[1. CALL TO ORDER AND ESTABLISH QUORUM]
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GOOD EVENING. WE HAVE CONVENED FOR A REGULAR MEETING OF THE DRIPPING SPRINGS ISD BOARD OF TRUSTEES ON THIS MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28TH, 2026. THE TIME IS NOW 6:01 P.M. THIS MEETING IS BEING RECORDED. WE HAVE A QUORUM WITH ALL BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT THIS EVENING, UH, WITH TRICIA QUINTERO JOINING US BY VIDEO CONFERENCE SOON, HOPEFULLY. UH, WE WILL BEGIN WITH OUR OPENING CEREMONY WITH PLEDGES TO THE AMERICAN FLAG AND THE TEXAS FLAG. THIS WILL BE FOLLOWED BY A MOMENT OF SILENCE, SO PLEASE REMAIN STANDING WITH US AFTER THE PLEDGES. AND WE ARE PLEASED TO WELCOME THE FOLLOWING STUDENTS FROM DRIPPING SPRINGS ELEMENTARY, RIVER RICHARDSON IN FIFTH GRADE AND NOVA RICHARDSON IN SECOND GRADE.
PLEASE RISE FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE UNITED STATES FLAG, FOLLOWED BY THE TEXAS PLEDGE IN THE MOMENT OF SILENCE. PLEASE PLACE YOUR HAND OVER YOUR HEART. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. AND NOW FOR THE TEXAS PLEDGE. HONOR THE TEXAS FLAG. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THEE, TEXAS, ONE STATE UNDER GOD, ONE AND INDIVISIBLE.
[3. ANNOUNCEMENTS ]
WE'VE GOT ANNOUNCEMENTS.WELL, CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR TIGER BAND ON THEIR FIRST PLACE FINISH AT THE USBANDS CENTRAL TEXAS REGIONAL ON SATURDAY IN BUDA.
THEY ALSO WON AWARDS FOR BEST MUSIC, BEST VISUAL, BEST PERCUSSION, AND BEST OVERALL EFFECT. AND IT'S HOMECOMING WEEK. DSISD WILL HOLD A COMMUNITY PARADE, PEP RALLY, AND CARNIVAL BEGINNING AT 6:00 PM ON WEDNESDAY. THE PARADE WILL BE HELD AROUND THE DRIPPING SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL CAMPUS. PEP RALLY WILL TAKE PLACE AT TIGER STADIUM STARTING AT 7, AND IT'LL BE FOLLOWED BY A CARNIVAL AT 7:30 IN THE PARKING LOT JUST NORTH OF THE STADIUM. ON FRIDAY, THE TIGER FOOTBALL TEAM WILL HOST BUDA JOHNSON FOR THE HOMECOMING GAME AT 7:30 P.M. AND THEN A REMINDER THAT STUDENTS WILL BE OUT OF SCHOOL ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9TH FOR A STAFF DEVELOPMENT DAY.
THE DISTRICT IS ALSO CLOSED ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 12TH. AND THERE'S OUR ANNOUNCEMENTS.
[4. LEARNING SPOTLIGHT]
MOVING ON TO OUR LEARNING SPOTLIGHT, WE HAVE DRIPPING SPRINGS ELEMENTARY HERE TO PRESENT TO US, UM, FOCUSED ON FOUNDATIONAL READING PRACTICES AND EARLY LITERACY DEVELOPMENT.GOOD EVENING, PRESIDENT DELEON AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LETTING US BE HERE TONIGHT TO SHOWCASE ALL THE AMAZING THINGS HAPPENING AT DRIPPING SPRINGS ELEMENTARY. OUR TEAM TONIGHT'S GOING TO SHOWCASE THE FOUNDATIONAL READING PRACTICES, WHICH MANY OF YOU GOT TO SEE WHEN YOU CAME TO OUR CAMPUS. SO INTRODUCING OUR TEAM, WE HAVE MISS NICOLE GOFF KINDERGARTEN, MISS BRITNEY HAMILTON, FIFTH GRADE, MISS MEGAN SAVARINO, ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, AND YOU GUYS ALREADY MET RIVER AND NOVA, OUR READER LEADERS, SO I'LL HAND IT OVER TO THEM.
SO, PICTURE YOURSELF AS A CHILD LEARNING HOW TO READ AND WRITE. IT WAS PROBABLY OVERWHELMING AND QUITE CHALLENGING AT TIMES. AS A TEACHER, I WANT TO CREATE A LOVE FOR. FOR FOR READING. IN ORDER TO DO THIS, I UTILIZE A VARIETY OF INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES TO ACHIEVE THIS GOAL.
TONIGHT, I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE SOME OF THESE BECAUSE THERE IS ACTUALLY A SCIENCE BEHIND TEACHING THESE SKILLS TO CREATE FLUENT, CONFIDENT, AND INDEPENDENT READERS. WE'LL BE DEN- BEGIN BY DISCUSSING PHONEMIC AW- AWARENESS, WHICH IS THE ABILITY TO HEAR, IDENTIFY, AND MANIPULATE THE INDIVIDUAL SOUNDS OR PHONEMES IN SPOKEN WORDS. HEGGERTY IS THE CURRICULUM WE UTILIZE TO TEACH STUDENTS TO HEAR AND MANIPULATE SOUNDS EACH DAY.
TEACHERS ARE MODELING WHAT SKILLED READERS AND LISTENERS DO BY THINKING ALOUD AND DEMONSTRATING HOW TO BLEND SOUNDS TOGETHER AND HOW TO BREAK WORDS APART.
IN SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTIONS, TEACHERS MAY SAY THE SOUNDS IN THE WORD MAP, AND THE STUDENTS USE THE ELKONIN BOX TO HELP THEM IDENTIFY EACH INDIVIDUAL SOUND AND THEN BLEND THESE SOUNDS TOGETHER TO SAY THE WORD.
INSTRUCTION BEGINS AS WITH SIMPLE SKILLS LIKE SOUND MATCHING AND IDENTIFYING SOUNDS, GRADUALLY TO BUILDING TO MORE COMPLEX AND SOUND MANIPULATION, SUCH AS ADDING, DELETING, OR CHANGING SOUNDS IN WORDS. AND THEN MOVING INTO PHONICS, WHERE STUDENTS CONNECT SOUNDS TO LETTERS AND SPELLING AND SPELLING PATTERNS, TEACHERS EXPLICITLY TEACH SOUND SPELLING RELATIONSHIPS AND PATTERNS IN WORDS. WE MODEL HOW TO BLEND SOUNDS BY TAPPING THEM DOWN OUR ARM AND THEN BLEND THE WORDS TOGETHER, LIKE M, A, P, MAP.
STUDENTS WILL HAVE MANY OPPORTUNITIES FOR GUIDED
[00:05:04]
PRACTICE AND INDEPENDENT PRACTICE THROUGH SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTION AND LITERACY STATIONS. THIS IS THE I DO, WE DO, YOU DO METHOD OF TEACHING.DURING STATIONS, STUDENTS PARTICIPATE IN MANY ACTIVITIES, CVC BINGO, SOUND AND LETTER MATCHING, TIC TAC TOE GAMES, ARE JUST TO NAME A FEW. THESE ACTIVITIES PROVIDE INDEPENDENT PRACTICE WHILE ALLOWING STUDENTS TO APPLY THE SKILLS THEY HAVE BEEN EXPLICITLY TAUGHT. AN IMPORTANT PART OF PHONICS INSTRUCTION, INSTRUCTION IS TEACHING STUDENTS TO APPLY PREVIOUSLY LEARNED PATTERNS TO NEW WORDS. WHEN STUDENTS LEARN VOWEL TEAMS, BLENDS, OR DIGRAPHS, WE WANT THEM TO RECOGNIZE THOSE PATTERNS WHEN THEY ENCOUNTER UNFAMILIAR WORDS, WHICH IS HELPING THEM BUILD A TOOLBOX OF STRATEGIES. WE WANT THEM TO THINK, I KNOW THIS PATTERN, I KNOW THIS SOUND, I CAN USE WHAT I ALREADY KNOW TO FIGURE OUT THE WORD.
IMMEDIATE CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK IS SO IMPORTANT WHEN TEACHING THESE READING SKILLS. WHEN STUDENTS MAKE AN ERROR, WE DON'T WANT TO SIMPLY JUST GIVE THEM THE ANSWER. WE WANT TO GIVE THEM, TO GUIDE THEM BACK TO THE STRATEGY SO THEY CAN FIGURE IT OUT. OUR GOAL IS TO CREATE PROBLEM SOLVERS AND INDEPENDENT THINKERS. EVERY TIME STUDENTS READ A WORD, SPELL A WORD, BUILD A WORD, OR MANIPULATE A SOUND, THEY ARE STRENGTHENING THE CONNECTION BETWEEN WHAT THEY HEAR, WHAT THEY SAY, WHAT THEY READ, AND WHAT THEY WRITE, ALL THROUGH LEARNED THROUGH THE SCIENCE OF TEACHING READING.
SO AFTER THEY'VE GAINED THEIR TOOLBOX IN FOUNDATION AND MOVE UP IN ELEMENTARY, IT'S BEAUTIFUL TO SEE THE FLUENCY AND THEM SEE THEIR PROGRESS. SO IN FIFTH GRADE, WE DO FLUENCY TESTS. THEY READ THEM INDEPENDENTLY, AND THEN AFTER THEY TRACK THEIR GROWTH PER WHATEVER PASSAGE WE'RE DOING, AND THEY KEEP THOSE IN THEIR LEADERSHIP BINDERS AND JUST THEIR FACES AFTER THEY ARE THE ONES TO MAP THEIR GROWTH IS OUTSTANDING.
SO FROM FLUENCY GOING TO VOCABULARY, VOCABULARY IS VERY STRONG, UM, WHILE YOU'RE READING, WHILE YOU'RE ANSWERING QUESTIONS. IF YOU DON'T KNOW THE VOCABULARY, IT IT WILL BE HARDER. SO THE KIDS REALLY ENJOY BEING ABLE TO DO AN ILLUSTRATION WITH THE VOCABULARY. IT HELPS THEM CONNECT, AND THEN WRITING A SENTENCE.
SO WHEN THEY CAN ACTUALLY USE IT IN A SENTENCE AND USE IT WHILE SPEAKING IN CLASS, YOU KNOW THEY'VE UNDERSTOOD THE MEANING OF THE VOCABULARY WORD, AND THEY HAVE GOT IT. SO ONCE YOU GET THEIR TOOLKIT, THE FOUNDATION, FLUENCY, VOCAB, AND THEY PUT IT ALL TOGETHER, THEY ARE ABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY READ AND COMPREHEND MULTIPLE SKILLS AND ASPECTS WHILE THEY READ. UM, IN CLASS, WE DO A LOT OF READ ALOUDS, UM, NOVELS THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE YEAR, AND FROM THE BEGINNING OF SCHOOL TO THE END OF SCHOOL, THEY ARE BEGGING TO READ OUT LOUD. USUALLY WE'LL START WITH ME BECAUSE THEY'RE TOO SHY, AND THEN THEY'RE LIKE, PLEASE, CAN I READ THE CLASS READ ALOUD, PLEASE? SO JUST TO SEE THEIR, THEIR, THEIR STAMINA AND THEIR COMPREHENSION GROW IS, IS AMAZING. IT'S BEAUTIFUL.
SO WHENEVER Y'ALL CAME TO OUR CAMPUS, THIS IS WHAT YOU SAW, STARTING WITH OUR LOWER GRADES, STARTING WITH THAT PHONEMIC AWARENESS, THEY CAN HEAR THE SOUNDS, THEN MOVING FORWARD TO THEY CAN CONNECT THE SOUNDS WITH LETTERS, AND THEN FLUENCY, THEY CAN READ THE WORDS ACCURATELY AND AUTOMATICALLY, AND THEN THEY GO INTO THE UPPER GRADES. WE'RE LOOKING AT VOCABULARY, UNDERSTANDING THE WORDS, AND THEN YOU'RE UNDERSTANDING THE WORDS TO COMPREHEND WHAT THE MESSAGE IS. AND SO OUR EVIDENCE OF GROWTH, WE OBVIOUSLY LOOK AT OUR MAP READING FLUENCY. WE LOOK AT THOSE SCORES, AND WE HAVE THE STUDENTS, YOU KNOW, KNOW WHERE THEY ARE AND CHART THEIR GROWTH AND GET, UM, DATA TO TRACK THEIR BENCHMARK PROGRESS. UM, WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT ORAL READING FLUENCY CHECKS TO MONITOR THEIR ACCURACY, THEIR READING RATE, AND THEIR EXPRESSION. AND THE MAIN AND MOST IMPORTANT EVIDENCE OF GROWTH, Y'ALL, IS WHEN THE STUDENTS LOVE TO LEARN. AND JUST LIKE MISS HAMILTON SAID, WHEN THEY'RE BEGGING TO READ EVEN SOME OF OUR DYSLEXIA STUDENTS AT THE END OF THE YEAR, THAT IS THE POWER OF IT. ALL RIGHT, AND OUR NEXT STEP, SO THIS YEAR WE'VE REALLY TAKEN ON THE APPROACH OF SHOWING THAT GROWTH IN FLUENCY. WE SAW THAT THAT WAS A MISSING PUZZLE PIECE WHEN WE INTRODUCED SCIENCE OF TEACHING READING AS A STATE A COUPLE YEARS AGO, AND SO WE ARE INTENTIONALLY LOOKING AT THE DATA TO MAKE SURE OUR STUDENTS CAN ACCURATELY PUT TOGETHER THE DECODING SKILLS.
SO WE'RE MONITORING, WE'RE INTENTIONALLY REVIEWING THAT ORAL READING FLUENCY IN EVERY GRADE, STARTING IN THE MIDDLE OF FIRST GRADE.
AND THEN WE IMPLEMENTED SOMETHING THIS YEAR CALLED AT-HOME SKILL BUILDERS, WHERE FAMILIES CAN SUPPORT LEARNING AT HOME, BECAUSE WHEN WE DID THE MOVEMENT OF NO HOMEWORK, A LOT OF OUR FAMILIES TOOK THAT TO HEART AND STOPPED READING WITH THEIR KIDDOS, AND WE NEED THEM READING EVERY NIGHT BECAUSE THAT'S THE ONLY WAY TO GET BETTER. IT'S JUST LIKE RIDING A BIKE, YOU HAVE TO PRACTICE, OR IF YOU PLAY SOCCER, YOU HAVE TO PRACTICE.
SO TO GROW OUR BRAINS, WE HAVE TO READ EVERY NIGHT. SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERY READER IN OUR BUILDING TAKES HOME A DECODABLE READER WHEN THEY'RE YOUNGER, AND SO WE PURCHASED SOME SPANISH DECODABLES THIS YEAR TO EXPAND OUR LITERACY LIBRARY SO THAT THAT'S NOT AN EXCUSE THAT THEY DON'T HAVE A BOOK. SO
[00:10:02]
WHATEVER THEY'RE TAUGHT IN CLASS, THEY TAKE THE READER HOME TO PRACTICE. AND THEN A BOLD STEP WE DID THIS YEAR WAS WE ASKED TEACHERS TO STOP SHOWING VIDEO READ ALOUDS BECAUSE TEACHERS READING THE TEXT LIVE AND SHOWING THE ACT OF READING IS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR OUR YOUNGER STUDENTS TO SEE. SO READING FROM ACTUAL BOOKS, SO WE'RE MODELING THAT FOR OUR KIDDOS, UH, WITH FLUENCY AND EXPRESSION AND PROSODY. THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT, AND SO IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE A MOVIE ON A SCREEN. SO WE'VE ASKED THEM NOT TO DO ANY READ ALOUDS FROM A VIDEO. AND THEN THE OTHER THING THAT WE ARE DOING IS OUR LIBRARIAN, AKA FACILITATOR OF LEARNING INNOVATION, MISS MILLER, HAS THIRD, FOURTH, AND FIFTH GRADE BOOK CLUBS, AND SHE MEETS WITH THEM DURING THEIR LUNCH, AND WE HAD A HUGE NUMBER OF STUDENTS THAT REGISTERED TO BE PART OF THIS DURING THE SCHOOL DAY, AND THEY'RE READING ESCAPE FROM MR. LEMONCELLO'S LIBRARY. SO THAT'S BEEN A VERY POPULAR WAY BECAUSE WE ALSO WANT STUDENTS TO LOVE TO READ, NOT JUST TO KNOW HOW TO READ, BUT WANT TO READ. SO LET ME INTRODUCE YOU TO OUR READER LEADERS. COME ON UP.HI, MY NAME IS RIVER RICHARDSON. I'M A FIFTH GRADER, AND IN FOURTH GRADE I WASN'T CONSISTENT WITH READING AT HOME, BUT THIS YEAR MY TEACHER EXPECTS ME TO HAVE TWO BIG CHAPTER BOOKS WITH ME WHEREVER I GO. I READ FOR ABOUT 10 MINUTES AT HOME. I ALSO PRACTICE MATH SKILLS WITH MY SISTER. PRACTICING SKILLS AT HOME HELPS ME TO GROW AS A BETTER SPELLER, WRITER, AND READER.
GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS NOVA RICHARDSON, AND I AM IN SECOND GRADE. I PRACTICE READING AT HOME FOR 15 MINUTES EVERY DAY. I READ IN MY ROOM. I ALSO PRACTICE READING MY HIGH FREQUENCY WORDS FOR ABOUT 5 MINUTES. READING EVERY DAY HELPS ME BE A STRONGER READER.
WHAT WAS YOUR ABSOLUTE FAVORITE BOOK TO READ WHEN YOU WERE MY AGE? OH, WE'RE READY FOR THE QUESTIONS. OKAY. ALL RIGHT, UM.
THESE GIRLS HAVE BEEN SO ANXIOUS ABOUT COMING TONIGHT.
THEY HAVE PRACTICED IN MY OFFICE AND NEEDED TO KNOW EXACTLY WHERE THEY WERE STANDING, SO THEY JUST WANTED TO ASK YOU ALL THESE QUESTIONS, REALLY.
THAT'S OKAY, WE'RE READY. UM, MARY JANE.
SO NOW I READ ALMOST ALL NONFICTION, BUT I'M TAKEN BACK BY YOUR QUESTION TO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, AND I LOVED FICTION, AND MY FAVORITE BOOK WAS CALLED THE SECRET GARDEN, SO I HOPE IT'S STILL ON LIBRARY SHELVES TODAY.
I THINK IT IS. I FEEL LIKE MY GIRLS READ THAT BOOK.
WHAT ELSE? DO Y'ALL HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION? HOW DOES BEING A STRONG READER HELP YOU MAKE BIG DECISIONS FOR OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT? OLIVIA IS GOING TO TAKE THAT ONE.
FIRST, CAN I JUST SAY, LADIES, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING SO PREPARED. YOU'VE DONE SUCH A GREAT JOB TODAY.
THANK YOU. UM, READING A LOT, WE ACTUALLY DO A LOT OF READING, AND IT HELPS PARTICULARLY IN THE JOB TO BE WELL PREPARED AND WELL INFORMED. WHEN WE HAVE MEETINGS, WE'RE MAKING A LOT OF DECISIONS, AND WE'RE TAKING ACTION ON THOSE THINGS, BUT PRIOR TO THAT, WE HAVE TO READ A LOT OF LEGISLATION, WE HAVE TO READ A LOT OF POLICY, WE HAVE TO READ A LOT OF RESEARCH, WE HAVE TO READ A LOT OF REPORTS THAT ARE COMING FROM OUR DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS ABOUT FINANCES AND LEARNING AND INNOVATION AND SAFETY AND SECURITY AND ALL THE OTHER THINGS, OPERATIONS. SO WE READ A LOT. THE AMOUNT OF WORK THAT YOU SEE TYPICALLY IS PROBABLY, I'D SAY, AN HOUR WORTH OF READING, AT LEAST FOR ABOUT 10 MINUTES WORTH OF DECISIONS. SO WE READ A LOT.
[5. RECOGNITIONS]
[00:15:02]
NEXT UP WE HAVE, UM, RECOGNITIONS, AND TONIGHT WE ARE RECOGNIZING OUR NATIONAL MERIT SEMI-FINALISTS.GOOD EVENING. WE'RE LUCKY THIS YEAR TO HAVE THREE NATIONAL, UM, SEMI-FINALISTS FOR THE 2027 PROGRAM. OBVIOUSLY, WE HAVE ONE REPRESENTING THIS, THIS NIGHT, BUT I WILL TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE OTHER TWO.
TRINABH GUPTA AND COLTON INGLISH ARE ALSO WITH, WITH CODY. I'LL LET HIM TALK ABOUT HIMSELF IN A LITTLE BIT, BUT MORE THAN 16,000 SEMI-FINALISTS, UM, WERE EARNING THIS AWARD OR THIS RECOGNITION THIS YEAR ACADEMICALLY. THEIR TALENTED HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE THEIR, IN THEIR COMPETITION FOR ABOUT 6700 NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIPS WORTH APPROXIMATELY 24 MILLION THAT WILL BE OFFERED NEXT SPRING.
