates for consolidations and the values that will drive those decisions.
Superintendent Matias Segura said the goal would be to identify campuses affected by Fall 2025, with consolidations happening for the 2026-27 school year.
Last month we shared some administrative ways to cut spending, including a hiring freeze starting March 1 and spending restrictions.
With these strategies now in place, we’re seeing a significant drop in spending year-over-year.
Spending restrictions will remain in place through the end of the fiscal year, ending June 30. Thank you to all of our staff for coming together to support this difficult and important work.
The Gibson Audit, which began in August 2025, reviewed spending practices and outlined up to $63.1 million in potential cost savings opportunities.
Other than school consolidations, other opportunities include eliminating portables, optimizing master scheduling and reducing senior management from Central Office. We’ll take a deeper dive into the audit next week.
The likely savings are less than the maximums identified by the audit, but the information shared is an important tool to inform our work.
Trustees also got an update on the 2022 Bond, which includes 25 campus modernizations, security improvements and athletics projects.
There are currently 36 active campus architectural teams working to develop tailored plans for each school community.
15 campuses will start construction this spring and construction is underway at 13 campuses.
The Odom Elementary School community will celebrate the ribbon cutting of its open concept modernization in April, marking the completion of the first major 2022 Bond project.
Find out more about the construction timelines for 2022 Bond projects on our website.
What’s next: We’ll be back April 10 for our Board Information Session.
Every year, four exceptional educators are honored as finalists for the Austin ISD Teacher of the Year award. This week, district leaders surprised each finalist, announcing their recognition in their classrooms with their students and colleagues.
Why it matters: These teachers embody what it means to create positive learning environments that support the development of their students, both academically and emotionally.
Meet the Finalists:
Jessica Collins is a Reading and Math Interventionist Teacher at Langford Elementary School and is known for her nurturing teaching philosophy. She has been a dedicated educator at Langford for 12 years.
Pooja Mulgaonker is a Special Education teacher at Kiker Elementary School where she has served the community for 20 years. Her innovative work in the early childhood special education program and her efforts to build inclusive environments have made a lasting impact on her students.
Jan Loewe is a Math teacher at O. Henry Middle School. A mentor for new teachers and an advocate for student success, Loewe’s passion for teaching has left a mark on her students and colleagues alike. Jan has taught in Austin ISD for 18 years.
David Bellesen is a Career and Technical Education Audio Visual Technology Communications teacher at Travis Early College High School for 21 years. His focus on engaging his students in practical, career-oriented learning continues to inspire the next generation of filmmakers.
What’s Next: The winners of the Austin ISD Teacher of the Year awards will be announced at the Salute event May 7 at the Austin ISD Performing Arts Center. From these four finalists, one elementary and one secondary teacher will be selected to represent the district in the Regional Teacher of the Year selection process.
Austin ISD’s very own Darien Clary has been recognized with the School District Champion Award. Clary, who serves as the district’s sustainability director, since 2016 to bring sustainable practices to the district, including the introduction of composting at schools and expanding the solar panel program.
Why it matters: As an organization with a large footprint in Central Texas, it's essential for Austin ISD to be intentional in how students, staff and schools can impact the environment.
The district made a commitment to sustainability with the adoption of a 2010 Resolution and a 2011 Sustainability Policy. Since the 2004 bond, all new schools and major renovations have complied to green building standards.
What they’re saying: “I am deeply grateful to receive this award,” said Clary. “To me, sustainability is about imagining a future where people and our environment thrive together and then taking action to get there. This award is a hopeful reminder that all of us can have a meaningful impact in shaping a healthy, safe, equitable, and sustainable future. We can do this.”
This year’s awards were given at a two-day event at the 2025 Green Schools Conference in Orlando in collaboration with the Green Schools National Network.
Dig deeper…with the full press release.
Support your locals schools by donating to the Austin Ed Fund. Donate by April 4 to be entered to win prizes!
Women's History Month - March 1-31
Eid al-Fitr - March 30 - March 31
Student and Staff Holiday - César Chavez and Dolores Huerta Day - March 31
Arab American Heritage Month - April 1-30
Early Learning Day - April 1 - 4
Akins Early College High School Trustee Conversation - April 1
Ad Hoc Joint Community Budget Committee - April 2
Northeast Early College High School Trustee Conversation - April 3
School Librarian Appreciation Week - April 4-11
Assistant Principal Appreciation Week - April 4-11
Transition Planning: Elementary through High School - April 5
For more calendar events visit Austin ISD Calendar of Events.
Join Austin ISD Elementary Campuses for Early Learning Days, April 1-4, 2025! We are also hosting a Virtual Pre-K Enrollment Clinic on Thursday, April 3, from 5 - 8 p.m. Families can join via Zoom, and our Enrollment Support team will be available to help with questions and troubleshooting: bit.ly/PreKEnrollClinic. Contact your campus, take a tour, and learn from campus leaders, educators, and staff so you're ready to enroll!
Austin ISD considering school consolidations for cost savings, official vote December 2025 - Community Impact
Happening this weekend is the 31st Rosedale Ride, which benefits our students at the Rosedale School and the 24th Annual Sí Se Puede Cesar Chavez March.
Be sure to check out our latest groundbreaking ceremonies from LBJ Early College High School and Langford Elementary on our social media! We’ll also be livestreaming the ribbon cutting of Odom Elementary School next week so keep an eye on our Facebook next Thursday.
Have a great weekend!
-JJ
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For questions or comments you may email me at jorge.maldonado@austinisd.org
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