TEA’s Latest Decision Significantly Increases Austin ISD’s Risk of State Takeover
ALERT: TEA rejected AISD's campus partnership plan on May 28, significantly increasing Austin's risk of TEA takeover
THE SITUATION: The state is threatening to take over Austin public schools
Under certain circumstances, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has the power to remove a superintendent and install one of their choosing — and to remove locally elected school boards and replace them with state-appointed managers. On May 28, 2026, the TEA rejected AISD's 1882 partnership plan with TCIS. If AISD cannot partner with TCIS to support Burnet, Dobie, & Webb middle schools, and any of them receive a fifth failing grade on the STAAR, then the remaining options are to close the schools or have the TEA intervene. Thus this latest TEA decision narrows the options, making a takeover more likely than before.
Think: check, but not checkmate. Our neighbors in Fort Worth ISD and Houston ISD know this road well. Advocates warn the TEA may announce a takeover as early as August 2026 (once the accountability/STAAR scores are publicized) — which means this summer matters.
A TEA takeover means an unelected state board of managers — not your school board, not your community — makes decisions about your child's school. State takeovers remove local control, silence parent and educator voices, and have a documented track record of harm to the very communities they claim to help. And critically: they don't work. In no instance has a taken-over school district actually improved.
What happened in Houston ISD after TEA takeover:
School libraries closed across the district
Curriculum was replaced with scripted, one-size-fits-all instruction
Teachers who varied from the script to meet children's needs were sent to "teacher jail" — a windowless room far from their school where they were required to clock in and given nothing to do until they agreed to comply or resigned
Community accountability was replaced with compliance systems
HISD lost over 40% of its teaching force in a single year following the takeover
More than 13,000 students have left HISD since the 2023 state takeover, with annual losses growing year over year
Learn more about TEA Takeovers:
ProPublica — Texas school takeovers expand, following Houston ISD pattern (published June 3, 2026 — directly covers AISD)
Military Occupation of Austin ISD — Dan Dawer, May 29, 2026 with Education X Podcast
Inside a TEA Takeover with Noelita Lugo, Amy Moore, & Sharyn Vane in collaboration with ACPTA
AISD TEA Takeover Timeline — made by ATX116 in collaboration with ATX4PublicEd
SET YOURSELF UP FOR SUCCESS
Advocacy is a marathon, not a sprint — and you don't have to do it alone. To increase capacity, we need to increase structure and support.
Pace yourself. Advocates are notorious for sprinting when this is actually marathon work. One meaningful action per week is more effective than ten things in one day followed by burnout.
Find a buddy. You're not alone, and we go further together. Connect with someone who wants to do this work alongside you — keep each other motivated and accountable. Need a buddy? Or want a buddy that is outside of your zip code? Reach out to Heather & Jessie.
Plug into a group. Pick one from the RESOURCES section below and show up consistently and in community.
STATE-LEVEL FRAMING
Connect with families outside your zip code and across Texas to educate and elevate as many voices as possible. This is not an "Austin issue." Teacher cuts, budget shortfalls, and TEA takeover threats are a pattern playing out statewide.
When you contact your state legislators, here's the ask: increase funding and decrease control. We need at least a $1,800 increase in the basic allotment just to keep pace with inflation since 2019. And we need to end the conditions that attach so many compliance strings to available funding that districts spend more energy on paperwork than on kids. We’ll say it again: takeovers do not work; we strongly oppose them.
All state leaders need to hear from as many voices as possible — especially from rural communities where the same pressures are being felt.
Find your representative and send a message about school funding and local control. Include a voice from another district for a dual perspective.
RESOURCES
Plug into an advocacy or parent group:
ATX116.org — For our new friends, we are a community advocacy rooted in all 116 AISD campuses. We deliberately bridge East and West Austin school communities — and we believe that cross-neighborhood organizing model is rare and valuable.
TAKE ACTION
Help get Gina in the office. Gina Hinojosa is an austin-area politician running for Governor in 2026. She has promised to fire the current TEA Commissioner, Mike Morath, pause the state accountability ratings for schools, and make Texas teachers among some of the highest paid in the country. Click here or text “schools" to 80191 to join Team Texas Public Schools and be part of her campaign’s conversation on how we defend, strengthen, and invest in Texas public schools.
Contact your state legislators. Find your reps here in under a minute. Here is a script if you want to use it. When you call, demand four things:
Oppose TEA takeovers and removal of locally elected school boards.
Increase the basic allotment to (at minimum) keep pace with inflation (approximately meaning an increase of at least $1800 per student).
Fund schools based on enrollment, not attendance.
Remove the strings attached to the funding you do provide, and fund the mandates the state places on districts. (ex. special needs evaluations (including for kids that attend private, charter, or home school), school safety officers, etc.) You cannot require compliance and withhold the resources to achieve it.
Address the recapture formula Austin shouldn't send over $700 million to the state while running a deficit.
Include a voice from another district for a dual perspective to show this is a state-level issue.
Come to the Austin ISD Board Meeting on June 18th. Public comment is one of the most powerful tools community members have. Your voice on the record matters.
To sign up for public comment, call 512-414-0130:
• Wednesday, (6/17) 9:00 AM–5:00 PM
• Thursday, (6/18) 7:45 AM–1:00 PM
Share this newsletter. Forward it to neighbors, fellow parents, and community members. The more people who understand what's at stake, the stronger our collective voice becomes.
Connect with ATX116. We're building community power across all 116 AISD campuses. Sign up to stay informed and get involved. Connect with ATX116 by sending us a note at hello@atx116.org or signing up for our newsletter on our website. Sustained, collective advocacy matters. If you’re not plugged into a local group yet, reach out — we are happy to help connect you. Here is another resource we created to support local and state-level connection: https://www.atx116.org/community-resources
