The Ector County Independent School District Board of Trustees will discuss a request for approval of the district bond planning committee charter between ECISD and TransCend4, among other items, at a work study session scheduled for 6 p.m. today in the board room of the administration building, 802 N. Sam Houston Ave.
A new bond advisory committee was scheduled to meet Monday. TransCend4 is a company specializing in bond elections hired to help guide the community through the process. The cost is $26,000, plus expenses including flights, car/Uber, hotel and meals.
Trustees have been discussing a possible bond election and tax ratification election, to be held separately.
Superintendent Tom Crowe said the charter was put on the agenda for today’s meeting because it is something TransCend4 has used previously and the firm wanted the board to consider it.
Crowe said during a special workshop meeting April 3 that 100 invitations had been sent to community members to be part of the new Bond Advisory Committee and about 50 had been accepted.
In November 2017, a $291,172,291 bond and a tax ratification election failed and some of the current needs were included in that bond.
On the bond issue, 61.81 percent of people voted against the bond and 38.19 percent voted for it, or 4,442 against and 2,744 in support.
On the tax ratification election, 60.04 percent, or 4,312 people voted against it, and 39.96 percent, or 2,870, were for it.
Board members also will discuss approving an AVID contract for 2018-19 and discuss a request to approve an AVID contract for Bonham Middle School Excel for the 2018-19 school year.
AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination and is a college prep program.
AVID Excel is aimed at long-term English learners, the AVID website said.
There are also several items related to national and international travel for students to be discussed.
Falcon Early College High School students are planning a trip to Washington, D.C., this summer.
The 13 students who devised the experiment are called Atlas XIII. The launch date is June 9. Students are planning to attend the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program National Conference hosted by National Center for Earth and Space Science Education and the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.
Trustees also will discuss a request for approval of Permian and Odessa High School culinary arts students to travel to England, France and Italy and a trip by Permian Satin Strings to go to Scotland and England.
Some other items on the agenda are:
- A request for approval of board policy relating to innovation districts.
- A request for approval of a board policy related to employment requirements and restrictions: credentials and records.
- Request for approval of board policy relating to performance appraisal: evaluation of teachers.
- Request for approval of board policy regarding the start of the school year. The policy has been updated to revise the official start date for Ector County ISD school year 2017-18 and subsequent years, supplemental agenda material said.
- Request for approval to change the regular board meeting date for this month.
