Families in Southwest Austin seeking an individualized private education can now enroll students in My North Star Learning in West Oak Hill.

The approach: The micro-school opened this summer and offers class sizes of six to eight students. My North Star Learning accepts students from pre-K to third grade with a “neuro-inclusive model,” which is designed for autistic, ADHD and neurotypical learners to thrive together, according to the website.

"I created My North Star Learning after realizing traditional classrooms weren't designed for children like my son," founder Maria Justice said on the website.

• 8123 W Hwy 71, Austin

The Austin ISD and the Texas Education Agency confirmed on Sept. 18 that the district has appealed the fifth consecutive failing ratings at Burnet and Webb middle schools.

Some context: Under state law, five straight unacceptable ratings at any single campus require the education commissioner to either close the school or replace the district's elected board with a board of managers.

What happens next: The commissioner sends decisions to appealing districts by letter before Dec. 11, when TEA releases final ratings and counts of consecutive years of unacceptable performance. Current ratings and year-over-year history are available at txschools.gov.

Travis County commissioners moved forward an estimated $2.3 billion budget for fiscal year 2027 on Sept. 10, boosting funding for public defense, housing and diversion programs while voting to consolidate the county's Axon Enterprise contracts under one department.

By the numbers: Indigent defense funding rose across multiple lines, including a doubled $3 million reserve earmark for outside counsel and $1.5 million added directly to the Public Defender's Office for attorney pay.

The budget also sets a new county living wage of $23.71 an hour. Commissioners also voted to consolidate the county's Axon Enterprise contracts into a single $6,832,000 technology department budget.

What officials are saying: The county's technology executive, Maurice McCreary Jr., defended the Axon contract as essential to transparency and evidence-sharing with defense attorneys. Commissioner Brigid Shea backed continued investment in body and vehicle cameras.

Advocates with the Coalition for Budget Accountability had rallied outside the markup, arguing new Axon spending should be matched with public defense funding instead.

Commissioners are scheduled to take a final budget vote Sept. 29.

Here are six trending Austin-area stories from Sept. 14-17.

1. Check out 22 Georgetown-area business updates

2. Cedar Park to build wave pool in $10 million Veterans Memorial Pool expansion

3. Final first days: Pflugerville ISD prepares for 4 school closures, admin cuts

4. Construction on RM 620 widening project may begin in early 2029

5. Round Rock readopts trails master plan identifying new corridors for connectivity

6. Airbnb launches national affordable housing fund with $6.4M Austin investment

To strengthen consumer protections, the Texas Department of Insurance is asking state lawmakers to consider adjusting when new home and auto insurance rates are implemented.

What's happening: Texas currently operates under a "file-and-use" system, allowing insurance companies to begin using new rates immediately after they are filed, regardless of whether the TDI has reviewed them.

In a Sept. 14 letter detailing actions the department is taking to address Texas' high home insurance costs, Insurance Commissioner Amanda Crawford suggested that the legislature look into "adding a delay between a rate filing and its use in the market." Under the current system, if the TDI finds an issue with a new insurance rate, there is "limited" redress for affected policyholders if that rate is already in effect.

The background: Crawford's letter comes after Gov. Greg Abbott directed the TDI to take affordability-focused actions in an Aug. 24 letter.

Texans paid the nation's fourth-highest home insurance premiums at the end of 2025, according to previous Community Impact reporting.