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Education
'Panic mode': Austin ISD needs to evaluate 800 students for special ed. It doesn't have the staff to do it.
More than 800 students in the Austin Independent School District are being denied their legal right to a special education evaluation. An evaluation is the first step in the process to get special education services. Without one, there is no…
AISD • By Claire McInerny, KUT • Mar 11, 2021
Austin ISD votes to switch mental health provider
The Austin ISD Board of Trustees has voted unanimously to switch the school district’s campus mental health provider to Gramercy Specialty Clinic. The current partner, Vida Clinic, has begun to transition out. In order to ensure that services continue without disruption, Gramercy…
AISD • By Sumaiya Malik, Reporting Texas • Feb 16, 2021
Austin ISD Board of Trustees postpones vote on real estate consulting services
Four Austin ISD school closures in one year has left parents worried about the district’s renewed interest in seeking real estate consulting services for its properties. Fearing more closures, concerned parents called in to ask for postponement of the vote…
AISD • By Sumaiya Malik, Reporting Texas • Feb 8, 2021
Austin ISD plans to bring a small group of students back to schools in October
Lee esta historia en español. When the Austin Independent School District begins phasing students back into school buildings Oct. 5, it will prioritize special education and lower grade levels within each school as the first to return. At a school…
AISD • By Claire McInerny, KUT • Sep 16, 2020
Here's how to make sure your Austin ISD student has access to a laptop and high-speed internet
Parents, teachers and advocates worry online-only lesson plans could widen the digital divide and exacerbate educational equity issues in the Austin Independent School District. To try to prevent that, the district, which has roughly 81,000 students, is distributing Wi-Fi hotspots,…
AISD • By Andrew Weber, KUT • Aug 24, 2020
Commissioners Court considers allocating additional funding for high-risk youth program
As public education moves from classrooms to screens in students’ homes, families’ need for support from educational institutions has increased. Students from vulnerable populations, in particular, benefit from personalized contact with someone in the Austin Independent School District, according to…
Education • By Jessi Devenyns • Aug 12, 2020
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Austin ISD's school year delayed until Sept. 8, first eight weeks could be online-only
The Austin Independent School District’s Board of Trustees voted to delay the start of classes for the school year until Sept. 8. Virtual classes were supposed to begin Aug. 18, but the board wanted to give teachers more time to…
AISD • By Claire McInerny, KUT • Aug 7, 2020
Council needs federal and state help to stabilize child care industry
Furthering its efforts to shore up the local child care industry, City Council passed three resolutions last week changing the criteria for the city’s Childcare Support Fund. In addition, Council directed City Manager Spencer Cronk to develop recommendations and take action…
Education • By Nina Hernandez • Aug 6, 2020
'This is an issue of health': Teachers union demands Austin ISD offer only online classes in August
The union for Austin Independent School District employees is asking the district and the state not to send employees back to school buildings in August. Union members say it is unsafe for employees and children to be in classes together.…
Education • By Claire McInerny, KUT • Jul 9, 2020
Schools in Travis County are not just segregated. They're the most segregated in the state.
Valerie Sterne has always known anecdotally that schools in Austin are segregated. She used to be a teacher and an administrator with the Austin Independent School District, and saw firsthand that students of color and low-income students were all attending…
Education • By Claire McInerny, KUT • Jul 7, 2020
Austin ISD school board approves $1.6 billion budget, after public calls to defund AISD Police
The Austin Independent School District’s Board of Trustees passed a $1.65 billion budget early Tuesday, taking $47.6 million from the district’s reserve funds to make up for a shortfall partly caused by COVID-19 expenses. The budget also includes 2% raises…
Education • By Claire McInerny, KUT • Jun 23, 2020
AISD officials discuss Covid-19 response
Austin Independent School District officials spoke at an Austin Justice Coalition panel Wednesday night, discussing how the district and its students are coping during the Covid-19 pandemic and the stay-at-home order that has shuttered schools. Speakers included AISD Board of…