TO BE CONSIDERED FOR A NATIONAL MERIT AWARD, SEMI-FINALISTS MUST FULFILL REQUIREMENTS TO ADVANCE TO THE FINALIST LEVEL OF COMPETITION. ABOUT 95% OF SEMIFINALISTS ARE EXPECTED TO ATTAIN FINALIST STANDING, AND APPROXIMATELY HALF OF THE FINALISTS WILL WIN A NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP, EARNING THE MERIT SCHOLAR.
UM, THIS IS MY FIFTH YEAR DOING NATIONAL MERIT. WHAT WE DO IS A CELEBRATION TRAIN TO THE KIDS' CLASSES WHEN WE GET THE NAMES OF WHO THEY ARE, AND SO IT'S GOMEZ, ALONG WITH THE COUNSELORS AND ANYBODY ELSE WHO CAN COME, AND WE KNOCK ON DOORS AND WE ANNOUNCE IT TO THE CLASS. UM, TYPICALLY, ONE MIGHT, WHEN WE DO THIS, IT'S, IT'S USUALLY LIKE, YAY, GREAT FOR YOU.
BUT WHEN WE WENT INTO CHOIR TO TELL CODY, IT WAS THE CUTEST THING IN THE WORLD. THEY WERE ALL POINTING AT EACH OTHER.
THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHO IT WAS THEY WERE, AND HE WAS POINTING ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROOM. SO WHEN WE SAID HIS NAME, IT WAS LIKE, THE BEST REACTION. WE WISHED WE WOULD HAVE TAKEN A VIDEO BECAUSE IT WAS SO GENUINE. HE WAS SO SURPRISED, AND SO WE ARE, YOU KNOW, JUST, JUST BLESSED TO BE ABLE TO SEE THAT EXPERIENCE. SO, CODY, WILL YOU TELL US WHO YOU ARE, WHERE YOU WANT TO GO? COME OVER HERE, I GUESS, BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO THIS. TELL WHO YOU ARE, WHERE YOU WANT TO GO NEXT YEAR, LIKE YOUR NUMBER ONE CHOICE, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO MAJOR IN, AND WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO? UM, MY NAME IS CODY RITCHEY.
UM, I'M A SENIOR THIS YEAR. I WANT TO GO, ISN'T IT OBVIOUS? I WANT TO GO TO A&M. I WANT TO MAJOR IN AEROSPACE ENGINEERING, AND MY HOPE IS TO WORK AT NASA.
SO WE HAVE, WE HAVE SOME AMAZING KIDS, AND CODY'S ONE OF THEM, SO THANK YOU GUYS FOR RECOGNIZING HIM. GO AHEAD AND START SHAKING HANDS. THEY LIKE TO DO THAT. I WANT CONGRATULATIONS. THAT'S A HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT. ALL RIGHT, NEXT UP, UH, WHERE ARE WE? OH, OUR LEADERSHIP SPOTLIGHT,
[6. LEADERSHIP SPOTLIGHT]
BOARD HIGHLIGHTS, LIAISON REPORTS. UM, SOMEHOW THIS IS THE ONLY PHOTO WE HAVE SO FAR FROM TIGER FOOTBALL GAMES. I THINK WE'RE JUST ALL HAVING SO MUCH FUN THAT WE DON'T TAKE PICTURES. UH, THAT WAS A GREAT ONE, THOUGH. LOOK HOW PRETTY THE BACKGROUND IS.UM, AND THEN WE HAD OUR BOARD VISIT TO DSE. I WOULD LOVE FOR, UH, TO GET SOME FEEDBACK ON THAT.
DOES ANYONE HAVE SOME COMMENTS OR- OH GOSH, I LOVED IT. UM, KELLIE DID A GREAT JOB PREPARING US FOR THE VISIT WHEN WE ARRIVED, AND WE GOT TO GO IN CLASSROOMS AT ALL DIFFERENT LEVELS, GRADE LEVELS, AND LOOK AT HOW THEY'RE TACKLING READING. UM, THERE'S TWO THINGS THAT STUCK OUT TO ME IN THIS VISIT THAT I THOUGHT WERE JUST EXCEPTIONAL.
WHEN WE ENTERED A CLASSROOM, THERE'S A STUDENT THAT CAME UP TO US, WE'RE A BUNCH OF ADULTS, THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW, AND THEY HAD THE BEST SPEECH PLAN, AND THEY WERE SO CALM, AND THEY WERE SO CONFIDENT.
HERE'S WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SEE TODAY. HERE'S WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. HERE'S HOW WE DO IT. AND THEY WERE JUST AMAZING. ONE PARTICULAR CLASSROOM THAT WE WERE VISITING JUST REALLY STUCK OUT TO ME.
THEY WERE WORKING ON THE WORD CRAB, WORKING ON CONSONANT SOUNDS TOGETHER, BUT THIS TEACHER WAS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. SHE WAS A ROCK STAR, SO SHE WAS, THEY'RE PUTTING ALL THE SOUNDS TOGETHER AND SAYING IT, WRITING IT OUT, AND THEN SHE CHALLENGED THEM, YOU KNOW, WRITE ONE SENTENCE, UM, AND USE THE WORD CRAB IN IT. SO WE'RE ALL LOOKING TO SEE WHO'S GOT THE BEST SENTENCE, AND THEY WERE ALL PRETTY GOOD, BUT THIS IS WHAT A GREAT TEACHER SHE WAS. OKAY, SO IF YOU WROTE THIS SENTENCE AND YOU STARTED WITH A CAPITAL LETTER, GIVE YOURSELF A CHECK MARK.
YOU DIDN'T START IT WITH A CAPITAL LETTER, JUST ERASE THAT FIRST LETTER, MAKE A CAPITAL, GIVE YOURSELF A CHECK. DID YOU
[00:20:01]
END YOUR SENTENCE WITH A PERIOD? IF YOU DID, GIVE YOURSELF A CHECK. IF NOT, ADD A PERIOD AT THE END AND GIVE YOURSELF A CHECK. SUCH POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT, AND EVERY CHILD IN THAT ROOM WANTED TO PLEASE THIS TEACHER. AND IN EVERY CLASSROOM THAT WE WENT INTO, THIS IS WHAT WE SAW. I MEAN, IT WAS A BLESSING TO WITNESS. THESE KIDS WERE CHALLENGED, YOU KNOW, THEY WERE EXCITED TO LEARN, BUT MOST OF ALL, THEY WANTED TO IMPRESS THEIR TEACHER, AND IN TURN THEY WERE IMPRESSING THEMSELVES. SO IT WAS GREAT TO WITNESS.AND I'LL JUST ADD, IF I COULD, BECAUSE WE GOT A QUICK, YOU KNOW, FOR THE COMMUNITY GOT THE BENEFIT OF A, OF GREAT PRESENTATION, BUT THE BOARD AND I, WE GOT TO SEE EVERYTHING THAT YOU ALL JUST PRESENTED, REALLY IN, IN THE INSTRUCTIONAL ENVIRONMENT, WHICH IS CRITICAL FOR US TO REALLY EVALUATE THAT. AND, AND ALSO I'M VERY IMPRESSED WITH THE STRATEGY THAT WE'VE IMPLEMENTED, RIGHT? WE TEACH PHONICS AND DRIPPING SPRINGS ISD, RIGHT? UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WHEN I WAS RUNNING FOR SCHOOL BOARD 3 YEARS, 4 YEARS AGO NOW, WHATEVER IT WAS, LIKE, WE DON'T EVEN TEACH PHONICS.
YES, WE DO. AND IT'S, AND IT'S FOUNDATIONAL, AND IT'S CRITICAL.
BUT WE DON'T JUST STOP THERE, RIGHT? WE MOVE INTO FLUENCY AND VOCABULARY, AND THEN, AND WE DO THAT ITERATIVELY BY GRADE LEVEL, AND THEN COMPREHENSION IS A HUGE PART OF OUR STRATEGY. AND I THINK Y'ALL ARE TIRED OF HEARING ME SAY IT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN, BUT MY DAUGHTER MASSIVELY STRUGGLED WITH COMPREHENSION. THAT'S WHERE MTSS COMES IN, RIGHT? THE, THE, THE SUPPORT SYSTEM WE HAVE, TIER 1, TIER 2, TIER 3, TO HELP KIDS CATCH UP, BECAUSE WE ALL KNOW IF WE'RE NOT READING ON GRADE LEVEL BY, BY GRADE 3, WHAT HAPPENS? IT'S GOING TO BE A TOUGH ROAD. AND I HAD A KID THAT WAS IN THAT WORLD, AND SHE'S NOW AN AP LANGUAGE ARTS AT THE HIGH SCHOOL, RIGHT? SO AGAIN, TESTAMENT TO WHAT WE'RE DOING AND HOW WE'VE IMPROVED IT SINCE I MOVED HERE IN 17. I LOVE WHAT WE'RE DOING, AND I APPLAUD WHAT WE'RE DOING.
SO LET'S KEEP IT UP. LET'S KEEP LEARNING FROM THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING BY TRACKING OUR GROWTH WITH OUR KIDS, AND LET'S JUST KEEP DOUBLING DOWN ON THESE CRITICAL COMPONENTS.
AND I'M SO IMPRESSED WITH NOT ONLY DSC, WHAT'S HAPPENING AT ALL OF OUR ELEMENTARY CAMPUSES IN THIS AREA. CRITICAL.
YEAH, I AGREE. AND THE, THE GETTING TO SEE WAS FAST AND FURIOUS GET GOING INTO EVERY CLASSROOM, BUT WHAT WAS GREAT ABOUT IT IS YOU COULD SEE THE VERTICAL ALIGNMENT AND HOW IT ALL WAS, THAT'S THE WORD YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, ROB, IS VERTICAL ALIGNMENT, AND IT, HOW IT GOES FROM, AND THE EMPHASIS ON WHEN THEY MISS IT DOWN HERE, THE TEACHER'S GONNA KNOW AS SOON AS THEY GET TO THE NEXT LEVEL. AND SO I THINK THAT THAT'S SO IMPORTANT, UM, THAT WE'RE NOT LETTING THOSE KIDS, LIKE, FALL THROUGH THE CRACKS WHEN, IF, IF THEY MISS IT HERE, IT, IT'S GOTTA BE ALMOST IMMEDIATE WHENEVER THE, YOU KNOW ABOUT IT. SO IT WAS, I MEAN, IT WAS WELL DONE. IT WAS REALLY FAST, BUT I FEEL LIKE WE GOT SO MUCH OUT OF THAT DAY.
I WAS JUST GOING TO ADDRESS, THERE'S SUCH A MISCONCEPTION IN THE WORLD OR ON THE INTERWEBS THAT WE DON'T USE BOOKS ANYMORE, AND WE ARE IN OUR CLASSROOMS AND ON OUR CAMPUSES EVERY SINGLE DAY. AND IN OUR CLASSROOMS, YOU SEE THE WHITEBOARDS, BOOKS, PENS, PAPERS, AND YOU CAN SEE IT IN THESE PICTURES. BUT I WANT TO COMMEND THE CAMPUS FOR EVEN GOING THAT EXTRA STEP, LIKE YOU HAD THE READ-ALONG BOOK THAT HAD THE VIDEO, AND JUST STOPPING THAT AND SAYING WE'RE TEACHING BY EXAMPLE, AND WE'RE GOING TO GET THE BOOK, AND WE'RE GOING TO TURN THE PAGES, BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S WHAT OUR COMMUNITY WANTS, AND THE RESEARCH IS NOW SHOWING US THAT THAT'S THE DIRECTION TO GO, AND THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING TO RECOGNIZE THOSE AREAS WHERE WE CAN IMPROVE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
ALL RIGHT, TRUSTEES AROUND TOWN. YOU WANT TO START, OLIVIA, OVER THERE ON THE RIGHT SIDE? WELL, YES. SO IF YOU GUYS EVER SEE ME AROUND TOWN, I DO, UH, WALK AND TALKS AND, UM, COFFEE TALKS, TYPICALLY ABOUT TWICE A WEEK. UM, AND HERE I MET WITH MANDY COOK.
AND JUST TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON, I GET TO HEAR PARENT CONCERNS, UM, BUT ALSO GET TO HEAR ABOUT ALL OF THE WINS AND JUST HEAR SOME OBSERVATIONS ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE DISTRICT. AND THEN IF ANOTHER BAND MOM HERE, IT'S BEEN A GREAT COUPLE WEEKS FOR BAND, BUT THAT'S ALL I HAD, JUST GOOD TIME TO BE CONNECTED WITH OUR COMMUNITY. UM, I'LL SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, OVER ON THE LEFT SIDE, THAT'S WASN'T DISTRICT RELATED, BUT THESE ARE ALL DISTRICT FAMILIES THAT, UM, ARE IN THE TOP PICTURE AND THE BOTTOM PICTURE THERE. SO MY TWO OF MY OLD, MY TWO OLDEST DAUGHTERS AND I ARE PART OF THE NATIONAL CHARITY LEAGUE. IT'S A MOTHER-DAUGHTER PHILANTHROPY ORGANIZATION WHERE, UM, WE PARTNER WITH DIFFERENT, UH, PHILANTHROPIES AROUND DRIPPING SPRINGS, AROUND AUSTIN, UM, AND SO THIS WAS ONE THAT WAS NEW TO US. IT'S THE DRIPPING SPRINGS FRIENDSHIP FOUNDATION, AND IT IS A GROUP OF ADULTS AND THEIR CAREGIVERS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS, AND THEY, UH, WE WENT TO THEIR, UM, I GUESS IT WAS LIKE A FALL DANCE. Y'ALL, IT WAS THE MOST FUN. SO THEY HAD ABOUT 40 GIRLS AND THEIR MOMS SIGN UP TO BE DANCERS, LIKE DANCE PARTNERS. SO THESE GIRLS ON THE BOTTOM, THESE ARE ALL SEVENTH GRADE GIRLS, AND THEY WENT IN AND JUST LIKE, YOU COULDN'T STOP THEM, YOU COULDN'T GET THEM OFF THE DANCE FLOOR. AND SO IT
[00:25:01]
WAS SO MUCH FUN, AND THEY CAN'T WAIT. THEY'RE, THEY HAVE A CHRISTMAS DANCE IN, AT THE END OF THE YEAR. UM, THE TOP ONE IS WE MADE BRACELETS, UM, AND IT WAS JUST IT, I DIDN'T KNOW THIS ORGANIZATION EXISTED, AND IT'S IN DRIPPING SPRINGS. IT'S LOCAL. IT WAS SO MUCH FUN, AND OUR KIDS GOT SO MUCH OUT OF IT, UM, AND MADE SOME FRIENDS. THAT'S TIFFANY THERE IN THE MIDDLE WITH THE PURPLE GUITAR, AND THEY, THOSE GIRLS WERE ALL JUST BESTIES BY THE TIME THEY LEFT. SO, UM, A REALLY COOL ORGANIZATION IF YOU, UM, HAVE ANY, HAVE THE ABILITY TO EXPERIENCE IT. ROB, DID YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE, UM...YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S ME, YOU, AND A CREW, UH, THERE. UH, WE GOT A CHANCE TO GO TO THE PIGSKIN GALA THIS YEAR, UH, OVER AT RANCH PARK.
PHENOMENAL, EXTREMELY WELL ATTENDED. UH, OBVIOUSLY A GROUP THAT'S RAISING MONEY FOR OUR FOOTBALL PROGRAM, UM, WHICH, WHICH PAYS FOR A LOT OF STUFF THAT WE DON'T AFFORD IN OUR BUDGET, RIGHT? WE GOT TIGHTNESS, AND THAT, AND THAT'S WHAT I LOVE ABOUT OUR COMMUNITY, NOT ONLY WITH SUPPORTING SPORTS, BUT WITH THE BAND DOES THE SAME THING, THE CHEERS, LIKE A LOT OF OUR COMMUNITY BUSINESSES AND OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES, WHICH THIS ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY WAS, STEPPING UP AND SUPPORTING OUR PROGRAM. I THINK THAT'S PHENOMENAL. UH, AND SO IF YOU'RE A BUSINESS OWNER AND YOU GET THE OPPORTUNITY, WHETHER IT'S THROUGH THE EDUCATION FOUNDATION OR ONE OF THESE OTHER FOLKS, UH, PLEASE PARTNER IN WITH US.
IT, IT HELPS OUR PROGRAMS A LOT, UH, TO HAVE EXTRA RESOURCES TO FACILITATE WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO HERE EXTRACURRICULAR-WISE. SO, IT WAS A GREAT TIME.
UH, DO YOU WANT TO KEEP GOING? DO YOU HAVE ANY LIAISON REPORTS? UH, I DO NOT, NO MA'AM. GO AHEAD.
OLIVIA? I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING FOR PARKS AND REC. I WOULD JUST SAY THAT WE'RE REALLY GETTING UP, GETTING GEARED UP FOR THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION.
NOTHING. KIM? UM, EDUCATION FOUNDATION, WE HAD, UH, A MONTHLY MEETING THAT TOOK PLACE THIS LAST WEDNESDAY. UM, STARTED OUT WITH A REPORT FROM OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AND SHE KIND OF SHARED AN H-E-B GRANT UPDATE. UM, THEY ARE LOOKING ON A REFRESH ON MARKETING MATERIALS AND WEBSITE UPDATE, AND THEY HAVE ALSO POSTED, UH, THE POSITION OF ASSISTANT TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AND THAT IS ONLINE. IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THAT, UH, PLEASE LOOK FOR THEIR WEBSITE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION. WE HAD A GREAT PRESENTATION FROM A LADY NAMED LOU MANDY, WHO USED TO BE AN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE FOUNDATION. SHE WAS WONDERFUL. SHE'S A CONSULTANT AND KIND OF TALKED ABOUT THE MISSION AS THEY'RE MOVING FORWARD AND SOME GREAT THINGS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO. UH, T-SHIRTS ARE ARRIVING SOON FOR THE STAFF IN THE DISTRICT THAT ARE GOING TO BE GIVEN TO EACH STAFF MEMBER ON BEHALF OF THE EDUCATION FOUNDATION.
AND THE GOLF SCRAMBLE IS, UM, COMING UP ON OCTOBER 22ND, AND, UH, IF YOU'D LIKE TO VOLUNTEER OR PARTICIPATE IN THAT EVENT, PLEASE HEAD TO THEIR WEBSITE BECAUSE THEY HAVE A QR CODE WHERE YOU CAN VOLUNTEER AND SIGN UP TO HELP, BUT IT'S A GREAT EVENT AND A LOT OF FUN.
UH, SO THE, PARDON ME, THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE MEETING WAS LAST WEEK, AND THE GUEST SPEAKER WAS, UM, OUR HAYS COUNTY COMMISSIONER FOR PRECINCT 4, WALT SMITH.
UM, IT'LL BE THE LAST TIME HE, HE GIVES, UM, AN UPDATE ON THE STATE OF THE COUNTY BECAUSE, UM, HE CONCLUDES HIS TERM THIS YEAR. UM, LOTS OF STATISTICS ON GROWTH THAT WE'VE ALL HEARD IN DIFFERENT PLACES, BUT THE ONE THING I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT, I DIDN'T REALIZE, MUCH LIKE WE HAVE SO MUCH INFORMATION ON OUR WEBSITE THAT OUR STAKEHOLDERS DON'T KNOW ABOUT, I DID NOT REALIZE THE EXTENT OF INFORMATION THAT YOU CAN FIND ON, UM, FUTURE ROADWAYS AS, UM, THIS COMMUNITY GROWS, AND YOU CAN JUST, YOU CAN SEE BECAUSE SOME OF THE, THE LINES, THE PATHS HAVE CHANGED, UM, OVER THE YEARS. SO I WOULD JUST ENCOURAGE YOU TO, UM, YOU CAN JUST GOOGLE THAT. I HAD A QR CODE, BUT I'M SURE IT'S EASY TO FIND.
