TEA chief keynote speaker at a conference in Dallas

Dallas - Several North Texas school districts, including Fort Worth and Plano ISD, have joined a growing statewide movement to challenge the Texas Education Agency's new grading system for schools, Dallas Metro News reported.

The districts announced their involvement on Tuesday evening. Previously, Frisco ISD announced filing lawsuit against TEA, followed by Dallas ISD.

Earlier in the day, Texas Education Agency (TEA) Commissioner Mike Morath addressed the Dallas Regional Chamber's 2023 State of Public Education conference. His appearance coincides with ongoing legal action from nearly 60 school districts that are contesting the agency's updated accountability ratings.

Appointed by Governor Greg Abbott in 2015, Morath, a former Dallas ISD trustee, acknowledged that while there has been progress in student learning since the onset of the pandemic, more efforts are needed.

"It is our moral obligation to give children the best chance they can to be successful in this country to make sure the next generation of Texans has it better than the last," said Morath.

During his address, Commissioner Mike Morath touched upon various educational priorities, including career preparedness, curriculum enhancement, teacher work conditions, compensation, and the reporting of school performance metrics.

"It's hard work, nothing about this is easy, but it's the most important work that we do and we've got to do it right, and it starts with high expectations and starts with being honest with ourselves about performance," said Morath to a room full of business leaders and educators.

Although he briefly discussed the grading system used to evaluate schools, Morath did not comment on the ongoing legal disputes surrounding this contentious issue.

"We engage in continuous improvement, we publicly report the A-F scores of our campuses, and as it turns out this is a good idea. It has been studied methodically by researchers and publicly reporting accountability scores and having high expectations in that accountability systems causes children to earn more money when they're in their 20s," said Morath.

While district officials concur that high standards are essential, many have voiced objections to the sudden changes in the grading system. They argue that they were not given sufficient notice to adapt.

Currently, almost 60 school districts are engaged in legal action against the Texas Education Agency. The lawsuit contends that the updated accountability ratings will adversely affect their districts' scores. The agency altered the performance benchmarks in January, a move some educational leaders liken to shifting the goalposts during an ongoing game.

"None of us are saying high standards are not something we should continue to work towards, we are saying we should do that in a way that allows us to meet that target and be successful. Giving someone a test when you know they’re not prepared for it, serves what purpose?” Stephanie Elizalde, Ph.D., superintendent of Dallas ISD to reporters after the event.

Following Commissioner Mike Morath's address, a panel discussion featured Theresa Williams, Ph.D., Superintendent of Plano ISD, and Gerald Hudson, Ph.D., of Cedar Hill ISD. Morath exited shortly after the panel began, but both Williams and Hudson took the opportunity to share their perspectives publicly.

In related news, Governor Greg Abbott announced on Tuesday evening that he plans to convene a special legislative session in October to discuss "school of choice," essentially focusing on the topic of school vouchers. In a tele-town hall meeting with faith leaders across Texas, the governor urged participation in "School Choice Sunday" slated for October 15, according to a press release from his office.

Credit: Dallas Metro News, NBC DFW