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Currently I am an educator at Austin Navarro Early College High School located in the inner city of North Austin. The community and students we serve cover a wide array of ethnicities and races. We look to serve our students with the best educational opportunity.

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The following businesses are current stakeholders and sponsors of our school and serve our Northwest Austin Community. Each business impacts our community in significant ways. They assist our school by supporting our school's academic and athletic programs. Additionally, they serve the school community by offering discounts to those involved with the school and its programs. 

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The following businesses are current stakeholders and sponsors of our school and serve our Northwest Austin Community. Each business impacts our community in significant ways. They assist our school by supporting our school's academic and athletic programs. Additionally, they serve the school community by offering discounts to those involved with the school and its programs. 

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The media outlets listed below serve not only our North Austin Community but the entire Austin Community. These outlets provide educational updates for all school districts along with other news that impact those living in our community.

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Schools: 125 (Elementary, Middle, High Schools)
Enrollment: 75,075

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Total Population: 167,104
Male Population: 86,466
Female Population: 80,638
Median Age: 32
US Born Citizens: 111,472
Non-US Born: 14,959
Not a Citizen: 40,673

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People living above poverty level: 137,724
People living below poverty level: 25,920

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Single Parent Households in Travis County: 25.9%

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Unemployment Rate in Travis County: 3.3% (This percentage has dropped. April 2020 unemployment was 12.1%)

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No High School: 12,627, 3.7%
Some High School: 41,651, 1.6%
Some College: 26,993, -1.7%
2 years College: 7,325, -0.6%
Bachelor's Degree: 28,854, 5.6%
Graduate Degree: 13,494, 14.7%

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- Educators: 5,508
- Admin & Professional Staff: 1,569
- Service Staff (Bus Drivers, Custodians, Etc.): 3,866

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Total Students: 75,075
Hispanic Population: 41,290
White: 22,569
American Indian: 106
Asian, 3,410
African American: 4,975
Pacific: 63
Multiple Ethnicities: 2,662

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Offers programs and services to help children succeed academically, develop leadership skills and build healthy habits at its 33 local clubs. Volunteers assist with daily power-hour tutoring, homework and general after-school activities, such as fine  arts, sports and math.

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Works to improve the mental health of children through early diagnosis and treatment. Volunteers play with children waiting for appointments, help with fundraising efforts and cultivate its Children’s Healing Garden.

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Surrounds students with a support network, empowering them to stay in school. Volunteers meet with students weekly to serve as reading buddies, mentors or tutors. There are also opportunities to volunteer at special events throughout the year, such as career fairs, interview help sessions and parent’s night.

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Works to match children ages 6 to 16 with caring adults who serve as mentors, advocates, resources and guides. Volunteers commit to meeting with their "Littles" three to four times a month for a minimum of one year. The organization serves around 1,000 children in Travis, Williamson and Hays counties annually

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Provides a leadership-based outdoor adventure curriculum coupled with social-emotional learning components and long-term mentoring to youth from low-income communities.

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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's proposal to end tenure at all public universities received swift criticism from faculty and higher education experts who said it would negatively impact the reputation of Texas' colleges and universities.

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What is the population of North Austin?

There are 167,104 residents in North Austin, with a median age of 32. Of this, 51.74% are males and 48.26% are females. US-born citizens make up 66.71% of the resident pool in North Austin, while non-US-born citizens account for 8.95%. Additionally, 24.34% of the population is represented by non-citizens.
A total of 126,965 people in North Austin currently live in the same house as they did last year.

What are the employment statistics in North Austin?

White-collar workers make up 75.91% of the working population in North Austin, while blue-collar employees account for 24.09%. There are also 8,529 entrepreneurs in North Austin (8.92% of the workforce); 69,060 workers employed in private companies (72.25%); and 12,332 people working in governmental institutions (12.9%).

How many households are there in North Austin?

There are a total of 64,067 households in North Austin, each made up of around 3 members. Family establishments represent 54.85% of these North Austin households, while non-family units account for the remaining 45.15%. Additionally, 30.19% of households have children and 69.81% of households are without children.

