In an effort to reward high-performing educators, Houston Independent School District is replacing its tenure-based pay system with a performance-driven model that will roll out in 2026.
In late March, Houston ISD introduced a new teacher evaluation system aimed at categorizing teachers based on their performance.
On Tuesday, during a livestream update, the district revealed plans to implement a pay-for-performance model starting in the 2026-2027 school year. This new system will replace the current tenure structure, with a salary range of over $30,000.
According to the district, the teacher evaluation system will be used in the 2025-2026 school year to determine salaries for the following year.
When the board approved the system last month, it explained that teachers would be assessed in four key areas: Quality of Instruction (45 percent of the score), Student Academic Outcomes (35 percent of the score), Planning and Professionalism (15 percent of the score), and Campus Action Plan, which is based on school-wide performance (5 percent of the score).
After a thorough review, teachers will be placed into a proficiency category based on their performance.
These categories, their corresponding salary ranges, and the pay structure are outlined as follows:
- 3 percent of teachers will be classified in the Unsatisfactory Evaluation Level, facing likely termination, with a salary of $64,000.
- 12 percent will be placed in the Progressing I Evaluation Level, earning $70,000.
- 25 percent will be categorized in the Progressing II Evaluation Level, earning $74,000.
- 40 percent will fall into the Proficient I Evaluation Level, earning $80,000.
- 12 percent will be placed in the Proficient II Evaluation Level, earning $86,000.
- 5 percent will be grouped in the Exemplary I Evaluation Level, earning $92,000.
- 3 percent will be in the Exemplary II Evaluation Level, earning $96,000.
Additionally, several safeguards are in place for teachers.
A “hold harmless” policy ensures that no teacher will earn less than their current base salary through the 2029-2030 school year. Another policy guarantees that teachers can only move up or down one level at a time.
Special education teachers will operate under a separate system, with their salaries set at around $90,000.
Superintendent Mike Miles emphasized the significance of the new pay structure, saying, “One of the challenges of the profession has been: You have years of experience and college credit, and that’s how you get paid. Although the research is clear that after about three years, there is no difference in the effectiveness or outcomes between a 15th-year teacher and a 10th-year teacher. So, in the profession, there is no differentiation for years of experience as far as outcomes go.”
He also referenced a 2023 study from Dallas ISD’s pay-for-performance structure, which found “positive and significant effects of the reforms on math and reading achievement that increase over time.”
Miles further noted that HISD’s new system will be one of the few fully implemented pay-for-performance models in the country, directly tying a teacher’s salary—not just bonuses or incentives—to their performance.
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