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Austin ISD is collecting feedback as it prepares to evaluate schools for potential closure. The district says it must consolidate schools to address declining enrollment and its roughly $100 million deficit.

The district has been developing turnaround plans for Dobie, Webb and Burnet middle schools, which received failing grades from the Texas Education Agency. The school board has not yet voted on what the plans should be to avoid a state takeover.

His office plans to depose the superintendent and others as part of an investigation into whether the district is using teaching materials linked to the "1619 Project," which was banned in Texas public schools 2021.

The Texas Education Agency released its A-F academic accountability ratings for the first time in two years on Thursday. The agency was blocked from sharing the 2023 results after more than 100 districts sued over the updated criteria for evaluating schools� performance.

The Trump administration is seeking to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. Austin ISD officials say the funding that flows through the agency plays a vital role in supporting the district's most vulnerable students.

A court ruling means Austin ISD has less time to improve the school's ratings and is at greater risk of a takeover. The district could also close Dobie and revamp it or partner with a charter to avoid state intervention.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick attended the signing ceremony in Washington, D.C. Back in Austin, public education advocates said the order is the latest attack on schools.

Pease is one of four elementary schools the Austin ISD school board voted to close after the 2019-20 school year. Austin ISD has been working on plans to repurpose those campuses.

The hiring freeze is set to begin on March 1. It’s one strategy Austin ISD is using to cut spending by $32 million, so the district can end the current fiscal year with a $78 million deficit.

National test scores painted a bleak picture of academic recovery for both Texas and the U.S. following the COVID-19 pandemic. But researchers found that there were positive signs for individual districts.