The document provides an update on the implementation of HB 5, a significant reform focused on high school education in Texas, which introduced the Foundation High School Program allowing students to graduate with endorsements. Key milestones include adjustments to graduation requirements, accountability systems, and findings from a third-party evaluation that highlights improvements in college readiness and high school graduation rates. Future requirements under HB 5 involve further implementation evaluations and efforts to align educational pathways with industry certifications for better workforce outcomes.

1. HB 5 Implementation Update
March 29, 2016
Mike Morath
Commissioner of Education

2. Quick Overview
• HB 5 was a very large systemic reform, primarily
focused on high school.
• It established the Foundation High School Program,
which allows high school students to graduate with
endorsements in 5 categories, pursue a Distinguished
Level of Achievement, and/or receive certain
Performance Acknowledgements.
• The first group of students who participate in high
school solely in the HB 5 FHSP are the Class of 2018.
• HB 5 provided for an accelerated implementation to
allow immediate transitions for schools and students.
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3. HB 5 Implementation To Date:
Selected Milestones
• HB 5 created dozens of action items for districts,
THECB, and TEA, starting with the 2013-2014 school
year and continuing through the end of 2017.
• A few examples from 2013-2014:
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• Requires TEA to notify districts of test results no later than the 21st day after the day the test
was administered.
• Requires TEA to determine a method by which satisfactory performance on an AP, IB, SAT, ACT,
or other university recognized norm-referenced tests can be used to satisfy the EOC
requirements for an equivalent course.
• Modifies the state accountability system so TEA makes publically available district and campus
self-evaluations in the area of community and student engagement.
• Requires TEA adopt rules to allow a student who is completing the fourth year of high school in
2013–2014 to graduate on the foundation program if the student desires.

4. HB 5 Implementation To Date:
Selected Milestones - Continued
• A few examples from 2014-2015:
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• Requires TEA to adopt rules so a student who entered grade nine before the 2014–2015 school
year can graduate under the new foundation program or remain under the prior plan.
• TEA can add measure of future financial solvency to the FIRST system.
• Requires districts report personal graduation plan data, including the categories of
endorsement.
• Requires TEA, working with TWC and THECB, to prepare information for school districts to
distribute to parents explaining the Distinguished level of achievement and personal graduation
plans.
• Requires TEA to provide a third party implementation evaluation report by Dec 2015