TRICIA, I DON'T WANT TO LEAVE YOU OUT. I HOPEFULLY WE CAN HEAR YOU, BUT YOU GOT ANYTHING? NOPE? OKAY. ALL RIGHT, MOVING ON, UM,
[7. PUBLIC COMMENTS]
WE DO HAVE A SPEAKER TONIGHT FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. UH, THE BOARD ENCOURAGES COMMENTS ABOUT THE DISTRICT FROM RESIDENTS OF THE DISTRICT, FROM DISTRICT EMPLOYEES, OR FROM OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC. EACH PRESENTATION CAN BE NO LONGER THAN 3 MINUTES PER PERSON OR 6 MINUTES FOR A PERSON USING A TRANSLATOR. UNDER THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT, THE BOARD IS NOT PERMITTED TO DISCUSS OR ACT UPON ANY ISSUES THAT ARE NOT POSTED ON THE AGENDA FOR TONIGHT'S MEETING. THIS MEANS BOARD MEMBERS ARE UNABLE TO DELIBERATE, ASK QUESTIONS, PROVIDE YOU WITH A RESPONSE, OR TAKE ANY ACTION RELATED TO YOUR COMMENTS. IF AN ISSUE IS MENTIONED, IF AN ISSUE MENTIONED IS LISTED ON TONIGHT'S AGENDA, THE BOARD'S DELIBERATION OR DISCUSSION OF THE ISSUE WILL BE DEFERRED UNTIL THE APPROPRIATE TIME DURING THE MEETING. SPEAKERS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO RELINQUISH TIME TO ANOTHER PERSON. WHEN YOUR NAME IS CALLED, PLEASE COME UP TO THE PODIUM, INTRODUCE YOURSELF WITH YOUR NAME AND CONNECTION TO THE DISTRICT. ONCE YOU BEGIN SPEAKING, THE TIMER WILL BEGIN. WHEN YOU HEAR THE TIMER SOUND, PLEASE CONCLUDE YOUR COMMENTS TO THE BOARD. WE'VE GOT MARY FOX.[00:30:06]
GOOD EVENING, DR.MORRIS-KUENTZ, BOARD PRESIDENT DELEON, UH, BOARD MEMBERS, OUR STAFF, AND OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS. I'M A RETIRED SCHOOL PRINCIPAL OF 31 YEARS. I LIVE IN COMAL COUNTY, BUT I'M HERE TONIGHT BECAUSE I'M ALSO A CANDIDATE FOR THE STATE HOUSE, HOUSE DISTRICT 73, WHICH, AS YOU KNOW, INCLUDES DRIPPING SPRINGS ISD.
FOR YEARS, WE'VE ALL HEARD THE MANTRA THAT PUBLIC SCHOOLS ARE FAILING. IT'S BEEN SAID BY EDUCATION REFORMERS, POLICY THINK TANKS, AND STATE LEADERSHIP. OUR OWN REPRESENTATIVE HAS SAID THAT OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS ARE BLOATED, INADEQUATE, AND TRAP CHILDREN.
IN STARK CONTRAST, I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT DRIPPING SPRINGS ISD IS FAILING. FAR FROM IT. THIS DISTRICT BOASTS OF CHAMPIONS, RECEIVING STATE AND REGIONAL RECOGNITION FOR SPORTS TEAMS, FINE ARTS PROGRAMS, UM, CAREER AND TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES, OUTSTANDING ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, AND COMMUNITY SERVICE.
IN FACT, THE STUDENTS THAT WE HEARD FROM TONIGHT, RIVER, NOVA, AND CODY, ARE INDICATIVE OF THE HIGH QUALITY EDUCATION THAT OUR STUDENTS RECEIVE EVERY DAY.
YOU'VE SEEN IT AS YOU WALK THROUGH CLASSROOMS. AND YET DSISD, LIKE EVERY OTHER DISTRICT ACROSS THE STATE, IS FACING THE CONSEQUENCES OF THIS UNTRUE TALKING POINT THAT PUBLIC SCHOOLS ARE FAILING.
FROM INADEQUATE STATE FUNDING TO QUESTIONABLE CURRICULUM CHOICES TO MICROMANAGEMENT BY A LEGISLATIVE BODY THAT HAS ALREADY IN PART PRIVATIZED PUBLIC EDUCATION. OUR SCHOOLS AND THE STAFF AND THE STUDENTS IN THEM ARE BEING STRIPPED OF DIGNITY AND SUPPORT.
UNFORTUNATELY, YOU ARE CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE BETWEEN THE LEGISLATURE AND THE STUDENTS AND STAFF YOU SERVE, BECAUSE AS A SCHOOL BOARD, YOU CAN'T ADVOCATE FOR YOUR OWN DISTRICT.
BUT I CAN. AS THE NEXT REPRESENTATIVE FOR HOUSE DISTRICT 73, I WILL BE A CHAMPION FOR DRIPPING SPRINGS ISD, AND NOT JUST DURING THE ELECTION CYCLE, BUT EVERY DAY I'M IN OFFICE.
AS AN ADVOCATE, I WILL BE A VOICE TO CELEBRATE THE AMAZING ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF OUR STUDENTS AND THE HARD WORK OF OUR TEACHERS AND STAFF, AND I WILL BE A VOTE FOR POLICY THAT HELPS INSTEAD OF HINDERS THE IMPORTANT WORK OF OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
DRIPPING SPRINGS ISD CAMPUSES, FAMILIES, STUDENTS, STAFF DESERVE NOTHING LESS.
THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO YOU. MORE IMPORTANTLY, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO THIS DISTRICT AND TO THE COMMUNITY. THERE'S NO MONEY IN THIS, AND YET YOU KEEP COMING BACK.
UM, AND IT'S NOT AN EASY JOB, BUT YOUR LEADERSHIP WILL UNDOUBTEDLY MAINTAIN EXCELLENCE AT, AT DSISD. GO TIGERS.
THANK YOU. WE DON'T GET PAID FOR THIS? JUST KIDDING. JUST KIDDING. ALL RIGHT, NEXT UP WE HAVE A PRESENTATION
[8. PRESENTATIONS AND DISCUSSION]
FROM, UH, THE ANNUAL PRESENTATION FROM OUR SCHOOL HEALTH ADVISORY COMMITTEE.GOOD EVENING, MADAM PRESIDENT, DR. MORRIS-KUENTZ AND BOARD. THANK YOU FOR HAVING US. UM, I BROUGHT WITH ME OUR CHAIR, DR. TRENAH HERRING-MARLER, UM, AND I HOPE TO DO AS GOOD A JOB AS OUR DSE FRIENDS, BECAUSE WOW. ALL RIGHT. SO THE FIRST THING WE'D LIKE TO GO OVER IS OUR, UM, 2526 MEMBERS. THESE ARE REPRESENTATIVES FROM ACROSS THE DISTRICT, INCLUDING 2 HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS, UM, WHICH WE ABSOLUTELY LOVE HAVING THEM ON AS A PART OF OUR SHAC. WE HAD 5 MEETINGS THIS YEAR. UM, SO IN DECEMBER, WE STARTED WITH OUR GENERAL REVIEW OF WHAT THE SHAC DUTIES WERE, UM, DISCUSSED FUTURE MEETING DATES, AND TOOK NOMINATIONS FOR OFFICERS. IN JANUARY, WE HAD MEETING NUMBER 2, WHERE WE VOTED ON OUR CHAIR, UM, CO-CHAIR AND SECRETARY. WE REVIEWED OUR DSISD WELLNESS PLAN AND THEN TALKED ABOUT UPCOMING WORK THAT WE WANTED TO ACCOMPLISH IN THE YEAR. IN MARCH, WE MET AGAIN TO LOOK AT OUR WELLNESS PLAN AND OUR SMART GOALS, WHICH WE'LL LOOK AT IN JUST A SECOND. UM, WE ALSO HAD A PRESENTATION FROM APRIL RICARD REGARDING SCREEN TIME IN OUR DISTRICT'S, UM, POSITIVE MOVEMENT BACK TO THE TRADITIONAL SETTING.
IN MAY, WE MET FOR OUR FOURTH MEETING, AND WE HOPE TO BE OUR FINAL MEETING, BUT IT WAS NOT. WE DID NOT HAVE A QUORUM, BUT WE WENT OVER THE FINAL DRAFT OF OUR PROPOSED GOALS AND THEN HAD ANOTHER MEETING IN AUGUST. WE DID HAVE A QUORUM AND TOOK OUR FINAL VOTE FOR OUR RECOMMENDATIONS. SO THIS YEAR, LIKE I MENTIONED, WE TALKED ABOUT THE DSISD WELLNESS PLAN. SO THE FIRST STEP WAS OBVIOUSLY TO REVIEW OUR WELLNESS PLAN.
[00:35:01]
AND SO WE REVIEWED IT AGAIN TO MAKE SURE THAT IT WAS STILL APPLICABLE AND IN LINE WITH WHAT WE WERE LOOKING TO ACCOMPLISH IN OUR DISTRICT. SO WE DECIDED AS A SHAC THAT OUR WELLNESS PLAN DID IN FACT MEET THOSE NEEDS AND WAS STILL APPLICABLE.PER BOARD POLICY IN FFL LEGAL AND FFA LEGAL AND LOCAL, OUR WELLNESS PLAN HAS TO HAVE A WAY TO MEASURE THE IMPLEMENTATION.
SO WHEN WE LOOKED AT OUR WELLNESS PLAN, THAT WAS WHAT WAS MISSING. WE DIDN'T HAVE MEASURABLE GOALS FOR EACH ONE OF THOSE COMPONENTS, AGAIN, THAT DO GO ALIGN WITH WHAT WE'RE STRIVING TO ACHIEVE, BUT WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY WAY TO MEASURE OUR GROWTH IN THOSE AREAS. SO SHAC WORKED ON CREATING MEASURABLE GOALS FOR EACH ONE OF THE COMPONENTS THAT CURRENTLY EXIST WITHIN THE PLAN. WE SHARED THE GOALS THAT WERE BEING PROPOSED WITH OUR PRINCIPALS IN DECEMBER AND THEN IN FEBRUARY. WE WANTED TO ENSURE THAT THE GOALS WE PUT IN PLACE WERE ACHIEVABLE, BUT ALSO NOT SOMETHING THAT WAS GOING TO ADD TO AN ALREADY FULL PLATE. SO WE WANTED TO GET THEIR CAMPUS OPINIONS, AND THEN WE ALSO MET WITH JOHN CROWLEY FOR NUTRITION TO MAKE SURE THAT HE WAS ON BOARD AS WELL. AGAIN, WE REVIEWED IN MAY AND THEN VOTED IN AUGUST. SO WHAT YOU WILL SEE ARE THE COMPONENTS AND THE GOALS THAT WE ARE PROPOSING.
UM, INSTEAD OF READING ALL THESE TO YOU, I JUST DIVIDED THEM UP INTO 4 AREAS. SO THE FIRST ONE IS OUR MEAL QUALITY AND OPERATIONS, SO OUR CHILD NUTRITION. UM, WE HAVE A GOAL OF ALIGNING OUR SCHEDULE AND OUR MENU ALIGNMENT BY THE END OF THIS FIRST SEMESTER WITH THOSE REQUIREMENTS, FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS. UM, WE ALSO WANT TO TAKE STUDENT INPUT AT LEAST ONCE A SEMESTER ABOUT THE FOOD THAT WE ARE SERVING IN OUR CAFETERIAS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MEETING THEIR NEEDS. AND THEN WE ALSO, AND AT THE CAMPUS LEVEL, HAVE TRIED TO TRANSITION AWAY FROM FOOD REWARDS IN CLASSES.
SO IF THAT IS SOMETHING THAT THEY'RE, THEY'RE GOING TO DO, THE TEACHERS HAVE ALTERNATE, UM, REWARDS AVAILABLE AS WELL. THE NEXT AREA WOULD BE OUR STUDENT EXPERIENCES IN EDUCATION, AND SO THIS IS THAT PROTECTIVE SEAT TIME FOR BOTH BREAKFAST AND LUNCH, UM, REQUIRED AT LEAST ONE LESSON EACH YEAR OR LEARNING EXPERIENCE EACH YEAR AT EACH CAMPUS. AND WE DO WANT TO DO QUARTERLY OUTREACHES, SO THOSE NEWSLETTERS THAT GO OUT VIA THE CAMPUS TO HAVE THOSE NEWS NUTRITION INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THOSE AT LEAST ONCE A QUARTER. UM, THE NEXT PART IS OUR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND PE. THIS ONE WAS PROBABLY ONE OF MY FAVORITE BECAUSE WE LOOKED AT THE MINUTES TO MAKE SURE THEY WERE STILL, UM, IN ALIGNMENT AND APPLICABLE WITH WHAT WE WERE ACTUALLY DOING EACH DAY. AND SO OUR ELEMENTARY MAINTAINS 135 MINUTES A WEEK OF THAT PHYSICAL EDUCATION, BOTH WITH PE AND RECESS. OUR MIDDLE SCHOOL, BECAUSE OF THE CHANGE THAT WE HAD IN OUR SCHEDULE, WENT FROM 225 MINUTES EVERY 2 WEEKS TO 225 MINUTES EVERY WEEK, WHICH WAS REALLY COOL TO SEE, AND OUR KIDS IN OUR MIDDLE SCHOOL LEVEL NEED THAT MOVEMENT. THEY NEED TO GET UP AND GO, AND SO THAT WAS PROVE AGAIN THAT, YES, GOOD, GOOD MOVE.
UM, AND THEN HIGH SCHOOL, KEEPING THOSE 225 MINUTES EVERY 2 WEEKS FOR THOSE 2 SEMESTERS THAT ARE REQUIRED FOR GRADUATION. FINALLY, IS THAT GOVERNANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY PIECE. SO WE, UM, AGREE STILL TO HAVE OUR SHAC COMMITTEE MEETINGS AT LEAST 4 TIMES ANNUALLY, FOLLOWED BY A WRITTEN ANNUAL REPORT TO THE BOARD, WHICH WE'RE DOING NOW. AND THEN MONITORING AND COMPLIANCE WILL HAPPEN WITH OUR CHIEF ACADEMIC OFFICER, WHO WILL GO THROUGH EACH ONE OF THESE GOALS. SO AS YOU LOOK AT THEM, IT JUST HAS A TIMELINE OF WHEN WE WILL IMPLEMENT FOR EACH ONE, ALONG WITH HOW WE WILL MEASURE. NONE OF THE COMPONENTS CHANGED AT ALL. IT'S SIMPLY TO A WAY FOR US AT, UM, CLL AND AT THE CAMPUS LEVEL AND IN CHILD NUTRITION TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MEETING OUR, OUR WELLNESS PLAN EACH YEAR.
SO OUR RECOMMENDATION IS THE, THAT THE BOARD CONSIDER, UM, ADDING THESE GOALS TO OUR CURRENT WELLNESS PLAN SO THAT WE HAVE THE MEASURABLE, UM, GOALS IN PLACE TO DETERMINE OUR IMPLEMENTATION AND EFFECTIVENESS. ANY QUESTIONS? THAT'S WHAT I WAS GONNA SAY.
WHEN DO WE MODIFY THE WELLNESS PLAN OR VOTE ON A WELLNESS PLAN? SO IT'S, IT'S UP TO US, RIGHT? YOU, WE COULD DECIDE EVERY YEAR THE SHAC'S, UM, CHARGE FOR THE YEAR, AND SINCE WE'RE STARTING TO KICK THAT OFF, THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN REVIEW IF THE BOARD IS INTERESTED IN LOOKING AT THAT AGAIN. IT WAS DONE IN 2021 AND 2023.
OKAY. I THINK IT'S PROBABLY TIME TO DO AGAIN. ROB? I JUST HAVE ONE, AND, AND, AND MA'AM, IF YOU WOULD,
[00:40:01]
JUST BECAUSE AS THE CHAIR OF THE SHAC ON COMPONENT 3, CAN WE GO BACK? HELP ME OUT A LITTLE BIT, WHOEVER'S DOING THE THINGS.OKAY, SO WHAT, WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT HERE? WE'RE, WE'RE NOT SAYING TEACHERS ARE GOING TO HAVE A BOWL OF CARROTS ON YOUR DESK, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LIKE, WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT THAT, ARE WE? RIGHT? LIKE...
NO, UM, UM, THINGS WE NOTICED AND THINGS THAT WE WANT TO MORE ADVOCATE IS MAYBE, UH, TIME TO DO SOMETHING THAT'S, YOU KNOW, FUN TO THE STUDENTS OR, YOU KNOW, YOU GET MORE FREE TIME TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, UH, TO TO BE IN RECESS OR SOMETHING LIKE OR OKAY.
I THINK THE TEACHERS ARE ALSO, UH, HAVING A, UM, PIZZA PARTY, YOU KNOW, FOR ACHIEVING CERTAIN GOALS AND FOR THE CLASSES ACHIEVING CERTAIN GOALS.
IT COULD PROBABLY ALSO BE STICKERS OR ERASERS OR YEAH.
WELL, IT COMES UP WHEN CLASSROOMS, YOU KNOW, FILL UP THEIR BRAG BOARD, AND THEN THEY DO, RIGHT.
YOU KNOW, LIKE BRING A STUFFY DAY OR HAVE A SOCKS DAY YEAH.
OR SOMETHING. THOSE KIND OF, IS THAT YES, EXACTLY.
WHAT THOSE KIND OF THINGS? OKAY.
I WAS GONNA SAY, EVEN WHEN I WAS AT THE HIGH SCHOOL, YOU'D BE AMAZING WHAT 18-YEAR-OLDS WILL DO FOR A STICKER OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. IT WORKS ALL THE WAY FROM PRE-K TO GRADUATES. UM, AND THAT'S FINE. HERE'S WHAT I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT DOING, OKAY, FROM MY SEAT. I DON'T WANT TO OVER ROTATE TO LIKE, HEY, WE CAN'T GIVE A LOLLIPOP FOR NEW, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? LIKE, WE'RE GOT TO HAVE COMMON SENSE STUFF HERE, AND I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT COMPONENT NUMBER THREE ISN'T WE'RE GOING TO ERADICATE OURSELVES FROM, YOU KNOW, MODERATE REWARDS THAT A CHILD WOULD ENJOY AND GO TO SOMETHING LIKE, WELL, IT'S NOT HEALTHY, SO WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU A CARROT. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? LIKE.
I HAVE HEARD IN THE COMMUNITY, AND THIS IS PROBABLY WHERE THE COMMITTEE MAYBE, I DON'T KNOW, I WASN'T, I'M NOT THE BOARD LIAISON FOR SHAC, BUT IN JUST THE COMMUNITY, THERE'S A LOT OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE OVERUSE OF CANDY SALADS AND CANDY DAYS, AND YEP, I'VE HEARD IT.
UM, WE HEAR IT A LOT, SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT IS, UH, IT IS... IT IS SERVING THE WILL OF OUR GREATER COMMUNITY, I THINK, FROM THAT COMPONENT.
LIKE, I THINK YOU WERE PROBABLY HEARING SOME OF THE SAME THINGS PROBABLY BEFORE.
WE WERE, ABSOLUTELY. AND TO ROB'S POINT, IT'S NOT TO ELIMINATE, IT'S TO GIVE THOSE ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS. WE HAVE SOME, SOME STUDENTS WHO CAN'T HAVE THOSE SWEET TREATS, RIGHT, JUST MEDICALLY, AND SO IT GIVES THEM ANOTHER OPTION TO STILL CELEBRATE AND BE CELEBRATED WITHOUT, UM, HAVING TO MAKE THAT DIFFICULT CHOICE.
AND, AND I'M FINE WITH THAT, AND I AGREE. I'LL CALL YOU DOC BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MEDICAL STUFF HERE, BUT I AGREE WITH THAT. COMMON SENSE, PLEASE.
OKAY? WE DON'T, WE DON'T NEED TO ABOLISH THINGS THAT DON'T NEED TO BE ABOLISHED FOR SOMETHING, OKAY? SO, MODERATION.
I, I DID NOTICE TOO IN THE TEACHER'S WISH LIST THAT THEY'RE, THEY'RE GETTING MORE, UM, LIKE LITTLE FINGER LIGHT UP THINGS, YOU KNOW, COOL.
DIFFERENT, DIFFERENT THINGS LIKE THAT THAT ARE, UH, MORE INTERESTING. THEY'RE ON THE TEACHER'S WISH LIST.
AND I THINK, I, I HOPE IT'S BECAUSE OF THAT REASON, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'VE SEEN THAT EVEN IN, UH, YOU KNOW, NON-ACADEMIA CLASSES AND DIFFERENT OTHER KIND OF CLASSES THAT THEY'RE HAVING.
DR. HERRING-MARLER, ONE, I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN ON SHAC NOW? I FEEL LIKE YOU'RE GOING ON 5 YEARS.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. I REMEMBER YOU WERE HANGING WITH US AT THE OLD BUILDING.
YES. YEAH, I WAS IN THE. THANK YOU.
I WAS IN THE DUNGEON FOR YEAH, YEAH. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE. WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOU STILL BEING HERE. YOU, YOU ALWAYS BRING SO MUCH. WHERE DID WE LAND ON, UM, ENERGY DRINKS, CONCESSION, LIKE BEING IN THE MACHINES, BEING AVAILABLE? WHERE ARE WE ON THAT NOW? SO THOSE FOR THE HIGH SCHOOL.
HAVE BEEN, SO THEY WERE SOLD WITH THE INDEPENDENT SHACK.
AND THEY ARE NO LONGER SELLING THOSE OKAY.
THERE. AND SO, UM, AND ALTOGETHER WE HAVE REDUCED WITH, UH, MR. CROWLEY, WE'VE REDUCED, UH, SUGAR CONTENT OF FOOD AND THE NUMBER OF SUGAR ITEMS AVAILABLE BY FAR, BY MORE THAN, MORE THAN HALF. SO, UM, AND THEN DYES, WE'VE GOTTEN RID OF DYE, YOU KNOW, LOWERED, LOWERED DYES, AND SO THERE'S BEEN QUITE A FEW, UM, DECREASES JUST IN THE LAST YEAR WITH THE BILLS COMING THROUGH THAT WE'VE HAD. SO THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF POSITIVE MOVEMENT AWAY FROM SUGAR, AWAY FROM DYES, AWAY, YOU KNOW, AND NO, NO ENERGY DRINKS ARE BEING SOLD ANYMORE, SO.
