08/26/2026
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Both Garland and Richardson school districts earned B ratings in the Texas Education Agency’s 2026 A-F accountability ratings, released Aug. 14, improving on their scores from a year ago. Garland ISD rose to an 86 from an 84, extending a run of B ratings and putting the district a point ahead of Dallas ISD and Plano ISD, which each scored 85. Richardson ISD rose to an 83 from a 79, crossing the line from a C to a B and ending a three-year run of C ratings.
The ratings grade every Texas district and campus on a 100-point scale built from three measures: 1) how students perform on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR Exam), 2) how much they grow year to year compared with similar schools, and 3) how well campuses close gaps for groups such as economically disadvantaged students and students receiving special education services. High school ratings also factor in graduation rates and College, Career and Military Readiness.
In Garland ISD, which serves Garland, Rowlett and Sachse, the 86 is a five-point climb in two years. The district said more than 95% of its campuses earned an acceptable rating and that, for another consecutive year, no campus received an F. Fourteen campuses raised their letter grade from 2025, including two elementary schools that jumped two letter grades. The district also now counts four A-rated middle schools. “This achievement belongs to everyone in Garland ISD,” Superintendent Ricardo López said in the district’s announcement, which noted the ratings arrive the same year Garland ISD was named the H-E-B Excellence in Education Outstanding Large School District in Texas.
Richardson ISD’s four-point gain was among the larger improvements posted by a major district in the region this cycle. 31 of the district’s 49 rated campuses earned an A or B, including all four high schools. District officials told the school board Aug. 6 that the improvement was driven by STAAR growth, including math gains at every grade level and across the junior high math program, and a rising College, Career and Military Readiness rate. RISD students met or exceeded the state at the “meets grade level” standard in 14 of 20 tested areas and beat the state at the “masters” standard in 18 of 20. Superintendent Tabitha Branum credited teachers, staff and families, saying the district is “making meaningful progress.”
Additionally, RISD’s advanced-course pipeline is growing even as overall enrollment declines. Enrollment has risen in every readiness pathway with AP enrollment up year over year for five straight years. District students earned more than 11,000 college credits in 2025-26, which the district values at over $11 million in tuition savings for families. RISD campuses also collected 113 TEA distinction designations, 12 more than last year, spread across 34 campuses.
Both results land in the middle of a strong regional field. Frisco ISD scored a 91. Wylie ISD, which borders the district to the northeast, scored a 92 and earned its ninth consecutive A; it has never received a grade below an A since the state began issuing letter grades in 2018. On the other end, Arlington ISD earned its fourth straight C at 78, and Fort Worth ISD, under state oversight since last fall, improved to a 77 but remained a C. Not every district gained. Several North Texas districts, including Cedar Hill and Denton ISDs, dropped at least two points.
Garland ISD is the second-largest district in Dallas County, and roughly three-quarters of its students are classified as economically disadvantaged, a substantially higher share than in Plano or Frisco. Accountability scores in Texas correlate strongly with district wealth, which is why an 86 in Garland ISD and an 83 in Richardson ISD, where several campuses serve concentrated poverty, represent a different kind of achievement than the same scores would in a wealthier suburb.
The ratings matter beyond rankings. Five consecutive F ratings at a single campus can force the state to close the school or take over the entire district, a scenario now playing out in Fort Worth ISD, now put under state control. Neither Garland ISD nor Richardson ISD is near that line. But campus-level grades also shape enrollment decisions in districts where families can choose their school, feed into home-buying decisions and set the baseline for next year’s board goals.
Both districts tie strategic plans to these scores. Richardson ISD leaders told the board that 2026-27 will focus on delivering a consistent standard of performance at every campus.
Campus-by-campus ratings for both districts are available through the state’s TXschools.gov portal, and parents in both districts can view their own child’s STAAR results through district parent portals.
