ATX Pulse 8/11-12/26 (free): Two AISD Middle Schools Now Eligible for TEA Takeover // New $5B UT AI Hospital Awaits BOR Action // AFD Chief Baker Retires Suddenly // CapMetro Workers Reach Tentative Agreement // Alamo Drafthouse Names Theater for McConnaughey // Austin FC Can Advance to Knockout Stage of Leagues Cup Tonight

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2026 - WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12, 2026

Compiled by Matt Mackowiak

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WEATHER

Today: H: 102° / L: 78°. Mostly sunny.

Friday: H: 99° / L: 78°. Partly cloudy. 20% chance of rain.

Saturday: H: 101° / L: 77°. Partly cloudy.

Sunday: H: 101° / L: 76°. Mostly sunny.

BREAKING NEWS

"Two Austin ISD schools receive fifth consecutive F rating, potentially opening district up to state takeover" via KXAN – Two Austin Independent School District middle schools received their fifth consecutive F ratings, opening the entire district up to a state takeover.

Superintendent Matias Segura sat down with KXAN Wednesday to go over the schools’ preliminary accountability ratings, which the district received early from the Texas Education Agency.

Austin ISD has been working to improve the scores at a number of campuses, but Burnet, Dobie and Webb Middle Schools have seen the most focus after receiving failing grades for multiple years. If any one school receives five F ratings in a row, the state can intervene, including potentially replacing the elected school board with a state-appointed superintendent and board of managers.

Dobie Middle School improved to a D rating, while Burnet and Webb received another F rating, with scores of 58 and 59, respectively, Segura said.

While the ratings for Burnet and Webb middle schools were not where the district wanted them to be, they did see improvements in other areas, with 35 schools increasing a letter grade.

“Two years ago, we had more D and F campuses than we had A and B campuses,” Segura said. “Now, as we end the 25-26 school year and start the 26-27 school year, we have two times more A and B schools than we have D and F schools.”

In 2024, AISD had 43 campuses with an A or B rating. Last school year, there are 61. For the 2026-27 school year, 57 schools have an A or B rating. The reduction is because of school consolidations.

The total number of D and F campuses went form 48 in 2024-25 to 25 for the 2026-27 school year.

“It has been hard,” Segura said, “It has been really, really hard, but we are very close to being a school district that has zero F ratings and a thriving school system that gets every student what they need to be successful.”

What’s next?

KXAN asked Segura what he believes will happen after seeing the preliminary ratings, including two schools receive their fifth consecutive failing grades.

“I can’t speak to what the [Texas Education Agency] will or will not do, but I think what it comes down to — is the district making systemic changes that makes sure every student achieves academically? Yes,” Segura said. “Are we making hard decision after hard decision to ensure the resources are allocated and distributed where the needs are the highest? Yes.”

Segura said he feels confident that if the district continues on the same path, they will see more growth and schools will see more improvements.

“As we move forward, my hope is that if anybody looks at the body of work of Austin ISD and thinks about systemic improvement and is the system responding in the way you would expect, is it meeting the expectations of the state? The answer would be yes,” Segura said. ” The question as to what happens, I can’t speak to that. I am not even going to speculate.”

Timeline of decision

The ratings that were released to districts are the preliminary accountability ratings and are not final. The list will be made available to everyone on Friday.

After that, the district will open up a 30-day window for any appeals that might come up. Once that appeal window closes, there will be a 90-day period where the TEA can evaluate any appeals.

In December, the final ratings should be released. That is when AISD could hear what the TEA plans to do.

You can find the ratings from Austin ISD and other districts here when they are released Friday. (KXAN)

TOP NEWS

"UT's $5 billion AI hospital in Austin: New vote will decide timeline, cost" via AAS – The University of Texas System Board of Regents' Facilities Planning and Construction Committee will adopt a timeline and budget for phase one of the much-awaited artificial intelligence-native hospital, UT Dell Medical Center. Construction on the $5 billion hospital is expected to begin this fall, and initial site preparation could begin within a month after board approval of this first phase, which does not include the actual building but includes design and site preparation as well as equipment that takes time to arrive such as MRIs.

The hospital will include both specialty care and an MD Anderson Cancer Center Central Texas location. UT announced the project in 2023 as a $2.5 billion investment to expand access to high-quality healthcare for Central Texas and bring thousands of jobs to Austin, but when a new site was chosen and the hospitals were combined into one, the price tag went up to an estimated $5 billion.

In April, the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation gave UT more than $750 million to build the UT Dell Campus for Advanced Research and the UT Dell Medical Center on the university's former West Pickle Research Campus in North Austin. The 27-acre site on West Braker Lane and MoPac Boulevard will become the new research campus, not the former Erwin Center, as initially anticipated. Claudia Lucchinetti, dean of the Dell Medical School, said the campus will include a 2.5 million-gross-square-feet medical center to provide advanced, specialized care for inpatient and outpatient care. (AAS)

"Austin fire chief retires, city to launch nationwide search for new chief" via KXAN – Austin Fire Chief Joel Baker is retiring at the end of the month. Tom Vocke will serve as interim fire chief beginning Tuesday.

