Austin, TX— Austin Independent School District (AISD) received notification from Commissioner of Education Robert Scott that the appeals of the state accountability rating for one high school and four middle schools have been granted. In August, Austin ISD appealed ratings for LBJ High School, Garcia Middle School, Mendez Middle School, Burnet Middle School and Bedichek Middle School. All five campuses move from Academically Unacceptable to Academically Acceptable for 2011.

"We are pleased the Texas Education Agency recognized the accomplishments of our students and staff by granting the appeals for all five schools," said Dr. Meria Carstarphen, AISD Superintendent. "Our students and staff have worked so hard and come so far to earn an acceptable rating."

The district asked the state to consider the Exceptions Provision, which provides relief for large campuses serving diverse populations evaluated on additional measures. A request was also made to include the TAKS scores for a group of students with disabilities because some scores were not included due to missing ethnicity codes.

"We felt it was important to have the Texas Education Agency take another look to make sure that these schools receive the best possible outcome," said Bill Cartij, AISD Chief Performance Officer. "Because of the implementation of the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness system, new state ratings will not be issued this year and the ratings remain in effect until 2013."