Texas Education Agency releases accountability ratings for districts
The Texas Education Agency — which is the statewide entity that oversees primary and secondary public education — recently released its 2026 Accountability Ratings on Friday for public school systems, districts and campuses.
Essentially a report card for schools and districts in the state, the TEA grades both with a letter grade — “A’ through ‘F” — to determine the overall rating.
The TEA said that these annual reports were first established in 2017 and were made public in 2019.
The agency also said that in the 2026 report, there were 1,202 districts and 9,105 that were rated. More so, about a quarter (24%) of the districts and campuses showed an increased rating from last year. In addition, 585 campuses improved from below an ‘A’ rating to an ‘A.’ About 85% of campuses that were rated were marked at a ‘C’ or above.
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said the ratings highlight the work that the districts do but also shows where improvements need to be made.
“This year’s A-F ratings illustrate the progress Texas public schools are making and acknowledge the hard work of our educators while illuminating areas of needed improvement to ensure that all students have access to a high-quality education,” Morath said in a release. “Through our commitment to transparency and accessibility, parents and the public can explore the ratings and associated resources to clearly understand the performance of their schools.”
How did Hidalgo County districts perform this year?
Below are the ratings for the primary school districts in Hidalgo County. Along with their 2026 Accountability Rating, you will find the rating for 2025.
■ Donna ISD
Overall: B (81 out of 100)
2025 Rating: B
■ Edcouch-Elsa ISD
Overall: D (69 out of 100)
2025 Rating: C
■ Edinburg CISD
Overall: B (85 out of 100)
2025 Rating: B
■ Hidalgo ISD
Overall: B (82 out of 100)
2025 Rating: B
■ La Joya ISD
Overall: B (80 out of 100)
2025 Rating: C
■ La Villa ISD
Overall: B (80 out of 100)
2025 Rating: B
■ McAllen ISD
Overall: B (89 out of 100)
2025 Rating: A
■ Mercedes ISD
Overall: B (81 out of 100)
2025 Rating: C
■ Mission CISD
Overall: B (83 out of 100)
2025 Rating: B
■ Monte Alto ISD
Overall: B (82 out of 100)
2025 Rating: C
■ Progreso ISD
Overall: B (77 out of 100)
2025 Rating: C
■ PSJA ISD
Overall: A (90 out of 100)
2025 Rating: B
■ Sharyland ISD
Overall: B (88 out of 100)
2025 Rating: 91
■ Valley View ISD
Overall: A (91 out of 100)
2025 Rating: A
■ Weslaco ISD
Overall: B (87 out of 100)
2025 Rating: B
As one might see from the ratings, out of these 15 school districts, only two cracked the “A” mark — which is PSJA ISD and Valley View ISD.
PSJA ISD made an improvement from 2025 to 2026 in which they improved a letter grade. In 2025, the district had an “87” rating, and this year, they brought it up to a “90.”
Valley View ISD for the second year in a row earned an “A” rating.
In Friday’s release for the TEA Accountability Ratings, the district was one of the few highlighted for the respectable mark.
TEA said that 49% of high-poverty campuses earned either an “A” or “B” rating in 2026 — which is an increase from 47% in 2025.
There were 396 high-poverty campuses that earned in A in 2026 and Valley view South Elementary was among the high scorers with a 91 rating.
Other districts in the Valley
For other districts outside of Hidalgo County, Brownsville ISD in Cameron County garnered a “B” rating, with an 87 out of 100. That would make it the fourth straight year with the rating.
Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District garnered themselves a “B” rating with an 87.
Point Isabel ISD earned themselves a “B” rating with an 82 out of a 100.
Over in Starr County, Rio Grande City Grulla ISD got themselves a “B” rating with an 86 out of 100.
Roma ISD made high marks with an “A” — with a 92 out of 100 rating. San Isidro ISD earned a “B” — 82 out of 100.
Vanguard Academy, back in Hidalgo County, got an “A” with a 90 out of a 100. South Texas ISD earned a 95 out of 100, which got them an “A.”
What exactly is graded?
According to the TEA, the ratings are based on three criteria.
The three criteria are:
■ Student achievement
■ School progress
■ Closing the gaps
The 2026 Accountability Manual goes into further detail on what exactly is entailed in the criteria.
For the first one, student achievement, this criteria — or domain as the TEA puts it — is determined by the STAAR test and how well students perform, College, Career and Military Readiness (CCMR) indicators and graduation rates.
For the second one, school progress is measured based on academic growth and relative performance.
Academic growth is measured based on the percentage of students who “grew” at least a year academically as per the STARR. Then on the flip side, it measures the students who earned “Did Not Meet Grade Level” the year before and is approaching a grade level or above in the current year.
As per relative performance, it measures the progress and achievement of students in relation to campuses who have similar economically disadvantaged percentages — which is prominent for Rio Grande Valley districts. In addition, for Alternative Education Accountability campuses, it measures the retest growth of students.
As for the last criteria, closing the gaps, it measures the progress for students who are economically disadvantaged, emergent bilingual, are in special education, foster children and more.