5. Overview of the Dec 2015 Report
• The initial third party evaluation required in HB5 was performed by
American Institutes for Research (AIR) and included the following:
• a policy review of changes related to graduation, curriculum, testing,
and accountability,
• an overview of the implementation of HB 5 based on statewide
district-level survey,
• a trend analysis of historical outcomes for cohorts graduating under
the Minimum High School Program (MHSP), the Recommended High
School Program (RHSP), and the Distinguished Achievement Program
(DAP) for comparison purposes, and
• a baseline analysis of student outcomes for the Foundation High
School Program.
• Report details can be found at:
http://tea.texas.gov/Reports_and_Data/Program_Evaluations/Research_R
eports/Program_Evaluation___Research_Reports/
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6. Dec 2015 Report Findings:
District-Level Survey Results for 2014–15 School Year
95.5%
86.5% 86.2%
79.1%
61.9%
87.7%
81.2%
75.2%
72.5%
63.6%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Multidisciplinary Studies Business & Industry STEM* Arts & Humanities Public Services
PercentageofDistricts
Endorsement Type
Endorsements Offered by Districts (N = 890) Endorsements Pursued by any Child in a District (N=978)
Notes. *STEM = science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
Sample counts are based on districts that reported data.
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7. Dec 2015 Report Findings – Cont’d
• The district-level survey conducted by AIR also found:
• Districts were most likely to consider their current course offerings
and staff capacity when considering which endorsements to offer.
• Parent meetings and information distribution via guidance counselors
were the most frequently reported means of communicating with
both parents and students about endorsements and course offerings.
• Forty-five percent of districts reported plans to offer Statistics and 30%
reported plans to offer Algebraic Reasoning as options for the third or
fourth credit requirement in mathematics. These two courses are new
mathematics courses approved by the SBOE as additional options that
districts may choose to offer.
• Thirty-seven percent of responding districts reported requiring
students to complete Algebra II to graduate.
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8. Dec 2015 Report Findings – Cont’d
Data from entering Grade 9 cohorts from 1997–98 through 2013–14 were included in the
analyses:
– Student outcomes under the MHSP, RHSP, and DAP showed improvement in college
readiness and high school graduation across cohorts.
– Postsecondary outcomes, employment, and earnings stayed flat over time.
– Variation was noted across graduation programs.
Steady increases found for:
– College Readiness as measured by:
• Grade 11 TAKS (reading and mathematics) meeting the Higher Education Readiness Component
(HERC)
• Texas Success Initiative (TSI) performance
– High School Graduation (within 4 years of entering Grade 9)
Trends remained mostly flat for:
– Two-Year and Four-Year College Enrollment
– Two-Year and Four-Year College Completion and Persistence
– Employment and Earnings
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9. Dec 2015 Report Findings – Cont’d
The first cohort of students who will graduate solely under the Foundation High School Program
entered Grade 9 in 2014–15 and will graduate in the class of 2018. At the time of the 2015
report, none of the outcome data required by HB 5 Section 83a were available for this cohort.
An analysis of the cohort’s Grade 8 STAAR performance at the final Level II standard and Algebra I
course completion was conducted as a baseline analysis
– Meeting Level II at the final standard indicates that a student is on track to reach
postsecondary readiness on STAAR Algebra II and English III
Grade 8 STAAR, a preliminary assessment of students’ readiness to enter high school, showed:
– 47% reached Level II at the final standard on Grade 8 STAAR Reading
– 33% reached Level II at the final standard on Grade 8 STAAR Mathematics
STAAR Algebra I: Of Grade 8 students who took the STAAR Algebra I exam in Grade 8, 80%
reached Level II at the final standard.
Algebra I Completion: 21% earned credit in Algebra I
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10. Transition Update: Graduation Plans
16%
(48,435)
14.9%
(46,718)
82.9%
(251,154) 80.3%
(251,159)
1.2%
(3,520)
4.8%
(15,150)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Spring 2014 Spring 2015
Minimum H.S.
Program
Recommended H.S.
Program/DAP
Foundation High
School Plan
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11. Transition Update: Counts of All Students Grades 9-12
Pursuing an Endorsement in 2014–15
96,338
63,396
55,687
87,561
120,412
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
Business & Industry STEM Arts & Humanities Public Services Multidisciplinary
Studies
Because HB5 is not fully implemented yet, some students remain under the previous graduation plans, while others are on the
Foundation High School Plan and eligible to choose endorsements. Only freshman must be on the FHSP.
For comparison: In 2014-2015 there were 419,715 9th graders. 1,444,465 students in all grades 9-12.
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12. Career and Technical Education - Progress
*A CTE concentrator is a secondary student who has earned three or
more credits in two or more courses in a CTE program of study.
School Year
Number of CTE
Concentrators in High
School*
Percentage of High
School Students who
are CTE Concentrators
2010-2011 469,086 35.01%
2011-2012 483,122 35.64%
2012-2013 488,253 35.34%
2013-2014 498,132 35.44%
2014-2015 536,551 37.15%
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13. CTE Coherent Sequence Graduates
39.7%
50.0%
45.4% 46.9%
37.5% 39.3%
49.9%
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
2013-2014
African American Hispanic
White American Indian
Asian Two or More Races
Economically Disadvantaged
* Rate is based on
individual group
All students: 46.4%
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14. Career and Technical Education
75.00%
80.00%
85.00%
90.00%
95.00%
100.00%
Class
of
2010
Class
of
2011
Class
of
2012
Class
of
2013
Class
of
2014
Four-Year Graduation
Rate, All Students
Four-Year Graduation
Rate, CTE Concentrators
State Graduation Rates, 2010 - 2014
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15. Dual Credit
130,150
149,603 157,188
169,856
186,278
21,331
23,603
23,828
25,759
30,889
3,520
2,897
3,677
4,305
5,185
0
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 2013-2014 2014-2015
Number of Completed Dual Credit Courses
Academic Workforce Other
155,001
176,103
199,920
222,352
184,693
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16. Dual Credit
74,885
81,445 82,366
87,036
93,137
18,711 19,771 19,260 20,960
24,614
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 2013-2014 2014-2015
Number of Students that Completed a Dual Credit Course
Academic Dual Credit CTE Dual Credit
Note: Student count may be duplicated.
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17. CTE Licenses and Certifications
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24,106
28,082
32,483
29,108
35,141
0
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
35,000
40,000
2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 2013-2014 2014-2015
Number of CTE Concentrators Earning a License or Certification

18. Rank Top Certifications Earned by CTE Concentrators, 2014-2015 Number of Students
1 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) - PowerPoint 7,748
2 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) - Word 7,383
3 Adobe Certified Associate (ACA) - Premiere Professional 3,383
4 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) - Excel 2,777
5 CNA – Certified Nurse Aide (Texas Dept of Aging and Disability Services) 2,317
6 AWS (American Welding Society) - D1.1 Certification 2,050
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Texas Beef Quality Assurance (Texas Beef Council, Texas and SW Cattle Raisers Assoc AND
Texas Agrilife Extension)
1,450
8 Cosmetology, Operator License (Texas Dept of Licensing and Regulation) 1,449
9 Internet and Computing Core Certification (IC3) 1,339
10 Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA) - Windows Operating System Fundamentals 1,074
11 Floral Design Certification (Texas State Florists' Association) 1,032
12 NCCER - Welding, Level One 972
13
AHLEI (American Hotel and Lodging Education Institute) Certified Rooms Division Specialist
(CRDS)
943
14 Pharmacy Technician, Certified (CPhT) 804
15
Basic Telecommunications Certificate (Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer
Standards and Education)
754
16 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) - Access 751
17 Autodesk Inventor Certified User 704
18 Texas Private Security Level II (Texas Dept of Public Safety) 652
19 Adobe Certified Associate (ACA) - Photoshop 645
20 ASE (National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence) - Brakes (A5) 568
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Most Popular CTE Licenses and Certifications

