AUSTIN – Last week, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) announced the release of the A-F letter grade accountability ratings for the state’s public school districts and individual campuses.
The overall picture of the grades, which reflect academic performance metrics from the 2025-26 school year, show that out of 1,202 districts and 9,105 campuses, statewide, 24% of both increased in their ratings compared to the previous year, according to the TEA, whereas, for the most part, there was little change.
According to a report from the Texas Tribune, about the same number of schools (roughly one in four) that saw an increase, saw a drop.
Most of Tyler County’s five school districts mirrored this trend, with only Colmesneil ISD showing any real overall improvement. CISD’s overall score was a 74, or a “C” letter grade, compared with the “D” it received in 2025.
The scoring metric used by TEA for its accountability ratings, which measures five criteria: student achievement; school progress; academic growth; relative performance and closing the gaps, noted all improvements of an entire letter grade for the district.
“This year’s A-F ratings illustrate the progress Texas public schools are making and acknowledge the hard work of our educators while illuminating areas of needed improvement to ensure that all students have access to a high-quality education,” TEA Commissioner Mike Morath said.
Spurger ISD also saw some improvement, with its overall score notching up a point (from 79 to 80) for a raised letter grade of “C” to “B,” from last year to the current period.
Spurger saw improvement in most of the categories, aside from a slight decrease in the closing the gaps metric.
Chester ISD maintained a “B” overall average, with an “A”, or 90% marked in student achievement, which was the same as the last year. That metric accounts for 70% of the overall rating.
Chester also saw a growth point in its academic growth, from a “D” to a “C.”
Warren ISD maintained a “C” average, of 73, which was two points decreased from last year, but saw a decrease in academic growth.
Woodville ISD saw its overall score at a 67, for a “D,” with a drop in academic growth, from a “D” last year to an “F” this year.
TEA noted in a news release that 85% of Texas individual campuses achieved acceptable (“C” or above) academic performance under the ratings system.
Morath also noted growth in hundreds of high-poverty communities. “We are teaching them handwriting. They are memorizing the timetables. They are thinking through more and more advanced math problems. All children can learn and achieve,” Morath said.
Forty-nine percent of high-poverty campuses that received an A-F rating earned an A or B rating in 2026, up from 47% last year, while the percentage of F-rated campuses declined.
