2004 Customer Satisfaction Survey (PDF, 566 KB) - TEA - Home ...

I was very disappointed that I never received a reply from the commissioner to an email I sent to her
and one of her staff members.
The complaint process must be re-examined. Districts should not have to spend countless hours of
staff time to answer totally trivial complaints. There must be some means whereby the Agency can do
some analysis of the complaint before requiring burdensome, timely, costly procedures on the part of
the District. Then, when the District complains, there needs to be a response. I am still waiting for a
response to the complaint I registered in January for a totally ridiculous burden put on our District to
investigate a meaningless accusation. It costs several weeks of staff time and countless dollars, and
we proved there was absolutely no basis in fact for the accusation, and any reasonable person would
have been able to have determined that there was not a problem if someone had given 10 minutes
attention to the problem prior to requiring us to jump through ridiculous hoops in order to prove our
innocence. I wrote two letters of complaint, and have still yet to hear one word from the Agency
regarding this matter.
The grant process is slow and cumbersome. Too much paperwork for grants that are monetarily small.
Accountability with AYP is not aligned. Testing is out of control.
Response to questions/concerns needs to be greatly improved. Delay in response time from TEA to
school district is a problem.
Ninety nine percent of the time when one contacts the agency its 24 or more hours before one actually
talks with the individual that is really needed.
I try very hard not to contact TEA for information, but sometimes I must. When I do contact TEA, I need
an answer immediately. Prompt and accurate information by email would be very nice and helpful.
Info – More Accurate / Clear info, Not Enough Info / More Info,
Reminders / Newsletters
The district evaluation information (AEIS, AYP, etc.) is too complicated, too strung out, comes out in
five different formats with a total of eight release dates and is incomprehensible. This needs to be done
in a way where the average person can have ready access and understanding. The old, Snapshot,
analysis was pretty good. What we have now is not.
More current and accurate information on the summary of finance sheets.
Service Centers
I find that I am referred to the regional service center more often for services. I don’t typically receive
services from TEA.
I think the Region Service Center financial experts that are provided at the service center level by Ed
Flathouse are an outstanding asset. They provide budget and financial expertise that was sorely
needed at the service center level.
TEA – Understaffed / Too Many Cuts
The reduction in force has placed TEA staff in a position of hardship.
TEA has personnel issues. There seem to be too few people doing multiple jobs. It is difficult to get the
person needed when phone communication is necessary.
I know that TEA has gone through a RIF and is trying to keep the same level of service to schools with
reduced personnel. We have experienced this sort of problem at our school. Sometimes though, it is
frustrating to call with a question and have to wait several days for an answer. Overall, I feel that
those at TEA have been very helpful and have provided excellent service. Dr Flathouse, in the
Division of Finance, has been a lifesaver.
I believe TEA does a quality job in most cases given the support and resources provided them. I am
concerned that recent legislative actions will negatively impact the ability of TEA to meet the ever
increasing demands placed up it and upon public education, in general. I certainly support a fiscally
lean and responsible TEA. But, I know from years of experience that peak efficiency also requires
sufficient resources and support. Will the recent restructuring of TEA produce a more efficient system
or a system asked to do much more than their resources will permit? Overall, TEA is a critical and
essential component of the public education system.
Survey Research Center, University Of North Texas
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