Austin Independent School District Research Articles

Seeking shade equity: Tree canopy coverage in public schools in Austin, TX.

Tree canopies have dermatologic and environmental benefits, especially on school campuses. However, inequities likely exist, and tree planting initiatives may further exacerbate disparities. We sought to identify any relationship between tree canopy shade on public school campuses in Austin, TX and the socioeconomic makeup of the student population, as well as whether current initiatives appropriately address any inequities. In this cross-sectional study, we used ArcGIS, a publicly available geographic information system (GIS), to calculate the percentage of tree canopy on campuses within the Austin Independent School District (AISD) for the years 2006 and 2022. We compared this with the percentage of students eligible for free and reduced meals (FRM) at each school. The percentages of FRM-eligible students were also compared for "low priority" versus "high priority" neighborhoods, as assigned by Austin's Tree Priority Map. Among 112 schools analyzed, schools with minority FRM-eligible students had significantly more tree canopy compared to schools with majority FRM-eligible students (19.9% vs. 12.4%, p < .001). When comparing tree priorities, there was a significant difference between the percentage of FRM-eligible students in "low priority" schools compared to "high priority" schools (23.8% vs. 62.2%, p < .001). Additional work is needed to rectify inequities in tree canopy access for public school students. Designations such as those used in Austin's Tree Priority Map would likely help direct such efforts. We hope this study encourages future research with GIS by both dermatologists and other health care professionals to promote interdisciplinary work with urban planners.

Addressing the shortage of African American male teachers in minority-serving school districts with innovative partnerships

PurposeThe paper discusses a partnership between Huston–Tillotson University (HT), a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) and the Austin Independent School District (AISD), a minority-serving school district, both in Austin, Texas, with a grant provided by Apple Inc. (Apple). The purpose of the partnerships is that valuable relationships can increase the number of African American male teachers in primary and secondary education in minority-serving public schools. The African American Male Teacher Initiative (AAMTI) at HT was created as an innovative approach to recruit and select 20 African American males each year of a four-year grant provided by Apple.Design/methodology/approachThis paper reviewed the literature on the lack and need for African American male public school teachers. Once the data is established during a three-to-four-year period, a mixed-method approach will be utilized to examine data retrieved from interviews, surveys, demographics of student participants, numerical data and retention and graduation rates. This will establish whether strategic partnerships can successfully increase the number of qualified African American males in public education.FindingsThis paper proposes and provides research evidence that African American male teachers can positively impact all students in the classroom setting.Research limitations/implicationsThere is limited data to test a hypothesis on the effectiveness of a partnership between the university and public school to increase the number of African American male teachers through recruitment – selection and retention efforts. Therefore, follow-up research is needed for the first graduating class of 2024.Practical implicationsThe broader impact of this paper is to show that partnerships between universities and public schools with corporate sponsorship can positively increase the number of African American male teachers prepared to teach in public schools through strategic recruitment and selection efforts.Social implicationsThis paper can serve as a model for universities and school districts to implement. High placement of prepared Black male teachers in public schools can reduce the school-to-prison pipeline and juvenile homicides and defeat generational poverty.Originality/valueMuch research highlights the problems associated with a lack of African American male teachers. This paper includes the challenges but offers a sound basis for practical solutions.

TARDIGRADES IN TEXAS: FIFTH GRADERS COLLABORATE TO ADD THREE NEW RECORDS TO THE STATE

Abstract Tardigrades, or water bears, are resilient microscopic animals found in terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Because tardigrades can be easily found and yet are understudied, fifth graders from Hill Elementary in the Austin Independent School District in Texas collaborated with their teacher and an expert to conduct a biodiversity survey of microscopic animals found in lichens and mosses on their school campus. These ten-year-olds learned to differentiate between tardigrades, rotifers, and nematodes as they collected samples from different habitats. In their first year of study, they observed 520 microscopic animals and found differences in their diversity and distribution patterns. A second study of 14 samples revealed 68 tardigrades from eight identified species, representing two classes, four orders, and five genera. Three of these species have never been recorded from the state of Texas and represent the first records for the state: Viridiscus perviridis (Ramazzotti, 1959), Milnesium cf. alpigenum (Ehrenberg, 1853), and Milnesium cf. brachyungue (Binda &amp; Pilato, 1990). Furthermore, Mil. alpigenum and Mil. brachyungue were previously unknown in North America, thus representing the first records for both species on the continent. This experience demonstrates that students challenged with basic research questions can learn to conduct field research, carry out scientific surveys, collaborate with scientists and discover new knowledge. In this case, students learned to find tardigrades and contributed to our overall understanding of this phylum.

