|
RECOGNITIONS
The Board of Trustees recognized the following students and staff members for their achievements:
· Sixty-two middle school and high school students were recognized for earning first or second place individual honors at this year's state Science Olympiad competition.
· Twenty-two high school students were recognized for winning at the state and national level in Visual Arts Scholastic Events (VASE) competition.
· A record number of 50 CFISD high school students were recognized for earning membership in various All-State music organizations. Among these students, 23 were in band, 21 in choir and six in orchestra.
· Juana Villalobos, a classroom aide at Frazier Elementary, was chosen as this year’s Spotlight Award winner by the Paraprofessional Service Committee (PSC). This year's runner-up is Olivia Ledesma, a PPCD aide at Yeager.
· David Boatright, custodian at Cypress Falls High School, was selected by the Education Support Personnel Committee (ESP) as this year’s Spotlight Award winner. Donald Mallard, custodian at Ault Elementary, was the runner-up.
· In recognition of their high expectations and dedication to student success during the 2003-2004 school year, 62 elementary and secondary teachers were selected as Spotlight Teachers. The following teachers were introduced as this year’s inductees: Jennifer Duke (Holbrook), Vicki Landua (Goodson), Shelly Abitua (Windfern), Mary Jane Brown (Hairgrove), Ninca Campbell (Lieder), Sue Cuculic (Frazier), Ellen Cummings (Emmott), Richard Gilbert (Cypress Falls), Heather Gossett (Birkes), Andrea Harper (Kirk), Glenda Horner (Truitt), Patersa Johnson (Lamkin), Chris Kobal (Cy-Fair), Holly McLean (Arnold), Patricia Myers (Owens), Beth Raia (Robison), Corianne Reed (Jowell), Cindy Richardson (Yeager), Katie Russell (Matzke), David Sanders (Metcalf), Pat Scofield (Wilson), Shirley Skala (Hamilton M.S.), Diane Staff (Farney), Carrie Vick (Tipps), Carolyn Vines (Jersey Village), Lane Wells (Fiest), Lisa Wilkinson (ALC), Sarah Wright (Watkins), Frances Yeaney (Sheridan), Debbie Brewer (Campbell), Kathy Chambers (Aragon), Maryetta Easton (Lowery), Jeffrey Jackson (ABC), Lynda Leskey (Horne), Merry Marcotte (Cook), Michelle Martin (Ault), Bobbe Lynn Motsinger (Bang), Carrie Higgins and Monica Carpenter Robinson (Willbern), Esther Robinson (Langham Creek), Brenda Spillman (Bane), Lisa Stewart (Hamilton Elementary), Maria Trejo (Millsap), Elizabeth Villareal (Walker), Susan Widner (Hancock), Antonia Wong (Cypress Creek), Brenda Yanowski (Cypress Springs), Sheila Bartley (Cypress Ridge), Terri Gorsulowsky (Francone), Kathy Grace (Labay), Peggy Holloway (Dean), Bobbie Koen (Reed), Kendall McKinney (Sampson), Debbie Meehan (Gleason), Kathleen Moreman (Bleyl), Marilyn Ocker (Thornton), Jessica Schoenvogel (Adam), Debbie Andersohn (Moore), Gayle Bellomy (Post), Naressa Govender (Carlton Center), Jeanne Hughes (Copeland), John Michael Sturgill (Holmsley). Information about each of this year's Spotlight Teachers is available online at www.cfisd.net.
Additionally, the superintendent designee recognized students and staff members for honors and achievements earned in recent weeks. Congratulations were extended to the following:
· Members of the Labay Middle School Science Olympiad Teams that placed third and fourth at state competition and individual middle school and high school students who placed third and fourth at the state.
· The Cypress Creek High School yearbook staff for receiving an award of excellence in yearbook production. Work from this year’s yearbook will be published in the 2004 Yearbook Yearbook. The school’s literary magazine staff’s publication “Graffiti” earned a Superior rating in the National Council of Teachers of English competition, showcasing student poetry, prose and artwork.
· Langham Creek students who competed in the National Ocean Sciences Bowl contest April 24-26 at the College of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina. The team of Jordan Smith, Jordan Bartos, Andrew Ramicone, Danny McCullar, and Andrew Munox competed against teams from across the nation. They are coached by Nancy Attaway and Rebecca Mitchell.
· Students who participated in the recent fifth-grade choral festival in which “Music Has Style” was the theme.
