Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District August 2005
RECOGNITIONS The Board of Trustees recognized the following students and staff members for their achievements:
Additionally, the superintendent recognized students and staff members for honors and achievements earned in recent weeks. Congratulations were extended to the following:
DIRECTOR OF CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION, MIDDLE SCHOOL, NAMEDFollowing the approval of employee transactions during its regularly scheduled meeting for the month of August, the Board recognized current secondary science coordinator, Charlotte Burns, as the new director of curriculum and instruction – middle school. Burns replaces Laurence Binder, who recently accepted the position of assistant superintendent for secondary instruction. Burns has 34 years of experience in education with 27 of those years in CFISD. She began her teaching career in Crawford ISD, where she taught for two years. After teaching in Hallsburg CISD for one year and Spring Branch ISD for four years, she joined CFISD as a teacher at Hancock Elementary. After a year at Hancock, she continued her career at Adam Elementary for three years prior to moving to Arnold Junior High School where she remained for 11 years. In 1993, she was promoted to the position of director of instruction where she served for eight years. As a result of her demonstrated leadership skills, Burns was named the district’s secondary science coordinator where she has served for the past four years.
BOND UPDATEThe Board approved the preliminary remarketing memorandum related to the $25.5 million in Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District Unlimited Tax Adjustable Rate Schoolhouse Bonds, Series 2002B. This will save the district $178,000 per year for the next three years and an estimated $3.3 million over the life of the bonds. The Board adopted a resolution authorizing the issuance of Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District Tax Anticipation Notes, Series 2005 in the amount of $20 million. A Tax Anticipation Note (TAN) is a borrowing in advance of property tax receipts. The TAN is to cover expected and possible cash flow needs prior to property taxes being received, created by the decrease in state funding and the increased dependency on local tax revenue. The TAN must be repaid within the current fiscal year and is not subject to arbitrage.
EVENING HIGH SCHOOL The Board approved the Evening High School Program to be held at Windfern High School for the 2005-2006 school year. Session 1 will begin September 6, 2005 and end December 5, 2005. Classes will be offered Monday and Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. Registration for the first session will be from August 15-25 during school hours at the student’s home campus and August 30-September 1 at Windfern from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Session 2 will begin January 30, 2006 and end May 4, 2006. Classes will also be offered on Monday and Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday from 5 p.m.-9 p.m. Registration for the second session will be from January 10-19 during school hours at the home campus and January 24-26 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Windfern. Tuition is $140 for each half-credit for district students.
SUPERINTENDENT’S BRIEFINGDr. Anthony reported that the CFISD staff anticipated a successful opening of the 2005-2006 school year. The district expects close to 85,000 students to enroll in CFISD schools over the course of the year. Four new schools opened their doors on the first day of school: Danish Elementary, Lee Elementary, Kahla Middle School and Spillane Middle School. Dr. Anthony said that there are many people who have worked very hard to get all of the facilities ready for the district’s students and staff; and said that he would not be able to name all of the individuals tonight, he would like to publicly thank Tony Barcelona’s team in maintenance and operations. Their planning and coordination, not to mention long hours, have been critical to getting all of the buildings ready. He also thanked Roy Sprague and the facilities department, Colleen Wells and the purchasing department, along with principals Sandy Oliver, Barbara Fine, Gary Kinninger and Marvin Webster and the curriculum staff for their efforts in getting the new schools ready complete with all the supplies and instructional materials. He also thanked Betty Rennell and the human resource department who have been working for the last year to ensure that CFISD students have the highest quality teachers to greet them on the first day of school. Dr. Anthony reminded district staff and the viewing audience that safety continues to be the district’s number 1 priority. He encouraged everyone to be aware of the speed limits while driving in school zones. He also asked parents and students to reserve some quality time to review together the Student Handbook and Code of Conduct that will be provided to each student during the first few days of school. The Code of Conduct includes a Safety Pledge that reminds students to immediately notify an adult should they become aware of any unsafe condition or situation occurring in their schools. Cypress-Fairbanks believes that students are a vital component in helping ensure safety in and around schools. The superintendent publicly thanked each one of the community members, employees and Board Members who recognized CFISD students as a priority and took action to communicate with elected officials about their needs. He said that the state Legislature has been meeting since January trying to reach a consensus on how to address public school funding in Texas. This is a complex issue and it becomes even more complex when tax relief is also part of the agenda. Dr. Anthony said that he has heard from many community members and employees and has personally witnessed the difference this community has made in Austin. He also extended sincere appreciation for the legislators who opened their doors and requested input from him and other school officials to help them discern the true needs of our fast-growing school district. In particular, Dr. Anthony thanked Senator John Whitmire and Senator Jon Lindsay. Both of these senators have taken a stand for the public school students in the state of Texas. The district and the Cy-Fair Houston Chamber of Commerce will host a free seminar for vendors on “How to Do Business with CFISD” in the Board Room of the Instructional Support Center, Friday morning, August 26, 2005, from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. This presentation will provide an opportunity for any individual or business to learn more about the guidelines and procedures for selling products or services to the school district. The district will soon complete the installation of a security screening process at each campus. The new system, known as V-Soft, will allow campus personnel the ability to scan the driver’s license or identification card of all visitors, vendors and employees visiting a school and, in real time, determine if the person is in a 48-state database of registered sex offenders. If the visitor is in the database, the system will immediately notify the CFISD Security Department. Additionally, the system will allow for the efficient tracking of the most appreciated and very valuable time donated by the district’s Volunteers in Public Schools. The superintendent also reminded the community that Monday, September 5, 2005 would be a student and staff holiday in observance of Labor Day. All district facilities will be closed. In the event of an emergency, contact Security at (281) 897-4337. Students will return to school Tuesday, September 6 and all other facilities will re-open for normal business hours.
AGENDA ITEMSIn other action, the Cypress-Fairbanks ISD Board of Trustees:
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