Education

For families across Cypress, Cy-Fair and northwest Harris County, the newest Texas school accountability results offer a fresh look at how Cypress-Fairbanks ISD is performing — not only on state tests, but in student growth, college and career readiness, staffing and financial management.

The Texas Education Agency released its 2026 A-F Accountability Ratings on Aug. 14, providing updated ratings for 1,202 school districts and 9,105 campuses statewide. Cypress-Fairbanks ISD received a B with an overall score of 86, one point higher than its B/85 rating for 2024-25.

For a district serving more than 114,000 students, that one-point increase is part of a broader picture. CFISD earned scores in the 80s across each of the state's three major accountability areas and received a Postsecondary Readiness distinction, reflecting measures tied to preparing students for college, careers and life after graduation.

CFISD's 2026 accountability rating rises to 86

Texas' A-F accountability system evaluates school districts and campuses primarily through three areas: Student Achievement, School Progress and Closing the Gaps.

Cypress-Fairbanks ISD's 2026 results were:

• Overall rating: B — 86
• Student Achievement: B — 83
• School Progress: B — 86
• Closing the Gaps: B — 85
• Distinction designation: Postsecondary Readiness

The district's overall score has moved from 80 in 2022-23 to 82 in 2023-24, 85 in 2024-25 and now 86 in 2025-26, according to the TEA accountability report.

That trajectory matters because the accountability system is designed to measure more than whether students simply passed the STAAR exam. Student Achievement also incorporates graduation and postsecondary-readiness measures, while School Progress examines student growth over time and compares performance with districts serving similar percentages of economically disadvantaged students. Closing the Gaps looks at whether different student groups are succeeding.

CFISD students outperform statewide STAAR rates across every tested subject

A closer look at Cypress-Fairbanks ISD's Student Achievement report shows that the district's B/83 rating reflects comparatively strong STAAR performance across reading, math, science and social studies.

Across all tested subjects, 80% of CFISD students performed at the Approaches Grade Level standard or higher, compared with 76% statewide. CFISD also exceeded the Texas average individually in reading, math, science and social studies. The largest difference at that performance level was in science, where 85% of district students reached Approaches Grade Level or higher compared with 79% statewide.

The differences become more pronounced at the higher achievement levels. Sixty percent of CFISD students met grade level or higher across all subjects, compared with 52% statewide, while 31% mastered grade level compared with 24% across Texas. In science, 39% of CFISD students reached the Masters Grade Level standard, compared with 28% statewide; in social studies, the comparison was 37% in CFISD and 27% statewide.

The district's Student Achievement score has also moved upward over the past three accountability cycles, rising from a C/79 in 2023-24 to B/81 in 2024-25 and B/83 in 2025-26.

For families with older students, however, the data presents a more mixed picture when it comes to college, career and military readiness. CFISD's overall CCMR rate was 80%, below the statewide rate of 87%. The district trailed the state in several measures, including industry-based certifications and the broader measure of students meeting college-ready standards through testing or college-preparation coursework.

At the same time, CFISD exceeded statewide rates in some college-credit measures. About 32.9% of district students earned dual-credit coursework, compared with 27% statewide, and 7.7% earned an associate degree, more than twice the statewide rate of 3.5%.

Graduation outcomes were also above the Texas averages. CFISD posted a 94% four-year graduation rate, compared with 91.2% statewide, while its reported dropout rate was 0.8%, less than half the statewide rate of 1.9%. Its five-year graduation rate was 95.5%, compared with 92.5% across Texas.

Student progress improves, while Closing the Gaps data points to work still ahead

Another important piece of the 2026 Cypress-Fairbanks ISD accountability picture is not simply where students finished academically, but how much progress they made along the way.

CFISD earned a B/86 in School Progress, up from B/84 the previous year and B/82 in 2023-24. The category considers both academic growth and how the district performs compared with districts serving similar concentrations of economically disadvantaged students.

Within that calculation, CFISD received an 81 for Academic Growth and an 86 for Relative Performance. TEA reported an annual growth score of 70%, which approximates the share of students making at least one year of academic progress. Among students who had been academically behind, the district's accelerated learning score was 36%.

That growth is particularly relevant in CFISD, where 58.5% of students are classified as economically disadvantaged. Relative Performance specifically looks at how academic results compare with districts serving similar economically disadvantaged populations, giving residents another way to view performance beyond a single STAAR proficiency rate.

The district's Closing the Gaps rating, meanwhile, was B/85, down from B/88 in 2024-25 but still above its B/81 score from 2023-24. This portion of the accountability system examines how well different student groups are performing rather than considering districtwide averages alone.

The underlying data shows substantial differences among student groups. In academic achievement, for example, 64% of all CFISD students met the measured reading/language arts benchmark and 52% met the mathematics benchmark. Among African American students, those figures were 51% and 37%, respectively; among Hispanic students, 57% and 43%; among White students, 81% and 71%; and among Asian students, 87% and 85%.

Growth measures show a somewhat narrower spread. Reading/language arts growth ranged from 68% among African American students to 85% among Asian students, while mathematics growth ranged from 66% among African American students to 87% among Asian students. TEA's "High Focus" student group posted growth rates of 69% in reading/language arts and 67% in mathematics.

For local families, those numbers add context to CFISD's overall B rating. The district is showing improvement in Student Achievement and School Progress and is outperforming statewide STAAR rates in several important measures, while the Closing the Gaps data identifies persistent differences in outcomes among student groups that remain part of the district's academic challenge going forward.

A ratings appear across CFISD elementary, middle and high schools

The districtwide B is only one part of the picture. TEA's newly released Cypress-Fairbanks ISD campus ratings show A-rated schools at every major grade level.

