Birdville ISD and Tarrant County College shall develop and maintain a leadership team that meets quarterly to address issues of design, implementation, ongoing implementation, and sustainability. Members include the Collegiate Academy of Birdville Principal and leaders with decision making authority from both the district and the institution of higher education.

 

About Collegiate Academy of Birdville

Birdville ISD and Tarrant County College–Northeast Campus have partnered to open the first early college high school within Birdville ISD.

Our inaugural site opened in 2019 as a school-within-a-school model at Haltom High School. Our facilities for our upperclassmen opened in 2021 on the campus of TCC NE. As of 2025/2026 school year, CAB will serve ALL grade levels located at the TCC N.E. Campus. CAB serves approximately 60 students per grade level.

Early College High School is a designation awarded by the Texas Education Agency. This designation identifies innovative high schools located on or near a college campus that will allow students who would not otherwise consider attending college the opportunity to simultaneously earn a high school diploma and an associate degree with up to 60 hours of college credit.

By implementing rigorous instruction, innovative instructional strategies, and the intensive cognitive support necessary for creating a college-going culture, the Collegiate Academy of Birdville (CAB) helps students build the skills and knowledge necessary for college success. The CAB provides academic, social, and emotional support services to ensure student success. 

Students have access to TCC facilities, resources, and services such as libraries and labs, as well as the opportunity to participate in artistic and cultural activities. 

College tuition, fees, textbooks, and computers are available at no cost to students that are in the Collegiate Academy of Birdville.

The Texas Education Agency requires designated early college high schools to focus recruitment efforts on students least likely to attend college, such as at-risk students (as defined by PEIMS), including, but not limited to, students of limited English proficiency, students with disabilities, and/or students who have failed a state-administered assessment. Students are selected by a weighted lottery of all applicants; there are no prerequisites for participation in the lottery other than current status as a student entering ninth grade the following year. In our first five lotteries the students selected have been tightly aligned with the district's populations in each of these categories.

All current eighth-grade students from Birdville ISD and outside districts may apply to be accepted into the Collegiate Academy of Birdville. The online application is posted each year on the district website and the Collegiate Academy website. A completed application is required for consideration for admission to CAB. A wait list is established for all students who are not selected and any openings are filled from that list in the order in which the students' names were selected.

Benchmark 1: School Design

Our inaugural site opened in 2019 as a school-within-a-school model at Haltom High School. Our facilities for our upperclassmen opened in 2021 on the campus of TCC NE. As of 2025/2026 school year, CAB will serve ALL grade levels located at the TCC N.E. Campus. CAB serves approximately 60 students per grade level. 

A significant part of our mission is to enroll students who are at-risk of dropping out of school and who might not otherwise go to college. While any 8th grade student may apply for admission, the Collegiate Academy of Birdville implements recruitment and enrollment processes which identify, recruit, and enroll the subpopulations of at-risk students including, but not limited to, students who are of limited English proficiency, students with disabilities, and students who have failed a state-administered assessment.  

Enrollment decisions are not based on state assessment scores, discipline history, teacher recommendation,  minimum grade point average (GPA) or other criteria that create barriers to student enrollment.

 

Benchmark 2: Partnerships

The Collegiate Academy of Birdville has a signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Tarrant County College, Northeast Campus. It is reviewed and updated annually.

In addition, the Course Crosswalks for various fields of study that students can pursue are provided. These crosswalks identify the courses necessary to earn a high school diploma, the Associate degree with specific courses appropriate for their field, and the courses for which a student can earn dual credit. In addition, we have crosswalks for students who choose to earn certifications in various fields if they will not complete an Associate Degree.

Benchmark 3: Target Population

The Collegiate Academy of Birdville shall scale up to serve students in grades 9 - 12 and shall target and enroll students who are at-risk of dropping out of school and who might not otherwise go to college. 

While any 8th grade student in Birdviile ISD may apply for admission, the Collegiate Academy of Birdville will implement recruitment and enrollment processes which shall identify, recruit, and enroll the subpopulations of at-risk students including, but not limited to, students who are of limited English proficiency, students with disabilities, or students who have failed a state administered assessment. 

 

 

Benchmark 4: Academic Infrastructure

The Collegiate Academy of Birdville shall provide a rigorous course of study that enables a participating student to receive a high school diploma and complete the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board core curriculum, obtain certifications, earn an Associate of Arts degree, or earn at least 60 credit hours toward a Baccalaureate degree during grades 9-12. The Collegiate Academy of Birdville will provide students with academic, social, and emotional support in their course of study.

The four-year cross-walks detail how students will progress toward their goals, including alignment of high school and college level courses. The multiple cross-walks, differentiated by possible career paths, were designed with TCC to provide students guides to maximize the number of college courses that will be accepted for their course of study at Texas universities. These cross-walks provide pathways to a certificate, an Associate's degree, or a Baccalaureate degree and must reflect the fields of study listed in the THECB Lower Division Academic Course Guide Manual and/or the Workforce Education Course Manual.  

Multiple dual enrollment delivery models will be implemented at the Collegiate Academy of Birdville:

• College courses taught on the college campus by college faculty
• College courses taught virtually, via distance/online blended learning

 

TSIA Support

The Collegiate Academy of Birdville shall administer a Texas Success Initiative (TSI) college placement exam to all accepted ECHS students to assess college readiness, design individual instructional support plans, and enable students to begin college courses based on their performance on the TSI exam.

The test will be offered multiple times a semester after the student completes preparatory lessons, with additional testing on an individual basis as necessary. If a student has not successfully completed the Reading and Writing portion of the exam by the end of his/her freshman year or the Math portion by the end of sophomore year the student will receive additional preparation and may be required to take a test prep course.

 

Benchmark 5: Student Support

 

AVID

AVID’s mission is to close the achievement gap by preparing all students for college readiness and success in a global society.

Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) is a year-long academic elective course, scheduled during the regular school day, that prepares students for college readiness and success. Students receive instruction utilizing a rigorous college preparatory curriculum provided by AVID Center, tutor-facilitated study groups, motivational activities and academic success skills. In AVID, students participate in activities that incorporate strategies focused on writing, inquiry, collaboration, organization and reading (WICOR) to support their academic growth.

Visit the AVID Center Official Website for more information on the study skills curriculum used at the Collegiate Academy of Birdville.

AVID refers to the foundation of its study skills and instructional techniques as WICOR: Writing, Incquiry, Collaboration, Organization, and Reading.  More specific information is summarized in the WICOR handout below.

Professional Learning Community (PLC)

The PLC at the CAB is solely focused on ensuring that every student learns. Rick DuFour (2004) believed that every professional in the organization must engage with colleagues to explore three crucial questions if a school was to move forward. 

"What do we want each student to learn?"

"How will we know when each student has learned it?"

"How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty in learning?"

The CAB PLC examines the baseline TSI and STAAR data for incoming students to develop individualized student plans for ongoing academic support and classroom instruction. The CAB PLC will adhere to protocols developed by Birdville ISD to maintain focus on the attained curriculum (what the student learned as opposed to what the student was taught.) All Birdville ISD PLC protocols are listed below.