Texas' education board announces pilot program for vulnerable students, campuses
AUSTIN (KXAN) — The State Board of Education, or SBOE, announced a new initiative Wednesday that it said is intended to help out Texas’ most vulnerable students and schools.
The NEXT initiative, as it’s known, is a pilot program that will provide eligible campuses with up to $350,000 over the next two years for tutoring and other supports.
A $3.5 million investment approved by the state legislature will facilitate the use of high quality math and reading curriculum and instructional supports, offering targeted tutoring and community and parent engagement.
“We are going to give the opportunity to the 20 lowest performing campuses in Texas and choose 5 of those to participate in the pilot,” said Staci Childs, SBOE District 4 member.
Childs said the state will implement the program in the elementary schools of districts that failed to meet standards over recent years.
“We will be able to monitor and track the progress of the NEXT program using the STAAR scores, mainly in 3rd through 5th grade,” Childs said. “We wanted to target the students in elementary school before the gaps became more and more pronounced as they matriculate through 12th grade.”
According to the SBOE, the academic support team at each campus will collaborate to support each student’s needs while ensuring access to rigorous, on grade level instruction.
“This is a pilot program, but I have high expectations that we are going to see growth in these students at these campuses,” Childs said.
