Action Required

December 15, 2009

TO THE SUPERINTENDENT ADDRESSED:

Attached is a list of schools identified under the Public Education Grant (PEG) Program, authorized under Texas Education Code, Chapter 29, Subchapter G, §§29.201 - 29.205, and a description of the methodology used to identify the schools on the list. This list, effective for the 2010-11 school year, identifies campuses at which 50 percent or more of the students did not pass TAKS in any two of the preceding three years or were rated Academically Unacceptable in 2007, 2008, or 2009 under the statewide accountability system.

Under the PEG interdistrict transfer provision, a parent of a student enrolled in any of the campuses listed may make application to attend a campus in any other school district for the 2010-11 school year. A school district chosen by a student’s parent under this statute is entitled to accept or reject the application for the student to attend school in that district but may not use criteria that discriminate on the basis of a student’s race, ethnicity, academic achievement, athletic abilities, language proficiency, sex, or socioeconomic status. Alternatively, a district may accept interdistrict transfers under Section 25.036 of the Texas Education Code. Civil Action 5281 may also limit the ability of districts to accept transfer students in circumstances that impede desegregation.

Under the PEG intradistrict transfer provision, a parent of a student enrolled in any of the campuses listed may apply to attend another campus in the same school district for the 2010-11 school year.

Notification of eligibility must be provided by February 1, 2010, to each parent of a student in the district assigned to attend a school on the enclosed 2010-11 PEG list. Statute also stipulates that the notice must contain an explanation of the Public Education Grant Program and how the parent may obtain further information about pursuing a transfer. A Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) document is available to assist districts with this explanation and to instruct parents how to pursue a transfer. The FAQ, along with a copy of this letter and the list of PEG-identified schools, can be found under the “accountability” application on the Texas Education Agency Secure Environment (TEASE) at:

Requirements related to the PEG program concerning the identification criteria, student eligibility, effective dates, notification dates, and funding allotments are summarized below:

Requirement / Explanation
Effective Date of PEG Transfers / 2010-11 school year
Parent Notification Requirement / February 1, 2010
Allotment / For interdistrict transfers, the district educating the child receives an additional weight of 0.1; supplemental funding if costs exceed state aid benefit; limited to net students educated on PEG.
Interdistrict Transfers
(across districts) / These may be refused or accepted by district receiving the transfer request.
Intradistrict Transfers
(within district) / These are explicitly permitted, although no additional funding is allotted for this type of transfer.
Continued Student Eligibility for Interdistrict Transfer / Student eligibility for PEG transfers is based on assignment to attend a PEG campus in the district of residence. Student eligibility expires upon any of the following three conditions:
  • Completion of all grades offered by the campus upon which eligibility was originally based
  • Removal of the campus from the PEG list
  • Assignment of the student to a campus that is not on the PEG list as a result of redrawn attendance boundaries or student movement into a different attendance area
A receiving district is permitted to continue to treat a student as PEG eligible (and draw the PEG funding weight) after expiration of eligibility only if the student has not yet completed all grades on the campus to which the student transferred during the eligibility period.
School Identification Criteria / TAKS passing rate <= 50% in two of the three preceding years (2007, 2008, 2009) OR rated Academically Unacceptable in 2007, 2008, or 2009.
Transfer Restriction / A student may only transfer from a PEG school to a non-PEG school.
Tuition Prohibition / For students who are accepted as transfers under the PEG program, tuition may not be charged to the student’s parents/guardian or to the school district of residence.
Transportation / The school district in which the student resides is not required to provide transportation free of charge from the PEG-listed school to the new school. The district is only responsible for providing the transportation it would otherwise provide (as if the student did not transfer).

Because of the manner in which funding takes place using a weight of 0.1, the worksheet used for calculating state aid can be used to calculate the PEG amount. The district providing educational services to the student will report attendance as it would for any other student. The worksheet, which can be found on the TEA web site under the school finance topic(see includes the PEG funding weight. There are no special accounting requirements or limitations on the use of PEG-related funds. Rules governing access to supplemental funding for districts with property wealth per weighted student above the guaranteed level in TEC §42.302 have been adopted and can be found in 19 TAC §61.1011. Bear in mind that a district is eligible to

receive PEG-weighted funding only to the extent the number of students accepted on the basis of a PEG exceeds the number of resident students who are educated in other districts on a PEG.

Questions concerning the PEG program and the methodology used to identify schools should be directed to the Division of Performance Reporting at (512) 463-9704. Questions regarding the funding implications of the program should be directed to the Division of State Funding at (512) 463-9238.

