A Texas Education Agency (TEA) report was recently released showing area schools doing extremely well on the School Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST).
A high score on FIRST is a strong indicator of effective administrative and fiscal leadership.
Five schools in Hockley County received an A (superior rating) including Anton ISD, Levelland ISD, Smyer ISD, Whitharral ISD and Sundown ISD.
Ropes ISD received a B ( above standard rating).
In Cochran County, Whiteface CISD and Morton ISD both received an A (superior rating).
FIRST is designed to ensure that Texas public schools are held accountable for the quality of their financial management practices and that they improve these practices.
The system is also meant to encourage Texas public schools to better manage their financial resources to provide the maximum allocation possible for direct instructional purposes.
The exact statewide count of school systems receiving a Substandard Achievement (F) rating under the Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST) is not comprehensively detailed in a single published aggregate statistic for the latest release, as FIRST ratings use specific financial indicators rather than standard campus letter grades. FIRST evaluat e s school districts and charter schools on 21 financial indicators with four critical areas that include a timely submission of the Annual Financial Report and financial data submitted to the Texas Education Agency; an unmodified auditor’s opinion; debt default or failing to make timely debt payments to the Teacher Retirement System, Texas Workforce Commissions, Internal Revenue Service or other government agencies.
A corrective action plan must be filed with the TEA by each school district that received a F rating.
School districts wising to appeal an adverse issue in the preliminary rating may submit a written appeal with supporting evidence and documentation through a process directly in the School FIRST application in TEAL and must be received by TEA no later than Sept. 8.