District Equity Plans

Title I, Part A, Section 1112(b)(2) of Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires all local educational agencies (LEAs) that receive Title I funds to develop a plan for “how the local educational agency will identify and address, as required under State plans as described in section 1111(g)(1)(B), any disparities that result in low-income students and minority students being taught at higher rates than other students by ineffective, inexperienced, or out-of-field teachers.”  

Based upon stakeholder feedback, the state’s approach to equity planning was revised so that only a subset of LEAs would be required to submit equity plans to the Texas Education Agency (TEA), so that those LEAs could receive more meaningful support in developing plans and pursuing strategies.

Starting with the 2019-2020 school year, TEA identified districts that have equity gaps greater than 10 percent in two of the last three years in access to effective teaching by using the “meets or exceeds growth target” percentages for the same student groups identified in the Texas Equity Toolkit (minority students and economically disadvantaged students).

The identified districts were notified of their status on December 9, 2019, and will be required to create an equity plan for submission via Intervention, Stage, and Activity Manager (ISAM)ISAM. The window to submit the plans will be between March 2, 2020, and May 1, 2020. 

Districts that were not identified will continue with their current equity plans with no submission required for new equity plans.

Districts that are identified will be eligible for priority points in various funding/grant programs through TEA (Grow Your Own, Principal Residency Grants, Mentorship Allotment, Teacher Leadership grants, etc.) to provide further support in closing equity gaps.

For questions or additional information on equity plans, please contact your local regional education service center equity lead listed on the Texas Equity Plan Toolkit.
 
Sincerely, 
 
Heather Salaz 
Manager, Educator Equity and Support 
Texas Education Agency