Neighborhood outdoor play of White and Non-White Hispanic children: Cultural differences and environmental disparities

A continued decrease in outdoor play time among children has contributed to the decline in their overall physical activity levels. Creating safe and supportive neighborhood environments for outdoor play can help promote physical activity especially among children lacking private play areas. Further, children from different cultural backgrounds may be influenced by different factors when deciding if or where to play. This paper examines differences in outdoor play patterns and locations, and their correlates between Hispanic and non-Hispanic White children.A total of 3449 elementary school students (69.3% Hispanic) were recruited in 2010 from 20 schools in the Austin Independent School District, Texas. Using the data collected from their parental survey, two multivariable linear regression models were estimated to identify correlates of outdoor play time for each ethnic group.Hispanic children used fewer types of places to play outdoors but for more minutes/weekday. A high residential density appeared as a facilitator among White children, while a connected street pattern (more intersections/crossings) functioned as a barrier among Hispanic children. Neighborhood safety, destinations, and land uses were important in both ethnic groups, but differences were found in the specific associations.Findings suggest that intervention strategies to promote outdoor play should respond to the specific needs, preferences, and external constraints of children from different cultural backgrounds. The strategies should also be tailored to provide safer places for Hispanic children. This proposes public participation from diverse ethnic groups in processes of planning and infrastructure decision-making to reflect different preferences and achieve equitable access to health-supportive resources.

Epinephrine use in Austin Independent School District after implementation of unassigned epinephrine

Epinephrine use in Austin Independent School District after implementation of unassigned epinephrine

Empowering Identity Through Art: Bilingual Co-Teaching at the Blanton Museum of Art

ABSTRACTThe Bilingual Co-teaching program at the Blanton Museum of Art offers bilingual gallery experiences for K–12 students and supports the efforts of Austin Independent School District (AISD) to promote dual language learning in the classroom and beyond. Tours in both Spanish and English are co-facilitated with undergraduate Bilingual Bicultural Education students from the University of Texas at Austin’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction, as well as graduate teaching fellows from the Department of Art and Art History. Through these bilingual gallery lessons, students express themselves in either language and develop vocabulary in their dominant and secondary languages, which allows for deeper comprehension and participation. The Blanton’s bilingual gallery lessons affirm students’ use of Spanish in the museum and honors different languages. The inclusive model of bilingual co-teaching allows facilitators and students to co-construct the experience and illustrates how museums can be integral to student learning within the community and for a school district.

Epinephrine Use in Austin Independent School District (AISD) Schools After Implementation of Unassigned Epinephrine

Epinephrine Use in Austin Independent School District (AISD) Schools After Implementation of Unassigned Epinephrine

Planning for Safe Schools

This study explores the impacts of school siting and surrounding built environments on rates of motorist and pedestrian crashes around public schools in the Austin Independent School District, Texas, by using log-linear regressions. The results show that a higher sidewalk coverage and a higher percentage of local roads reduce pedestrian crashes around schools, while higher percentages of highways and commercial uses and higher transit stop densities increase motorist and pedestrian crashes. It is desirable to locate schools in areas with higher percentages of local roads and lower percentages of highways and commercial uses.

Performance pay, test scores, and student learning objectives

Austin Independent School District's (AISD) REACH pay for performance program has become a national model for compensation reform. This study analyzes the test scores of students enrolled in schools participating in the REACH program to students enrolled in schools within AISD not participating in the program. We also investigate the relationship between student learning objectives (SLOs), the program's primary measure of individual teacher performance, and teacher performance as measured by value-added student test scores. The AISD REACH program is associated with positive student test score gains in both math and reading during the initial year of implementation. Student test score gains are maintained in the second year, but we do not find any additional growth. We also find that SLOs are not significantly correlated with a teacher's value-added student test scores.

