Grading Sharpstown: How Neighborhood Schools Performed in HISD Takeover Year One

HISD is touting massive improvements in accountability ratings across the district one year after the takeover. In Sharpstown alone, nine HISD schools improved their A-F accountability scores, but two performed worse. Four schools moved up a letter grade, one moved up two letter grades, and two moved down a letter grade.

The Texas Education Agency has not yet released ratings for 2022-23 or 2023-24 due to a pending lawsuit brought by school districts across the state. So HISD, under Superintendent Mike Miles, calculated both sets of ratings independently using the TEA's data and methodology. The district released the latest set of A-F accountability scores on Monday, celebrating notable improvements:

• The number of A and B schools jumped from 93 to 170
• The number of D and F schools dropped from 121 to 41
• 55 schools jumped from a D or F rating to an A or B rating
• Three elementary schools—Hilliard, Hobby, and Wainwright—leaped from Fs to As.

"We push hard for a school to go from one letter grade to the next,” Miles said at a press conference at Hilliard on Monday. “That's a 10-point increase in accountability scores, and that would be good performance for any school, to go from one letter grade to the next in one year. That's the goal, usually. To have schools go four up or three up, that is usually unheard of.”

No schools in Sharpstown improved quite so dramatically, but by Miles's standards, improving one or two letter grades is still significant. How did our neighborhood's schools do? And which school improved the most in Sharpstown? Find out below.

Bonham Elementary

2022-23: 56 (F)

2023-24: 64 (D)

Improvement: 8 points

NES-aligned in 2023-24, became NES for 2024-25

Magdalena Villa, principal at Bonham since 2021, led the school to improve a letter grade on accountability last school year.

Ed White Elementary

2022-23: 71 (C)

2023-24: 68 (D)

Decline: 3 points

Non-NES

Principal Franklin Chang continues as school leader.

Energized for STEM Academy Middle School

2022-23: 78 (C)

2023-24: 69 (D)

Decline: 9 points

Non-NES

Energized for STEM Academy High School

2022-23: 83 (B)

2023-24: 91 (A)

Improvement: 8 points

Non-NES

Jane Long Academy

2022-23: 73 (C)

2023-24: 78 (C)

Improvement: 5 points

NES-aligned in 2023-24, became NES for 2024-25

Principal Myra Castle-Bell (also leader of Las Americas) was removed midway through the school year, in November 2023, and replaced by interim Courtney Riley. District leadership settled on Debra Hudson as the new principal in February 2024.

Las Americas Newcomer School

2022-23: Not Rated

2023-24: Not Rated

NES-aligned in 2023-24, became NES for 2024-25

Principal Myra Castle-Bell (also leader of Long Academy) was removed midway through the school year, in November 2023, and replaced by interim Courtney Riley. District leadership settled on Adriana Lopez-Garcia as the new principal in March 2024.

Neff Early Childhood Center (Grades K-1)

Receives same grade as linked school, Neff Elementary

Non-NES

Principal Holley Mays was replaced by Principal Dewunna Aitch in July 2024.

Neff Elementary (Grades 2-5)

2022-23: 67 (D)

2023-24: 81 (B)

Improvement: 14 points

Non-NES in 2023-24, became NES for 2024-25

Despite leading Neff Elementary to climb two letter grades on its accountability rating, long-time principal Amanda Wingard was forced to resign near the end of the 2023-24 school year. District leaders never clarified their reasons for dismissing her or the standards by which they decided which principals to remove.

Mahalet Negussie was announced as the new principal in June 2024.

Sharpstown High

2022-23: 50 (F)

2023-24: 59 (F)

Improvement: 9 points

Non-NES in 2023-24, became NES for 2024-25

Superintendent Miles replaced long-time principal Dan De Leon with Principal T.J. Cotter in summer 2023. The first year under Cotter's leadership was fraught with controversy over a strict bathroom policy, teacher turnover, allegations of Cotter yelling at students and teachers, and more. But Cotter also reduced fighting at Sharpstown High and led the school to a 9-point increase in its accountability rating, nearly climbing out of F territory. Even though Sharpstown High was not officially an NES school last year, Cotter required his teachers to implement many elements of the NES in classrooms.

Sharpstown International School

2022-23: 88 (B)

2023-24: 90 (A)

Improvement: 2 points

Non-NES

Principal Luis Landa, who served in 2023-24, has been replaced by Principal Adriana Lopez-Garcia, who is also serving as principal of Las Americas. Landa was still listed as principal in July 2024. Why did he depart so abruptly? Any tips from readers are appreciated.

Sugar Grove Academy Middle School

2022-23: 81 (B)

2023-24: 83 (B)

Improvement: 2 points

Became NES in 2023-24

In summer 2023, Superintendent Miles replaced Principal Ericka Austin with Principal Noe Ortega, who led the school to a slight, two-point accountability score raise. Ortega gave The Sharpener a tour of the school last November to see the NES in action.

Sutton Elementary

2022-23: 73 (C)

2023-24: 84 (B)

Improvement: 11 points

Non-NES

How was the first year under Superintendent Miles in your school? What changed? What stayed the same? What helped? What hurt?

Let us know at sharpstownsharpener@gmail.com or 346-626-8355. We want to hear from HISD students, parents, teachers, principals, SDMC members, and more.