Austin ISD - Announcement: Special Education Evaluations Backlog: No More

Press release from Austin ISD - Announcement:

June 30, 2021

By Eddie Villa

The backlog of special education evaluations in Austin ISD is due to be cleared by the district’s promised deadline of July 1.

Driving the news:  In April, the district announced a reorganization of its special education department after years of students facing low academic achievement, Texas Education Agency complaints, a months-long backlog of evaluations and a high teacher turnover rate due to a toxic working environment.

Getting to zero: The reorganization included hiring Dr. Theresa Arocha-Gill as the new Executive Director of Special Education, a new tracking system for evaluations, and the staff getting to know each and every student as an individual and not just a case number.

Deeper dive: Around 140 evaluations were dismissed through a system that checked them for accuracy. For example, it showed many families never requested an evaluation, had duplicate names in the system, or had withdrawn and revoked the request for an evaluation.

Moving forward: The special education reorganization is 90% complete, and the department looks to enter the school year with no backlog and a clean slate. 

Families can soon expect a survey about their evaluation process and how the district can improve.

The Austin ISD Chief Academic Officer announced in April that families would see higher quality special education services as soon as July 1.

This press release was produced by Austin ISD - Announcement. The views expressed here are the author’s own.