THAT WAS SOMETHING THE TEACHER INHERITED. SHE WAS A NEW, UM, SO SHE INHERITED IT THAT YEAR.
SHE IMMEDIATELY SWITCHED TO SUGAR FREE WITH THE PLAN AND HAS NOW COMPLETELY GOTTEN RID OF THAT IN THE TIGER SHACK THIS YEAR.
THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE Y'ALL RECOGNIZING THE, THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE MEASURABLE GOALS. WE HAD GOALS, BUT IT WAS LIKE, LET'S DO THIS. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, LOOKING BACK, EVEN US SITTING UP HERE GOING, OH WAIT, HOW DO, WHEN DO WE APPROVE THAT, YOU
[00:45:01]
KNOW, THIS WELLNESS PLAN? SO, UM, REALLY APPRECIATE ALL OF THE WORK THAT YOUR COMMITTEE DOES AND RECOMMENDATIONS, AND, UM, WE'RE GONNA GET IT SET UP TO, YEAH, GET IT ON A FUTURE AGENDA, SO.THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, NEXT UP, WE'VE GOT OUR BOND ADVISORY COMMITTEE UPDATE.
ALL RIGHT, SO OUR BOND ADVISORY, UH, COMMITTEE MEETS 4 TIMES A YEAR. WE HAVE OUR CHAIR, JARROD CADY, HERE TO KIND OF GO THROUGH WHAT ALL WE'VE TALKED ABOUT AT THOSE. WE'VE DONE 3 OF OUR 4 MEETINGS FOR THIS YEAR, SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO HIM.
UH, GOOD EVENING. THANKS FOR GIVING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME UP HERE AND SPEAK TO YOU GUYS. UM, SO, LIKE YOU SAID, MY NAME'S JARROD CADY. I'M THE CHAIR OF THE BOND ADVISORY COMMITTEE. UM, WRONG DIRECTION.
UH, I'M HERE TO REPRESENT THIS GROUP OF FINE MEMBERS, UM, VOLUNTEERS, UH, THEY GIVE UP THEIR TIME, UH, TO COME DO THIS LIKE YOU GUYS DO. UM, YOU'LL SEE A LOT OF, A LOT OF THEM ARE IN THEIR FINAL YEAR. UM, YOU KNOW, I'M PROUD TO SAY THAT I THINK ALL BUT LIKE 2 OF THESE ARE GONNA TRY TO RETURN AND CONTINUE THEIR SERVICE FOR ANOTHER TERM, SO THAT'S GONNA BE, THAT'S GOOD. UM, SO WE'VE MET SO FAR 3 TIMES THIS YEAR, SO WE MET IN OUR FIRST, UH, MEETING IN MARCH, AND YOU'LL SEE THAT KIND OF ALL OF OUR DISCUSSIONS, UM, YOU KNOW, KIND OF PLAY INTO THE TIME OF YEAR AND THE SCHOOL YEAR IT IS. SO EACH ONE OF THESE MEETINGS, WE HAD A QUORUM. IN MARCH, WE DISCUSSED KIND OF, WE WERE AT THE POINT WHERE WE WERE BUTTONING UP A LOT OF THE 2023 BOND PROJECTS. UM, SO WE, UH, KIND OF WENT THROUGH THOSE, TALKED ABOUT WHERE WE WERE IN THEM AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO KIND OF CLOSE THOSE OUT, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE 18 PLUS PROJECT. THAT'S THE BIG PROJECT THAT'S STILL KIND OF LEFT IN THAT 2023 BOND.
UM, WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT THE SAFETY GRANTS. UM, YOU KNOW, THE SAFETY GRANTS, I THINK, ARE AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF THAT 2023 BOND AND SOME OF THE 2025 BOND BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO RECAPTURE SOME OF THOSE FUNDS THAT WE, UH, THAT WE ACTUALLY SPENT OUT OF THE BOND MONEY, THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET SOME OF THAT FUNDING BACK. UM, AND THAT'S GOING TO PLAY INTO SOME OF THE STUFF I TALK ABOUT A LITTLE BIT LATER. UM, SO THEN WE, UH, DISCUSSED THE 2025 BOND PROJECTS, REALLY THE PLANNING PART, BECAUSE THOSE ARE GOING TO BE COMING UP IN THE, IN THE SUMMERTIME, UH, WHICH IS THE BUSY, UM, THE BUSY CONSTRUCTION PERIOD FOR SCHOOLS, OBVIOUSLY. UM, AND THEN WE GOT TO TAKE A TOUR OF DRIPPING SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL TO KIND OF TALK ABOUT THE RENOVATIONS THAT WERE GOING TO BE UPCOMING IN THE, IN THIS SUMMER, AS WELL AS THE ONGOING, UH, RENOVATIONS THAT ARE GOING TO BE HAPPENING THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL YEAR FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS.
UM, IN JUNE, JUNE, YOU'RE REALLY IN THE HEART OF, OF THE CONSTRUCTION, AND IT STILL BLOWS MY MIND, EVEN THOUGH I'VE BEEN A PART OF THIS COMMITTEE, THIS IS MY THIRD YEAR. IT BLOWS MY MIND HOW MUCH WORK GETS DONE OVER A SUMMER PERIOD. UH, WE MET AT ROOSTER SPRINGS. WE'RE AT THIS POINT, YOU KNOW, BARELY 3 WEEKS OR 2 AND A HALF WEEKS INTO SUMMER, AND THE PLACE IS JUST TORN APART, YOU KNOW, IT'S AND NEW COMPONENTS, SOME NEW COMPONENTS ARE ALREADY GOING BACK IN, AND IT'S, UH, IT'S JUST SHOCKING TO SEE HOW MUCH GETS DONE.
IT'S REALLY A TESTAMENT TO THIS TEAM OVER HERE TOO, BECAUSE THE AMOUNT OF STUFF THAT THEY CAN RUN THROUGH JUST OFF THE TOP OF THEIR HEAD WITH THE AMOUNT OF PROJECTS THAT ARE GOING ON, AND HE KNOWS, LIKE, EVERY SINGLE THING THAT'S HAPPENING ON EVERY PROJECT, AND AND IT'S REALLY, REALLY IMPRESSIVE TO SEE. SO MOSTLY HERE WE TALKED ABOUT THE 2025 BOND, UM, BECAUSE THAT'S THAT'S THE WORK THAT WAS HAPPENING. UH, WE HAD KICKED OFF A LOT OF THOSE PROJECTS THAT GOT APPROVED THROUGH THAT BOND, AND UH, THEN WE GOT THE OPPORTUNITY, LIKE I SAID, TO TOUR ROOSTER SPRINGS. UM, OKAY, SO JUST LAST WEEK, UH, WE MET AT THE NEW DRIFTWOOD SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, EVEN THOUGH I'VE BEEN A PART OF THIS COMMITTEE, THIS IS MY THIRD YEAR, LIKE I SAID, IT STILL IS LIKE SHOCKING TO ME, THE LEVEL OF SOPHISTICATION AND PLANNING AND INTENTIONALITY THAT GOES INTO THESE SCHOOL PROJECTS.
THAT SCHOOL, IT LIKE, IT IS SHOCKING, THE LEVEL OF INSTITUTION THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE HERE. IT, IT'S REALLY IMPRESSIVE, AND I KNOW YOU GUYS WILL GET A CHANCE TO TOUR IT, BUT ANYBODY IN THE COMMUNITY TOO, IF YOU GET THE OPPORTUNITY AND THERE'S AN OPEN HOUSE TO GO SEE THIS SCHOOL, IT'S GOING TO BE SUPER, IT'S JUST GOING TO BE REALLY IMPRESSIVE. UH, YOU KNOW, IT, I KNOW IT'S BEEN 25 YEARS SINCE I'VE BEEN IN SCHOOL, BUT TO, TO THINK THAT THE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT WOULD HAVE SOMETHING OF THAT CALIBER, IT FEELS MUCH MORE LIKE, LIKE A, A, A, YOU KNOW, HIGH-END COMMUNITY COLLEGE OR A UNIVERSITY. SO IT'S, IT'S, I'M REALLY EXCITED FOR THE KIDS THAT ARE GOING TO GET TO PARTICIPATE IN THAT, AND REALLY EXCITED FOR THE KIDS OVER HERE AT DRIPPING SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL AS WELL, BECAUSE A LOT OF THESE RENOVATIONS THAT ARE HAPPENING ARE BASICALLY BRINGING THIS HIGH SCHOOL TO THE SAME LEVEL THAT THE NEW HIGH SCHOOL IS GOING TO BE. SO, UM, ONE OF THE BIG THINGS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT IN THIS MEETING,
[00:50:01]
UH, WHICH IS ANOTHER KUDOS TO THIS TEAM, IS THE, UH, THE WORK THAT THEY DID WITH THE, UM, DRIPPING SPRINGS, UH, CITY, UH, THE DEVELOPMENT OR DEVELOPMENT INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT. UM, SO, SO THAT IS ESSENTIALLY WHERE THEY GOT THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK WITH THE DEVELOPMENT TEAM TO COME TO A COMPROMISE ON SOME THINGS THAT, SOME STANDARDS, SOME DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS THAT, UM, DON'T CLEANLY AND CLEARLY APPLY TO PROJECTS AS LARGE AS IN, UH, UH, AS THESE SCHOOLS ARE. UM, THEY'RE UNUSUAL PROJECTS FOR, UM, FOR DRIPPING SPRINGS, AND UM, SO THE GOOD WORK, THE HARD WORK OF THIS TEAM HAS ACTUALLY SAVED THE, SAVED THE COMMUNITY QUITE A BIT OF, OF FUNDING, AND IN, IN MY OPINION, JUST, UH, UM, SOME COMMON SENSE. SO, UM, SO COMING UP IN DECEMBER, WE'RE GONNA TOUR THE NEW RENOVATIONS THAT WE'RE GONNA, THAT ARE GOING ON AT THE DRIPPING SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL, UM, AND WE'RE GONNA HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO KIND OF REVIEW THE, THE 18 PLUS FACILITY IS UNDERWAY. IT'S MOVING QUICK, AND SO I EXPECT BY THIS TIME WE'LL HAVE A REALLY GOOD UPDATE ON, ON THAT PROJECT, AND THEN KIND OF MOVING FORWARD THROUGH THE REST OF THE 2025 BOND PROJECTS. WE'LL BE BRINGING ON NEW MEMBERS AS WELL. NEW OFFICERS WILL BE, UM, COMING INTO PLACE. AND THEN HOPEFULLY AROUND THIS TIME, OR MAYBE EARLY IN THE 2027 MEETINGS, WE'LL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO KIND OF, UM, START TALKING ABOUT RECOMMENDATIONS FOR, UH, CAPTURED SAVINGS FROM THE 23 BOND TO COME AND PRESENT TO YOUR TEAM. SO, AND THAT'S ALL I GOT. THANK YOU.BOARD MEMBERS, QUESTIONS? ANY DISCUSSION? ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU.
SHE ENDED NOT A QUESTION, BUT OH, SORRY.
SIMILARLY TO THANK YOU. I MEAN, THAT'S YEAH.
WE, WE RELY ON OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO STEP INTO LEADERSHIP ROLES LIKE THIS, AND I APPRECIATE ALL OF YOUR SERVICE ALL THESE YEARS.
THANK YOU. CAN I ASK ONE, ONE QUICK QUESTION? YEAH.
WHEN YOU GUYS WALKED TO DRIFTWOOD SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL, WERE THERE OOHS AND AHS, OR HOW WAS THAT LIKE? YEAH, I MEAN, SO THE, THE AWESOME THING ABOUT THIS GROUP OF PEOPLE IS ALL OF THEM ARE IN SOME SORT OF CAPACITY RELATED TO CONSTRUCTION, ENGINEERING, ARCHITECTURE, AND A LOT OF THEM WORK AT ON REALLY LARGE PROJECTS, I MEAN, REALLY LARGE SCALE, MASSIVE PROJECTS ALL, ALL ACROSS TOWN, AND SOME ACROSS THE COUNTRY. UM, AND ALL OF THEM WERE STILL SHOCKED BY THE MAGNITUDE OF THAT PROJECT, YOU KNOW, THE SIZE OF THOSE TILT WALLS, THE SPEED AT WHICH EVERYTHING IS MOVING, THE, THE, UM, LIKE WHEN YOU GO THERE AND YOU LOOK AT THOSE TILT WALLS, THERE'S PRECISION OPENINGS IN PLACES THAT YOU HAVE TO THINK THROUGH WHEN IT'S LAYING DOWN HORIZONTALLY ON THE GROUND. IT GETS PICKED UP AND SET IN A PLACE, AND SOMEHOW IT JUST MAGICALLY ALIGNS EXACTLY WHERE IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE. AND THERE'S THINGS THAT ARE GOING TO BE SO HIDDEN AND HARD TO GET TO LATER THAT HAVE BEEN THOUGHT THROUGH, YOU KNOW, AND THIS MAN, THESE GENTLEMEN RIGHT HERE KNOW EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING. SO IT JUST, THE, THE LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE THAT THEY CAN CARRY IN THEIR HEAD IS, IS REALLY IMPRESSIVE, AND I THINK THAT I'D BE SURPRISED IF THERE'S ANOTHER TEAM, YOU KNOW, IN, IN THE REGION THAT HAS SOMEBODY, HAS A TEAM LIKE THIS THAT CAN TRACK SO MUCH AT ONE TIME. IT'S, IT'S REALLY IMPRESSIVE, SO.
WE DID GET A TOUR THIS SUMMER, AND I, I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. I WAS LIKE, THAT IS CRAZY.
THEY'RE BUILDING THAT WALL ON THE GROUND, AND THEN THEY'RE GONNA PICK IT UP. IT WAS YEAH.
YEAH, IT'S REALLY IMPRESSIVE, SO.
YEAH, YEAH, AND UH, INDOOR BATTING CAGES, THAT'S EXCITING, SO.
YEAH. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, UH, NEXT UP WE HAVE A BOND CONSTRUCTION UPDATE. UM, ARE WE GONNA START, ARE WE GONNA GO PROJECT BY PROJECT HERE? SO WE HAVE OUR PRESENTATION READY FOR YOU. UM, SO TONIGHT WE'RE GONNA HEAR THE CONSTRUCTION UPDATES ON, ON OUR 4 ACTIVE, UH, CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, AND I'M, I'M JUST GONNA SAY THEM ALL, AND THEN MAYBE AGAIN AS THEY, AS IT'S THEIR TURN.
BUT WE HAVE SCOTT GERMAN WITH JOERIS. HE'S GONNA TALK ABOUT THE DRIPPING SPRINGS ELEMENTARY, UH, SCHOOL EXTERIOR PROJECT. IAN TENBRINK WITH SWINERTON, HE'S GONNA TALK ABOUT THE 18 PLUS PROJECT. AND THEN WE HAVE JOE CHARLTON, UH, WITH AMERICAN, AND HE'S GONNA TALK ABOUT, UH, DRIPPING SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL RENOVATION AND ALSO DRIFTWOOD SPRINGS, UH, HIGH SCHOOL. SO WE'RE GOING TO START WITH JOERIS AND SCOTT GERMAN.
UH, DR. MORRIS-KUENTZ, MADAM PRESIDENT, TRUSTEES, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY. UH, MY NAME IS SCOTT GERMAN. I'M
[00:55:01]
WITH THE JOERIS GENERAL CONTRACTORS. SO, UM, LET'S SEE, WHICH BUTTON IS IT? IS IT THIS ONE? OKAY, UM, SO THE, THE ELEMENTARY, WE'RE DOING A BASICALLY AN EXTERIOR RENOVATION, REPLACING ALL THE STONE, ALL THE WINDOWS, UM, JUST KIND OF GIVING AN EXTERIOR FACELIFT.SO, UH, CURRENT PROGRESS, SO WE STARTED IN THE SUMMER, WE GOT ALL THE DEMOLITION DONE IN THE SUMMER, SO THAT WAS THE MOST DISRUPTIVE WORK, SO GOT ALL THAT DONE.
WINDOW REPLACEMENT, UM, THIS PRESENTATION WAS PUT TOGETHER A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, SO WE'RE ACTUALLY A LITTLE OVER, UH, 70% COMPLETE RIGHT NOW. SO THERE'S 260 WINDOWS BEING REPLACED. WE'VE GOT 190 OF THEM COMPLETE RIGHT NOW.
UM, MASONRY IS ABOUT, ACTUALLY ABOUT 49% COMPLETE, AND THE METAL PANELS ARE ABOUT 30%. THAT'S KIND OF THE LAST STEP IN, IN THE PROGRESS AS IT GOES THROUGH.
UM, WE'RE CURRENTLY WORKING IN THE CENTER COURTYARD. SO WE FINISHED THE FRONT FACADE AREA.
WE'RE WORKING IN THE CENTER COURTYARD RIGHT NOW. WE'VE GOT ALL THOSE WINDOWS DONE. UH, THE MASON IS WORKING IN THERE RIGHT NOW. UM, THE BIG PUSH RIGHT NOW IS WE'RE GOING TO GET A COUPLE MORE WEEKS OF WORK, AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO GET OUT OF THERE AND GET IT CLEANED UP SO WE'RE OUT OF THE WAY FOR FALL FEST. UM, I KNOW THAT'S A REALLY IMPORTANT THING FOR THE CAMPUS, AND SO WE'RE, UH, WE'RE WORKING HARD TO GET OUT OF THE WAY THERE.
UM, THE WINDOW REPLACEMENT WE'RE TARGETING TO BE COMPLETE. UM, HONESTLY, THIS IS SAYING DECEMBER, UH, 19TH. I THINK WE'RE GOING TO BE A COUPLE WEEKS AHEAD OF THAT. WE SHOULD BE DONE BY THANKSGIVING, WEATHER PERMITTING. WE'LL SEE WHAT THE NEXT COUPLE WEEKS HOLD WITH RAIN, UM, BUT WE HAVE GOT A, WE'VE, WE'VE KIND OF SHIFTED OUR PLAN. WE, WE, UH, WE MET WITH THE CAMPUS, AND WE'RE, WE'RE BITING OFF SMALLER CHUNKS ON THE WINDOWS NOW. WE'RE DOING 6 CLASSROOMS AT A TIME, 1 WEEK AT A TIME. SO WE GO ON ON SATURDAY, PULL 6 WINDOWS.
BY THE END OF THE NEXT SATURDAY, THOSE WINDOWS ARE GONE. THOSE WINDOWS ARE REPLACED. WE'RE MOVING ON TO THE NEXT 6 CLASSROOMS. SO, SO THE CLASSROOMS, UM, WE, WE WENT THROUGH THAT WITH, UH, BOTH THE BOARD AND, UH, OR WITH TRUSTEE MCCLELLAN AND, UH, DR. MORRIS-KUENTZ AND THEN, UM, THE CAMPUS STAFF. SO WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN. I MEAN, WE UNDERSTAND THAT THIS CAMPUS HAS BEEN UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN SOME PHASE OR FORM FOR A COUPLE YEARS, AND THERE'S SOME FATIGUE THERE, SO, UM, BUT WE ARE TOUCHING THE ENTIRE EXTERIOR OF IT, AND WE'RE KIND OF ALL OVER THE PLACE. SO WE'RE DOING WHAT WE CAN TO WORK WITH THE CAMPUS THERE AND BE TO MINIMIZE DISRUPTION. SO MASONRY, WE'RE TALKING TO BE COMPLETE, UM, MID-JANUARY, AND THEN THE METAL PANELS WILL FOLLOW ABOUT A WEEK BEHIND THAT, SO.
MM, AND THAT WAS IT. IT WAS KIND OF QUICK HERE, SO I'M OPEN TO QUESTIONS.
ROB? DO WE WANT TO DO ALL THE PRESENTATIONS AND THEY DO IT AT THE END, OR WE WANT TO BREAK THIS OUT? HOW DO WE WANT TO DO THIS? UH, I WOULD... WHAT'S THAT? YEAH, I WOULD GO AHEAD AND ASK THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE, UH, NOW.
OKAY, SO WE'LL DO IT BY, BY THE, OKAY.
OKAY, COOL. SCOTT, GOOD TO SEE YOU, BUDDY. AND HERE I WILL TELL YOU, MAN, SINCE YOU GOT INVOLVED WITH THIS, IT'S GOT A LOT BETTER. ALL RIGHT, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE UGLY, UH, UH, YOU KNOW, SORRY, I WON'T SAY THAT.
LET'S, LET'S GET THE HEART OF THE MATTER, RIGHT? OBVIOUSLY, THERE'S SOME DISAPPOINTMENT IN THE PROJECT.
RIGHT, YOU AND I AND THE SUPERINTENDENT, WE HAD SOME CONVERSATIONS. I THINK YOU MADE SOME CHANGES THAT NEEDED TO BE MADE.
