WISD Board Meets in September Regular Session

WALLER ISD – During the regular meeting of the Waller ISD Board of Trustees held September 14th, the Board recognized the Waller ISD students that were winners at the Special Olympics.  John Pelot, Special Olympics Coach, discussed the event to the board members.  Arian Copeland placed 8^th in the softball throw and in the 50 meter dash.  Arian and John were both recognized by the school board. 
     The next recognition went to the Waller High School 2009 Summer Graduates.  Waller High School Principal Kelly Baehren and Counselor Kenneth Epting presented each student with their diploma.  Administrators Bennie Mayes, Frankie Johnson, and Amy Bibler, stood nearby to present each student with a rose for them to give to someone special that supported the student throughout the program. The Waller High School Summer Graduates recognized were Elissa Bahm, Jany Kimble, Charles Kimble, Matthew Bailey, Gabriel Ramirez, Justin Griffin, Kristina Rivera, Jose Jimenez, Jessica Sanchez, Miguel Morales, Alejandro Valdez, and Daniel Martinez. 

Region 4 Secondary Teacher of the Year and Waller ISD Secondary Teacher of the Year, Michael Twigg, was recognized by the school board.  Twigg was named Region 4 Teacher of the Year on August 19^th.  Region 4 is the largest educational service center in Texas servicing 54 school districts with over a million students.  Twigg will attend the Texas Education Agency State Teacher of the Year Award Ceremony in November in Austin, Texas.

Schultz Middle School students were recognized at the board meeting for their accomplishment last May at the Hewlett-Packard Kid’s Day event.  8 Waller ISD students placed 2^nd overall in the marketing and robotics competitions.   The 8 students were divided up into two teams, the robotics team, and the marketing team.  The robotics team consisted of 4 students, Tyler Twardowski, Tyler Nelson, Dillon Schroeder and Jacob Hart.  The team built and programmed a robot using the NXT Mindstorm Kit. The robot would make its way through complex courses designed by HP.   The marketing team consisted of 4 students, Dillon Spence, Julia Payne, Kacie Costea, and Hannah Byers.  These students were judged on a marketing presentation which consisted of an imaginary robot and the services it performed. The students worked extremely hard and volunteered their time in an afterschool program to prepare for the competition.  The students attend Schultz Junior High and Waller Junior High Schools this school year.

The Waller ISD Stadium Grand Opening Kick-off Committee was the last recognition for the evening.  Superintendent Richard McReavy chaired the kick-off committee members.  Committee members consisted of Event Lead Planner Cherith Wells and Event Director Lauren Blinka, both from Waller High School and Paisley Event Planning, Waller High School Principal Kelly Baehren, Waller ISD Athletic Director Jason Morley, Waller ISD Facilities and Construction Director Jeanine Slaughter, Fields Store Elementary Principal Mary Davis, Public Relations Director Marianne Kosik, City of Waller City Secretary Jo Ann London, Waller ISD School Board Member and parent volunteer Kim Parmer, and Waller ISD parent volunteer Elizabeth Nickles.  The committee planned the largest, widely publicized event in Waller ISD’s history.  The detailed planning involved pre-game events for the community, tailgating party and parking coordination, school organization performances, a Waller ISD fallen heroes memorial dedication, a military flyover, a ribbon cutting dedication ceremony, press box community gathering, and several fireworks displays.  The event was a huge success that brought together over 8,500 Waller ISD bulldog fans within the community.

After the recognitions, the consent agenda items were approved.  Agenda items included resignations, employment, leaves of absence, staff transfers, disbursements, budget change requests, tax refunds, staffing requests, and the purchase of five sets of third grade auxiliary materials for the Dual Language Program.  No items were on the regular agenda.  In information items, SHW Architects provided a construction report from Sam Savage, Dwayne Trahan, and Mark Lam with SHW Group. Savage, Trahan, and Lam all thanked the school board for allowing them to build and renovate the Waller ISD facilities. 

Mike Marcus, Asst. Superintendent for Finance, informed the Board that he will return in two weeks to discuss the 2009-2010 tax rate.  Marcus also presented the Waller County Appraisal District Board of Director nominations, he gave the board a bond financial update, and discussed the 2010-2011 budget.  Bilingual/ESL Director Jorge Alvarado and ESL Coordinator Eric Meldahl gave the board a Bilingual, ESL, and Dual Language presentation.

A patron presentation was given by a local community member.  The community member addressed his concerns regarding the Presidential speech to the school board.

Important dates noted were:
September 28 – Special Called Board Meeting
October 12 – Regular Called Board Meeting
October 1 – Teacher Work Day/Parent Conference
October 1-2 – Fair Days, Student Holiday
October 2-4 – TASA/TASB Convention, Dallas, Texas