Demographic, Physical Activity, and Route Characteristics Related to School Transportation: An Exploratory Study

To investigate the demographic, physical activity, and route characteristics related to children's school trips. Cross-sectional exploratory study. Eighteen elementary schools in the Austin Independent School District, Austin, Texas. One hundred twelve children aged 7 to 12 years. Accelerometer and Global Positioning System (GPS) devices provided objective measures of school travel and physical activity. Parental survey (response rate = 34.2%) provided children's demographic and household information. Generalized linear regression analyses were used for unadjusted and adjusted models estimating correlates of total moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and school trip-related MVPA's contribution rate. Walking trips were .44 miles (.71 km) on average. Those who walked to school had about 11 more minutes of daily MVPA than nonwalkers (35.03 vs. 24.06) and higher proportions of their daily MVPA obtained from school commute trips (21.78% vs. 2.41%). School trips accounted for 11.2% of total daily MVPA on average, 12.9% for those who met the physical activity recommendation, and 35.2% for the sedentary children who belonged to the lowest MVPA quartile. Active school commuting appears to be a valuable means to promote physical activity, and its contributions toward total physical activity vary across different demographic groups and community settings. Objective and detailed data from GPS and accelerometer units can facilitate the assessment of route/trip characteristics and physical activity implications of school transportation.

Social and Emotional Learning in Schools: From Programs to Strategies and commentaries

Social and Emotional Learning in Schools: From Programs to Strategies and commentaries

Supporting and Rewarding Accomplished Teaching: Insights From Austin, Texas

This article explores the strategic compensation efforts of the Austin Independent School District (AISD) in Texas, which is piloting a system of supports and rewards for teachers and administrators. The article highlights the key components of this system, what it took to put a 4-year pilot program in place, and what results are emerging from this effort. Finally, the authors reflect on what this example says about the challenges of growing, deploying, assessing, and rewarding accomplished teaching in a complex urban school district.

Projects: UTeach: Secondary Science and Mathematics Teacher Preparation Program

The UTeach program, funded by the National Science Foundation, constitutes a joint effort of the College of Natural Sciences, the College of Education, and the Austin Independent School District to recruit, prepare, and support a new generation of mathematics and science teachers for Texas and for the United States.

Oh, Do I Remember!: Experiences of Teachers during the Desegregation of Austin's Schools, 1964-1971

Oh, Do I Remember!: Experiences of Teachers During the Desegregation of Austin's Schools, 1964-1971, by Anna Victoria Wilson and William E. Segall. New York: State University of New York Press, 2001. 186 pp. $19.95, paper. Wilson and Segall trace the deliberate actions of the Austin, Texas Independent School District to avoid school desegregation from 1964-1971 through the experiences of teachers who were forced into the forefront of this volatile situation. They show how views and reactions differed between Black and White teachers as to their roles and responsibilities for enforcing the law of the land. Evidence is provided of support for resistance to the Brown v. Board of Education, Topeka Kansas decision from the unlikely sources of those expected to uphold the law-Texas state and national elected officials. Ultimately, the authors cite the loss of community and the closing of the town's Black high school among the many unintentional consequences of desegregation. Oh, Do I Remember! purports that segregation in Austin and throughout the United States was more than mere separation; rather the conveyance of the twin messages that anything touched by a Black was unclean (i.e. water fountains and courtroom Bibles), and the superiority of the White race. The logical result of such thinking led to legal exclusions, unequal economic and living standards, minimal political power, many forms of legal and illegal coercion, reduced social respect, restricted social mobility, and discrimination against Blacks as normal social behavior. Denial of a quality education was the most effective vehicle to perpetuate a caste system based on the social construct of race. The authors provide a chronology of resistance by the Austin Independent School District following each landmark decision regarding the schooling of Black children. The district's response to the Plessy v. Ferguson decision was similar to that of school districts throughout the South. Schools for Black children, where they existed, were substandard, students were issued discarded books from White schools, and child labor demands caused shortened school years for Black students. Nevertheless, the myth of separate but equal was legalized. Teacher shortages and the struggle over Black education curricula caused additional problems for Black schools. The Booker T. Washington vocational/ industrial model was opposed by the majority of Black educators who favored the liberal arts curriculum provided White students. The Northern philanthropists who concurred with the Booker T. Washington model preferred not to become a part of the dispute and withdrew their financial support. Blacks then became double taxed by having to pay for schools in general and then a self-imposed tax to purchase comparable educational conditions and opportunities for their children. The Austin school district responded to the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision with even painfully slower progress. Little history of Austin's school desegregation exists. However, as discussed in Oh, Do I Remember!, a school desegregation plan was devised called teaching. Cross-over teaching was the involuntary assignment of Black teachers to White schools and the voluntary assignment of White teachers to Black schools. Of the 33 Black teachers and 52 White teachers who participated in Austin's cross-over teaching plan at the high school level, 18 were located and interviewed for this book. …