RIGHT? I LIKE THE PLAN GOING AHEAD, BUT HERE'S WHAT I NEED TO UNDERSTAND. I THINK MY COLLEAGUES NEED TO UNDERSTAND THIS TOO, RIGHT? WHEN WE APPROVE THIS PROJECT, WE GIVE IT A GREEN LIGHT. NONE OF US ASSUMED THAT WE, THE SCHOOL YEAR WOULD START THE WAY IT STARTED. SO, SCOTT, IF YOU COULD HELP ME UNDERSTAND IT A LITTLE BIT FROM A PROJECT MANAGER PERSPECTIVE, RIGHT? I MEAN, I WAS SHAKING THE TREE, TRYING TO GET TXDOT TO FINISH THE ROAD IN FRONT OF THE SCHOOL, MM-HMM.
RIGHT? AND THEN I TURNED AROUND, AND MY CAMPUS DIDN'T HAVE ANY WINDOWS. RIGHT? OBVIOUSLY, I'M OVER EMBELLISHING, RIGHT? YOU HAD MAYBE 50% DONE, MAYBE, RIGHT? BUT I LOOK AROUND, AND THAT WAS NOT AN EXPECTATION THAT ANYBODY UP HERE EVER HAD.
SO CAN YOU JUST SHED SOME LIGHT ON HOW WE GOT TO THAT POINT? I APPRECIATE THE WAY AHEAD.
YOU'VE, YOU'VE SAW COMING HERE, YOU'VE IDENTIFIED WHAT'S GOING TO GET SOLVED AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO DO IT. WE ARE WHERE WE ARE, BUT I NEED, WE, I THINK MY COLLEAGUES, I NEED TO UNDERSTAND HOW THAT HAPPENED, BECAUSE WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET THAT HAPPEN AGAIN. FAIR ENOUGH? YES, SIR.
YEAH. SO AGAIN, WE'RE REPLACING THE ENTIRE SKIN OF THAT BUILDING IN THE WAY THAT IT'S, I MEAN, HONESTLY, THERE'S A LOT OF JUST SPREAD OUT WINGS.
THERE IS A LOT OF FACADE THERE. SO AGAIN, WE DID ALL THE DEMOLITION DURING THE SUMMER BECAUSE THAT WAS GOING TO BE THE MOST DISRUPTIVE. WE HAD THE MOST HEAVY EQUIPMENT MOVING AROUND, UM, AND SO WE DID THAT DURING THE SUMMER, AND THEN AS WE FOLLOWED AROUND, WE HAD TO PUT NEW SHEATHING, NEW WATERPROOFING, NEW WINDOWS. SO WE HONESTLY PROBABLY BIT OFF A BIGGER CHUNK ON PULLING WINDOWS OUT AT ONE TIME THAN WE SHOULD HAVE. SO WE HAD A LOT OF CLASSROOMS AT ONE TIME THAT, THAT SPENT A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME THAN THEY SHOULD HAVE WITHOUT WINDOWS.
AND SO WE, WE WERE GOING AROUND, WE WERE GETTING THEM REPLACED AND PULLED OUT JUST IN A PROCESS THAT WE, THAT FROM A CONSTRUCTION SEQUENCE, IT MADE SENSE TO US, BUT WE HONESTLY, AND, YOU KNOW, WE HAD SOME, WE HAD SOME DIRECT CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THAT. SO YEAH.
WE, WHEN WE HAD THAT CONVERSATION, WE STOPPED WHAT WE WERE DOING, WE PUT TOGETHER A PLAN, WE TRIED TO FOCUS MORE ON MINIMIZING DISRUPTION AND MINIMIZING THE TIME OF CLASSROOMS WERE HAVE A TEMPORARY OR WITHOUT WINDOWS.
AND SO THAT'S WHERE WE'RE AT NOW. UM.
[01:00:02]
OKAY.SO, AND BUT THIS WAS ALWAYS GOING TO GO TILL JANUARY. UM, I MEAN, THEY'RE JUST, YOU KNOW, LIKE I SAID, WE DID AS MUCH AS WE COULD DURING THE SUMMER WITHOUT CAMPUS, BUT WE WERE ALWAYS GOING TO HAVE TO BE THERE DURING SCHOOL. AND SO, UM, AGAIN, WE, WE MIGHT HAVE BIT OFF A BIGGER CHUNK WITH JUST THE WINDOWS INITIALLY THAN WE, THAN WE SHOULD HAVE, UM, BUT, BUT KIND OF ONCE WE WERE INFORMED OF THAT, WE WERE REDIRECTED, AND WE'VE DONE WHAT WE COULD.
I GET IT, AND I, AND I APPRECIATE THAT. SO FROM A SEQUENCING PERSPECTIVE, AND AGAIN, BECAUSE WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THIS, RIGHT, BECAUSE OUR DAYS OF DOING PROJECTS IN THE SUMMER ARE NOT GOING TO END. WE'RE GOING TO DO RENOVATION PROJECTS, BUT WHAT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE DO AS A BOARD IS WE'RE SMART ABOUT APPROVING PROJECTS IN THE SEQUENCE THAT MAKES SENSE. SO THERE WAS NEVER AN OPPORTUNITY IN THE SUMMER TO REPLACE ALL THESE WINDOWS.
NO, NOT, NOT WITH THE 260 WINDOWS, NO, SIR.
SO WE DIDN'T, NUMBER ONE, WE DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THAT.
SECOND, WE GOT EXCITED, WE REMOVED ALL THE WINDOWS.
RIGHT? AM I, I DON'T WANT TO SAY, I DON'T WANT TO PUT WORDS IN YOUR MOUTH.
WE, WE GOT AHEAD OF THE SCHEDULE IN THE SENSE OF YEAH, I MEAN, WE REMOVED A LOT OF WINDOWS OVER THE SUMMER.
AND WE, WE GOT AHEAD, LIKE I SAID, WITH THE DEMOLITION, RIGHT.
AND THEN WE WERE, IT WAS EFFICIENT FOR US FROM A CONSTRUCTION STANDPOINT TO KIND OF GO AS FAST AS WE COULD, BUT THEN WHEN SCHOOL STARTED UP IN AUGUST, WE HAD A FAIR AMOUNT OF WIN- OF CLASSROOMS THAT DIDN'T HAVE WINDOWS.
WHICH HAS THE SECOND ORDER EFFECT IS THAT, RIGHT, FIRE LIFE SAFETY.
RIGHT, ALL THE INHABITED BUILDING, ALL THE ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH THAT. OKAY, UM, I THINK THE PLAN GOING AHEAD, I MEAN, 12-1 IS GOOD. WHEN DO YOU ANTICIPATE SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION? UH, JANUARY 21ST.
JANUARY, UH, JANUARY 21? YES, SIR.
JANUARY 21, OKAY. AND THEN FROM A BUDGETARY PERSPECTIVE, ARE WE ON TRACK? OH YEAH.
ANY CHANGE ORDERS THAT YOU ANTICIPATE COMING FORTH ON THIS PROJECT? NO, WE'RE, THE PROJECT'S FINANCIALLY VERY HEALTHY.
THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS, MADAM PRESIDENT. THANK YOU.
APPRECIATE IT. I APPRECIATE OUR CONVERSATION WE HAD A COUPLE WEEKS BACK.
ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. YEAH, WE APPRECIATE THE, THE STRATEGY PIVOT THERE YES, MA'AM.
AFTER THE CONVERSATIONS WERE HAD, SO.
ALL RIGHT, OUR NEXT PRESENTER WILL BE IAN TENBRINK WITH SWINERTON.
HE'LL TALK ABOUT THE 18 PLUS PROJECT. UH, GOOD EVENING, UH, PRESIDENT DELEON, DR.
MORRIS-KUENTZ, AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. MY NAME IS IAN TENBRINK, PROJECT EXECUTIVE FOR SWINERTON BUILDERS. HERE TODAY TO SPEAK ABOUT THE 18 PLUS, UH, TRANSITIONAL CAMPUS, UH, THE RENDERING SHOWN ON THE BOARD, AS, UH, WE'RE ALL FAMILIAR. UH, SO WORK TO DATE, WORK COMPLETED TO DATE, UH, OVER THE SUMMER, RIGHT, MOBILIZED JULY 1ST, UH, AS AN- ANTICIPATED AND PLANNED.
WE'VE GOT THE, UH, SITE GRADING COMPLETED, ALL THE UNDERGROUND PLUMBING COMPLETED, UH, THE FOUNDATION WAS POURED IN EARLY SEPTEMBER, AND AS YOU'LL SEE IN SOME PHOTOS LATER IN THE PRESENTATION, WE'VE, AND IF YOU HAVEN'T DRIVEN PAST THE CAMPUS, WE HAVE ALL THE WALLS STOOD, THE ROOF TRUSSES ON, AND THE SHEATHING, UM, COMPLETE. UH... YEAH, THERE'S THE, THE SHOTS OF ALL OF THE FRAMING AND THE SHEATHING BEING DONE. UM, SO, AS EVERYBODY KNOWS, THERE'S BEEN ONE PRIMARY ISSUE WITH THIS PROJECT SO FAR, AND THAT IS THE WEST TRAVIS COUNTY PUA REVIEW AND THE COMMENTS THAT THEY'VE HAD DURING THAT. UH, THOSE TWO ISSUES WERE THE WATER SUPPLY.
UH, THE INITIAL PLAN WAS TO BRING, UH, WATER TO THE BUILDING OFF OF, UH, SAWYER RANCH, OFF THE 20-INCH LINE IN, IN THE ROAD THERE. THE REQUEST FROM THE PUA WAS THAT WE TIE IT INTO THE 12-INCH LINE IN THE SYCAMORE SPRINGS PARKING LOT.
AS WE WENT THROUGH THAT REVISION AND WE SUBMITTED THE SECOND ROUND, THEY CAME BACK AND BROUGHT UP A QUESTION ABOUT THE DETENTION POND WHERE WE WERE TYING IN OUR STORMWATER.
COORDINATION BETWEEN THE DISTRICT, PBK, AND SWINERTON, WE WERE ABLE TO HAVE AN IN-PERSON MEETING WITH THE PUA, WHERE WE WERE ABLE TO DETACH THESE ISSUES FROM ONE ANOTHER AND BEGIN WORK ON THE WATER LINE IN THE SYCAMORE SPRINGS PARKING LOT, BRINGING THAT SERVICE TO THE, TO THE, TO THE BUILDING ITSELF, UM, WHILE WE EVALUATED THE DE- DETENTION POND SEPARATELY. THE UNFORTUNATE SITUATION WITH THAT IS BECAUSE THERE WAS A LACK OF CLARITY ON BOTH THE STORMWATER SYSTEM AS WELL AS THE WATER, THAT DELAYED THE POURING OF THE SLAB, THE STARTING OF FRAMING, AND THAT'S OBVIOUSLY GOING TO BE THE CRITICAL PATH THROUGH THE JOB. AND SO, UH, THE SCHEDULE HAS BEEN IMPACTED.
WE'RE CONTINUING TO EVALUATE OUR WAYS TO ACCELERATE, TO STACK TRADES, WORK OVER TIME, REVISE SEQUENCES OF CONSTRUCTION SO THAT WE CAN STILL ACHIEVE, UH, SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION BY THE END OF THE YEAR. UH, BUT AS WE CONTINUE TO EVALUATE THE STORMWATER POND, DETENTION POND SITUATION, UM, THAT EXACT END DATE REMAINS UNCLEAR, UM, BUT WE HAVE MADE MEANINGFUL PROGRESS THROUGH CONSTRUCTION. AGAIN, FRAMING HAS STARTED. WE'RE BEGINNING ROUGH IN NEXT WEEK, AND, UM, THAT IS THE STATUS OF THE JOB TO DATE. SO I WELCOME QUESTIONS.
I'LL GO FIRST, ROB. THANK YOU SO MUCH. WE APPRECIATE THE UPDATE. UM, SOME LOOSE LANGUAGE AROUND THE TIMING THAT WAS LOST. WE'VE BEEN GETTING GREAT UPDATES ON WHERE WE ARE. WE'RE AWARE OF THE, THE WATER CHALLENGES THAT WE HAD. CAN YOU MAYBE, WHEN YOU, WE, UH,
[01:05:01]
WHAT DID I WRITE DOWN? HOW MUCH TIME WAS LOST? WHEN YOU SAY TIME WAS LOST, AND NOW WE DON'T KNOW.WE EXPERIENCED A 3-WEEK DELAY.
FROM WHEN WE ANTICIPATED BEING ABLE TO POUR THE SLAB TO WHEN IT WAS ACTUALLY POURED.
UM, THAT IS NOT TO STATE THAT IT IS A 3-WEEK DELAY TO COMPLETION, BUT CONCURRENT, AGAIN, CON- CONCURRENT DELAYS HERE BETWEEN THE, THE STORM AND THE, THE WATER LINE ITSELF. UM, SO IS IT THE SHORT ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION IS 3 WEEK DELAY.
SO WE LOST 3 WEEKS ON SLAB, BUT THROUGH GOING VERTICAL, MECHANICALS, INSULATION, ALL THE THINGS, CAN WE MAKE SOME OF THAT UP WHILE OBVIOUSLY MAINTAINING QUALITY AND GETTING INSPECTIONS AND ALL THE THINGS? WE REMAIN POSITIVE THAT WE CAN DO THAT. YES, MA'AM.
UM, JUST A COUPLE OF THINGS. I DRIVE BY THERE LIKE, I DON'T KNOW, 03, 4 TIMES A DAY. I GET REAL EXCITED. I SEE THE SLAB POURED, I SEE THE EXTERIOR WALLS GOING UP, AND THEN I JUST DON'T SEE, I MEAN, IT SEEMS LIKE A LOT HAPPENS, AND THEN IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S LIKE A LARGE GAP. I KNOW WE'VE HAD A WATER ISSUE, AND I THINK WE'RE GETTING THAT RESOLVED.
UM, YOU KNOW, I'M, I'M NOT A CONSTRUCTION SPECIALIST HERE, AND I DON'T, YOU KNOW, WHEN I SEE IT GOING UP, I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY I'M NOT SEEING SOMETHING LIKE ACTIVELY GOING ON THROUGHOUT EACH DAY. IS THAT BECAUSE OF THE WATER PERMIT, OR HELP ME UNDERSTAND WHY? SO WE SHOULD HAVE CREWS THERE 6 DAYS A WEEK. THEIR START DATE OR THEIR START TIME IS USUALLY 6 A.M., UM, AND THEY'LL, SOME OF THOSE CREWS WILL WRAP UP BY 2:30 OR 3:30. SOME OF THOSE WILL EXTEND LATER INTO THE EVENING.
UM, BUT THERE SHOULD BE SOME FORM OF CREW WORKING PRETTY MUCH ANYTIME THERE'S DAYLIGHT HOURS, MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY.
UM, TODAY, FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAD THE FRAMERS AND THE UNDERGROUND, UH, DRY UTILITY CONTRACTOR WORKING.
UH, DUE TO THE NATURE OF THE WOOD FRAMING, WE ARE NOT GOING TO HAVE THE INTERIOR MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL, AND PLUMBING, UM, TRADES IN THERE UNTIL THAT STRUCTURE IS A LITTLE BIT MORE SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETE.
UM, BUT WE SHOULD ANTICIPATE THOSE FOLKS COMING IN NEXT WEEK, AND AT THAT TIME IT'LL LOOK LIKE A MUCH MORE ACTIVE JOB SITE.
DO WE HAVE A DEADLINE OF A COMPLETION FOR THIS BUILDING? WITH WE, WITH HAVING THAT 3-WEEK DELAY, MHM.
I WOULD, UH, AND NOT KNOWING THE RESOLUTION TO THE DETENTION POND ISSUE, OKAY.
I HESITATE TO GIVE A FIRM DATE AT THIS TIME.
UM, WE'RE REMAINING... WE REMAIN LOOKING AT ALL ACCELERATION OPTIONS AVAILABLE TO ACHIEVE THAT DECEMBER 29TH SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION DATE.
OKAY, I APPRECIATE WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO DO. THANK YOU. ROB.
I'M TRYING TO THINK HOW TO SAY ALL THIS. OKAY, I'VE BEEN IN THE INDUSTRY A LONG TIME.
90 DAYS FROM MOBILIZATION, WE SHOULD BE A LOT FURTHER ALONG THAN WE ARE. HARD STOP.
OKAY? I D- I DROPPED IN ON YOUR FOLKS OUT THERE ONE DAY. THEY TELL YOU ABOUT THAT? YES, SIR.
HOW MUCH WAS HAPPENING THAT DAY? NOTHING. LET'S BE HONEST, WE'RE IN THE TRUST TREE, OKAY? IT'S OKAY. IT'S A PUBLIC MEETING, YEAH, LET'S JUST GET IT ALL IN THE OPEN. OKAY, NOTHING.
THIS WHOLE THING WITH THE PUA, LET'S, WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PERMIT? FOR THE TAP PLAN. WAS IT YOU OR THE CIVIL ENGINEER? WHO WAS THAT? WAS THAT US? SCOTT, HELP ME OUT. HELP HIM OUT A LITTLE BIT. I DON'T WANT TO, I LIKE IAN. IAN'S, HE'S A NICE GUY. WE PLAY GOLF TOGETHER, BUT WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THAT? THE PERMIT IS SUBMITTED BY OUR ARCHITECT AND ENGINEER.
OKAY, GREAT. WHEN WAS THE TAP PLAN PERMIT SUBMITTED? PROBABLY SOMETIME AFTER MAY 18TH, WHEN YOU GUYS APPROVED THE PLANS.
OKAY, WHEN WERE CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS APPROVED? MAY 18TH.
WHEN WERE CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS, NO, THE FIRST ROUND OF CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS APPROVED? THE FIRST ROUND, WHEN WE APPROVED THIS THE FIRST TIME, BUT THEN WE WERE 100% OVER BUDGET, AND WE HAD TO STOP, AND I GOT BLAMED FOR STOPPING THE PROJECT, BY THE WAY. THIS IS WHY I'M VERY PERSONALLY ATTACHED TO THIS PROJECT, BECAUSE I'M THE ONE OVER HERE TRYING TO KEEP US ON THE RAILS, AND WE'RE NOT, AND I'M GETTING BLAMED FOR THIS THING NOT HAPPENING.
OKAY, SO THERE ARE SECOND, THIRD EFFECTS TO THIS. LET'S NOT, LET'S BE HONEST, OKAY? WHEN WAS THAT, WHEN WERE CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS APPROVED? I- I'M NOT SURE WHEN THE FIRST ROUND WAS APPROVED.
LAST YEAR. WHEN DO WE SUBMIT FOR A TAP PLAN? WHEN WE HAVE A SITE PLAN. WHY, SO WHY WOULD THAT NOT HAPPEN UNTIL MAY 18TH? THE SITE WAS CHANGED AS PART OF THE, THE VALUE ENGINEERING THAT WE DID. IT WAS, IT WAS REDUCED BY A GREAT DEAL.
DID WHERE WE DECIDED TO CONNECT THE WATER CHANGE AT ALL? DID, WAS THAT PART OF THE CHANGE, ONE OF THE CHANGES? THAT WAS NOT PART OF THE CHANGE AT THAT TIME.
SO WE SHOULD HAVE SUBMITTED FOR THIS TAP PLAN LONG BEFORE THIS DATE. SO THAT'S NOT YOUR RESPONSIBILITY, SO THAT'S NOT ON YOU. I'M NOT GOING TO PUT THAT ON YOU. WE SHOULD HAVE DONE THAT. WHO'S SUPPOSED, THE CIVIL ENGINEER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THAT?
[01:10:01]
YES.AND THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN. AND THE ARCHITECT. THAT IS UNACCEPTABLE. RIGHT? SO WE MOBILIZED. I, WE'VE NOW SPENT 3 WEEKS OF GENERAL CONDITIONS FOR NOTHING TO HAPPEN. IS THAT CORRECT OR NOT CORRECT, IAN? LET'S TALK IN BROAD STROKES HERE. WE DON'T GET, DON'T GET IN THE EACHES.
YEAH, THAT'S CORRECT. AND NOW WE'VE GOT A CHANGE ORDER FOR 71,000 MORE DOLLARS. SO HERE'S WHAT I WANT TO HEAR FROM SOMEBODY TONIGHT. I WANT TO HEAR THIS TONIGHT, OR I WANT TO HEAR IT MONDAY, OR MADAM SUPERINTENDENT, WHENEVER WE GET THIS INFORMATION. I WANT A SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION DATE, HARD DATE, IN A WEEK.
IF WE CANNOT GET THAT, WE NEED TO MAKE CHANGES TO THIS PROJECT. THE SECOND THING I WANT TO UNDERSTAND IS IF I NEED TO GET IN A MEETING WITH THE PUA, WHICH I DON'T THINK I NEED TO DO BECAUSE I THINK WE HAVE THE RIGHT PEOPLE WORKING ON THAT, THIS NEEDS TO BE RESOLVED. I DON'T KNOW WHAT A TAP OR A DETENTION POND HAS ANYTHING TO DO WITH GOING VERTICAL. IT SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO.
THAT'S AN IMPERVIOUS COVER THING, SO I HAVE NO IDEA WHY THAT'S DELAYING ANYTHING.
