Before the Texas State Board of Education commissioner approved the repurposing plan for Pearce Middle School to reopen, parents and community members came out to support the school.

The same parents who were very passionate this summer said they still stand behind their children now, but the fire has begun to dim out.

"We have a lot of work to do in relation to establishing a system," Pearce grandparent Deanna Mercer said.

That system will need to involve more than just parental involvement.

In the repurposing plan presented to and accepted by the commissioner, leaders promised to create a parent support room to help struggling families at the school, and organize a mentor program for the students.

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"There are some areas like mentoring, family support that need to get moving along quickly, to show that we're doing what we said we would do at Pearce. So I think November, December are going to be crucial months," Allen Weeks, with the St. John Neighborhood Association, said.

The Austin Independent School District said they have plans in place, and both programs should be up and running next month.

"It's challenging, given that you have so many new teachers and you're doing about as good as you can do," Weeks said.

But along with those tasks, the school will also need to meet accountability standards, and they need to do it this year.

"To have--again--a make or break year on the kids and the teachers and a brand new principal, I think adds unnecessary pressure, but it's what it is, so Pearce has to make it," Weeks said.

Because the commissioner did not reset the clock for accountability standards, if they don't meet them this year, the school will be closed again.