Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD superintendent announces retirement

Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District superintendent Greg Gibson announced Thursday that he is retiring in the next year. view article  

TEA appoints different BISD conservator, but details are scarce

The Texas Education Agency has made a change to plans to help the Beaumont Independent School District transition back to local control, but few explanatory details have been made public.  The state agency late last week informed BISD Superintendent Shannon Allen that Darrell Myers, former Cleveland ISD superintendent, would serve as conservator over the district. view article  

Superintendent Search: TASB ESS Announces New Superintendent for Bloomington ISD

Bloomington ISD Board of Trustees voted to hire Mark Anglin, Superintendent of Broaddus ISD, as the district’s new superintendent for Bloomington ISD. Details and updates will appear on our search page.

Preventive Law: What Are the Odds? A Statistical Look at TEA Appointed Independent Hearing Examiners and Their Decisions

Nonrenewal “season” ended last month. That is the season that poorer performing employees are asked if they prefer to resign or be proposed for nonrenewal, and when probationary contract teachers are given a similar option, whether to resign or be terminated effective the end of the school year. Invariably most employees prefer not to have a termination or proposal for nonrenewal on their records and choose to resign.

May 2019 Bond List

Bond Election Data collected by TexasISD.com for public school bonds in the upcoming May 2019 election cycle.

Sharyland HS commemorates 50th anniversary of NASA moon landing

To commemorate the 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11’s Moon Landing, the Sharyland High School History Department-in partnership with the Mission Historical Museum-is presenting a Space Race Rocket Triad exhibit. The exhibit, features three 8-foot scaled models of the American Space Race rockets used by NASA during the 1960s to advance the space race before that fateful moon landing on Sunday, July 20, 1969. view article  

‘Tough decisions’: Plano ISD faces $18M budget shortfall despite new school funding law

Advocates are hailing a new Texas education spending bill as a win for public schools, but Plano ISD will enter the 2019-20 school year with an $18 million shortfall and less money than expected to provide for teacher raises. PISD’s current projected deficit is an improvement over the $33.6 million shortfall projected under the previous school finance system. But the district will still have to rely heavily on reserve funds to plug the holes in the budget this coming school year, officials say. view article  

Sneak peek: Houston-area school district nears completion on 185-acre collegiate-inspired campus

Check out a video showing the construction progress on Sheldon ISD's 185-acre campus, which is nearing completion. view article  

Low cost immunizations offered at Humble ISD schools this summer

Humble ISD has partnered up with the Texas Vaccine Institute to offer low cost vaccinations to students before the start of the school year. The entities will open several clinics at Humble ISD schools throughout the Lake Houston area starting July 29. view article  

‘I feel like I’m being targeted’: School board president won’t quit despite law

White Settlement School board President Randy Armstrong isn’t quitting, no matter what the Texas Legislature says. A new law meant to prevent conflicts of interest will force Armstrong out as board president in 2020 — unless he quits his real job. That’s because he works at the Tarrant Appraisal District. That agency decides what your home is worth so the school district can collect taxes on it. view article  

Texas School Health Advisory Committee sets benchmarks for FY 2020

The Texas Department of State Health Services released their 2019 Texas School Health Advisory Committee annual report this month. Established through Senate Bill 42 back in 2005, the committee is charged with analyzing school health data, and proposing potential policy solutions where gaps in current legislation exist. The report summarizes the initiatives that the committee discussed during the current fiscal year, and lays out a list of priorities for fiscal year 2020 as well. view article  

Plan out your child’s vaccinations before school starts

It’s hard to believe, but we’re about a month away from the first day of school for many East Texas students. That’s why health professionals are urging parents to get their child caught up on vaccines before they head back to class. GMET’s Brennon Gurley talked with experts about why it’s crucial to make sure you don’t put this off. view article  

Brian Gray hired as new Harleton ISD chief

Harleton ISD has a new chief at the helm as it prepares for the start of the 2019-20 school year next month. Trustees elected former longtime Union Grove ISD Superintendent Brian Gray as superintendent of Harleton ISD on July 5, Gray said Thursday. view article  