Reshaping Urban Education: A School–Community–University Collaborative Initiative

This article describes the planning phase and first year implementation of a doctoral cohort program for urban principals that is a collaborative effort of the Department of Educational Administration at Texas A&amp;M University and the Austin Independent School District. The guiding vision, organization, and curriculum of the program are discussed, as well as the involvement of multiple other contributing groups and individuals. Recommendations are offered for other universities and/or school districts considering similar collaborative doctoral programs focused on the improvement of urban schooling.

An Engineering Design Curriculum for the Elementary Grades

AbstractThe United States has historically excelled in the design of products, processes and new technologies. Capitalizing on this historical strength to teach applied mathematics and science has many positive implications on education. First, engineering design can be used as a vehicle for addressing deficiencies in mathematics and science education. Second, as achievement in mathematics and science is enhanced, a greater number of students at an earlier age will be exposed to technical career opportunities. Third, enhancing elementary and secondary curricula with engineering design can attract underrepresented populations, such as minorities and females, to engineering as a profession. This paper describes a new and innovative engineering design curriculum, under development in the Austin Independent School District (AISD) in Austin, TX. The philosophic goals upon which the curriculum is based include: integrating the design problem‐solving process into elementary schools, demonstrating the relationship of technical concepts to daily life, availing teachers with instructional strategies for teaching applied (as opposed to purely theoretical) science and mathematics, and teaching teamwork skills that are so greatly needed in industry and everyday life. Based on these goals, kindergarten, first grade, and second grade engineering design lessons have been piloted in AISD, in conjunction with a University of Texas program for teacher enhancement and preparation.

A Message from the Executive Director

The Austin Travis County MHMR Center (Center) is governed by a nine-member Board of Trustees appointed by the Austin City Council, Travis County Commissioners’ Court and the Austin Independent School District. The Trustees are responsible for developing the Center’s policies, annual budget and strategic plan. The business of the Board is conducted in open meetings which are held on the last Thursday of every month. The public is invited to attend all Board meetings, and citizens may address the Board during these meetings. Martha A. Martinez, Chair Appointed in 1993 by the Austin City Council Richard Hopkins, Vice-Chairman Appointed in 1992 by Travis County Commissioners’ Court Toni Inglis, RN, SecretaryTreasurer Appointed in 1998 by the Austin City Council

Shoplifting Curriculum Development and Testing for Secondary School Students

Shoplifting is one of the fastest growing crimes against property in the United States. This shoplifting curriculum unit was developed and tested in secondary schools. The study was performed to evaluate the effect on knowledge gain and attitude change of students who received in‐school instruction about shoplifting. The kits have been utilized in grade schools and sixth grade centers in the Austin Independent School District (Austin, Texas) to determine the effects of such valuing instruction on younger students.

Time: Today It Translates to Dollars

In the 1976-77 school year, the Office of Research and Evaluation (ORE) in the Austin Independent School District (AISD) planned and conducted a study of time use in the elementary classrooms participating in major compensatory education programs in our district. The primary question that we were addressing in this evaluation was whether or not compensatory programs actually resulted in a loss of instructional time due to student movement to and from special program activities. Current research on teaching suggests that the time variable, particularly that of time-on-task, is crucial in the learning process. Much concern over the possible loss of instructional time was expressed by school staff. Also, local evaluations suggested that efforts at individualization, team teaching, and supervision of aides or student teachers might be resulting in an increase in the amount of management and clerical duties required of classroom teachers in these special programs with a concurrent decrease in student-teacher contact. It also appeared that in many schools multiple programs or new programs not yet well established had the same result.