March 23, 2021

Dear Pflugerville ISD Teachers & Staff,

This Fall, a group of district stakeholders came together to consider if PfISD should commit to participating in the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) program. The TIA provides districts the opportunity to designate highly effective teachers that can result in additional compensation ranging from $3,500 to $20,000 through House Bill 3. 

Following the initial meeting and considering the stakeholders' positive feedback, we formed a committee to explore the options available to PfISD and design a local TIA Designation System to consider.

I wanted to provide an update on some of the progress being made by our committee and inform you of how the committee is seeking input from our teachers regarding TIA.

Again, this committee is exploring how we would design our TIA Designation System and implement it should we decide to initiate a program to recognize our top teachers. The committee will also use your feedback, along with district leadership, to help determine if we will proceed with implementing a program. We have not committed to participating in the state’s TIA program. The committee is tasked with fully investigating its merits and how it could fit within our District’s mission and building a plan to present to our community and leadership to consider.

Updates:

Website
The committee has designed a website that houses lots of information about TIA. This page has links to videos and other resources from the TEA, FAQs, and more. I invite you to please review this website to learn more about TIA and some of the updates listed below. 

PfISD TIA website: https://www.pfisd.net/Page/8094 

Who will be eligible for TIA?
The committee has identified three categories of teachers that will be eligible. Those groups are:

• Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade
• Grades 2-8 Reading and Math
• 9th Grade Algebra I and English I

 It is the feeling of the committee that by focusing on these subjects and teacher groups, we have the best potential to impact student achievement, teacher retention and recruitment in our most foundational classes.

What campuses will be eligible for TIA?
During Year 1, the committee has identified 10 campuses for the initial rollout of a potential TIA program for PfISD. Those campuses are:

• Connally High School
• Copperfield Elementary School
• Delco Elementary School
• Dessau Elementary School
• Dessau Middle School
• Northwest Leadership Academy
• Parmer Lane Elementary
• River Oaks Elementary School
• Ruth Barron Elementary School
• Westview Middle School

By opening up a potential TIA program with these campuses in Year 1, the committee feels we can make the most impact on teacher retention and recruitment to campuses with a higher ratio of low socioeconomic disadvantaged students. Traditionally, those types of schools are harder to recruit and retain teachers to, in all districts. 

During Year 2, the remaining campuses would be added to the plan. If other categories of teachers are decided to be added to our TIA Designation System, they would become eligible in Year 3. System expansion to include other teacher categories will require the district to submit and be approved through the two-step application process. 

Staff TIA Survey Open
As I stated earlier in this letter, the TIA committee would like feedback from our teachers and staff and has created a survey. I ask that all our teachers and staff complete this survey so your opinion can be heard regarding various aspects of TIA and help our committee design a plan that will fit our district should we decide to move forward and implement a TIA program. The potential implementation of a TIA Designation System could impact more than just teachers, so it is important that other staff members complete this survey as well. 

If you are unfamiliar with TIA, I invite you to please watch this 30-minute video from the TEA that explains TIA in detail to learn a little more: https://youtu.be/Q1no6VQ6a2A

I also made a short video in November when I first informed our staff that we are exploring the TIA for our district. You can watch that video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqALoSy8zyw&feature=youtu.be.

Here is a link to the PfISD TIA Committee Design Input Survey: https://forms.gle/mjwJorKP4tmYeELw9

The deadline to complete this survey is March 30. This will allow our TIA Committee and its sub-committees time to evaluate the data and make determinations regarding specific aspects of a potential TIA Designation System.

Thank you for taking the time to read this message and for completing this important survey. Your feedback is crucial in helping our TIA Committee understand our teachers’ views on TIA and how to build a model that best fits our district. 

In the best interest of children,
Dr. Douglas Killian
PfISD Superintendent of Schools 

TIA Committee Members & Chairs
Brandy Baker: TIA Committee Co-Chair
Willie Watson: TIA Committee Co-Chair
Alma Gonzalez-Castillo: Observations & Calibration Co-Chair
John O’Hare: Observations & Calibration Co-Chair
Holly Galloway: Student Growth & Optional Components Co-Chair
Karen Shah: Student Growth & Optional Components Co-Chair
Trana Allen: TIA Calculations & Designations Co-Chair
Brian Dawson: TIA Calculations & Designations Co-Chair
Jeffri Orosco: Budget, TIA Compensation Plan Chair
Eduardo Ramos: Budget, TIA Compensation Support
Rachel Mackey: System Development & District Support Chair
David Wiechmann: Communications Chair 

Subcommittee Members

• Observations & Calibration: Barry Miller, Dina Schaefer, Ameka Hunt, Jesus Olivas, Mario Ramos, Laura Brown, Natasha Drumgoole
• Student Growth & Optional Components: Pamela Brown-Ledet, Paula McNamer, Meaghan Regier, Georgie Arenaz, Amanda Sramek, Rachel Roepke
• TIA Calculation & Designations: Hutcherson Hill, Andre Underwood, Michelle Peterson, Gloria Cruz-Gauna, Hoda Mohamed, Katie Holding, Nicole Urbach
• Communications: Zachary Kleypas, Lauren Wright, Jennifer Fleischman, Kathryn Blankenship, Meagan Pike Dean, Rebecca Cohen
• TIA System Development & District Support: Tana Ruckel, Lacey Ajibola, Paula Gamble, Shannon Pourmanafzadeh, Melissa Dobrenel, Joy Smith, Bridgette Arnold, Teea Robinson, Elizabeth Waldrop, Melissa Brydson, Tracy Stephens  
• Budget & TIA Compensation Plan: Christy Fox, Jorge Franco, Daniel Garcia, Trana Allen, Gracie Lopez, Kris Reyes, Willie Watson, Veronica Jimenez, Frank Muir