San Antonio ISD administrator leaves to join Holdsworth Center

A San Antonio Independent School District deputy superintendent is leaving to join the Holdsworth Center, an Austin-based organization that works with Texas public schools to improve leadership development. Pauline Dow, who has been SAISD’s deputy superintendent for academics and school leadership since 2017, will become vice president of the Austin-based center, the organization announced Wednesday. view article  

After defeats in 2019, a group of Texas lawmakers is teaming up to push criminal justice reform

Lawmakers entered 2019 with high hopes that they could change Texas' bail procedures, death penalty laws and drug policies. But the legislative session ended this summer without major reforms in any of those issues. Trying to prevent a similar outcome in 2021, a bipartisan group of House representatives has banded together to form an uncommon, issue-based caucus in the Texas Capitol: one targeting criminal justice reform. view article  

New From TEA

• House Bill 3 Pre-K
• Home Schools(1)  7/12
• State Application to Renew Ed-Flex Authority Available for Public Comment 7/12
• Statewide Waiver for Out-of-District Transportation Interlocal Agreement Requirement of TEC §34.007(1) 7/12
• The Tax Information Survey (TIS) for the 2018–2019 7/2
• Travel Reimbursement Rates 6/7
• Memo from TEA:  2019-2020 Summary of Finances (SOF) Report 6/6
• New Instructional Facility Allotment (NIFA); Online Application for Funding(1)
• Professional Service Provider (PSP) Network Dissolution-July 31, 2019 5/21
• Factors Influencing Teaching Choice Survey

Petrolia ISD to invest thousands into teachers and staff

Petrolia ISD will be announcing Monday that they are investing hundreds of thousands of dollars into their teachers and staff. The superintendent David Hedges said, giving back is what's important. “We want our folks to stay here, we want them to grow here, we want then to retire here, and we feel like if we invest in them, then they’re going to do the same, and we’ll continue to get better. Each and every day,” Hedges said. view article  

Need for teachers extends further than Wichita Falls ISD

Burkburnett does not have the same need for teachers as Wichita Falls, but superintendent Tylor Chaplin said his district is still under the same pressure of competition for teachers with bigger districts. “Sometimes the salaries in the metroplex are a little bit more attractive than what we can afford to offer,” said Chaplin. view article  

Corsicana ISD reviews pre-k, new legislation

The Corsicana ISD Board of Trustees met this week for its regular July meeting. The Board approved an 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. full day Pre-K schedule for the 2019-2020 school year at Drane Learning Center in Corsicana. Elmer Avellaneda, Assistant Superintendent of Special Programs, presented the benefits of the full day schedule. Already high language, math and writing skill metrics as well as social and emotional learning opportunities are expected to improve with a full day of instruction Avellaneda said. view article  

Court filings in Rio Grande City school trustee case reveal possible witnesses

Recent court filings in the petition to remove Daniel J. Garcia from the Rio Grande City school board provide new details about the case, including who might be called to testify. Gocha Ramirez, Garcia’s attorney, filed subpoenas for six individuals that, if signed by the judge, would compel them to appear in court to potentially be called upon as witnesses. view article  

Wichita Falls ISD working to hire more teachers

The new school year is coming fast, and the WFISD school district needs another 60 teachers. The Associate Superintendent feels confident they will find the teachers that they are need of but, he went on to say that it is getting harder to find teachers in Texoma. “ We are still 60 short which could be like uh oh, but that is for the whole district. That is about where we usually are at this time. We are starting to notice a trend, that it is getting more and more difficult to find qualified staff,” said WFISD Associate Superintendent, Peter Griffiths. Each year, the big job fair is held in April, and then they host another in the summer to replace those that retire or leave. Since the April job fair, the district has hired 125 teachers. view article  

Partnership Has Opened Dozens of Enhanced School Parks to the Public

For some school districts in San Antonio, there was some hesitancy to open up elementary and middle school parks to the public after hours.  Unlocking the gates after school and during the summer – while seemingly simple – could open the school up to vandalism, liability if someone got hurt, and unsustainable maintenance costs.  Ron Clary, associate superintendent of operations for Northeast Independent School District (NEISD), had those concerns – especially about graffiti. view article  