Among the district's high schools, Bridgeland High School, Cypress Ranch High School and Cypress Woods High School received A ratings. Other CFISD high schools, including Cy-Fair, Cypress Creek, Cypress Falls, Cypress Lakes, Cypress Park, Cypress Ridge, Cypress Springs, Jersey Village and Langham Creek, received B ratings in the posted report.

A-rated middle schools include Anthony, Goodson, Hamilton, Salyards, Smith, Spillane and Sprague, while numerous elementary campuses also earned A ratings, including Birkes, Byrd, Copeland, Farney, Gleason, Hairgrove, Hamilton, Holbrook, Keith, Lowery, McGown, Pope, Postma, Rennell, Robinson, Robison, Sampson, Swenke, Warner, Wells and Woodard.

Other CFISD campuses received B or C ratings, while Cypress-Fairbanks JJAEP was listed as not rated. For parents searching for a specific Cy-Fair school rating, TXschools.gov allows users to look up individual campuses and compare school performance data by address and other measures.

How CFISD compares with the statewide picture

Across Texas, 24% of both school districts and campuses improved their ratings compared with 2025, while 585 campuses moved from below an A to an A rating. TEA reported that 85% of campuses receiving an A-F rating statewide earned a C or higher.

Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said the accountability results are intended to show both progress and areas that still need attention.

“This year’s A-F ratings illustrate the progress Texas public schools are making and acknowledge the hard work of our educators while illuminating areas of needed improvement to ensure that all students have access to a high-quality education. Through our commitment to transparency and accessibility, parents and the public can explore the ratings and associated resources to clearly understand the performance of their schools,” Morath said.

The statewide accountability system, established by the Texas Legislature through House Bill 22 in 2017, is intended to provide families and communities with a consistent way to evaluate public school performance while recognizing student growth as well as achievement.

A large, increasingly complex student population

The numbers behind CFISD's rating also help put the district's work in perspective.

Cypress-Fairbanks ISD reported 114,430 students for 2025-26. About 58.5% were economically disadvantaged, 20.6% were emergent bilingual students and 15.1% received special education services. The district reported a 93.2% attendance rate and an 18% chronic absenteeism rate.

Those demographics are important when interpreting accountability scores because Texas' system specifically examines both overall performance and whether student groups are making progress.

CFISD's Postsecondary Readiness distinction is also notable for families thinking beyond graduation. TEA describes the accountability system as measuring whether districts are preparing students for success in college, the workforce or the military.

CFISD teacher salaries rise as staffing picture shifts

The newly released TEA staffing reports also show significant changes inside Cypress-Fairbanks ISD from 2024-25 to 2025-26.

Average teacher pay increased from $68,146 to $72,328, a gain of $4,182. The 2025-26 average was also higher than the statewide teacher average of $68,020.

Beginning teacher salaries increased even more sharply in the TEA data, from an average of $51,012 in 2024-25 to $58,196 in 2025-26. CFISD's average teacher salary exceeded the statewide average at every experience level listed in the 2025-26 report.

Teacher turnover also edged down from 17.7% to 17.3%, remaining below the statewide 18.1% turnover rate for 2025-26.

At the same time, the staffing mix changed. Total staff increased from 15,729.5 full-time-equivalent positions to 16,261.5, while the number of teachers declined from 7,664.1 to 7,568.6. Educational aides increased from 2,226.9 to 2,345.8, and auxiliary staff rose from 3,724.1 to 4,115.0.

The district's student-to-teacher ratio improved slightly, however, moving from 15.4 students per teacher to 15.1.

One area showing particularly noticeable staffing growth was bilingual and ESL education. TEA reported the equivalent of 478.2 teachers serving that population in 2025-26, up from 240.2 the previous year. Special education staffing also increased from 1,267.6 to 1,316.7 teacher equivalents.

Financial rating remains strong

CFISD's Texas School Report Card also gives families a look beyond academics.

The district received an A with a score of 98 out of 100 under the state's Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas, or FIRST, based on fiscal year 2024 data. TEA's report lists approximately $1.596 billion in revenue across all funds and $1.957 billion in expenditures.

The FIRST rating is separate from the academic A-F accountability rating, but together the reports provide residents with a broader look at the district's academic performance, staffing and stewardship of public funds.

What the 2026 ratings mean for Cy-Fair families

For parents, homeowners and taxpayers, school accountability ratings often become shorthand for a much larger story. They can influence how families research schools, how communities talk about education and, indirectly, how neighborhoods are perceived by people considering a move to the Cypress and Cy-Fair area.

But a districtwide letter grade cannot tell parents everything about an individual school or student's experience.

CFISD's 86 reflects thousands of students across dozens of campuses, with individual schools receiving ratings ranging from A through C in the report. Families researching a particular neighborhood school may find the campus-level data more useful than the districtwide number alone.

TXschools.gov allows residents to search by address, review individual school ratings and compare campuses across selected measures — a useful resource for parents trying to understand how their child's school performed and where progress may still be needed.

What happens next

The 2026 ratings give Cypress-Fairbanks ISD a new benchmark heading into the school year: a higher overall score, strong student-progress and closing-the-gaps results, multiple A-rated campuses and a Postsecondary Readiness distinction, alongside areas where continued academic improvement remains possible.

For families, the most meaningful story may develop campus by campus — in classrooms, graduation outcomes, student growth and how individual schools respond to the data in the year ahead.

My Neighborhood News will continue following Cypress-Fairbanks ISD academic performance, campus ratings, staffing trends and other developments affecting Cy-Fair families.

By Tiffany Krenek, My Neighborhood News 

Tiffany Krenek has been on the My Neighborhood News team since August 2021. She is passionate about curating and sharing content that enriches the lives of our readers in a personal, meaningful way. A loving mother and wife, Tiffany and her family live in the West Houston/Cypress region.