KXXV-TV News Channel 25 - Central Texas News and Weather for Waco, Temple, Killeen | Jailed students ruin Waco HS TEA rating: Appeals to be submitted

Jailed students ruin Waco HS TEA rating: Appeals to be submitted

by John Cuoco

WACO- Schools across the state got their accountability ratings based on TAKS results Friday.

Once again, Waco ISD and Waco High are academically unacceptable, but the district said, the Texas Education Agency made mistakes.

Waco ISD said they are going to appeal those ratings. Both the district and high school were found unacceptable for two different reasons.

"It basically boils down to that these ratings are clerical errors," Waco ISD Assistant Superintendent Curriculum and Instruction Jennifer Womack said.

For the high school, its rating was partly ruined because of students behind bars.

Its initial rating was ruled "academically unacceptable" because of completion rate. 

The school identified nine students that it believes should not have been counted as non-completers, six of which were students currently incarcerated who couldn't actually attend normal student activities, like going to class or taking tests.

"It's always upsetting when students are in jail period and that has a domino effect, one of the implications is ratings, but there are many others, like students not getting educated," Womack added.

The district said these students shouldn't bring down the whole high school, which they added made drastic improvements this year.

"They have had tremendous academic gains especially over the past two years and they have worked hard for those academic gains," Womack explained.

News Channel 25 was told a letter of appeal and supporting documentation has already been prepared and will be hopefully be mailed to the Commissioner of Education. Officials are confident the appeal will be granted.

Waco ISD was ruled unacceptable because of a dropout rate for 7th and 8th graders in the white sub-group.

The district will also appeal this ruling saying the seven students qualified as dropouts should not apply because of other clerical errors.

Texas Education Agency Accountability Ratings