On November 5, 2026, Renaissance announced that its Star Assessments received approval from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for two statewide testing programs taking effect in the 2027–28 school year. The decision grants conditional clearance for K–3 early literacy and numeracy screeners, alongside approval for grades 3–8 alternate interim assessments.
What Happened
For kindergarten through grade 3, the TEA granted conditional approval to six tools aligned with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), according to Renaissance's press release. The approved early literacy instruments are Star Early Literacy, Star Reading, Star CBM Reading, and Star CBM Lectura. The approved early numeracy tools are Star Math and Star CBM Math.
For grades 3–8, the TEA approved Star Reading and Star Math as beginning-of-year (BOY) and middle-of-year (MOY) alternate interim assessments under Texas House Bill 8, Renaissance reported. Scott Montgomery, Vice President of Government Affairs at Renaissance, said the approvals allow the company to provide connected reading and math assessments across kindergarten through grade 8 as Texas districts transition to the state's new testing system.
The Bigger Picture
The approvals stem from a broader overhaul of Texas public school testing driven by two 2025 state laws. Under House Bill 8, signed in September 2025, Texas is repealing the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) and replacing it with the Student Success Tool (SST), according to a TEA House Bill 8 update. Starting in winter 2027, the agency will release Range Performance Level Descriptors across tested grades and subjects so that score reports include suggested instructional next steps based on student ability.
According to the TEA's House Bill 8 FAQ, the SST will formally launch in the 2027–28 school year across Texas public and open-enrollment charter schools. The new system includes adaptive BOY and MOY assessments that adjust question difficulty based on student answers, using fewer questions to save classroom time. To prepare for the rollout, school districts must run stand-alone field tests during the 2026–27 school year, including a February 2027 administration. Once the SST takes effect in 2027–28, the state will end optional STAAR Interim Assessments and restrict excessive practice or benchmark testing.
While House Bill 8 limits unapproved practice tests, its through-year structure lets districts replace state BOY and MOY tests with TEA-approved commercial alternatives, according to an announcement from assessment provider NWEA. Alongside Renaissance, the TEA provisionally approved NWEA's MAP Growth for grades 3–8 and MAP Reading Fluency for K–3 for the 2027–28 and 2028–29 school years.
The K–3 screening approvals originate from House Bill 2, which requires Texas districts to adopt approved foundational literacy and numeracy instruments starting in 2027–28, according to a TEA House Bill 2 implementation letter. The agency noted that all K–3 instruments currently hold only provisional approval and can lose that status if vendors fail ongoing checks for alignment, comparability, or validation. The TEA advises school systems not to sign K–3 assessment contracts extending past the 2028–29 school year and to include termination clauses in case a tool loses state approval. Despite that guidance, competitor Edmentum advertises that its Exact Path Insights reading and math assessments are approved for Texas K–3 screening through 2030–31.
According to the Commissioner's List of Provisionally Approved K–3 Instruments, all approved K–3 literacy tools can be given at the beginning, middle, and end of the school year. They also meet the requirement for kindergarten and grade 1 dyslexia screening. The TEA does not rank or recommend specific products. Instead, local districts must choose approved options based on English and Spanish availability, individual or group administration formats, and price.