July 2000

$100 MILLION BOND SALE

The Board sold $100 in schoolhouse bonds that were approved by voters in 1998. Seven bids ranging from 5.582 to 5.683 percent were received for the bonds. Morgan Stanley Dean Witter was the successful bidder with an interest rate of 5.582 percent, only a half percent higher than the interest rate received in last year’s bond sale.

1999-2000 TAAS RESULTS

A report on the District’s 1999-2000 Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) results was presented to the Board. New components of the 1999-2000 TAAS included restricted Limited English Proficiency (LEP) exemptions; the inclusion of fourth-grade Spanish writing scores and fifth- and sixth-grade Spanish reading and math scores; and the inclusion of new components of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).

The following table summarizes the District’s performance on the assessment.

“All Students” includes students in both regular and special education. All grades and subjects in each area received a 90 percent or better passing rate. Significant gains have been made on sixth-grade through exit-level TAAS exams during the past five years. It was also reported that 99.2 percent of the Class of 2000 earned sufficient credits to graduate and passed all three portions of the exit-level TAAS. The graduation rate is up from 1995, when 96.7 percent of the senior class earned sufficient credits to graduate and passed all three portions of the exit-level TAAS.

2000-2001 PRELIMINARY BUDGET

A second draft of the 2000-2001 budget was presented to the Board, a balanced budget totaling $343,241,994. The preliminary budget is based on a net taxable value of $14.29 billion and a projected 2000-2001 enrollment of 63,282. The following expenditures are included in the preliminary budget:

• payroll costs of $307,586,409 (89.62 percent);purchased and contracted services of $21,116,857 (6.15 percent);supplies and materials of $10,620,189 (3.09 percent);other operating expenses of $2,782,320 (.81 percent); and
• capital outlay of $1,136,219 (.33 percent).

The budget is expected to be approved next month.

COMMUNITY COLLEGE INITIATIVE

The Board heard a report on the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce’s initiative to have the North Harris Montgomery County College District (NHMCCD) annex Cypress-Fairbanks ISD. The chamber recently conducted a successful petition drive that will allow Cypress-Fairbanks ISD residents to vote on the annexation on August 12, 2000. The following facts pertain to the possible annexation:

• Cypress-Fairbanks ISD is the largest school district in the nation that is not part of a community college system.Higher education will rely heavily on community colleges in the future.Community colleges provide work skills and advancement to four-year degrees.Cypress-Fairbanks ISD students and adults pay costly out-of-district tuition rates.Inclusion in a college district provides many opportunities for partnerships between colleges and local school districts.If voters approve the annexation by NHMCCD, a 400,000- to 500,000-square-foot college campus will be constructed in Cypress-Fairbanks ISD.
• If the annexation is approved, residents would pay NHMCCD’s 11.74 cent tax rate, which amounts to $112 per year on a $100,000 home.

MIDDLE SCHOOL AND HIGH SCHOOL ATTENDANCE BOUNDARIES
The Board discussed a draft process for establishing attendance boundaries for Aragon and Goodson Middle Schools and Cypress Ridge High School. Community advisory committees (to include principals and one community representative from affected schools) for each new attendance boundary will meet with an administrative boundary committee to provide input and feedback. The process will provide a variety of opportunities for the public to provide input, including e-mail, letters, and Group Systems sessions. Boundary options will be publicized via school newsletters, newspapers, the District’s web site, and CFTV-Channel 16. The draft timetable calls for boundary recommendations to be presented to the Board in November 2000, at which time the Board is expected to make a final decision.

USE OF SCHOOL FACILITIES

The Board considered on first reading an addition to policy GKD (Local): Use of School Facilities. The addition would prohibit district facilities from being used for student-age activities the day prior to Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) testing. The restriction would apply to both public and private groups.