MAY I COMMENT ON THAT? PLEASE SPEAK TO THAT.
YES, SIR. BEING THAT THIS IS A WOOD FRAME STRUCTURE, THE HAYS COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT OFFICE WOULD NOT LET US BEGIN THE WOOD STRUCTURE UNTIL THE WATER LINE HAD A CLEAR PATH FORWARD.
OR WE HAVE FIRE HYDRANT NEXT TO IT, DON'T WE? YOU WANT ME TO MAKE A PHONE CALL? I CAN MAKE A PHONE CALL RIGHT NOW.
THERE WAS A, UH, MIXED RESPONSE FROM THE FIRE MARSHAL WHEN THAT WAS OUR PROPOSED.
I MEAN, WHAT ARE WE... COME ON, Y'ALL. WE'RE BETTER THAN THIS.
THAT'S EXCUSES, WITH ALL DUE RESPECT. THIS, THIS, THIS PROJECT, WE DID A GROUNDBREAKING. WHEN WAS OUR GROUNDBREAKING, MADAM PRESIDENT? A YEAR AGO? A YEAR AGO, AND HERE WE ARE IN SEPTEMBER 28TH, AND WE JUST FINALLY GOT STICKS UP, AND WE DON'T EVEN HAVE A WAY TO COMPLETE THE PROJECT.
GUYS, I'M FRUSTRATED. THIS BOARD IS FRUSTRATED. SHOULD YOU SHAKE YOUR HEAD IF I'M SPEAKING FOR YOU? OKAY, WE'RE FRUSTRATED. WE NEED THIS RESOLVED. AND YOU'RE RIGHT, I AGREE WITH THE BOND ADVISORY COMMITTEE. WE HAVE A, WE HAVE A CRACK TEAM. YOU GUYS ARE, YOU GUYS HAVE MY CONFIDENCE.
YOU DO. THIS THE, THIS GROUP OF, THIS POPULATION OF STUDENTS HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS PROJECT FOR WAY TOO LONG. AND THEY WENT UP TO THIS BOARD AND THEY SAID, YOU GUYS NEED TO DELIVER THIS PROJECT.
WHAT'S THIS? NOVEMBER 14TH, WE DID A GROUNDBREAKING OF 2025. YOU KNOW HOW EMBARRASSING THAT IS FOR THIS BODY? AND I'M SORRY, THAT'S, IT'S NOT ALL ON YOU. THAT'S ON A LOT OF DIFFERENT SCENARIOS. I NEED YOU TO FIX IT.
I NEED YOU TO FIX IT, SCOTT. I NEED YOU TO FIX IT. AND IF I NEED TO MAKE A CALL, I'M SAY I ON BEHALF OF THIS BOARD TO GET SOMETHING GOING FOR US, I WILL.
BUT WHERE WE ARE ON SEPTEMBER 28TH, WITH HOW MUCH MONEY WE'VE SPENT, AND NOW WE GOT TO SPEND MORE ABOVE THE BUDGET, WE'LL GET TO THAT HERE IN A MINUTE, IT I VIEW AS UNACCEPTABLE, AND I NEED YOUR HELP.
I'M SORRY YOU HAD TO STAND UP THERE AND TAKE THE BULLETS. I APOLOGIZE, BUT THAT'S PART OF YOUR JOB. OKAY, WITH THAT, MADAM PRESIDENT, I YIELD.
I, I THINK WE'RE ALL IN AGREEMENT THAT THE, THAT THE DATE THAT WE SET WHEN WE APPROVED THOSE CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS IS STILL THE DATE THAT'S IN OUR MINDS RIGHT NOW, AND SO THAT I THINK IS REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT MOVING FORWARD THAT YOU CAN MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
WE HAVE A 4-HOUR SESSION TOMORROW TO EVALUATE ALL SCHEDULE OPERATIONS TO, TO ACHIEVE THAT.
CAN I ASK, I DON'T KNOW WHO NEEDS TO BE RESPONSIBLE, BUT HOLLY, I THINK AT THIS POINT, I THINK GETTING AN UPDATE TO THE BOARD ONCE A WEEK, ONCE EVERY 10 DAYS, BECAUSE I THINK WHAT HAPPENS IS TIME GOES BY, THEN WE ASK QUESTIONS, AND WE'RE MAYBE DRIVING BY. IF WE COULD GET A REGULAR UPDATE EVERY 7 TO 10 DAYS, THAT WOULD BE SUPER.
THAT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL. I AGREE.
ABSOLUTELY. WE WOULD LOVE TO DO THAT.
ALL RIGHT, OUR LAST PRESENTER IS JOE CHARLTON.
HE'S GOING TO GO OVER DRIPPING SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL AND THEN ALSO DRIFTWOOD SPRINGS. HE'S WITH AMERICAN.
GOOD EVENING. HOW ARE Y'ALL DOING? JOE CHARLTON WITH AMERICAN CONSTRUCTORS. UM, JUST PRIVILEGED TO BE HERE AND, UH, HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO BRIEF YOU A LITTLE BIT ON WHERE WE ARE WITH OUR PROJECTS. WE'LL START OFF WITH DRIPPING SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL RENOVATION. LET'S SEE HERE. ALL RIGHT. UM, ITEMS THAT WE'VE COMPLETED. WE DID THE COMPLETE PORTABLE SETUP, UH, TIED IN ALL THE UTILITIES AND SPECIAL SYSTEMS, GOT EVERYTHING SET UP OVER THE SUMMER. UM, WE REPLACED ALL THE SPLIT SYSTEM, HVAC UNITS IN THE 3, UH, MAIN CLASSROOM WINGS, AS WELL AS THE SCIENCE WINGS.
UM, AND THEN WE STARTED, WE COMPLETED ALL THE DEMO FOR THE BLUE AREA THAT'S, UH, GONNA BE COMPLETED IN THE FALL OF 2026, THAT WE'RE CURRENTLY WORKING IN RIGHT NOW, THAT'S ADJACENT TO ADMIN. UM, LET'S SEE, WHAT ELSE? UH, ROOFING. UM, WE REPLACED ROOFING AT THE FIELD HOUSE, PERFORMING ARTS, FINE ARTS, CAFETERIA, AND KITCHEN, AND THEY'RE CURRENTLY WORKING ON THE GYM, AND HOPEFULLY THEY'RE GOING TO QUIT BUGGING THE COACH.
[01:15:02]
UM, WE'RE, WE'RE GOING TO SHIFT OUR WORK HOURS A LITTLE BIT, AND OUR GUYS ARE GOING THROUGH AND CLEANING UP EVERY MORNING BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING'S TIDY AND NICE AND NEAT FOR THEM. UM, UPCOMING WORK, UH, WE SHOULD FINISH THE FALL 2026 BY FIRST PART OF DECEMBER IS WHAT WE'RE SHOOTING FOR. UM, AND WE THINK WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO BEAT THAT JUST A LITTLE BIT, BUT Y'ALL PROBABLY WON'T WANT TO MOVE, UH, PRIOR TO SCHOOL LETTING OUT, UH, FOR THE CHRISTMAS BREAK, AND THAT'S PERFECTLY FINE.UM, THE CENTER SECTION WE WILL START IN THE SPRING, AND, WELL, SPRING BEING JANUARY WHEN Y'ALL COME BACK. YES, WINTER. THERE YOU GO. OKAY, WINTER. UM, AND THEN WE WILL TURN THAT ONE OVER, UH, RIGHT ABOUT, UH, WELL, NOT BEFORE THE SUMMER, BUT THEN WE'LL START, UH, THE BIG PUSH AND AND THE AREA THAT THAT HAS ME ON ALERT RIGHT NOW IS ALL OF THE BLUE AREA THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING IN THE SUMMER OF 2027. UH, WE HAVE A HUGE AMOUNT OF WORK. WE'RE GOING TO TAKE OUT THE LIBRARY. UM, WE'VE GOT A MAIN SEWER LINE THAT RUNS DOWN THAT HALLWAY BETWEEN THE GYM, UM, THAT WE HAVE TO REPLACE, AND THEN WE'RE DOING THE, UH, ADDITION OF THE ENTRY TO THE GYM, AS WELL AS PUTTING, PUTTING A NEW RESTROOM IN ADJACENT TO THE CAFETERIA.
SO THAT'S A, THAT'S A TON OF WORK THAT WE'VE GOT COMING UP IN 2027, AND WE'RE GOING TO BE GEARED UP AND PLANNED OUT AND READY, READY TO KNOCK THAT OUT. FOLLOWING THAT UP WILL BE THE GREEN AREA IN THE FALL OF 2027. UM, THAT ONE SHOULD GO LIKE CLOCKWORK, NOT WORRIED THERE. AND THEN SPRING, SUMMER OF 2028 WILL BE THE FIELD HOUSE AND THE REST OF THE ADMIN. AND I'LL PAUSE ON THAT, AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT WE'RE DOING OVER THERE, EVERYTHING SEEMS TO BE GOING PRETTY WELL.
UM, ARE WE ON SCHEDULE OR LITTLE AHEAD? YES, MA'AM.
WE'RE LITTLE, I, I WOULD HESITANTLY SAY WE'RE SLIGHTLY AHEAD OF SCHEDULE.
I JUST DON'T WANT TO HEAR WE'RE BEHIND.
UH, SO WHEN WE TOURED THIS SUMMER, THE, SO THE FALL 2026, THAT FRONT PART, THAT'S THOSE CLASSES RIGHT NOW ARE IN THE PORTABLES. AM I SAYING THAT RIGHT? OKAY.
AND SO THEN WHEN WE TURN, YOU'RE SAYING WE'RE GOING TO BE EARLY, BUT WE'RE NOT GOING TO WANT TO TURN THOSE OVER BECAUSE THAT'S GOING TO BE A WHOLE FLIP FLOP.
AND SO WE ARE ON TIME THERE, AND THEN THAT WILL BE THE SPRING TO THAT GREEN, THE LIGHT GREEN.
THEY'RE ALL GOING TO MOVE OUT TO THE PORTABLES.
AND YOU'RE GOING TO SHUT DOWN THEIR WINGS.
AND AND THAT'S THE SAME FOR THE DARK GREEN AND THEN THE... IS THAT IT? JUST THE DARK GREEN.
THAT WHOLE PROCESS IS GOING TO HAPPEN OVER.
OKAY, SO IT SEEMS LIKE WE'LL BE, IT IT'LL JUST BE LIKE A WELL-OILED MACHINE BY THEN, SO.
OKAY, GOOD. UM, I WILL SAY THAT THE FEEDBACK I'VE GOTTEN ON THE PORTABLES IS THOSE KIDS ARE NOT GOING TO WANT TO MOVE OUT OF THEM, UH, BECAUSE THEY HAVE SAID THAT THESE DON'T EVEN FEEL LIKE PORTABLES, AND THEY LOVE THEM, SO.
YOU CAN THANK, YOU CAN THANK THE GUY OVER THERE IN THE CORNER FOR THAT ONE.
YEAH, THEY HE DID A GREAT JOB.
UH, THEY'RE REALLY, REALLY NICE. SO Y'ALL DID WELL WITH THOSE, AND I HAVEN'T HEARD, I KNOW SOMETIMES IN THE COMMUNITY WE GET A LOT OF FEEDBACK ABOUT PORTABLES AND HOW THEY'RE UNSAFE AND HOW, UM, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T WANT THEIR KIDS IN THERE, BUT I DON'T THINK THAT THAT'S THE SENTIMENT AT ALL IN THIS PROJECT, SO, UM, WE APPRECIATE THAT.
ROB? JOE, JUST ONE QUESTION FOR YOU. DON'T WORRY, YOU DON'T NEED A BULLETPROOF VEST, MAN. YOU, I'M VERY IMPRESSED WITH THIS PROJECT AND HOW IT'S MOVING. UH, SO WE HAD THE BENEFIT OF THE SUMMER OF 2026 TO DEMO, UH, THE PURPLE, RIGHT? YES, SIR.
WE'RE GOING TO MOVE OVER TO THE GREEN, UH, CORRECT? WE'RE GOING TO MOVE OVER TO THE GREEN. WE'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE THE BENEFIT OF THE SUMMER FOR DEMO. SO JUST FROM A SEQUENCING PERSPECTIVE, HOW ARE WE GOING TO TRY TO MITIGATE SOME OF THE ACADEMIC ENGAGEMENT THERE WITH THE, WITH THE DEMO? ONE OF THE THINGS, BY COMPLETING THAT JUST A LITTLE BIT EARLY, IT'S GOING TO ALLOW US TO DO THE DEMO BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO FLIP THOSE CLASSES. AND SO IF WE CAN, AND WE'LL WORK WITH THE STAFF OVER THERE YEP.
AND MAKE SURE IT'S, IT'S NOT, IT'S AS SEAMLESS AS WE POSSIBLY CAN, BUT HOPEFULLY WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF TIME DURING THAT, UH, CHRISTMAS BREAK, THAT WINTER BREAK GOT IT.
WHERE WE CAN GET IN THERE AND JUST REALLY KNOCK IT OUT.
THAT'S WELL, THAT'S BRILLIANT.
I LOVE THAT. OKAY, SO YOU'RE GOING TO TRY TO EXPEDITE DEMOLITION DURING, UH, CHRISTMAS BREAK IN THAT TIME FRAME IN THERE.
AND, UH, AND TRY TO MITIGATE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN. THAT'S BRILLIANT.
WE, WE PROBABLY WON'T BE ABLE TO GET IT ALL, BUT HOPEFULLY WE'LL GET A BIG PORTION OF THE THAT'S FAIR.
OF THE, OF THE REALLY LOUD WORK DONE.
[01:20:01]
MADAM, MA- UH, MADAM SUPERINTENDENT, IF IT'S POSSIBLE, UH, I JUST WOULD LOVE TO TAKE A LOOK AT THIS RIGHT, RIGHT AS YOU BECOMING SUBSTANTIALLY, SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETE FOR YES, SIR.THIS FIRST SECTION, JUST SO THE BOARD CAN GET A LOOK AT THAT. UH, WE'VE SEEN THAT, WE'VE SEEN THE, THE RENDERINGS, AND THEY LOOK GREAT, UH, BUT ALSO, UM, YOU KNOW, WE JUST LOVE TO GET IN THERE A LITTLE BIT AND SEE WHAT EVERYTHING ELSE IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE, JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALL GOOD WITH EVERYTHING, RIGHT? IT'S BECAUSE THESE PHASES ARE GOING TO BE CUMULATIVE, RIGHT? AND SO ABSOLUTELY.
IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE'RE LIKE, EH, MAYBE LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT, THAT'S A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO DO THAT. IS THAT FAIR? YES, SIR.
OKAY, I'LL, I'LL HAVE THE DISTRICT COORDINATE THAT, WHATEVER'S CONVENIENT FOR, FOR EVERYBODY TO HOPEFULLY GET TOGETHER AND JUST WALK THROUGH THAT AND TAKE A LOOK AT THAT.
UM, BUT AS BEN, AS SHANNON POINTED OUT AS WELL, I'VE, I'VE TALKED TO SOME TEACHERS, AND THEY'RE LIKE, THERE'S A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT GOING ON? UH, IT'S, IT'S BEEN IT'S GREAT.
FROM AN ACTIVE CONSTRUCTION SITE WITH STUDENTS EVERYWHERE, THE SITE LOGISTICS, THI- THIS HAS BEEN HIT, THIS IS A, THIS IS AN A, IN MY OPINION.
SO I APPRECIATE THAT, AND THAT'S ACROSS THE BOARD FOR EVERYBODY ON THE TEAM. SO WELL DONE. THANK YOU.
IT- ONE OTHER THING TO ADD, UM, I'M ASSUMING WE'RE WORKING WELL WITH THE MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT TO HELP THESE TEACHERS PACK UP.
MAY- I MEAN, I LIVE THIS PROJECT AT ANOTHER BUILDING, AND IT JUST, IT'S GREAT, JUST THE MORE PEOPLE WE HAVE, MORE HANDS ON DECK TO HELP THEM. I- I JUST THINK IT TAKES A LOT OF STRESS OFF THE TEACHER, SO ESPECIALLY IF, YOU KNOW, LIKE ONE WING'S GOT TO BE OUT BEFORE THE HOLIDAYS, THEY'VE JUST FINISHED GIVING EXAMS AND, YOU KNOW, PACKING UP. SO I JUST MAKING SURE WE HAVE A GOOD PLAN FOR THAT, FOR SUPPORT OF OUR TEACHERS.
YES, MA'AM. THE ONLY THING I WOULD ADD TO THAT IS WE HAVE PROFESSIONAL MOVERS DOING THOSE MOVES BACK AND FORTH SO OUR STAFFS CAN DO WHAT THEY NEED TO DO.
OKAY, AND THESE ARE JUST FOR YOUR NOTES SO THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO SIT THERE AND WRITE DOWN EVERYTHING THAT I JUST GOT THROUGH TELLING YOU. SO I WON'T BORE YOU BY TELLING YOU THAT AGAIN. ALL RIGHT, HIGH SCHOOL, UM, HIGH SCHOOL NUMBER TWO, AS IT'S AFFECTIONATELY KNOWN BY OUR FOLKS. UM, WE HAVE COMPLETED MASS GRADING AND EARTHWORK. WE'VE COMPLETED THE MAIN WATER LINE, SEWER LINE, AND STORMWATER. UH, WE'VE COMPLETED ALL OF THE GROUND SOURCE HEAT PUMP WELLS, DRILLED AND HEADERED. AND SO IF YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THAT PROCESS, WE BASICALLY DRILL THEM ALL, THEY LEAVE A LOOP STICKING UP OUT OF THE GROUND, AND THEN OUR GUYS COME BACK AND THEY BASICALLY CONNECT ALL THOSE LOOPS TOGETHER, AND THEY BRING THOSE LINES INTO THE BUILDING. AND SO THE MAJORITY OF THOSE LINES ARE ALREADY IN THE BUILDING AT THIS POINT. UM, EXTERIOR CONCRETE TILT WALL FOR THE MAIN ACADEMIC BUILDING AND ATHLETIC BUILDING IS COMPLETE, AND WE ARE ALMOST COMPLETE WITH THE PERFORMING ARTS AREA, AND THOSE ARE SOME HUGE PANELS OVER THERE. UH, WE HAVE COMPLETED THE DRY-IN FOR THE KITCHEN, CAFETERIA, ADMINISTRATION, AND THE FIRST SECTION OF THE CLASSROOM BUILDING.
UM, SO WE ARE WELL ON OUR WAY TO GETTING IT DRIED IN. WE'VE ACTUALLY GOT A CURTAIN WALL AND STOREFRONT WINDOWS, UM, GOING IN IN THE MAIN ADMIN AREA, UH, RIGHT NOW, SO WE'RE, WE'RE WELL ON OUR WAY TO GETTING DRIED IN. UM, WE'VE ACTUALLY GOT, UH, KITCHEN, UH, HOODS INSTALLED ALREADY, UH, IN THE KITCHEN AREA, SO WE'RE, WE'RE MOVING VERY, VERY, VERY QUICKLY. UM, OVERHEAD MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL, AND PLUMBING IS WELL ON ITS WAY, IF NOT COMPLETE, IN THE FIRST ADMINISTRATION AREA, WHEN YOU WALK THROUGH THAT.
UM, UPCOMING WORK, UH, WE'RE COMPLETING CONCRETE PAVING IN THE FRONT OF THE BUILDING, UH, RIGHT ALONG DARDEN HILL ROAD. UH, WE GOT A LOT OF DUST THAT'S BLOWING UP. WE JUST BEAT THE DIRT TO DEATH, UM, OVER THERE, SO WE JUST GOT A LOT OF, IT'S ALMOST AS FINE, IF YOU WALK AROUND OUT THERE, IT'S LIKE BABY POWDER ALMOST.
UM, SO WE'RE TRYING TO GET THAT PAVING IN AS SOON AS WE CAN TO KEEP THAT DUST DOWN FOR OUR NEIGHBORS, UM, BECAUSE THAT, THAT REALLY IMPACTS THEM, AND WE DON'T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN. UM, POND STRUCTURES WILL BE GOING IN, UH, SHORTLY. WE'RE WORKING ON THE, UH, THE ATHLETICS OUTBUILDINGS, UM, AND THEN EXTRA, UH, WINDOWS AND CURTAIN WALL, ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THAT, AND THEN JUST A CONTINUATION OF ALL OF OUR MEP OVERHEAD WILL BE SETTING UNITS UP ON THE MEZZANINE, POURING THE SECOND FLOOR, POURING THE MEZZANINE HERE IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF MONTHS.
SO WORKING, MOVING VERY, VERY FAST, VERY, VERY WELL. WE HAVE, I THINK WE HAD 50 ELECTRICIANS ON SITE AS OF THIS MORNING. SO JUST ONE TRADE, 50, 50 WORKERS.
SO GOT A LOT OF FOLKS OUT THERE. UM, SOME SOMETHING CRITICAL COMING UP, UH, THAT WE NEED TO KEEP AN EYE ON, AND WE NEED TO MAKE SURE IT KEEPS MOVING.