· Cy-Fair High School students who won the State Photography Award from the Texas Photography Instructors Association under the direction of Earl Emery and Laura Emery. Jersey Village High School students, under the direction of Jason Neumann, placed second in the overall Top Program competition. Victor Gutierrez, a senior at Jersey Village, was awarded the Grand Prize in the single image category. Cypress Creek senior Christina Carmona was announced as a first place winner in the 2004 Environmental Self-Portrait contest sponsored by the State Association of Texas Photography. Additionally, Jersey Village junior Joe Linfesty and senior Kelly Quarles each won first place while Brittany Given won a second place award.
· The Cypress Creek Lady Cougars softball team defeated Klein to advance to the area playoffs where they lost to a tough Cedar Park team.
· In district baseball, Cypress Falls finished second and Cypress Creek finished third. Cypress Falls defeated Klein in the opening round and will play Temple in the next round. Cypress Creek lost a heart-breaking series to Spring High School.
· The team of Jamie O’Leary and Alyssa Massalone from Cypress Falls captured the girls’ doubles tennis championship while Kanwal Abbas and Ioccola Marcerola were the runners-up. The team of David Frederick and Mohit Jashapura from Cypress Creek were the district runners-up in boys’ doubles. David Tran of Cypress Falls captured the boys’ singles tennis title, and Daniel McMullen from Langham Creek was runner-up. Cypress Creek’s Emily Bartes was the girls’ singles runner-up.
· Cypress Springs captured the girls’ golf championship with a two-day tournament total of 774 with Langham Creek finishing second. Nicole McGlothlin of Cypress Falls advanced to the regional tournament. Cy-Fair won the boys’ golf district tournament with a two-day total of 603 while Cypress Creek placed second with a total of 607, sending medalists Zachary Almandoz and Collin Mayer to the regional round. Tyler Russell of Cy-Fair advanced to the state tournament with a six-under par 66 on the second day.
· Cypress Falls captured the girls’ district track and field title while Jersey Village took the boys’ title. Numerous athletes qualified for the regional meet in Waco.
Superintendent Designee Pam Wells announced that the posters placed in the hallway during the Board work session were displayed in honor of School Nurses Day, which was May 12. Several district nurses provided free blood pressure readings for those attending the meeting. Ms. Wells extended her appreciation on behalf of the entire district for the health care services provided by school nurses to students and staff.
PERSONNEL
After approving the personnel transactions for May, the Board recognized current Truitt Middle School Principal Darlene Medford as the new principal of Cy-Fair High School and newcomer Virginia Marez from the Fort Worth Independent School District as the principal of Bane Elementary. Medford is returning to Cy-Fair High School where she started her career as a study skills teacher and tennis coach in 1982. She has earned 15 of her 22 years of educational experience with CFISD. While new to the district, Marez has 23 years in education and will begin the next chapter of her career at Bane. She recently relocated to the Houston-area from the Fort Worth Independent School District, where she began her education career teaching bilingual elementary students.
EMPLOYEE SALARIES
Keeping with its goal to attract and retain quality staff, the Board approved the administration’s recommendation for a salary increase for 2004-2005. The starting salary for teachers and nurses with a bachelor’s degree will be $36,000. Employees in the teacher and nurse pay classification will receive an upgrade of 1.0 percent of the midpoint and a 2.39 percent of midpoint salary increase, which results in an additional $1,000 for each full-time teacher and nurse.
Trustees also approved a 1.0 percent adjustment of the midpoint of all other pay classifications. These employees will also receive a 2.39 percent of midpoint raise. Those employees at or above the maximum pay grade will receive a 1.2 percent of midpoint cost-of-living adjustment.
According to Board policy, employees with an unsatisfactory evaluation will not receive a pay increase. Each employee will receive a pay statement in August showing his or her salary for 2004-2005.
The superintendent designee indicated that granting employee increases would result in a deficit budget and require use of the general fund balance for a third consecutive year. Ms. Wells indicated that unless the Texas Legislature was able to find a solution to the ongoing school finance crisis that the district would not be able to provide raises for the 2005-2006 school year. Without additional funding, the district would be forced to review and implement more significant cost reductions.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
The Board received a report on the special session of the Legislature in Austin. With no apparent consensus among lawmakers on resolving the school funding crisis, trustees were advised of the probability that no solution would materialize as a result of the current special session and a subsequent session might be necessary. In addition to school funding, lawmakers are also looking at ways to reduce state property taxes. Several bills and proposed modifications of these legislative plans have proven inconclusive to accomplishing a long-term solution to either problem and are changing by the hour each day.