Contact Information

Texas Education Agency

Assessment, Accountability, and Data Quality, Criss Cloudt, Associate Commissioner

Division of Performance Reporting, Shannon Housson, Director

State Accountability Unit—Standard Procedures, Cathy Long, Manager

State Accountability Unit—AEA Procedures, Nancy Rinehart, Manager

(512) 463-9704

Attachments

Methodology for Identifying Schools on the 2010-11 PEG List

Schools are included on the list if:

1)50 percent or fewer of the students passed:

a)any reading/English language arts, writing, mathematics, science, or social studies test on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), summed across the grades tested at the school

b)in any two of the three years: 2007, 2008, or 2009

[This analysis was based on all students tested; performance of student groups was not examined.]

OR

2)the school was rated Academically Unacceptable in 2007,2008, or 2009.

Notes:

Certain schools are excluded from PEG identification. Types of schools excluded are:

Alternative education campuses that are rated under Alternative Education Accountability (AEA) rating procedures;

Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs (DAEPs);

Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Programs (JJAEPs);

Charter schools;

Texas Youth Commission or Texas Juvenile Probation Commission schools;

Schools with no students tested or fewer than five students tested on TAKS (in all three years examined).

The TAKS results are based on all students tested in grades 3–11 in reading/English language arts, mathematics, writing, science, and social studies, including students tested on Spanish TAKS in grades 3 through 6. The TAKS results are based on campus mobility rules; that is, only students who were enrolled in the campus in late October are included.

The TAKS results for each year use the grades, subjects, and tests evaluated for state accountability that year. So, the 2008 and 2009 results include grade 8 science and selected TAKS (Accommodated) tests. The 2007 results do not include grade 8 science and do not include any TAKS-Inclusive tests that were administered that year.

The Texas Projection Measure (TPM) equations used for 2009 accountability were not applied to the methodology for determining schools on the PEG list.

2007 accountability ratings are determined by evaluating performance on four indicators: TAKS results, the grade 7-8 annual dropout rate, the completion rate I, and the State-Developed Alternative Assessment II (SDAA II). However, in 2007 a School Leaver Provision (SLP) was added, such that the dropout rate and completion rate (either alone or in combination) could not be the cause for a lowered campus or district rating.

2008 accountability ratings are determined by evaluating performance on three indicators: TAKS results, the grade 7-8 annual dropout rate, and the completion rate I. However, in 2008 the SLP remained in effect, such that the dropout rate and completion rate (either alone or in combination) could not be the cause for a lowered campus or district rating.

2009 accountability ratings are determined by evaluating performance on three indicators: TAKS results, the grade 7-8 annual dropout rate, and the completion rate I. In 2009, the SLP was discontinued, meaning dropout and/or completion rates alone could be the cause for a lowered campus or district rating. Also, in 2009 a feature was added to the system that enabled ratings to be elevated based on TPM projections of student improvement on TAKS.

EXPLANATION OF COLUMNS

2009 campuses with 50% or fewer of the students passing any reading/ELA, writing, mathematics,social studies, or science TAKS test in any two of the three years: 2007, 2008, and 2009 or the school was rated Academically Unacceptable in 2007,2008, or 2009

DISTRICT NAME / The district name.
CAMPUS NAME / The most current name of the campus in TEA files.
CAMPUS NUMBER / The nine-digit number used by TEA to uniquely identify each campus in the state.
Identification Years:
YR_2007 / The reason, if any, that the campus was identified for this list based on 2006-07 TAKS results or 2007 accountability ratings. Reason codes are explained below.
YR_2008 / The reason, if any, that the campus was identified for this list based on 2007-08 TAKS results or 2008 accountability ratings. Reason codes are explained below.
YR_2009 / The reason, if any, that the campus was identified for this list based on 2008-09 TAKS results or 2009 accountability ratings. Reason codes are explained below.
Reasons for Identification:
R / The TAKS passing rate in Reading/English Language Arts was 50 percent or below for the tested grades at the campus.
W / The TAKS passing rate in Writing was 50 percent or below for the tested grades at the campus.
M / The TAKS passing rate in Mathematics was 50 percent or below for the tested grades at the campus.
C / The TAKS passing rate in Science was 50 percent or below for the tested grades at the campus.
S / The TAKS passing rate in Social Studies was 50 percent or below for the tested grades at the campus.
AU / The campus was rated Academically Unacceptable.

Texas Education Agency, Department of Assessment, Accountability, and Data Quality

Division of Performance Reporting