“Austin Firefighters congratulate AFD Chief of Staff Tom Vocke on his appointment to Interim Chief of the Austin Fire Department,” David Girouard, president of the Austin Firefighters Association (AFA), responded. “We thank Chief Baker for his lifetime of service and career dedicated to saving lives, protecting property, and improving the safety and working conditions for the men and women of the fire service.”

In 2018, KXAN reported that Baker was hired as Austin's first African-American fire chief. He had previously worked as the fire chief for the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department and had spent more than 30 years as a firefighter in the Atlanta area.

"After more than seven years of dedicated service to the City of Austin, Chief Joel Baker will conclude an exceptional 40-year career devoted to public safety, emergency response, and service to our community," the city manager wrote. "Throughout his distinguished tenure in the fire service, Chief Joel Baker has demonstrated unwavering professionalism, visionary leadership, and a steadfast commitment to protecting our residents' lives and property."

Meanwhile, Tom Vocke has 29 years of experience in fire service, according to the city memo. "His previous assignments have included oversight of Fire Operations, leadership of the Fire Marshal’s Office and fire prevention programs, and, most recently, service as Chief of Staff for the Fire Department," the city manager wrote. The city will launch a nationwide search for its next permanent fire chief, the city manager said in the memo. David Girouard said the AFA looks forward to working with the city on that search. (KXAN)

"Austin effort confronts costly cycle of homelessness, hospital visits and arrests" via AAS – Officials from more than a dozen local government agencies and nonprofit organizations are launching an effort to break a costly cycle of homelessness, psychiatric crises, emergency room visits and repeated arrests among some of Austin's most vulnerable residents.

The initiative, called No Wrong Door, brings together 17 city, county, health care and nonprofit organizations to identify people who repeatedly cycle through jails, hospitals and homelessness services and develop individualized plans to connect them with treatment and support.

Officials from more than a dozen local government agencies and nonprofit organizations are launching an effort to break a costly cycle of homelessness, psychiatric crises, emergency room visits and repeated arrests among some of Austin's most vulnerable residents.

The initiative, called No Wrong Door, brings together 17 city, county, health care and nonprofit organizations to identify people who repeatedly cycle through jails, hospitals and homelessness services and develop individualized plans to connect them with treatment and support.

Data included in a city report released Aug. 4 show a relatively small population accounts for an outsized share of arrests and other costly interactions with public systems. From 2021 through 2025, 2% of people arrested by Austin police accounted for 17% of all arrests. Among the frequent users of those systems, 85% had experienced homelessness and 55% had behavioral health issues, an umbrella term that includes severe mental illness and other issues like substance abuse disorder.

The Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute estimates at least 950 people in Travis County are “high utilizers” of the criminal justice, homelessness and health care systems. Their repeated interactions with those systems cost an estimated $144,000 per person, or $137 million annually.

Andy Farias, Austin’s No Wrong Door program manager, said the initiative is initially prioritizing 100 of the people who use those systems most frequently. Austin police officers are working directly with some of those residents to identify their needs and connect them with services.

“It’s a trifecta that plagues people and causes them to stay in a system that is not designed to meet their needs,” Farias said, referring to mental health problems compounded by unsheltered homelessness and substance-use disorders. “They’re going to go through this vicious cycle perpetually if we don't make a more concerted intervention."

No Wrong Door is intended to replace some of that fragmentation with coordinated case management. Participating agencies will meet every two weeks to discuss individual clients’ needs, while executive leaders meet monthly to address broader barriers. Farias said the city is using existing staffing and other resources to coordinate the program, making its costs negligible. 

But officials say coordination alone cannot solve one of the region’s biggest problems: a shortage of places equipped to care for people with severe mental illness and substance-use disorders.

Austin and Travis County have committed to pursuing a mental health crisis center, while city officials are seeking state support for additional inpatient treatment and intermediate “step-down” care.

Mayor Kirk Watson made the case for state action in a July letter to the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission.

“In Austin and across Texas, there’s often nowhere for them to go,” Watson wrote. “The default disposition for these individuals is either jail or a hospital emergency department.”

Watson described those options as expensive and often inappropriate for patients.

Farias said Austin also lacks enough places for people to go between acute psychiatric treatment and independent living. He described that “step-down” care as a missing middle that could include skilled nursing facilities, inpatient rehabilitation or transitional care.

Without those options, providers can stabilize someone in crisis but have nowhere appropriate to send them next.

“We need more options,” Farias said, “because the street remains the most expensive and inhumane option for people to receive care.” (AAS)

"Austin Catholic schools see enrollment increase as Texas launches private school voucher program" via KVUE — More families are choosing Austin-area Catholic schools as Austin ISD begins a school year marked by closures, financial challenges and other major changes.

The increase comes as Texas rolls out its new Education Freedom Accounts program, which allows eligible families to use public funds toward private school tuition and other education-related expenses.

