August 26, 2015 2:56 PM

A high school in Austin is hailed as an example of success in state intervention at a campus

A reform pushed by retiring Education Chairman Jimmie Don Aycock puts additional pressure on school boards to turn around failing campuses.

Eastside Memorial High School in Austin, the first high school to be fall under the Texas accountability system, is finally out from under state supervision.

Untangling the status of the former Johnston High School can be difficult. In fact, then-Superintendent Meria Carstarphen pulled the trigger on the school’s performance a year earlier than necessary when she proposed turning the entire high school feeder pattern over to IDEA Public Schools starting in 2012. Eventually, the district signed a contract with Johns Hopkins Talent Development, now in its third year on the Austin ISD campus.

“Our kids are truly where it is. I knew from the day I walked in they could always do it,” Principal Bryan Miller told reporters. “The numbers did not reflect who they were. Now the numbers reflect more of where they are, but only hint to where they’re going to go.”

Eastside Memorial probably reflects the truest form of intervention success, one that will change significantly with the passage of this year's House Bill 1842.

By Kimberly Reeves