UH, WE'VE GOT OUR WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT THAT WE STILL HAVE YET TO, TO KIND OF GET THAT THING MOVING.
CRITICAL DATES, WE'VE GOT AN INITIAL PERMIT, AND I BELIEVE WE'VE GOT THAT INITIAL PERMIT ALREADY, SO WE GOT THAT A LITTLE BIT EARLY.
WE WERE SUPPOSED TO GET IT IN EARLY NOVEMBER. WE'VE
[01:25:01]
ALREADY GOT THAT IN PLACE.UH, OUR DESIGNERS, AND WHEN I SAY OURS, I MEAN OUR, THEY'RE NOT OURS, BUT THEY'RE OURS. UM, OUR DESIGNERS SHOULD COMPLETE THE DESIGN BY JANUARY OF THIS YEAR. WE SHOULD BE BRINGING A GMP FOR THAT WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT BACK TO THE BOARD IN MARCH OF 2027, AND THEN WE WILL COMPLETE THAT WORK BY MAY OF 2028. SO THAT'S ABOUT 2 MONTHS BEFORE WE COMPLETE THE HIGH SCHOOL BUILDING, AND SO IT'S, IT'S RIGHT IN LINE, RIGHT ON SCHEDULE. WE JUST NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HIT THOSE DATES. THAT IS GOING TO BE CRITICAL TO COMPLETE THAT PLANT ON TIME. SO, UM, BUDGET, WE'RE, WE'RE BOTH THOSE PROJECTS ARE, ARE, WE'RE UNDER BUDGET ON BOTH. UH, WE'RE IN VERY, VERY GOOD SHAPE. UH, HAD SOME WEATHER DELAYS REALLY EARLY ON WHEN WE WERE TRYING TO GET OUT OF THE GROUND. WE HAD A MOAT AROUND OUR, UH, OUR ATHLETIC FIELD, UH, FOOTBALL FIELD FOR A WHILE, BUT SINCE THEN WE HAVE HAD NO RAIN, SO WE CAUGHT UP. ANY QUESTIONS I CAN ANSWER FOR Y'ALL ON THAT? I, UM, DROVE BY THERE YESTERDAY, UH, ON THE WAY TO AN EVENT. IT IS JUST SPECTACULAR. I MEAN, IT'S BEEN A COUPLE OF WEEKS SINCE I'VE DRIVEN BY THERE, AND IT, IT'S JUST IMPRESSIVE HOW, HOW MUCH YOU CAN SEE FROM THE ROAD AND HOW MUCH HAS GONE IN, AND YOU JUST KEEP DRIVING DOWN THAT ROAD. OH, THAT'S NEW.
OH, THAT'S NEW. OH, I MEAN, IT IS JUST SO IMPRESSIVE AND JUST LOOKS LIKE IT'S GOING TO BE A FABULOUS BUILDING, AND I APPRECIATE THE WORK Y'ALL ARE DOING ON IT, BUT YOU JUST, LESS THAN 24 HOURS AGO, DROVE BY IT, AND IT WAS IMPRESSIVE.
UH, IS THIS THE, IS THIS THE BIGGEST HIGH SCHOOL YOU BUILT? IT'S NOT YOUR QUESTION.
BECAUSE THIS ONE'S OVER 500,000 SQUARE FEET.
SO WE, WE GOT A CHANCE TO WALK THIS, WAS IT... UH, SUMMER? SUMMER, WE SAW THE TILT WALLS GOING UP, AND WE SAW THE WORK, AND WE SAW THE AMOUNT OF ACTIVITY YOU HAD THERE, WHICH WAS NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT YOU JUST TALKED ABOUT, 50 ELECTRICIANS ON SITE, LOVE THAT. UH, HEY, YOU'RE, YOU'RE TRUCKING. I'VE HEARD GREAT THINGS ABOUT THE COMMUNITY. THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY LOOK LEFT COMING ON DARDEN HILL GOING TOWARDS STORY RANCH, AND THEY'RE LIKE, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? RIGHT? SO THAT'S ANECDOTAL. LET'S, LET'S GET IN SOME DEETS REAL QUICK.
UM, ALL RIGHT, SO IT LOOKS LIKE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT IS A CRITICAL PATH ITEM FOR COMPLETING ON TIME.
BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO SAY, JOE, I GAVE YOU A HARD TIME ABOUT 30 MONTHS. THERE'S NO REASON WHY YOU CAN'T DO THAT NOW, BUDDY. I'M JUST SAYING IT'S GOING TO BE S- WE'LL SHAKE HANDS ON THAT IN THE VERY, VERY END, RIGHT? WE, WE WILL.
OKAY. MAY- MAYBE WE CAN WORK OUT SOME CONTRACTUAL STUFF TO MAKE IT BENEFICIAL FOR EVERYBODY, RIGHT? UH, SO, BUT THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT'S GOING TO BE, GOING TO BE THAT. OKAY. UM, I THINK, MADAM PRESIDENT, I MEAN, MADAM SUPERINTENDENT, YOU GAVE US AN UPDATE ON THAT PROCESS, SO WE'RE, WE'RE TRACKING THAT VERY CLOSELY.
WE'RE GETTING UPDATES FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT ON THAT PROCESS. IT'S LOOKING POSITIVE.
SO THAT SHOULD BE GOOD. IS THERE ANY OTHER OUTSIDE OF THAT? YOU TALKED ABOUT THE WHAT WAS THE FIRST PERMIT YOU TALKED ABOUT, JOE, THAT YOU HAVE? OBVIOUSLY, NOW I HAVE ANXIETY ABOUT PERMITS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE CAN'T GET A TAP PLAN, RIGHT? SO.
THAT, THAT ONE IS THE, HELP ME OUT, JAMES, THE TLAP.
BUT EVERYTHING ELSE FROM THE CITY WITH OUR ARRANGEMENT THAT WE'VE SET UP WITH THEM, EVERYTHING IN THERE IS GOOD TO GO? LOOKING AT SCOTT BERRY, OKAY? YEP.
ALL RIGHT, SO OUTSIDE OF THE, OUTSIDE OF THAT, WE'RE PRAYING FOR GOOD WEATHER.
UH, WE, WE NEED SOME RAIN, SO WE'RE GONNA PRAY FOR SOME RAIN TOO.
YOU MAY IT'LL KNOCK THE DUST DOWN.
LUCKILY, YOU'RE GETTING DRIED IN, SO THAT'S NOT GONNA SOLVE SOME PROBLEMS IN THE ACADEMIC AREA.
I CAN KEEP WORKING THERE. UH, HEY, I- IMPRESSED WITH YOUR TEAM.
IMPRESSED WITH THAT. I- I'D LOVE TO SEE THIS AGAIN HERE SOON IN THE, IN THE SHORT TERM.
MAYBE WE CAN, WE CAN COMBINE THE GO SEE IN HIGH SCHOOL ONE AND THEN GO SEE HIGH SCHOOL TWO OR DRIPPING SPRINGS AND DRIFTWOOD SPRINGS, MAYBE COMBINE THOSE VISITS.
UH, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY WE CARE, WE WANT TO DELIVER AN OUTSTANDING PRODUCT FOR OUR COMMUNITY, SO.
THAT WAS GOING TO BE MY QUESTION, IS WHAT'S A GOOD TIME FOR US TO GO BACK? YEAH, AND SO I'LL DEFER TO YOU, MADAM PRESIDENT, ON THAT, SO.
WE WERE PLANNING ON THIS ONE SOONER RATHER THAN LATER, SO YOU, WE MAY SPLIT THEM UP.
YEAH, WHATEVER, WHATEVER WORKS FOR YOU, I'LL BE THERE, UH, BUT AGAIN, WE'RE, UH, DON'T, DON'T ANTICIPATE OUR PRESENCE OF WANTING TO OVERDO IT, BUT WE GET ASKED EVERY DAY ABOUT THIS PROJECT.
EVERY DAY, UH, AND SO WE JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE DELIVERING ANSWERS TO OUR COMMUNITY ON THIS.
BUT OVERALL, JOE, VERY IMPRESSED WITH YOUR TEAM AND OBVIOUSLY OUR TEAM. THINGS ARE MOVING, THINGS ARE GOING, AND WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF HURDLES IN OUR WAY. LOVE IT.
ONE THING I APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING UP IS THE DUST. I ACTUALLY HAD AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PARENT ASK ABOUT THAT, UM, WH- YOU KNOW,
[01:30:04]
WHAT ARE THEY DOING TO MITIGATE THE, THE DUST, AND ARE THESE KIDS OUT THERE BREATHING IN DUST AND ALL THE THINGS? AND I WAS LIKE, I DON'T KNOW, YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE THAT'S, YOU KNOW, MENTIONED THAT. SO, UM, CAN YOU SHARE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT, LIKE, THE TIMELINE ON THAT? YOU, YOU'RE SAYING WE'RE TRYING TO GET THAT DONE QUICKLY SO THAT IT'S...WE'RE LOOKING AT ABOUT, I WOULD SAY, A GOOD SOLID COUPLE OF MONTHS BEFORE WE HAVE THAT, THAT WHOLE FRONT AREA PAVED.
ALONG DARDEN HILL ROAD, BUT WE'RE, WE'RE GOING TO STAY STEADY ON IT. UH, WE'VE GOT A WHOLE SEPARATE CONCRETE SITE CREW. THAT'S ALL THEY'RE DOING IS CONCRETE PAVING.
OKAY. OKAY. YEAH, LIKE I SAID, I DON'T THINK IT'S A BIG, HUGE CONCERN BECAUSE IT WAS BROUGHT UP, BUT THEN WHEN YOU SAID IT, UH, IT KIND OF JOGGED MY MEMORY THAT SOMEONE DID ASK ABOUT IT. SO, UM, THANK YOU.
THAT'S REALLY HELPFUL, AND ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS? GO AHEAD, OLIVIA.
I DO, BUT IT'S A DISTRICT QUESTION,
[9. CONSENT AGENDA]
BUT IT'S ON THE TOPIC.SO THE BOARDS CHANGED A LOT, BUT ABOUT 4 YEARS AGO, I WAS ON A PANEL FOR INTERVIEWING OUR ARCHITECTS, AND WE HAD 24 SUBMIT REQUESTS FOR QUALIFICATIONS. THIS IS GOING TO COME BACK TO YOU, SCOTT. AND FROM 24, WE NARROWED IT DOWN TO LIKE 9 OR 11, DID INTERVIEWS, AND THEN ULTIMATELY BROUGHT 4 TO THE BOARD. HOW OFTEN DO WE DO THAT? AND WHERE I'M GOING IS, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS BEFORE, THE ECONOMY OF SCALE. WE HAVE INCREDIBLE CONTRACTORS THAT WE WORK WITH AND INCREDIBLE ARCHITECTS THAT WE WORK WITH. EVERYONE HAD UNIQUE SKILL SETS ON HAVE YOU BUILT A 500,000 SQUARE FOOT BUILDING BEFORE.
I'M CURIOUS, THE NEXT TIME WE DO A SMALLER SCALE PROJECT, I'VE TALKED ABOUT THAT BEFORE, LIKE THE MOBILITY OF A SMALL SCALE PROJECT. OUR SMALLEST PROJECT SHOULD NOT BE WHERE WE'RE HAVING THE DELAYS AND, AND LARGE CHANGE ORDERS, ET CETERA. SO MY QUESTION FOR YOU IS, WHEN DO WE DO THAT AGAIN? WE DID THAT, I THINK, 4 YEARS AGO.
SCOTT AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT IT RECENTLY, THAT AT SOME POINT COMING UP, WE'LL NEED TO PLAN FOR THAT.
[9.K. Approval of Dripping Springs Education Foundation Memorandum of Understanding and Funding Agreement]
ENGINEERS, AND SO WE'VE ADDED KIND OF A WHOLE DIFFERENT TEAM THAT IS NOW A TEAM THAT WE CAN PULL, AND THAT'S ANOTHER TEAM THAT WE KNOW WE'LL HAVE TO REFRESH SOON. SO WE'VE BEEN HAVING THAT CONVERSATION OF GOING THROUGH THAT WHOLE RFP PROCESS AGAIN.SO GLAD TO HEAR THAT. AND I'LL SAY FOR OUR COMMUNITY, THERE'S AN ENTIRE, UM, PAGE ON OUR WEBSITE DEDICATED TO DRIFTWOOD SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL, AND YOU CAN SEE THE PROGRESS THERE.
ALL RIGHT, UH, MOVING ON TO OUR CONSENT AGENDA. UM, NO CHANGES, UH, BOARD MEMBERS.
WHAT? OH, WE DID. WE ADDED THE EDUCATION FOUNDATION MOU, SO I HOPE EVERYBODY WAS ABLE TO GET A LOOK AT THAT AND THE FUNDING AGREEMENT. 9K. ARE THERE ANY, KIM, UH, LET'S SEE IF ANYBODY HAS ANY QUESTIONS.
DOES ANYONE HAVE QUESTIONS ON CONSENT? OKAY. GO AHEAD. GO AHEAD, KIM.
UH, YEAH, MADAM PRESIDENT, I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE TO REMOVE THE APPROVAL OF THE DRIPPING SPRINGS EDUCATION FOUNDATION MOU AND FUNDING AGREEMENT FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA AND PLACE IT ON THE AGENDA AS AN ACTION ITEM.
A MOTION FROM KIM TO MOVE THE ED FOUNDATION MOU, A SECOND FROM ROB. ALL IN FAVOR? 7-0.
ALL RIGHT, SO THAT WILL BE AN ACTION ITEM.
SO I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION ON THE CONSENT AGENDA.
I MOVE TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA AS MODIFIED.
A MOTION FROM MARY JANE, A SECOND FROM KIM. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? ALL IN FAVOR? 7-0. OKAY. ALL RIGHT, SO WE WILL TAKE THAT ONE FIRST, UM, CONSIDERATION APPROVAL OF THE DRIPPING SPRINGS EDUCATION FOUNDATION MOU AND
[10. ACTION (Part 1 of 2)]
FUNDING AGREEMENT. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, UM, FOR THAT DOCUMENT SPECIFICALLY? NO? ALL RIGHT, MARY JANE? I JUST WAS GOING TO EXPLAIN, UM, THAT I WILL ABSTAIN BECAUSE I AM A MEMBER OF THE ED FOUNDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS.[01:35:01]
I'LL MAKE THE MOTION, BUT OUR NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S BACK HERE.LET THE RECORD REFLECT THAT SHE'S HERE TO MAKE SURE THIS THING GETS DONE.
HEY, WELCOME TO THE TEAM, AND, UH, LOOKING FORWARD TO PARTNERING WITH YOU AS WE RAISE ALL KINDS OF MONEY FOR ALL THE WONDERFUL INITIATIVES THAT THE DISTRICT'S GONNA HAVE MOVING FORWARD. NOW THAT THAT PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT IS COMPLETE, WHERE IS THE LANGUAGE? HOLD ON, WAIT FOR IT. I MOVE TO APPROVE THE MOU AND FUNDING AGREEMENT BETWEEN DRIPPING SPRINGS INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT AND THE DRIPPING SPRINGS EDUCATION FOUNDATION AS PRESENTED.
ALL RIGHT, A MOTION FROM ROB, A SECOND FROM KIM. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? ALL IN FAVOR? OPPOSED? ABSTAIN. ALL RIGHT, 06, 0, 1 ABSTAINING. ALL RIGHT, NEXT UP, UH, CONSIDERATION APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION 2027-06, UH, TO APPROVE THE 2026 TAX RATE.
ALL RIGHT, UM, TONIGHT WE'RE GONNA GO OVER A PRESENTATION. UH, WE'RE GONNA GO OVER THE COMPONENTS OF THE TAX RATE, UM, THE M&O TAX, UH, THE M&O COMPRESSION, UH, AND THE RECOMMENDED RATE.
WHAT YOU SEE HERE IN THE FIRST SLIDE IS A TAX RATE ADOPTION, UH, TIMELINE, JUST A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY OF HOW WE GOT WHERE WE ARE.
UH, BACK IN JUNE, WHEN WE APPROVED THE BUDGET, WE HAD TO PUBLISH OUR NOTICE, AND IN THAT NOTIFICATION WE HAD A RATE OF A DOLLAR 10.52. UH, WE RECEIVED OUR CERTIFIED PROPERTY VALUES IN JULY. UH, IN EARLY AUGUST, WE SENT THE INFORMATION INTO TEA FOR THEM TO CALCULATE OUR MAXIMUM COMPRESSED RATE, AND HERE WE ARE IN SEPTEMBER, UH, READY FOR YOU ALL TO ADOPT THE RATE. UH, JUST A POINT OF CLARIFICATION OR A NOTE IS THAT OUR RECOMMENDED RATE, UH, FOR TONIGHT IS LOWER THAN THE RATE THAT WAS PUBLISHED, SO THAT MEANS WE DIDN'T HAVE TO GO OUT AND DO AN ADDITIONAL NOTICE OR HAVE ANOTHER PUBLIC MEETING. SO, GOING ON TO THE NEXT SLIDE, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TAX RATE, I MEAN, Y'ALL KNOW THIS, BUT MAYBE NOT EVERYBODY DOES.
UH, WE, WE HAVE ONE TAX RATE, BUT IT'S MADE UP OF TWO COMPONENTS. YOU KNOW, OUR M&O RATE, WHICH FUNDS OUR DAILY OPERATIONS OF THE DISTRICT, IS ONE PART OF THAT, AND THEN OUR INTEREST IN SINKING, WHICH IS THE PART OF THE RATE THAT PAYS FOR VOTER APPROVED, UH, DEBT, WHICH Y'ALL JUST HEARD ALL THESE GREAT CONSTRUCTION UPDATES WITH THE HIGH SCHOOLS AND, AND, AND ALL OF THAT. WELL, THE I&S RATE IS WHAT WE LEVY TO PAY FOR ALL THAT. SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE M&O RATE, YOU'RE LOOKING AT, UH, BASICALLY TWO PARTS. IT'S A, A TIER 1 AND A TIER 2 RATE.
UH, THE TIER 1 RATE IS ESSENTIALLY SET BY THE STATE, UH, BY VIRTUE OF US TURNING IN OUR PROPERTY VALUES TO TEA, AND THEN TEA, UH, CALCULATES THAT RATE. UM, IT'S DUE IN LARGE PART TO VALUE GROWTH, AND THE HIGHER THE GROWTH, UH, OR GROWTH JUST IN AND OF ITSELF, UH, CAN RESULT IN, UH, TAX RATE COMPRESSION. SO AFTER WE HAVE TURNED IN ALL OF OUR INFORMATION TO TEA, THEY CAME BACK AND SAID THAT OUR TIER 1 MAXIMUM COMPRESSED RATE WAS 0.6102 CENTS. AND THIS IS A, UH, A LITTLE NOTE FOR ROB, BECAUSE HE, HE LIKES TO ASK ME THIS QUESTION. I, I, I'M GOING TO TRY TO PREEMPT YOUR, YOUR QUESTION, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE'RE A RECAPTURE DISTRICT.
WHY CAN'T I LOWER, UH, UH, HAVE A RATE THAT'S LOWER? WELL, UH, THE STATE LAW UH, WILL PROPORTIONATELY REDUCE OUR TIER 1 FUNDING IF WE LEVY A RATE BELOW THE MCR. SO MAXIMUM COMPRESSED RATE, IN ESSENCE, IS THE HIGHEST RATE WE CAN LEVY OR SHOULD LEVY, UH, IF WE WANT TO GET FULL FUNDING FROM THE STATE. SO OUR TIER 2 PART OF THE M&O RATE IS CALLED OUR ENRICHMENT TIER, AND THAT PROVIDES, UH, ENRICHMENT FUNDING OVER AND ABOVE OUR, OUR TIER 1, UH, STATE FUNDING. UM, STATE LAW ALLOWS US TO GO UP TO AN ADDITIONAL 17 CENTS ON THAT TIER 2. UM, SOME OF THE TIER 2 PENNIES, UM, REQUIRE VOTER APPROVAL, SOME DO NOT. UH, YOU CAN GO UP TO, UH, 5 CENTS ON THAT RATE WITHOUT VOTER APPROVAL, AND THOSE ARE CONSIDERED GOLDEN PENNIES. THEN ANYTHING OVER 5 UP TO 17 REQUIRES VOTER APPROVAL. UH, IN TOTAL, THERE'S A, UH, 8 CENTS THAT YOU HAVE AS, UH, WHAT'S CALLED GOLDEN PENNIES, WHICH ARE NOT SUBJECT TO RECAPTURE. OUR CURRENT TIER 2 RATE IS A LITTLE OVER, WELL, ALMOST 14 CENTS, 0.1383. UH, SO I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF ANY OF Y'ALL WERE ON THE BOARD AT THE TIME THIS HAPPENED. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THIS WAS SEVERAL YEARS AGO, UM, THE, THE VOTERS WENT OUT AND, UH, APPROVED THE MAXIMUM, UH, RATE FOR TIER 2 AT 17 CENTS. NOW, WHEN HOUSE BILL 3 CAME ALONG
[01:40:06]
IN 2018, 2019, IT COMPRESSED THAT 17 CENTS DOWN TO OUR CURRENT 13.83. AND SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR M&O RATE ON THIS NEXT SLIDE, YOU CAN SEE OUR TIER 1, 0.6102, OUR TIER 2 GOLDEN PENNIES NOT SUBJECT TO RECAPTURE, 8 CENTS, AND THEN THEY CALL THEM COPPER PENNIES OF THE TIER IN IN TIER 2. UH, THEY ARE SUBJECT TO RECAPTURE, BUT IT'S ABOVE THE GUARANTEED YIELD. SO COPPER PENNIES ARE CURRENTLY GENERATING 49 DOLLARS AND 72 CENTS PER WADA PER PENNY OF LOCALLY GENERATED REVENUE.THOSE ARE ARE WHAT IS SUBJECT TO RECAPTURE. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE I&S RATE, IT'S A LITTLE BIT EASIER TO CALCULATE THE I&S RATE THAN THE M&O. ESSENTIALLY, YOU LOOK AT THE DEBT PAYMENTS THAT YOU HAVE IN A GIVEN YEAR, UH, YOU TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION YOUR PROPERTY TAX VALUES THAT YOU RECEIVED, AND THERE'S A CALCULATION YOU GO THROUGH FOR TRUTH IN TAXATION THAT HELPS SET THAT RATE. UM, AS I SAID, IT'S THE ANNUAL DEBT SERVICE REQUIREMENTS, YOUR TAXABLE VALUES, ANTICIPATED COLLECTIONS, AND, UH, YOU TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION SOME AMOUNT THAT YOU GET, UH, FROM THE STATE IN HOLD HARMLESS, AND THEN IF YOU WANT TO USE ANY OF YOUR FUND BALANCE, UH, IN DEBT SERVICE TO HELP MINIMIZE THAT RATE.
