Smithville Elementary School under TEA review,

An outside service provider will be monitoring campus throughout the school year.

Smithville Elementary failed to meet state accountability standards in closing performance gaps, according to the Texas Education Agency, and now an outside representative will monitor the campus throughout the school year, Smithville school district officials said at a school board meeting last week.

Since Brown Primary School, which houses prekindergarten to second grade, has no testable grades at its campus, it, too, will be monitored throughout the year.

Out of the state’s Education Service Center Region 13, which Smithville schools are a part of, 30 out of 620 campuses are classified as “improvement required,” and all but two are elementary schools, according to Cheryl Burns, the assistant superintendent and director of curriculum at the Smithville school district.

“We are not making excuses,” said Burns. “As a region, we’re going to have to see what we’re not doing.”

According to the TEA, Smithville Elementary barely missed meeting state standards, falling short of the target score by only one point. That one point means 13 more students underperformed than what TEA allows.

Dr. Donna Calzada was introduced at the recent school board meeting as the service provider who will work with the school to develop and implement a plan to improve learning in the Smithville school district. She will be in weekly contact with district staff, visit classrooms throughout the year and report to the TEA.

“The key to the entire process is what you do with the data you gather on the students and how you change your processes,” Calzada said. “We’ll collaborate and align anything we do on both campuses.”

Burns said that teachers would also be involved in the process.

“There are some who will not like the hard questions we have to answer,” Burns said. “It may be uncomfortable for some. We’re going to identify them and help them with improvement.”

After listening to the plans for improved learning, the board of trustees was happy about the upcoming changes.

“It’s good,” said Trustee Tay Campbell. “This feels more like a partnership than a gripe session.”

Overall, Smithville school district schools met the state accountability requirements.

Smithville High School not only met standards in all four indexes, but received three distinction designations in science, social studies and closing performance gaps.

The high school also met 100 percent of the state system safeguard indicators in all three performance, participation and graduation rates.

Smithville Junior High also met standards and received one distinction in mathematics, which included a greater than anticipated growth of 100 percent in algebra participation in state system safeguard indicators.

Overall, the district met standards in all four indexes.