Misty Poe, superintendent of the Diocese of Austin Office of Catholic Schools, said Catholic schools have seen enrollment increase since the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I would say since COVID we've seen an uptick in our enrollment,” Misty Poe said. “It's fluctuated a little bit, but it has been increasing each year.” David DeMatthews, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin College of Education, said closures and cuts at Austin ISD could make some families question the future of the district. (KVUE)

"Camp Mystic paid Eastland family members nearly $300K as revenue plunged after deadly flood" via KUT – Camp Mystic's annual revenue fell by nearly half after the catastrophic July 2025 flood, while the summer camp paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to members of the family that operates it, according to newly filed bankruptcy records.

The filing, submitted Friday in federal bankruptcy court in Houston, provides one of the clearest looks yet at the finances of the century-old Christian summer camp for girls as it faces several wrongful death lawsuits and additional close scrutiny stemming from last year's July Fourth flood.

More than 130 people died across the region, including 25 campers and two counselors at Camp Mystic, along with camp owner and executive director Dick Eastland. The Eastland family has operated the summer camp for three generations.

Bankruptcy records show the camp brought in about $5.7 million in 2025, down from $11.2 million the previous year. Revenue fell further in the first half of 2026. Camp Mystic reported just over $111,000 in revenue from January through June 24, when it filed for bankruptcy . According to Friday's filing, the financial disclosures are unaudited and could change. Camp Mystic said many of its records were damaged in the 2025 flood, forcing the camp and its advisers to reconstruct some financial information using electronic records, alternate sources and physical inspections. (KUT)

"E-bike, e-scooter riders will have to dismount on central portion of UT campus" via KUT – Riders of electric bikes, scooters and boards on the University of Texas at Austin’s campus will have to dismount and walk in a large portion of central campus, including the Speedway Mall, starting Aug. 24.

The university is designating the area between San Jacinto Boulevard and Guadalupe Street and 21st Street to 24th Street as a “pedestrian friendly zone,” the university announced Monday. The changes start the first day of the fall semester.

The announcement comes after signs went up on campus last week and after the university quietly posted new mobility regulations online, including a “dismount zone map.” The web page was then taken down. The original post did not make clear if the dismount areas included non-motorized vehicles. Cycling advocates expressed concerns about the plan's impact before the university clarified that the ban would not impact manual bicycles and scooters.

Eduardo Diaz, a student at UT, was one of the people concerned about a blanket ban for all scooters, bikes and boards on Speedway. "I still think that this confusion would have been avoided significantly if we had gotten some input before this went into place,” Diaz said. "I'm glad that this was clarified or that it was changed.” (KUT)

"Matthew McConaughey Cinema dedicated at Alamo Drafthouse Austin: See photos" via AAS – Matthew McConaughey joined family, filmmakers and moviegoers Monday as Alamo Drafthouse renamed its Mueller location the Matthew McConaughey Cinema. Austin Mayor Kirk Watson presented McConaughey with a proclamation, and a plaque marking the theater’s new name was unveiled. McConaughey attended with his wife, Camila Alves McConaughey, and their children, Levi, Livingston and Vida. Director Andrew Patterson and actress Angelina LookingGlass also attended before an advance screening of “The Rivals of Amziah King.” (AAS)

THE BLOTTER

"Pedestrian killed in crash on North Lamar Boulevard" via KXAN – A woman was hit and killed by a vehicle late Sunday night in north Austin, according to the Austin Police Department. Officers responded at approximately 11:18 p.m. Aug. 9 to the 8500 block of North Lamar Boulevard after receiving reports of a crash involving a vehicle and a pedestrian.

Police identified the pedestrian as 64-year-old Margaret Govea. Margaret Govea was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver remained at the scene and is cooperating with investigators, according to police.

The collision is being investigated as Austin's 50th fatal crash of 2026, resulting in 50 traffic fatalities this year. By the same date in 2025, the city had recorded 60 fatal crashes that resulted in 64 deaths, police said. (KXAN)

"Austin Police asks public for help finding hit-and-run suspect" via KXAN – Austin Police said Tuesday that it has an arrest warrant for a man whom it accused of failing to stop after a crash on East Riverside Drive in December 2025. The crash happened near E. Riverside Drive and Royal Crest Drive, at around 6:28 p.m. on Dec. 28, 2025.

"Detectives report that the suspect rear-ended a vehicle occupied by two individuals, both of whom sustained non-life-threatening injuries," APD said. "The suspect, later identified as Kevin Eduardo Aguilar Yac, fled the scene immediately following the collision."

The department said its suspect is 20-year-old Aguilar Yac. It claims that he was identified through "DNA recovered from the driver-side airbag" that had a match in a database. KXAN has not yet contacted Aguilar Yac for comment.

Kevin Eduardo Aguilar Yac's last known residence was in Tucson, Arizona, according to APD. APD asked for anyone with information about Aguilar Yac to contact its highway enforcement investigations unit at 512-974-4478 or email. (KXAN)

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