HOUSTON — Houston ISD's newly appointed Superintendent Mike Miles will be tying teachers' pay at least partly to their students' academic performance as a part of a draft plan titled "Destination 2035."
Currently, teacher pay is based on how many years they've been in the district. Moving forward, teachers will be judged in four areas, including student achievement, how teachers do during "spot observations," student surveys and whether or not schools are reaching their goals.
The new teacher pay system would go into effect for the 2024-25 school year. The plan would not apply to schools in the "New Education System."
This comes after the Texas Education Agency took over the district citing schools not performing up to state standards for multiple years. The state agency appointed Miles as superintendent in early June, along with a board of managers that took over the responsibilities of the district's elected board of trustees.
Following the takeover, the district identified 28 schools that will take part in its NES program. Teachers at those designated NES schools were required to reapply for their positions or were offered a different position within the district, according to HISD. In July, the district announced 57 of its schools had opted into the NES program.
“I was pleasantly surprised when several principals embraced whole school systemic reform early and asked to be included in the New Education System,” said Miles. “I am overwhelmingly proud that this many HISD school leaders are ready to take bold action to improve outcomes for all students and eradicate the persistent achievement and opportunity gaps in our district.”
At the time, Houston Federation of Teachers President Jackie Anderson told KHOU 11 she's heard from administrators at some of these schools that they felt as though their hands were tied.
"It's like the lesser of two evils," she said. "They think that they're going to get more support by joining the NES model. And you shouldn't have to join an NES model for your school to be supported."