19. HB 5 Implementation: Future Requirements
• HB 5 requires A-F ratings. As subsequently
amended, effective the 2017-2018 school year,
district and campus ratings must be reported on an
A-F scale. The agency must provide certain rating
components in December 2016.
• TEA must provide an additional third-party
implementation evaluation report on HB 5 by
December 2017.
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20. Advancing the Goals of HB 5

21. 60X30TX Higher Education Plan
• “60 percent of Generation Texas will have a postsecondary
credential or degree by 2030”
• A coherent sequence of CTE courses increases the
likelihood of graduation and post secondary persistence.
– A study by E3 Alliance of Texas students showed low income CTE
students enrolled in higher education at a 56% rate vs 43% rate
for non-CTE low income students. College persistence was also
higher: 68% of college freshman continued as sophomores vs
59% of non-CTE low income students.
• Endorsements that are designed with proper CTE pathways
(5+ semester aligned sequences) will likely help meet the
60x30 goal.
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22. Priorities Moving Forward
• Endorsement Pathway Endpoints
• Endorsement Pathways
• Pathway Planning & Guidance
• Research to Inform Continuous Improvement
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23. Defining Endorsement Endpoints
• We must clarify current industry certification list
to ensure we have identified licenses,
certifications, and degrees that lead into high-
demand, high-wage employment areas.
• Some endpoints will be specific to K-12, some to
higher education, and some will apply to both.
• Requires tri-agency coordination to complete.
Advisory Committees have already been created
by THECB in eight career clusters.
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24. Tri-Agency Workforce Initiative
• Spearheaded by the Commissioner of Education (TEA), the
Commissioner of Higher Education (THECB) and Chair of the Texas
Workforce Commission (TWC)
• Charged by Governor Greg Abbott, the three commissioners and
their respective agencies will work collaboratively to (among other
goals) identify and establish meaningful postsecondary college and
career pathways for all Texas students, to streamline post-
secondary completion time & costs, with the ultimate goal of
ensuring the most educated and skilled workforce in Texas history
• Multiple initiatives are under way. One initiative: Regional
workforce planning groups are being formed to help identify the
most appropriate industry certifications (regionally and statewide).
• Goal with regard to certifications: To have an approved list of
certifications by the end of 2016-2017 academic year, and a rules
framework for managing the list moving forward.
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25. Clarifying Pathways
• Once there is a well defined list of industry certifications,
the agency will coordinate the development of graduation
pathway templates aligned to each certification area.
• The templates will serve as optional models to help districts
more quickly adjust course offerings so students are being
prepared for high demand, high paying workforce jobs.
• The templates will also include community college and
other post secondary coursework, to help students who
have finished K-12 follow the shortest, most inexpensive
path possible to workforce entry with skills for a high wage
career.
• Goal: Produce template repository by start of 2017-2018
academic year.
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26. Pathway Guidance & Support
• School systems need tools to help counselors and students select
ultimate career areas and formalize Personal Graduation Plans.
• Some tools exist, but are not widely available and not necessarily
robust. Tools will also need to be aligned with the ultimate list of
Industry Certifications identified by the Tri-Agency Taskforce and
the Pathways Templates.
• Additionally, any deployed tools would need to reflect the pathways
that exist in a given district, requiring a high level of customization.
• Tools would incorporate workforce information (helping students
understand certain professions, including the nature of the work,
wage information, career advancement opportunities, and
projected job growth) and higher education information (helping
them understand what is involved in being completely prepared
and minimize student costs).
• Goal: Support market innovations to ensure tools are widely
available for the 2017-2018 school year.
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27. Ongoing R&D to Inform
Continuous Improvement Efforts
• To maximize improvements in student outcomes, program monitoring
must be conducted by the agency on an ongoing basis to help inform
adjustments to rulemaking and district support activities.
• Examples:
– Identifying students whose course history demonstrates high likelihood of
success in certain advanced academic or industry pathways, but who haven’t
been counseled into those options, to help support district counseling.
– Identifying actual average wage by industry certification, to phase out
certifications that aren’t adding real value to students and add those that do.
– Identifying students whose academic history demonstrates high likelihood of
success in credit-bearing post secondary classes but who are placed in
remedial classes, to help community & other colleges improve student
transitions to higher education.
• Goal: Launch agency R&D team by end of calendar 2016. Ensure Dec
2017 report includes relevant findings.
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