The Texas Education Exchange can benefit millions of students and educators in the Lone Star State. Our product launched statewide just a few weeks ago, with tools that efficiently connect educators to data that can shape decisions on campus and in the classroom. With easier access to essential information, we give educators time back in their day to focus on students.
What makes The Exchange different is our approach. Through collaboration at the regional level, the state of Texas is embarking on a new way to enable data interoperability in districts and charter schools. The Exchange is guided by a Collaborative, comprised of five Regional Education Service Centers (ESCs), including Regions 4 in Houston, 10 in Dallas, 11 in Ft. Worth, 13 in Austin, and 20 in San Antonio. Collaborative ESC representatives serve on The Exchange Board and Steering Committee, which shape the operational framework and guide its strategy. Ultimately, the collaboration around The Exchange will expand beyond these five leaders; the hope is that all 20 regions across the state will join and help grow The Exchange from a grassroots level.
The Exchange is working to educate and recruit other regions through our Ambassador Program. This team, along with our Regional Support Teams, can grow the network to reach Texas’ 1,200 unique districts. These stewards of The Exchange are the heart of our work, the relationship builders, and those who know their districts best. They can offer knowledge and support while onboarding new members.
This launch of The Exchange is the culmination of multiple years of planning, research, design, and development by The Exchange team and our partners. The partner list includes industry leaders, the Ed-Fi Alliance, and the Texas Education Agency.
The October 2023 release of The Exchange delivers essential data infrastructure services, including an Onboarding Wizard and technical admin console, core features like The Exchange community, and Leadership Analytics and educator dashboards. These tools create efficiencies for districts, freeing up time to focus on students. With standardized and automated workflows, educators can populate reports with data integrated from various sources to have comprehensive insights at their fingertips. Regions can provide more efficient and scalable support to their districts and charter schools. The Exchange empowers educators with tools and insights to bolster student success.
The Ed-Fi Alliance Community has advanced data interoperability in education into what it is today. The Exchange, in partnership with the Ed-Fi Alliance Community, will continue championing innovative options to assist educators in furthering student achievement. We are proud to have worked alongside many partners in this community to build the framework for the future of education data in Texas.
The Exchange is free to all Texas districts and charter schools during the 2023-2024 school year. Please contact The Exchange team if you would like to learn more or be a part of the future of data interoperability in Texas.
Jerry Lashley is the director of the Texas Education Exchange. He spent 12 years in public service for cities and organizations before moving into education. His experience in entrepreneurship, business, and service allowed him to dream big and see opportunities where others did not. Jerry has devoted 16 years to public education, spending nearly a decade with YES! Prep Public Schools in Houston and five years with the Region 4 Educational Service Center. His primary focus has been business operations, including transportation, safety and health, child nutrition, technology, ASCENDER, and TSDS/PEIMS. During his work at Region 4, Jerry found educators at all levels lacked access to simple data interoperability that would allow them to do their jobs more efficiently and help students in the process. That’s when he began reaching out to learn more about what could solve this entrenched statewide problem. Through this journey, Jerry discovered the Ed-Fi Data Standard, which would help him realize this dream of interoperability in Texas. He began working toward a solution that would benefit all regions, all districts, and all educators. Jerry now runs all day-to-day operations of The Exchange, connecting organizations while building a new outlook on technology from the ground up in Texas.
