PASS grants to give students extra support with reading

The Texas Education Agency is launching a program this fall to help third graders who are struggling with reading.

The Parent Access to Supplemental Supports, or PASS, program offers $400 grants to parents of third graders who did not pass the STAAR reading exam. Texas lawmakers created the program in 2025 as part of House Bill 2.

PASS will be open to students in Texas public schools, including charter schools, who scored "did not meet grade level" on the 2026 STAAR third grade reading test, even if they advanced to fourth grade. About 27% of the state's third graders (around 103,000 students) would qualify, according to data from TEA.

Parents will be able to apply for funding through the PASS portal this fall.

During a State Board of Education meeting in June, Education Commissioner Mike Morath said third grade is the point where students should stop learning to read and begin reading to learn. Education researchers also say third grade is a critical milestone for reading because students who are behind at that point are unlikely to catch up.

Parents can use the funding to pay for tutoring services through programs like Sylvan Learning, or through a marketplace TEA plans to set up this fall to connect families with teachers and certified specialists, such as dyslexia therapists, to hire for private tutoring.

Spring 2026 STAAR scores

The creation of the PASS program comes as spring 2026 STAAR scores showed third graders' performance fell by 1 percentage point in reading, with 49% meeting grade level, down from 50% in spring 2025. While fewer third graders are approaching grade level (73% compared to last year's 76%), 24% are mastering reading skills (up from 22% in 2025).

STAAR reading scores for students in grades 4, 5 and 6 were flat in spring 2026 compared to 2025, with 52%, 57% and 54% meeting grade level, respectively. Seventh graders' scores improved 2 percentage points to 54% meeting grade level and eighth graders' scores rose 3 percentage points to 59%.

Math scores rose for grades 4-8 and remained flat for third graders in spring 2026. Morath said the 2026 results "demonstrate both the progress Texas students are making and the work that remains ahead of us."

High schoolers continued to show gains in the percentage of students meeting grade level in all end-of-course subject areas and among all student groups. Biology, English I and English II continued their upward trajectory, with student performance in spring 2026 surpassing pre-pandemic levels. U.S. History also posted gains, with 70% of students meeting grade level. In Algebra I, 54% of students met grade level, representing a 7 percentage-point increase from spring 2025.

"These results reflect the hard work of Texas students, educators and families and demonstrate that focused instruction and high expectations continue to produce positive outcomes for students across our state," Morath said when scores were released in June. "These results may also be reflective of the legislature's ban of cellphone use in classrooms, so that students are better able to stay focused on their schoolwork while at school."

This school year will be the last time students take STAAR exams. A new through-year testing program takes its place in 2027-28. Known as the Student Success Tool, it will test students at the beginning, middle and end of the year. TEA has until Feb. 15, 2027, to provide the Texas Legislature with a transition plan and an update on the status of the new assessment program.

This article appeared in the Summer 2026 issue of The Classroom Teacher.