No. Title I funding is determined at the federal and state level based on census data and overall free and reduced percentages in the District. This means FBISD gets the same amount of funding regardless of the number of campuses designated as Title I; and if more schools are designated as Title I, the district entitlement is split up into smaller portions among the campuses.

Fort Bend ISD currently has 24 campuses designated as Title 1 school wide, including 20 elementary schools. Aligned with current research and best practices, the district has channeled the majority of our federal funds at the elementary level, where these dollars have the most impact on students. While Marshall High School isn’t a Title I campus, all of its feeder schools are, so we can give all of our students the best foundation for future learning.

In accordance with state and federal law, Marshall High School has not been designated as a Title I Schoolwide campus for 2018-19, because it has not met the 75% Economically Disadvantaged threshold set by the district for a high school.  State and federal law and regulations permit a district to make this decision.

Assuming a hypothetical position that these factors would have been in place in 2018-19:

• there were 25 designated Title I Schoolwide campuses (current 24, plus Marshall HS),
• FBISD applied a similar per pupil allotment,
• and the district received the same Title I funding for 2018-19;

Then, MHS would have received about $527,000 in Title I Schoolwide funds. Reciprocally, the other 24 campuses combined would have decreased a total of $527,000 in Title I funding.

It is important to emphasize that there would be a reciprocating negative impact to the Title I funding for the currently designated Title I Schoolwide campuses who have higher Economically Disadvantaged percentages than MHS, disproportionately impacting elementary schools. 

The district Title I allotment can vary from year to year, depending on the state allocation from the U.S. Department of Education and the TEA allocations to school districts. The amount a district receives is contingent on our Economically Disadvantaged percentage and census data.  It is not contingent on how many campuses are designated Title I Schoolwide.

Please see the chart below demonstrating the hypothetical designation of MHS as a Title I Schoolwide campus. Funding is based upon 2018-19 district funding, campus enrollment and free/reduced lunch percentages.

The fixed allotment for Title I that FBISD received from the U.S. Department of Education through the Texas Education Agency is allotted on a per pupil basis to the 24 designated Title I Schoolwide campuses in FBISD.

On average, 80% of the district Title I funds are distributed directly to the campuses and FBISD reserves 20% Title I funding to provide Social Workers, Parent Educators, instructional staff and support staff to assist all Title I campuses. As required, we set aside at least 1%, to fund parent engagement activities. The district is also required to set aside funds to service individual students identified as homeless or in foster care, regardless of the campus of enrollment. These funds are utilized to provide transportation to the school of origin or school nearest the student’s temporary living arrangements and to provide school supplies and instructional materials, hygiene kits, assist with credit recovery or other identified instructional needs.

FBISD makes the decision regarding which schools are designated as Title I Schoolwide based upon research and best practices for meeting the needs of students. The district is not required to designate campuses as Title I Schoolwide.  However, if a campus consistently reaches the threshold of 75% Economically Disadvantaged, the district must ensure the campus receives equivalent funding/resources to what the campus would receive if it was designated as a Title I Schoolwide campus.

In the case of Marshall HS, had the campus been designated as Title I Schoolwide for 2018-19, the allotment would have been approximately $527,000.

Directing Title I Schoolwide funds to lay a solid instructional foundation for elementary students is a research-based best practice. Students who need supplemental services at the HS level are provided those services through a variety of funding sources including local and state funds. For example, within our state allotted funds, the district receives State Compensatory Education funding which is designed to meet the needs of students who are are considered At-Risk, per the TEA definition.  This includes students who have not passed state accountability assessments or are behind their peers in their academic skills and in earning credits for graduation.  Additionally, the district receives Special Education funding which is utilized to support services for students identified with special needs, per the state and federal eligibility criteria.

Willowridge High School has been over 80% Economically Disadvantaged, having reached the threshold of 75% or greater Free and Reduced Lunch percentage several years ago.

The district monitors the Economically Disadvantaged percentage on a monthly basis and has evaluated the student performance data for Marshall High School. Because of monitoring the needs at MHS, FBISD has provided supplemental staff and resources to MHS which are locally funded. The locally funded supplemental staff and resources surpass what Marshall HS would have received it if had met the threshold for Title I Schoolwide designation for 2018-19.

See supplemental staff provided to MHS in the following chart.

Comparative local budget data for MHS and WHS is found below. This chart represents total local dollars and per pupil funding.  We utilize a per pupil ratio to be equitable in our funding formulas.

WHS is designated a Title I Schoolwide campus and has been for several years. WHS has generally been in the 80% range of Economically Disadvantaged students.

Yes, there is quite a bit of guidance from the Texas Education Agency and the U.S. Department of Education on appropriate use of Title I funds. 

Monitoring includes the following actions:

• FBISD submits an annual ESSA application and evaluation to the Texas Education Agency.
• The district maintains required documentation through Campus and District Improvement Plans, Title I Crate, financial documents, schedules, agendas, services provided, etc.
• FBISD submits PEIMS financial, student and staff data to TEA annually.
• The district has an external auditor that conducts annuals audits.
• TEA conducts a variety of financial and program audits.

As of the 2018-19 school year, Marshall High School has not met the threshold to be designated a Title I Schoolwide Campus.

FBISD provides supplemental staff and resources that would surpass what MHS would receive if it had met the threshold to be designated as a Title I Schoolwide campus in 2018-19. Designation of MHS as Title I Schoolwide would not bring additional Title I funds to the District.

Fort Bend ISD continually monitors free and reduced participation data by campus throughout the year. The process to determine campuses that are Title I eligible begins in March, and during this time, FBISD reviews all campuses for eligibility. The district uses February data to assist with determining which campuses may be designated for 2019-20.

February data is used as it is the most recent period for which a full month of enrollment and free and reduced meal participation data is available.

Title I district and campus funds may be utilized to improve the instructional services for students to receive a well-rounded education and demonstrate growth and success in the state’s challenging student academic performance standards (TEKS). 

Expenditures from Title I must be based upon a Comprehensive Needs Assessment for the campus/district and the Campus/District Improvement Plan.

The following is a visual that may be helpful in expressing the intended use of ESSA Title I funds:

Source: https://gtlcenter.org/sites/default/files/Principals_ActionPlan_ESSA.pdf