TOBACCO EDUCATION AND PREVENTION GRANT
In a special meeting held May 6, trustees approved the district’s application for the statewide Stopping Tobacco with Education and Prevent (S.T.E.P.) grant and the implementation of activities outlined in the program, including:
- enforcement of laws prohibiting minors from using and/or possessing tobacco products on campus and at school-sanctioned events;
- development of anti-tobacco lessons to support the health TEKS taught in physical education;
- development and distribution of brochures to assist school nurses and counselors with promoting tobacco prevention;
- resources for students who would like to stop smoking; and
- implementation of tobacco education in discipline management classes for first-time offenders.
ADDITIONAL SUMMER OPPORTUNITIES
The Board approved additional summer opportunities for students. Programs adopted for summer school include the Reading and Math program for high school special education students; Reading and Math program for middle school special education students; and Math Super Camp for third-grader students who attend Title I schools. The special education programs will be funded by IDEA Capacity Building Funds while the math camp for third-grader students will be funded through Title I and/or the Accelerated Math Improvement Program (AMIP).
BOND UPDATE
Trustees approved and executed the subdivision plat for Thomas M. Danish Elementary School (No. 42) prepared by West Belt Surveying, Inc. and reviewed by engineering consultants from Brooks and Sparks, Inc. The Board also approved and executed the subdivision plat for the Food Production Center also prepared by West Belt Surveying and reviewed by engineers with PBK Architects.
SUPERINTENDENT DESIGNEE’S BRIEFING
Ms. Wells reminded those present and television audience at home that the district’s Trustee Election was scheduled for Saturday, May 15 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the designated polling locations. She added that determining leadership for the school district is very important and encouraged everyone to vote. Current Board Vice President Al Martinez, Jr. ran unopposed for position 1 race while the race for a vacant position 2 seat drew two candidates: Albert Arechiga, III and Dan Chaney.
Ms. Wells presented information regarding advanced placement exams that ended May 14. Late testing is scheduled for May 19-21. Students wishing to take AP exams scheduled for the same time slot should contact their AP coordinator prior to the beginning of scheduled tests.
The last day of classes for students will be Wednesday, May 26. Ms. Wells thanks the staff and students for another successful school year and wished everyone a happy and restful summer. CFISD teachers will return August 5 and the 2004-05 school year begins for students August 11.
Ms. Wells once again reminded everyone about the graduation dates and times:
· Windfern High School – May 27 at 7 p.m. at Copperfield Baptist Church
· Cy-Fair High School – May 29 at 9 a.m. at Reliant Stadium
· Cypress Falls High School – May 29 at 12:30 p.m. at Reliant Stadium
· Jersey Village High School – May 29 at 4 p.m. at Reliant Stadium
· Langham Creek High School – May 29 at 7:30 p.m. at Reliant Stadium
· Cypress Creek High School – May 30 at 1 p.m. at Reliant Stadium
· Cypress Springs High School – May 30 at 4:30 p.m. at Reliant Stadium
The district will recognize Memorial Day on Monday, May 31. All district facilities will be closed and will reopen June 1.
Ms. Wells directed inquires regarding the locations and course offerings for summer school to the district’s Web site, located online at www.cfisd.net. She reminded students that all courses for original credit have different start dates than make-up courses.
The third administration of the third-grade TAKS reading test will be June 24. Students in grade 11 needing to pass any section of the exit-level TAKS will be tested again in July. The English/language arts exam will be July 6 while the math exam will be July 7, social studies July 8 and science July 9.
AGENDA ITEMS
In other action, the Cypress-Fairbanks ISD Board of Trustees:
· received a written report on the activities of the State Board of Education, Texas School Alliance and the Fast Growth School Coalition;
· received a report on the district’s GED Test Center, including the number of tests administered and fees received for administering the test during 2003;
· received a report on revenues generated through the district’s Internet auction held March 15-24, 2004;
· received a report on the 2004-05 CFISD Student Handbook and Code of Conduct;
· approved the schedule of advanced courses for 2004-05;
· approved on second reading a revision to the policy concerning facilities construction;
· authorized tax refunds $500 or greater for Cypress-Fairbanks ISD and/or the Harris County Education District in the amount of $347,026.58;
· approved bids and contracts from recommended vendors for goods and services; and
· approved 70 personnel recommendations, resignations, retirements, promotions, terminations and/or discharges.
|
]