What are the median and average incomes in North Austin?

How many homeowners and renters are there in North Austin?

There are 68,965 housing units in North Austin, and the median year in which these properties were built is 1990. Of the 64,067 occupied housing units in North Austin, 34.92% are owner-occupied, while 65.08% have renters living in them.
Meanwhile, properties bought with mortgages account for 65.63% of the units, and the median value of a home with a mortgage is $243,550. In general, housing costs reach $1,200 per month in North Austin.

What is the level of education in North Austin?

Approximately 31.81% of the population in North Austin holds a high school degree (that's 41,651 residents), while 20.61% have attained a college certificate (26,993 locals) and 22.04% have a bachelor's degree (28,854 people).

What is the marital status of North Austin residents?

A total of 54,149 people in North Austin have never been married (which represents 39.68% of the total population), while 57,791 of them are wedded (42.35%). Separated and divorced residents are in smaller numbers, at 3,538 (2.59%) and 16,637 (12.19%), respectively.

What are the most common means of transportation in North Austin?

The top three means of transportation people in North Austin use to get to work are: car, bus or trolley bus and walking. A total of 83,555 residents commute by car, 1,717 prefer going to work by bus or trolley bus and 1,333 by walking.

Recently added listings in North Austin

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There are 167,104 residents in North Austin, with a median age of 32. Of this, 51.74% are males and 48.26% are females. US-born citizens make up 66.71% of the resident pool in North Austin, while non-US-born citizens account for 8.95%.

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Why Choose Austin ISD?

Austin ISD is committed to ensuring your child is college, career, and life ready. Every day and in every classroom from Pre-K to 12th grade, we offer a safe and healthy school environment that is academically rigorous and supported by a nationally-recognized focus on social-emotional learning. We're ready - are you?
Enroll Today >>

Calendar of Events

Looking for an event?

Austin ISD hosts a variety of events, meetings, educational opportunities, happenings, and more throughout the district. There is something for everyone: students, families, partners, and the community. Join us for an event today!
Go to Calendar >>

Let's Talk

Have a question? We are here to help

Austin ISD Cares Team uses the Let's Talk platform to answer questions more quickly and efficiently in order to provide the best customer service. We put you in touch with an actual person and subject matter expert. We answer questions for everyone: families, students, staff, and the community!
Let's Talk >>

Students of all experience levels are welcome to shine on stage during the free Summer Theatre Series program. Current fifth through 12th graders in Austin ISD are invited to try out for the program's seventh consecutive season. The program will start June 6...

The Austin ISD Board of Trustees has approved Third Future Schools to turn Mendez Middle School's academic performance around as part of what's called an 1882 partnership. Why it matters: Mendez has been rated as an "F" school by the Texas Education Agency...

It's Pride Week in Austin ISD-a week dedicated to inclusion and celebration of our LGBTQIA+ students, staff, and community members.

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Austin ISD is committed to ensuring your child is college, career, and life ready. Every day and in every classroom from Pre-K to 12th grade, we offer a safe and healthy school environment that is academically rigorous and supported by a nationally-recognized focus on social-emotional learning. We're ready - are you?

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Single-parent Households with Children as a Percentage of Households with Children, Annual:Texas

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Release Table for 2020, Single-parent Households with Children as a Percentage of Households with Children, Annual: Texas. FRED: Download, graph, and track economic data.

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Here’s a list of 50 nonprofits with volunteer opportunities in Central Austin

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Here’s a list of 50 nonprofits with volunteer opportunities in Central Austin

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Gaps, Critical Issues, and Partnerships 

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Gaps, Critical Issues, and Partnerships 

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Module 5_ Gaps, Critical Issues, and Partnerships

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Austin ISD educates more than 74,000 students and embraces 125 diverse school communities in one of the fastest-growing metroplexes in the country. In partnership with our families and our community, AISD's mission is to provide a comprehensive educational experience that is high-quality, challenging and inspires all students to make a positive contribution to society. We partner with world-class universities, innovative businesses, nonprofit organizations and engaged community leaders to prepare our students for college, career and life.

