Ever since Texas school accountability scores were released to the public in July, boding uncertainty has surrounded Beaumont ISD. Even after a visit from Texas Education Agency (TEA) Commissioner Mike Morath on Sept. 30, the local district’s future is still unsettled as Morath indicated a decision regarding any potential takeover is still likely months away.
A Texas Legislative Study Group review of Senate Bill 1365 states that, if a campus is considered to have an unacceptable performance rating for five consecutive school years, the TEA commissioner shall appoint a board of managers to govern the school district or order the closure of the campus. Under the law, districts are restricted from using public funds to challenge the commissioner’s “final and unappealable” decision. The bill also clarified that campuses receiving “Not Rated” designation for the 2021-2022 school year due to COVID-19 would not receive a break in the consecutive nature of unacceptable performance. This provision applied retroactively, beginning with the 2018-2019 school year.
As of the 2025-26 school year, BISD’s Pietzsch/MacArthur Elementary has had repeated D/F ratings since 2019. At first glance, it seemed “Not Rated” years disrupted the pattern of consecutive failing grades that could trigger state intervention. However, Superintendent Dr. Shannon Allen learned Aug. 18 — through media reports rather than Morath himself, she said — that the district may be at risk of a TEA takeover.
Before anything can be arranged, however, there are steps to take. First, the commissioner must order the underperforming campus to prepare and submit a campus turnaround plan, for which the commissioner has final approval. If an accepted implementation plan is unsuccessful in returning the campus to acceptable status within two years, the commissioner must either close the campus, order alternative management, or appoint a board of managers to intervene at the district level. If the campus turnaround plan is not approved, the commissioner can take over by replacing the elected school board with an appointed board of managers to govern the district or close the campus altogether.
This is not the first time Beaumont ISD has encountered a state takeover. In 2014, the state stepped in after a series of financial scandals. The district only regained local control in 2020. In the 2023-24 school year, BISD partnered with charter school provider Third Future Schools, at the time avoiding state sanctions. Third Future Schools conducted operations at Fehl-Price Elementary, Jones-Clark Elementary, and Smith Middle School until the partnership ended in March 2025 due to compensation disagreements.
Over the last few weeks, Commissioner Morath and other various TEA agents visited Fehl-Price Elementary, Pietzsch/MacArthur Pre-K-8th and Vincent Middle School to observe various teachers in their classrooms to get an idea of how the schools are performing and how students are learning.
“We send kids to schools so that they are around loving adults in a disciplined environment,” Morath said. “It’s important that we see a loving environment, but we also see effective instruction, quality, rigorous curriculum and learning occur.”
Morath said that, while he saw good practices happening, he also saw problematic ones. He mainly emphasized that he saw adults ensuring their students displayed good behavior while in class, but not all of them were “learning” the information.
Superintendent Dr. Shannon Allen said one of the reasons classrooms were chosen for observation was because she wanted TEA staff to see implementation of their Bluebonnet curriculum.
“He gave us a couple of strategies on some things and some resources that we hadn’t tapped into,” Allen said. “I want to make certain that we implement and execute those things moving forward. I really wanted him to see the curriculum and what the instruction looks like ... Some of the struggles and the challenges, of course, are making certain that all kids in the classroom are actually learning the content and the objective. We’ve talked about lesson delivery … refining support that we want to make certain that we continue to work with our teachers on, to ensure that every single student, every single day, during every single lesson, that they are mastering the content each day.”
Morath said what is unfortunately true is that very few children are reaching grade level standards, or even growing to reach grade level, at academically failing campuses.
“For moms and dads at home, just make sure that you support your child at home…this is important,” he emphasized. “We have schools so that our young people are well prepared for America, and when the schools fail to do that, then it’s incumbent upon us as adults to change courses rapidly, as well.”
Ultimately, nothing will immediately change for Beaumont ISD, but TEA will decide between closing one of the schools or changing out the members of the school board. Those are two things BISD does not want to happen in the community, Allen said. While the district has been making progress, it is not a “one stop shop.”
“It’s not an easy fix, but it’s something that, as a district, we’re committed to doing,” she added. “We’re committed to doing the work, and we’re making little pockets of progress.”
Allen asked the community to continue supporting its students in this time of uncertainty.
“I know the commissioner has a decision to make. However, it’s not going to stop the work, the effort, the intensity, and the momentum of BISD for the 2025-26 school year,” she said. “We know we have areas to refine. The work will continue to go on. We want to make sure that every single child, every single student in BISD, is performing on grade level. That’s our goal.”