BURTON SCHOOL BOARD DISCUSSES TEACHER INCENTIVE ALLOTMENT PROGRAM
Burton ISD trustees received information on Monday about a state program that provides additional funding for teachers based on performance.
Board members were informed about the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) program, which designates effective teachers and makes them eligible for additional pay annually via state funds. Based in Texas Education Code, the program is intended to help districts recruit and retain educators, particularly at high-needs schools and in hard-to-staff positions.
Wendy Graves, Teacher Incentive Allotment Specialist for the Region VI Education Service Center, said over 800 Texas school districts are participating in the program, and over 65,000 teachers are designated in one of four tiers: Acknowledged, Recognized, Exemplary and Master. The designation levels are determined by tracking teacher observation and student growth percentages.
TIA funding amounts can differ per campus, depending on factors like socioeconomic levels and whether the school is considered rural. According to data presented by Graves, Burton ISD teachers that are designated would be eligible to receive between roughly $5,000 - $20,000, depending on their designation tier.
While the funding is administered by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), Graves noted that participation in the program does put more work onto district and campus leaders, who will be involved with capturing data to submit to the state.
Should Burton ISD decide to move forward with participating after collecting stakeholder input through meetings and surveys, Graves said the TIA application would be due in April. The district would receive notification of whether it is accepted in August, at which time it would begin capturing data to submit to TEA by October 2028. If the district is approved, which would be determined by April 2029, funds would be paid out to teachers in August 2029.
Also on Monday, trustees selected Collier Construction as the construction manager at risk (CMAR) and PlanNorth Architectural Company as the project architect and engineer for long-term safety upgrades and maintenance improvements at the baseball and softball fields. The cost for the CMAR contract and professional services agreement will be determined through negotiation with the superintendent. Trustee Dean Fuchs said law requires the selection of an architect/engineer, but this project does not involve building, so the district will not need one.
The board also held discussion about creating a program to allow community access at the track. Superintendent Vikki Curry said the district wants to make sure it is covering all of its bases for insurance purposes and hopes to have things solidified in time for the board’s meeting in November.
Additionally, the board agreed to purchase a security entrance gate for past the high school, for an amount not to exceed $60,000. The purchase will be funded through the security budget.