Facing reduced projected revenues due to low attendance, the Ector County ISD Board of Trustees on Tuesday approved a $13 million budget amendment.
The funds will come from the district’s fund balance. Chief Financial Officer Deborah Ottmers said the district will still have a 90 day supply of money with this.
But Superintendent Scott Muri said they cannot have this same conversation again next year.
Muri said the primary reason for the reduction is lower than expected attendance.
Usually attendance is 95 percent and that was pre-pandemic.
With the pandemic, Muri said attendance last year was a hair over 90 percent, which was very different than the district had seen before.
“We anticipated it would bounce back to 95 percent. It’s now 91.5 percent. That translates to a $13 million reduction. That’s a lot. We’re able to do that today because over the last several years we have maintained a healthy fund balance,” Muri said.
“We won’t be able to do this next year, so we must do a couple of things. One is we have to get our kids attending school,” Muri said.
He added that he and Ottmers will have to have some tough conversations when developing the budget — whether to plan for 91 percent or 92 percent attendance. Muri said it is a very real concern that affects raises, for example.
Officials noted that when students aren’t attending school, learning isn’t happening.
Muri said attendance issues are prekindergarten through 12th grade. The lowest levels of attendance are at Odessa and Permian high schools.
Most middle and elementary schools are in the 90’s for attendance.
Muri said this conversation is being held across the state and nation.
The smaller high schools have attendance rates above 95 percent. Elementary schools are hovering in the low 90s along with the middle schools, he said.
Muri said this is being addressed in a variety of ways — additional attendance clerks, social workers and homeless specialists.
Homeless students under the federal McKinney-Vento Act are families that are doubled up, living in temporary living situations, some students sleeping on someone else’s couch, Associate Superintendent of Student and School Support Alicia Syverson said.
Chief of Schools Keeley Boyer said there are automated text and phone calls, but also live school staff making calls.
Trustee Tammy Hawkins asked if they could report back in a month to see how this is working.
Vice President Carol Gregg said there are students who can score 90 without going to class.
President Steve Brown said it is an issue of students being engaged.
Trustees also discussed offering incentives in collaboration with the chamber to get students to attend school.
Boyer said there are some schools that are doing this on their own.
Board member Donna Smith said before COVID there was robust community involvement.
Brown said he has to give credit to attendance committees on the campuses. He added that they listen and know the students who are “frequent flyers” and don’t come to school.
Trustee Dennis Jones said there are some students that find themselves so far behind they give up and others who are in the halls socializing and no one is asking them why they aren’t in class.
Ottmers said ECISD will have a bit of a clearer picture next month and predicting the fund balance.
“There’s a lot still to happen,” she said.
The board also approved the 2023-24 academic calendar.
New teachers begin July 31 and all teachers start Aug. 2, Associate Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Lilia Nanez said.
It includes transition periods for sixth and ninth grade students that was started and was successful during COVID.
Students and teachers get a full week for Thanksgiving.
Teachers and students have two weeks at Christmas. The difference is that the weeks are split. It doesn’t go Monday through Friday; Monday through Friday.
Nanez said the last day of school is a Tuesday and then they return Jan. 3 for professional development. She said weeks like this are very common in Texas.
A professional learning day Jan. 3 helps teachers gear up for spring semester, Nanez said.
The academic year ends before Memorial Day.
Graduations will be completed by Friday night so everyone will have the full three-day weekend.
Summer learning for prek-5th grade and high school goes through July 17 and middle school runs through June 27.
The calendar chosen received over 200 comments provided on Facebook; over 800 from parents; and over 400 from staff members.
Students will be served for 180 days and there are six half days for early release with a half day for professional development. Odessa Collegiate Academy and OCTECHS are aligned to the Odessa College calendar.
The board also approve the pilot project for virtual instructional coaching at a cost of $30,000.
