Starting next school year, an outside charter school operator will take over Brentwood Middle School in Edgewood Independent School District. <\/p>\n
On Wednesday, the district\u2019s school board voted 5-1 to hand over day-to-day control of Brentwood to Third Future Schools, a nonprofit specialized in turning academically failing campuses around.<\/p>\n
Brentwood has gotten a failing rating from the state three years in a row and district leaders worry the school would get another \u201cunacceptable\u201d grade this year, which could prompt a state intervention. Edgewood ISD, has four other campuses which have also gotten failing ratings three years in a row.<\/p>\n
Trustee Micheal Valdez, the board\u2019s youngest and usually most outspoken member, was the lone vote against the move, and Trustee Rudy Lopez was not in attendance.<\/p>\n
Valdez said he voted against the measure because he didn\u2019t think the process was transparent, but Superintendent Eduardo Hern\u00e1ndez said the district has met with families enrolled at failing campuses several times to discuss the state\u2019s grading system.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not shying away from accepting accountability,\u201d Hern\u00e1ndez said.<\/p>\n
At Brentwood specifically, only 28% of students who took the STAAR test scored on grade level or above in reading and 21% scored on grade level or above in math.<\/p>\n
Third Future\u2019s task will be to accelerate growth in reading and math scores within three years by partnering with Edgewood under what\u2019s called an 1882 contract. These 1882 partnerships are considered a lucrative deal<\/a> for districts because they pull down thousands of dollars in additional state funds for campuses.<\/p>\n The charter will also take over three San Antonio ISD campuses<\/a> staring next school year. On Monday, SAISD\u2019s board approved a similar contract which handed over operations at three failing schools over to Third Future: Hirsch Elementary, Ogden Elementary and Tafolla Middle School.<\/p>\n Third Future Schools<\/a>\u00a0was founded in 2016 by Mike Miles, who a few years ago was appointed by the state to lead Houston ISD after the district was taken over by the Texas Education Agency. It\u2019s also the only TEA-approved partner to implement turnaround models at failing schools in Texas and has a presence in Colorado and Louisiana.<\/p>\n The charter currently operates campuses in Austin ISD, Wichita Falls ISD, Manor ISD and Midland ISD. <\/p>\n Parents and community members at both districts in San Antonio have pushed back against the decision to allow Third Future to take over citing concerns about the charter\u2019s stricter model and history of financial mismanagement in Colorado<\/a>.<\/p>\n Families are mostly concerned with fewer elective options, from fine arts offerings to competitive sports. Zach Craddock, Third Future\u2019s superintendent, has said that electives would follow student demand and the schools offer after-school extracurriculars too. <\/p>\n