Austin ISD District Profile

1,569
Administrators &
Professional Staff

3,866
Bus Drivers, Custodians, Food Service Staff & Educational Aides

Ty Davidson-Executive Director of Middle Schools
Former Principal of Travis Early College High School
Principal of the Year Nominee, 2017

Our Students

AISD has a diverse student community. It includes children from all economic levels and backgrounds, and supports more than 90 languages, with 11 languages other than English taught in our schools, including Chinese, Japanese and American Sign Language.

1043
Composite SAT/ACT scores
Austin ISD SAT scores exceeded the state average; ACT scores exceeded both state and national averages.

Allison Ashley-Teacher
Becker Elementary School
Elementary Teacher of the Year 2016
Texas Teacher of the Year 2017

Our Programs

Austin ISD offers a variety of robust educational opportunities at every level to meet each student's unique learning interests. The listings below offer a way to learn more about a few of our programs:

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Austin ISD educates more than 74,000 students and embraces 125 diverse school communities in one of the fastest-growing metroplexes in the country. In partnership with our families and our community, AISD's mission is to provide a comprehensive educational experience that is high-quality, challenging and inspires all students to make a positive contribution to society.

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NAMI Texas is dedicated to improving the quality of life of all individuals living with mental illness and their families. NAMI Texas envisions a state in which all affected by mental illness receive services and supports to facilitate recovery, to include the support of our Affiliates across Texas.

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AAUL Uplifts Families Fights for Change Empowers Health Builds Communities Supports Careers Get Support Birthing and Breastfeeding Classes Now Available Learn More No posts found Get Involved Community Conversations: Healthcare is Self-Care Learn More No posts found Announcements Get Support On a Mission We provide tools to African Americans and under-served populations to build a [...]

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Austin ISD faces budget shortfall of $62 million

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Austin ISD faces budget shortfall of $62 million

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Austin ISD faces budget shortfall of $62 million

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Lower-than-expected enrollment could lead to compounding financial problems for the district, an Austin ISD spokesperson said.

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Austin ISD teachers tell board morale at all-time low

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Austin ISD teachers tell board morale at all-time low

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Austin ISD trustees listened as teachers described their burnout at an Oct. 28 meeting. (Maggie Quinlan/Community Impact Newspaper)

Austin ISD trustees listened as teachers described their burnout at an Oct. 28 meeting. (Maggie Quinlan/Community Impact Newspaper)

More than a dozen Austin ISD teachers called into the Oct. 28 meeting of the district's board of trustees to say that they are exhausted and concerned about retention.

"Staff and student morale at my campus is the lowest I've ever seen," said Jennifer Lucas, a teacher in her ninth year at Northeast Early College High School, echoing several other speakers who referred to low morale at their schools.

Lucas, along with several other teachers who called in, said staff are burned out due to a lack of substitute teachers, many vacancies, large class sizes, micromanagement from administrators and too many required tests.

"In 11 years, I've never felt this degree of burnout. This year is going to definitely be my last year," Dobie Middle School teacher Megan Barrett said.

Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde said the district will immediately begin working at each of the identified schools.

Elizalde said regardless of the administration's intentions, "clearly they're not feeling supported."

The district counted 67 teachers who resigned or retired in August, 47 in September and 24 in October up to Oct. 21, according to data from the district.

According to the district's careers page, AISD is facing the most vacancies in elementary-level special education with 20 unfilled positions. The district also has 13 positions open for English as a second language teachers for prekindergarten through third-grade and nine openings for high school English teachers.

Elizalde said the district is working on a survey to administer to teachers about their experiences this year.

Trustees Arati Singh and Ofelia Zapata both mentioned that parents and volunteers could find ways to relieve pressure on teachers, such as recruiting substitute teachers.

"We are seeing this in every industry," trustee Noelita Lugo said. "If we want our kids to catch up, if we want them to do well academically, socially, emotionally, we have to figure out how to better support our teachers, our front-line workers, our custodians, our drivers and so on."

