SMITHVILLE I.S.D.

BOARD BRIEFS

OCTOBER 15, 2007

 

The Smithville I.S.D. Board of Trustees met in regular session on Monday, October 15, 2007 beginning at 6:00 P.M.  Items discussed or acted on by members included the following:

 

1.         Outstanding Students for the First  Six Weeks – The Board recognized outstanding students chosen by the junior high and high school staff.  Peyton Bennight, an eighth grader, was chosen as outstanding student for the first six-weeks from the junior high, and Marshall Canales and Kelli Jo Matocha, both seniors, were chosen from the high school.  All students were present at the board meeting to receive recognition.

 

2.         Employees of the Month for September – Staff members chosen as Employees of the Month for September are Whitney Myers, a teacher at the elementary, and Bea Hill, a paraprofessional at the high school.  Both were present at the meeting to be congratulated by the Board.

 

3.         Communications from the Public – There were no public communications.

 

Consent Agenda – Kamron Saunders moved to approve items 4 through 8 on the Consent Agenda as presented.  Samella Williams seconded, and the motion carried 5-0.  The Consent Agenda included the following:

 

4.         Minutes of the September 17, 2007 regular board meeting

5.         Disbursements for the month of September 2007

6.         Financial Statements for September 2007

7.         Investment Report

8.         Tax Collection Report

 

9.         Superintendent’s Report – The Superintendent provided the Board with projected costs for additional electronic surveillance for District facilities.

 

10.       Secondary Campuses Student Council Reports – David Edwards, principal at the junior high, gave the Board a report on the SJHS student council membership and activities.  Tami Murphy, high school STUCO sponsor, reported to the Board on her campus’s student council activities.

 

11.       Site-Based Committee Membership Reports – Board policies BQA and BQB address site-based planning and decision-making in the district.  At the beginning of a new school year, the district and campus site-based committees are reorganized to meet the requirements of policy.  The Board was provided a list of the reorganized district site-based committee, and both secondary principals spoke regarding their newly appointed committees.

 

12.       TASB Delegate Report – The Texas Association of School Boards Annual Convention was held on September 28-30, 2007 in Dallas.  Board member Mike Morgan served as our voting delegate to the TASB Delegate Assembly.  Mr. Morgan gave a short report to the Board on the assembly.

 

13.       Tentative November Agenda Items – Tentative agenda items for October include:

            a.  Superintendent’s Report

            b.  Employees of the Month for October

            c.  A.E.I.S. Report and Public Hearing

            d.  Textbook Selection Committee

            e.  Consider technology update project

            f.   Consider expenditures for video surveillance on campuses in the District

 

14.       Review and approval of District and Campus Performance Objectives and Improvement Plans – Board Policy BQ [Legal] requires the Board to annually approve district and campus performance objectives and ensure that the district and campus improvement plans are mutually supportive to accomplish identified objectives and, at a minimum, support the state goals and objectives.  Howard Burns moved to approve the district and campus performance objectives for 2007-2008 and approve the district and campus improvement plans as presented.  With a second from Kamron Saunders, the motion carried 6-0.

 

15.       Voting for Bastrop County Appraisal District Board of Directors – No action was taken by the Board of Trustees to nominate a candidate for the BCAD Board of Directors.

 

16.        2007-2008 School Calendar Adjustment and rescheduling of board meetings due to    

holidays – The District Site-Based and Decision Making Committee formulized a school calendar for 2007-2008 last spring with the intention of having a student and staff holiday to observe Martin Luther King Day.  During deliberations, a wrong date was set aside for the observation that has caused a need for revision.  Also, due to conflicts between holidays and regular meeting dates, it is necessary to reschedule regular board meetings for January and March.  Mike Morgan moved to revised the calendar to the correct and intended holiday of Monday, January 21, 2008, and to change the regular monthly board meeting dates for January to January 22nd, 2008, and for March to March 24th, 2008.  Kamron Saunders seconded, and the motion carried 6-0.

 

17.       Consider TASB Policy Update 81 – In order to continually update and revise local policy to encompass the changes that have immediate effect on the governance and management of the district, it is necessary for the Board to adopt policy updates as recommended by the Texas Association of School Boards.  Kamron Saunders motioned to approve localized update 81 as presented.  Mike Morgan seconded the motion, and it carried 6-0.

 

18.       No Pass/No Play Exemption Courses – The intent of this agenda item is to update and revise the list of courses that are Board approved for one time waivers to the “no pass/no play” regulations.  The school district must submit to the UIL their list of approved waiver courses prior to the end of the first semester.  The Board was provided a list of the courses being recommended for waiver.  Kamron Saunders moved to approve the list as submitted by the staff of Smithville High School and submit the list to UIL prior to the deadline.  With a second from Howard Burns, the motion carried 6-0.

 

19.       Employment of Certified Personnel – The Superintendent recommended employment of Victoria Snyder as a teacher at Smithville Elementary for the 2007-2008 school year.  Mike Morgan moved to employ the above personnel for the remainder of the 2007-2008 school year as recommended.  Samella Williams seconded, and the motion carried 6-0.

 

20.       Adjournment – The Board adjourned its meeting at 7:15 p.m.