Publications
Creative Learning in Adverse Times
This paper describes the work done to advance CLI goals despite the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Among many successes resulting from CLI’s resourcefulness and adaptability was an increase in secondary arts enrollment for students in special groups (e.g., special education, economically disadvantaged, and emergent bilingual). In addition, CLI’s novel Season of Arts Experiences provided 28 schools who would not have otherwise participated access to 27 unique arts partners, contributing to over 107 total arts partnerships in the 2020-2021 school year.
Culturally Responsive Restorative Practices: Preliminary Data from Participating Schools, 2019-2020
This report provides a brief overview of Culturally Responsive Restorative Practices, an innovative framework intended to address discipline disparities and improve school climate and culture at ten AISD schools. This work is part of a 5-year, $3.5 million Education Innovation and Research (EIR) grant from the U.S. Department of Education. Highlights from year two of CRRP implementation include improved perceptions of school climate by students and staff, reduced reliance on exclusionary discipline, and steadily growing staff participation in CRRP and CP&I professional learning…
2017-2018 ACE Afterschool Program Climate Highlights
More students feel safe in their afterschool programs than feel safe during the school day, according to 2017-2018 climate surveys. In addition, in afterschool, many desirable climate factors increased from the 2016–2017 school year to the 2017–2018 school year, while they decreased in the school-day environment.
2013-2014 Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Update: Analysis of the Tri-Level Program Implementation Rubric
AISD Social Emotional Learning (SEL) coaches rated schools on the degree to which they implemented 10 domains believed to best exemplify program goals. This study examines the validity and reliability of the implementation rubric they used.
2013-2014 Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Update
This report analyzes the effectiveness of AISD's SEL program considering program implementation and cohort. Examinations of program outcomes across cohort suggest the longer schools have participated in SEL, the more positive the outcome.
State Compensatory Education Update, 2011-2012 and 2012-2013
This report describes the AISD at-risk student population and expenditures for 2012-2013, results from program evaluations conducted in 2011-2012 and 2012-2013, and the longitudinal disparity between performance of at-risk and not-at-risk students.
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Evaluation 2009-2011
AISD used $16 million to support 25 ARRA IDEA projects to reduce the student academic achievement gap, reduce disproportionality, reduce dropout, improve district processes, improve teacher quality, and evaluate programs.
Positive Behavior Support Fall 2010 Implementation Research Brief
Positive Behavior Support (PBS), first piloted in Austin Independent School District (AISD) in 2003–2004, is a systems approach to the prevention of problem behavior and the improvement of students’ academic performance. In Fall 2010, the district PBS program was implemented at 81AISD campuses, and staff at one additional campus were preparing for implementation. Working with AISD PBS specialists, campus staff used data to problem solve and monitor strategies for change. Strategies ranged from universal interventions, implemented across all students, staff, and settings, to intensive…
Positive Behavior Support: 2010-2011 Summary Research Brief
Positive Behavior Support (PBS) is a systems approach to the prevention of problem behavior and the improvement of student academic performance. This research brief describes campus participation in PBS since 2003–2004, when it was first piloted by AISD. It also presents results from 2010–2011 end‐of‐year surveys, in which administrators and staff at PBS campuses shared their perspectives on the implementation and effects of PBS.
ACCESS 2009-2010 Summary: Gang Prevention and Intervention
Austin Community Collaboration to Enhance Student Success (ACCESS) first funded a gang specialist school resource officer (SRO) in Fall 2007 to decrease gang activity on campuses and to educate students, parents, and community members about gangs. The ACCESS-funded gang detective is a member of the Joint Juvenile Gang Intervention Unit (JJGIU), along with another detective from the Austin Independent School District (AISD) Police Department, and two detectives and a gang prevention coordinator from the Austin Police Department. The JJGIU was formed in response to a Joint Steering Committee on…