Editor note: This story was updated Nov. 16 to include more information about comments from trustees Arati Singh and Ofelia Zapata and the correct spelling of Megan Barrett's name.

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Austin ISD teachers tell board morale at all-time low

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Austin ISD trustees listened as teachers described their burnout at an Oct. 28 meeting. (Maggie Quinlan/Community Impact Newspaper) More than a dozen Austin ISD teachers called into the Oct. 28 meeting of the district's board of trustees to say that they are exhausted and concerned about retention.

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Teacher Turnover: Why It’s Problematic and How Administrators Can Address It

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Teacher Turnover: Why It’s Problematic and How Administrators Can Address It

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Teacher Turnover: Why It's Problematic and How Administrators Can Address It - Scientific Learning

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As the new school year approaches, administrators might ask themselves, "What can I do so that at the end of this year, all of my teachers will happily choose to stay?" Teacher turnover continues to concern K-12 educators who see teachers leave every year.

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Amid a teacher shortage, some Texas educators are losing their licenses for quitting during the school year

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Amid a teacher shortage, some Texas educators are losing their licenses for quitting during the school year

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Sign up for The Brief, our daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.
Six years ago, Staci Crosswell joined the ranks of the teaching profession to do one thing: make a difference.

But, as reality has set it in, the hope and optimism have slowly drained away.

Crosswell's story is a common one heard from hundreds of Texas teachers who have become disillusioned with the profession. There's the low average salary that has remained stagnant for nearly a decade. Then the frequent switches to virtual learning and back to the classroom caused by the coronavirus pandemic. And the newer requirement to complete a 60- to 120-hour course on reading, known as Reading Academies, if teachers for kindergarten through third grade want to keep their jobs in 2023. And there's the recouping of learning progress lost during the pandemic.

Crosswell considered leaving her teaching job in the middle of the school year. But the fear of losing her teaching certification stopped her. Over the last six months, a record number of teachers have been reported to the state for leaving in the middle of the school year. Doing so means a district can have a teacher's license revoked.

Crosswell, who is a second grade teacher in the Humble Independent School District, said she wasn't going to risk getting reported and potentially lose her certification even though she still plans on leaving the profession at the end of the 2021-22 school year.

"It's my safety," she said. "If I lost my teaching certificate, I would be out of luck."

Districts in the past have reported teachers to the state for leaving before their contracts are up, but over the last year there has been a surge in such reports - at the same time as a statewide teacher shortage.

At least 471 contract abandonment reports have been sent to the state, according to recent data. That's a 60% increase from the 2021 fiscal year.

"We're leaving because it's not worth it anymore," Crosswell said.

Teachers who opt to leave in the middle of a school year can be reported to the state, and the State Board for Educator Certification can either suspend or revoke a teacher's certification. In most cases, teachers receive a one-year suspension of their certification. Teachers can leave the job penalty-free if they do so 45 days before the school year begins.

Paul Tapp, an attorney for the Association of Texas Professional Educators, provides legal counsel for teachers looking to understand the consequences of contract abandonment. In the past two years, Tapp said, he's seen a surge of teacher certification suspensions.

"I've been working with teachers just a little over 25 years at this point, and I have never seen a period like we have gone through, particularly this year, but last year as well," Tapp said. "The thing we're seeing now that we didn't see before was the teacher saying, 'OK, I understand I'll be sanctioned, and I don't care.'"

Tapp said he thinks the marked increase isn't necessarily because districts are issuing complaints to the state more than before, but that teachers are quitting at unprecedented rates.

"On top of having such a difficult job, being kicked around in the public discourse has just gotten to be too much for a lot of teachers," Tapp said, referring to the push to ban anti-racism instruction, labeled by some state lawmakers as critical race theory, and the move by some districts to restrict acknowledgement of LGBTQ identities in the classroom.