Hudson PEP sees influx of first-graders after testing policy change

Hudson PEP Elementary School in Longview needs to add three more first-grade classrooms before school starts in August. After Longview ISD switched to just the Iowa Assessment, a national standardized test, for all students in kindergarten through seventh grade, 234 kindergarten students qualified for Hudson PEP, said District Testing Coordinator Catina Love. view article  

Splendora ISD Board Approves Grade Configuration And Facilities Improvements

When you think of summer, you think of vacations, especially for school districts, but the Splendora ISD Board of Trustees and administrators have been hard at work to get new construction and renovations underway for the 2019-20 school year and beyond. In the past couple of months, the Board has made key decisions and passed several construction initiatives to keep the district moving forward as the district continues to experience growth. view article  

Eustace ISD Free and reduced price meals

The Eustace ISD announced today a change to its policy for serving meals to children served under the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program for the 2019/20 school year.  view article  

Cleveland ISD taps Hargrave principal as administrator

After serving as the Hargrave High School principal for the past five years, Brandon Perry is leaving Huffman ISD to become the Director of Secondary Schools at Cleveland ISD. Perry graduated from Cleveland ISD and said a small part of him has always wanted give back to the community that invested so much in him. view article  

Proposed Leander ISD budget includes 6% increase, mandated tax rate cut

The Leander ISD board of trustees has scheduled an Aug. 22 public budget meeting, when it intends to discuss and probably adopt the proposed 2019-20 school budget and tax rate. The action was taken after a budget development update at the board’s July 18 regular meeting. view article  

Lubbock ISD: Funding for full-day pre-K is a game changer

LUBBOCK, Texas - One of the biggest highlights of this year's Texas legislative session: School finance reform. "This one law does more to advance education in Texas than any law I have seen in my adult lifetime in the state of Texas," Gov. Abbott said  At the heart of House Bill 3 is funding set aside for full-day pre-K.  view article  

GISD teachers may receive pay raise of at least 9 percent

Teachers, counselors, librarians and nurses who work for the Greenville Independent School District could receive at least a 9 percent raise this coming school year, Superintendent Demetrus Liggins announced at Tuesday’s GISD Board of Trustees meeting.  The increase in pay is in part due to the passing of Texas House Bill 3, which was signed by Governor Greg Abbott on June 11. The piece of legislation is expected to – over the next two years – provide $2 billion to school districts throughout the state to be spent on increases to teacher salaries, but with school librarians, counselors and nurses also being eligible. view article  

RETHINKING HIGH SCHOOL GPA

Let’s admit that for any given year high school GPA is a better gauge of game playing and parental oversight than academic performance.  Let’s change the game.  Here’s what I would do.  First, I wouldn’t count lower level courses for GPA calculations. Why should it matter if one freshman got an A and another freshman got a B in Algebra I? It’s Algebra I, not Calculus. If you disagree, then my question is, “Does the score at the end of the first inning in a baseball game really matter?”  view article  

Naked photos of Cy-Fair assistant principal shared by middle school students

The 8th-grade assistant principal at Anthony Middle School is on administrative leave after his nude photos made their rounds on social media. A spokesman for the district said they are "very concerned" about the pictures and are conducting an investigation. Parents wonder how the photos got out in the first place. The source of where the photos came from is unknown. view article  

Whooping cough cases shut two classes at Antioch church

One of Waco’s largest church congregations has shut down two of its children’s Sunday school classes after discovering two children who attend the services contracted whooping cough last month. Antioch Community Church voluntarily closed the classes June 30 to prevent the spread of pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, Executive Pastor Jeff Abshire said. The classes will reopen July 28. view article  

Attorneys want school shooting suspect’s statements tossed

Attorneys for a Kentucky teenager charged with fatally shooting two classmates and wounding 14 others at school filed a motion to suppress his statements to investigators. The Louisville Courier Journal reports Gabriel R. Parker's attorneys say his statements weren't voluntary, violated his self-incrimination privileges and his right to counsel. view article