The state has recently adopted new flexibility when looking at these contract-abandonment cases. Exceptions can be made if a teacher is changing positions, resigning because of safety concerns or experiencing a reduction in pay.

But still, the surge in reports boils down to districts needing a teacher in a classroom, and school officials are trying anything in their power to discourage teachers from leaving before their contracts are up.

"ISDs have really found themselves between a rock and a hard place," said Monty Exter, a lobbyist with the Association of Texas Professional Educators.

Exter said he has a hard time believing that districts want to punish these teachers. Instead, he thinks they want to create an atmosphere that stops other teachers from trying to quit as well. But that isn't an effective strategy because most teachers who leave mid-year are leaving the profession and are not coming back.

The surge in reports could also have a negative effect on people wanting to enter the field as they will see it as a bad environment, Exter said.

"It's too adversarial," he said. "But again, I think ISDs feel like they have limited tools, and they are under a lot of pressure at the moment."

Zeph Capo, president of the Texas American Federation of Teachers, said school districts that are losing more teachers this school year are finding it increasingly difficult to replace them in the middle of the year.

"Every single one of those individuals have made a conscious decision to say they no longer give a damn about their teacher certification because conditions have gotten that bad," Capo said.

When talking about Texas' teacher shortage, experts usually point to teachers being overworked and underpaid. But Capo believes these teachers aren't leaving in the middle of the year and potentially risking their certification over more pay. He believes it's become an issue of health, safety and respect.

Texas saw two COVID-19 surges this school year, which pushed school districts to the limit. Teachers were out, substitutes weren't available and instead districts were asking parents to come in and watch the children.

When Crosswell was making her decision to leave, she said it boiled down to putting her interest first. Teachers, for the most part, are asked to be selfless and put others ahead of themselves and their families.

"My mental health is greater than the need," she said.

While a school district can file a complaint to the state, only SBEC has the legal authority to sanction a teacher. Teachers need what's considered "good cause" to leave the classroom mid-year without punishment, which can include health concerns or a spouse getting a job in a different city. Overwork and an unwillingness to continue are not considered good cause, Tapp said.

The vast majority of teacher contracts are single-year contracts, Tapp said. And although districts like Pflugerville ISD have decided to more aggressively report teachers to the state in the midst of a teacher shortage, some have taken the opposite approach - like giving thousands of dollars in bonuses to teachers who decide to stay.

"As a lawyer, I have a lot of respect for contracts," Tapp said. "I certainly understand you can't just walk away from it because you don't feel like doing it anymore. But that said, there is a larger public issue here as well. ... Sidelining a teacher so they are not available to teach anymore, in the middle of the teaching shortage we're dealing with, hurts everyone."

The suspension of a teacher's license usually lasts for one calendar year, starting from the time the teacher abandoned the contract or the time the sanction was issued. Because a school year intersects with two calendar years, this usually means the teacher won't be able to teach in Texas public schools for at least two school years, Tapp said.

Tapp said the state should consider meting out lesser sanctions. An inscribed reprimand on a teacher's license, for instance, would permanently reflect their decision to leave.

"The idea that the one-year suspension is the appropriate sanction for a teacher who abandons her contract is something that was just decided; there's nothing that is written in stone that that's the obvious sanction," Tapp said.

"I understand that there's a balance that has to be considered because we do need teachers in the classroom," he said. "But I think teachers, like any professionals, should be able to expect that the expectations put on them are going to be reasonable."
Disclosure: The Association of Texas Professional Educators and Texas AFT have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here. We can't wait to welcome you in person and online to the 2022 Texas Tribune Festival, our multiday celebration of big, bold ideas about politics, public policy and the day's news - all taking place just steps away from the Texas Capitol from Sept. 22-24. When tickets go on sale in May, Tribune members will save big. Donate to join or renew today.

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Amid a teacher shortage, some Texas educators are losing their licenses for quitting during the school year

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Sign up for The Brief, our daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news. Six years ago, Staci Crosswell joined the ranks of the teaching profession to do one thing: make a difference. But, as reality has set it in, the hope and optimism have slowly drained away.