AND SO TAKING ALL THOSE COMPONENTS INTO CONSIDERATION, WE WERE ABLE TO MAINTAIN A RATE OF 35 CENTS ON THE I&S SIDE. AND JUST A SIDE NOTE, UH, THE I&S TAX COLLECTIONS ARE NOT SUBJECT TO RECAPTURE. AND SO I THREW THIS LITTLE GRAPHIC OUT THERE. YOU CAN SEE BACK IN 2018, WE WERE TAXING AT THE MAX AT, AT THAT TIME.
IT WAS THE 17 CENTS PLUS THE DOLLAR 4, SO WE, UH, ON THE M&O, AND THE, AND THE, UH, I&S WAS AT 35 CENTS STILL, SO WE WERE AT A DOLLAR 52. AND SINCE 2018 TO, TO TODAY, WITH PROPERTY VALUES INCREASING, CAUSING THE COMPRESSION ON THE M&O SIDE, UH, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DECREASE OUR RATE BY JUST A LITTLE OVER 42 CENTS OVER THAT TIME PERIOD. AND SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR JUNE RATE, UM, WHICH WE USED, UH, TO HELP PLAN THE BUDGET AND IN OUR TRUTH IN TAXATION NOTICE, WE WERE AT A DOLLAR 10. OUR SEPTEMBER RECOMMENDED RATE IS A LITTLE OVER A DOLLAR 9, 1.0985. SO IT'S 6 ONE HUNDREDTHS, I THINK, IF I'M SAYING THAT RIGHT, 6 ONE HUNDREDTHS OF A PENNY LESS.
UH, THAT'S LOWER THAN WHAT WAS PUBLISHED IN JUNE. IT WAS ALSO LOWER WHAT, THAN WHAT WE HAD ADOPTED LAST YEAR IN 2025. IS THIS 6 THOUSANDTHS? YOU SURE? YEAH. 6 THOUSANDTHS. 6,000S.
WELL, THAT MAKES IT EVEN WORSE.
I LIKE 600S, MADE IT A LITTLE BIT BETTER.
OKAY, SO, UM, WHAT IMPACT DOES THAT HAVE ON ON OUR, UH, AVERAGE HOMESTEAD? SO YOU CAN SEE IN 2025, OUR, UH, THE AVERAGE TAXABLE VALUE OF A RESIDENCE WAS 557,000.
AVERAGE TAXABLE VALUE THIS YEAR IS 562, SO EVEN WITH A SLIGHTLY LOWER RATE, UM, THE, THE ESTIMATED CHANGE IN TAXES ON THE AVERAGE HOMESTEAD IS 21 DOLLARS AND 14 CENTS ANNUALLY.
AND SO THAT BRINGS US TO OUR FINAL SLIDE, OUR RECOMMENDED RATE, 0.7485 ON THE M&O, 0.35 ON THE I&S, TOTAL TAX RATE OF $1.0985.
UH, AND JUST FOR, UH, POINT OF REFERENCE, OUR 2025 ADOPTED RATE WAS $1.10. OUR NO NEW TAX REVENUE RATE IS $1.94. SO OUR RECOMMENDED TAX RATE, SINCE IT'S JUST LIKE BARELY OVER THE NO NEW REVENUE RATE, THAT DID HAVE AN EFFECT ON THE RESOLUTION LANGUAGE THAT YOU WILL BE READING TONIGHT, UH, DURING THE RECOMMENDATION. AND WITH THAT, I WILL OBVIOUSLY, THANK YOU, RANDY,
[01:45:02]
FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. OH, SO CLOSE. RIGHT? LET'S LET'S TALK STRATEGICALLY. OBVIOUSLY, THIS IS THIS IS GOOD NEWS. UM, WE'RE ABLE TO FULLY FUND THIS DISTRICT.WE'RE ABLE TO SUPPORT THE PROGRAMS THAT WE HAVE. UM, WE'RE ABLE TO, UH, PASS, ALBEIT A MODEST COMPENSATION INCREASE FOR OUR TEACHERS, A MODEST COMPENSATION INCREASE FOR OUR TEACHERS, UM, AND STILL BRING THE TAX RATE DOWN A LITTLE BIT WITHIN 4 THOUSANDTHS OF A PENNY OF THE NO NEW REVENUE RATE.
COMMUNITY, WE'RE GOING TO ASK THAT THAT BE, THAT BE CLOSE ENOUGH, RIGHT? OUR, THE GOAL OF THIS BOARD HAS BEEN TO GET AS CLOSE TO THAT RATE AS POSSIBLE. WE WANT GROWTH TO PAY FOR GROWTH, RIGHT? WE'VE BEEN WORKING DILIGENTLY, I THINK, SINCE MOST OF THIS BODY'S BEEN TOGETHER, 15% DECREASE IN THE TAX RATE.
HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION HAS INCREASED, WHICH HAS ALSO PROVIDED SOME RELIEF TO TAXPAYERS. AND ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, MOST PEOPLE IN 7 3, 78737, I THINK ACTUALLY GONNA SEE A DECREASE BECAUSE THE HOME VALUES THERE DECREASED A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN THEY DID IN, IN DRIPPING SPRINGS PROPER. UH, SO I THINK MOST RESIDENTS WILL ACTUALLY SEE A, A NET TAX DECREASE, ALTHOUGH IT'S NOT REFLECTED IN THE, THE RESOLUTION WE'RE GONNA ADOPT TONIGHT. FOR ME, THIS IS GOOD ENOUGH, RIGHT? IN THE SENSE OF WE CONTINUE TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF THE FUNDS THAT THE TAXPAYERS ARE PROVIDING TO THIS DISTRICT, AS SHOWN BY OUR FIRST RATING, ALL KINDS OF DIFFERENT THINGS, AND WE'RE ALSO DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN NOT TO INCREASE, UH, THE TAX BURDEN ON OUR RESIDENTS, WHICH IS A TOUGH THING, RIGHT? LET'S BE HONEST. WE WANT TO EXCELLENCE ACROSS THE BOARD. WE WANT TO COMPENSATE TEACHERS BETTER.
WE WANT TO GROW AS THE POPULATION GROWS. WE WANT TO BUILD NEW SCHOOLS FOR THE PEOPLE THAT ARE COMING HERE, WHICH, BY THE WAY, LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS IN THE, SINCE THIS BOARD'S BEEN TOGETHER, WE PAID OFF TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS EARLY IN I&S THAT ALLOWS US OUR BOND CAPACITY TO INCREASE, UH, THAT ALLOWS US TO HOPEFULLY GET THROUGH ANOTHER ROUND, UH, WITHOUT AN ADJUSTMENT TO THE TAX RATE, WHICH IS A HOPE. WE HAVE TO, WE HAVE SOME WORK TO GET THERE BY THE TIME WE DO THAT, BUT IT'S POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF THE DECISIONS THAT WE'RE MAKING UP HERE. SO, WITH THAT BEING SAID, UH, MADAM SUPERINTENDENT, I APPRECIATE YOU LEADING THE TEAM TO HONOR WHAT THIS BOARD HAS DONE FROM A TAX RATE PERSPECTIVE, YOU'VE DONE IT, AND WE APPRECIATE IT. AND SO 0.004 THOUSANDTHS OF A CENT FROM A NO NEW REVENUE RATE, RANDY, I'M GOING TO CALL THAT GOOD ENOUGH, SIR. GOOD WORK.
I'M GLAD YOU BROUGHT UP DEFEASANCE, BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO ASK, JENNIFER, WHERE IS, WHERE DO WE TRACK THE DEFEASANCE ON THE PUBLIC FACING ON THE WEBSITE NOW? DIDN'T IT USED TO BE UNDER COMMUNITY? I THINK IT'S, I THINK IT'S MOVED ON ME. I WAS JUST GONNA SAY, I REMEMBER, MOST OF US DO, THE DAY THAT WE SAT DOWN TO ADOPT TAX RATE, AND WE LOOKED AT THE AVERAGE IMPACT, AND WE WERE AT 600 DOLLARS A YEAR PER HOUSEHOLD, AND WE'RE AT 21 DOLLARS A YEAR. I THINK THAT THAT IS SOMETHING, UM, THAT SOMETIMES WE TAKE CREDIT IF IT'S GOOD OR BAD, BUT YOU GUYS HAVE DONE THE WORK CONSISTENTLY, REGARDLESS OF WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH LEGISLATION, WE MAKE IT WORK, AND I JUST, I COMMEND HOLLY, YOU, AND YOUR TEAM, AND OUR FINANCE TEAM SO MUCH FOR THAT, BECAUSE WE CAN FEEL GOOD GOING TO OUR COMMUNITY AND KNOWING WHAT THE AVERAGE TAX IMPACT IS GOING TO BE THIS YEAR.
I JUST WANTED TO, UM, REITERATE WHAT WAS SAID IN THE PRESENTATION WITH RANDY, UM, ABOUT RECAPTURE, BECAUSE YES, IT OCEANS OF WORK WENT INTO THIS. IT IS WONDERFUL FOR TAXPAYERS, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE DIDN'T COME CLOSE TO GIVING TEACHERS THE RAISE THAT WE WANTED TO, BUT WE'RE STILL SENDING MILLIONS BACK IN RECAPTURE. SO, UM, TO EVERYBODY LISTENING, THE 90TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION STARTS IN JANUARY, BUT, UM, INTERIM CHARGES ARE BEING FORMED RIGHT NOW, AND, UM, I, YOU KNOW, HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL THAT WE CAN, UH, BREAK THROUGH AND, AND, AND MAKE THIS POINT. IT SEEMS FUNDAMENTALLY UNFAIR, AS IT HAS FOR SO MANY YEARS IN THIS DISTRICT, THAT WE SPEND, THAT WE SEND MILLIONS BACK, UM, TO THE STATE. AND I WILL JUST SAY THAT ANY DONATIONS TO THE ED FOUNDATION, THE STATE CAN'T TOUCH. THAT'S A PLUS.
OH, OLIVIA, THOUGH, IT IS ON THE WEBSITE. IT'S UNDER FINANCIAL SERVICES. SO WHEN YOU GO TO DEPARTMENTS, FINANCIAL SERVICES, AND THEN OTHER RESOURCES ON THE RIGHT, THAT LAST BUTTON IS REFUNDING, AND IT GIVES ALL OF THE DEFEASANCES BY YEAR, THE TOTAL SAVINGS AS A RESULT OF THAT.
ROB BROUGHT IT UP, AND I JUST THINK IT'S SO CRITICAL TO POINT THAT OUT EVERY YEAR THAT OUR TAXPAYERS KNOW EVERY DOLLAR THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE WHERE WE CAN PAY DEBT OFF EARLY. WE LIKE TO SAY WE'RE NOT A MINIMUM PAYMENT CREW. WE SAVE TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN LONG-TERM INTEREST BY FOCUSING ON DEBT DEFEASANCE EVERY YEAR.
SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALLOWING US
[01:50:01]
TO MAINTAIN THAT PRACTICE.AND IF I COULD POINT OUT TWO MORE THINGS REAL QUICK, MADAM PRESIDENT, IF YOU WOULD INDULGE ME FOR JUST A SECOND. I WANT TO POINT OUT TOO, NO.
UM, NOT ONLY HAVE WE PAY UP DEBT EARLY AND BE RESPONSIBLE THAT WAY, LET'S ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE, WE'VE DECREASED THE TAX RATE 15%, AND WE HAVE MET EVERY INFRASTRUCTURE CHALLENGE THAT THIS DISTRICT HAS HAD. THAT, THAT'S YEOMAN'S WORK, RIGHT? AND, AND SO YOU SEE A LOT OF DISTRICTS AROUND US, I'M NOT THROWING ANY SHADE OUT THERE, UM, MOST OF THEM WENT FOR VATRES. THEY WENT FOR THE VOTERS TO ASK FOR MORE IN TAX, IN TAX MONEY, AND WE HAVE NOT DONE THAT, AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DELIVER THE INFRASTRUCTURE WE NEEDED AND PAY OFF DEBT EARLY, UM, AND AND AGREE WITH MARY JANE.
HER POINT IS STRAIGHT ON. WE TEACHERS, WE WE WE KNOW THERE'S MORE WORK TO DO. WE KNOW THERE'S MORE WORK TO DO, AND WE WILL BE ADVOCATING.
THERE WAS A COMMENT ABOUT NOT LIKE WE ABSOLUTELY ADVOCATE, AND WE WILL ADVOCATE FOR YOU IN THE 90TH LEGISLATURE TO GO, UH, FIND BETTER BETTER WAYS TO DO THAT. AND WITH THAT, UH, I'M HAPPY TO DO THE MOTION IF YOU'D LIKE, MADAM PRESIDENT.
OH, SORRY, STEPHANIE, I'M SORRY, I DID NOT SEE YOUR YOUR YOUR LIGHT. PLEASE DO IT. IT'S ON THE RESOLUTION. OPEN THE RESOLUTION, IT'S ON THERE, RIGHT? YEAH. ACTION RESOLUTION. I HAVE IT. ALL RIGHT, MARY JANE HAS IT.
I MOVE THAT THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES HEREBY LEVY OR SET THE TAX RATE ON 100 DOLLAR VALUATION FOR THE DISTRICT FOR THE TAX YEAR 2026 AT 0.7485 FOR THE PURPOSES OF MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS, AND UH, 0.3500 FOR THE PURPOSES OF PAYMENT OF PRINCIPAL, PARDON ME, AND INTEREST ON DEBTS. I MOVE THAT THE PROPERTY TAX RATE BE INCREASED BY THE ADOPTION OF A TAX RATE OF 1.0985, WHICH IS EFFECTIVELY A 0.4011% INCREASE IN THE TAX RATE.
ALL RIGHT, A MOTION FROM MARY JANE, A SECOND FROM KIM.
WHY? THIS IS NOT A 0.4011 PERCENT, OH, PERCENT, SORRY, PERCENT, IT IS CORRECT.
SORRY. THANK YOU. SORRY ABOUT THAT.
THAT'S ALL RIGHT. UNLESS YOU'RE DOING THE MATH.
I THOUGHT IT WAS CENTS, AND I'M LIKE, NO, WE'RE NOT INCREASING IT 4 CENTS. YOU'RE NOT GETTING, WE'RE NOT GOING TO SNEAK IT IN LAST SECOND, GET A 4/10 INCREASE.
40 CENTS, THAT WOULD BE 40 CENTS.
I WAS LIKE, WHOA! 0.4%, YES, THAT WOULD BE CORRECT.
ALL RIGHT. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? UH, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? TRICIA, I DIDN'T SEE YOUR HAND. THANK YOU. 7-0.
TRISH VOTED FOR, YOU KNOW IT'S.
ALL RIGHT, UH, MOVING ON TO CONSIDERATION APPROVAL OF CHANGE ORDER NUMBER 1, SWINERTON BUILDERS, UH, 18 PLUS CONTRACT.
ALL RIGHT, SO THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ASSOCIATED WITH, UH, THE PUA REQUESTING THAT WE TAP INTO THE 12-INCH LINE THAT'S LOCATED UNDER OUR PARKING LOT AT IN THE SYCAMORE COMPLEX.
UM, IT IS FOR THE AMOUNT OF $71,290. IT IS, UM, WITHIN THE BOARD POLICY CV FOR CHANGE ORDERS, WHICH PUTS THAT LIMIT AT 25%.
THIS IS 2.4% OF THE ORIGINAL CONTRACT PRICE.
ANY QUESTIONS OR DISCUSSION HERE, ROB? I DO. SO, SO I MISSED GENERAL REVIEW, AND I APOLOGIZE. CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND THIS SITUATION SPECIFICALLY? AND IF MY, ALL MY COLLEAGUES UNDERSTAND IT, THEN I'M SORRY. I APOLOGIZE.
WE WANTED TO TAP INTO A 20-INCH MAIN LINE ON SAWYER RANCH ROAD. THE PUA HAS SAID, NAH, THAT AIN'T GONNA WORK FOR US.
WE WANT YOU TO TAP INTO A 12-INCH LINE THAT'S BURIED UNDERNEATH THE PARKING LOT SOMEWHERE AT SYCAMORE SPRINGS MIDDLE SCHOOL OR ELEMENTARY.
HELP ME UNDERSTAND THAT'S CORRECT.
THAT. DO I HAVE THAT CORRECT? YES.
OKAY. SO, NOW WE'RE GOING TO DO A CHANGE ORDER, OBVIOUSLY, TO RUN A PIPE AND DO THE THINGS WE NEED TO DO AND THINGS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT. THAT ALL MAKES SENSE TO ME, RIGHT? OBVIOUSLY, YOU HEARD MY COMMENTS ABOUT WHEN WE APPLY FOR THE TAP PLAN AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF. I'M JUST GONNA LET THAT BE AT THIS POINT, RIGHT? WE ARE WHERE WE ARE, BUT WE SHOULD NOT LET THAT HAPPEN AGAIN. UM, OKAY, THAT SAID, WE HAD IN THE PLAN FOR THE BUDGET FOR THIS PROJECT, UH, A COUPLE THINGS. FIRST, WE HAD IN THE WET UTILITIES BUDGET, WE HAD, AND I'M GONNA GET GRANULAR BECAUSE THIS AMOUNT IS LIKELY GONNA PUT THIS PROJECT OVER BUDGET, SO I'M GONNA GET GRANULAR, OKAY? UM, 200 AND SOMETHING THOUSAND, 250,000 TO THE SAME COMPANY THAT'S GONNA DO THE CHANGE ORDER FOR WET UTILITIES, 251,000 DOLLARS. DID WE APPLY SOME LEVEL OF THAT MONEY THAT WOULD HAVE OTHERWISE BEEN USED FOR WET UTILITIES FOR THE 20 INCH LINE TO THE 12 INCH LINE? BECAUSE THERE HAD TO BE MONEY FOR TYING INTO THE 20 INCH LINE, CORRECT? CORRECT? YES.
[01:55:01]
FROM THE 251,000 DUE TO, UH, THIS EXCAVATING COMPANY FOR THAT AS WELL, OR ARE WE ASKING FOR MONEY ON TOP OF THAT DELTA? IT'S ON TOP OF THE DELTA.ON TOP OF THE DELTA, OKAY. GOT IT. UH, THAT SAID, I'M GOING TO THE OVERALL PROJECT BUDGET IN THE BOND DEAL. AND I'M HOPING THE ANSWER TO THIS IS YES, BECAUSE IF THE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION IS YES, THEN WE DON'T HAVE TO GO OVER BUDGET, WHICH WOULD BE A FIRST FOR THIS BODY. NOT GOOD, I WOULD SAY. UM, IF THE, IF IT, IF ALL THE MONEY IS EXPENDED, THAT WOULD BE DISAPPOINTING.
WE HAVE IN LINE NUMBER BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. IT'S OF ALL KINDS OF LIKE, RANDY, WHY DO YOU HAVE SO MANY NUMBERS IN HERE? THIS IS CRAZY. WE HAVE PERMITS, FEES, AND UTILITIES, AND IN THERE YOU HAVE 99,440 DOLLARS OF MONIES AVAILABLE, AND WE'VE ONLY SPENT A LITTLE BIT OF THAT. IS THAT WHERE THIS MONEY IS GOING TO COME FROM? I WILL HAVE TO LOOK AND SEE WHERE WE ARE WITH OUR PERMITTING.
ON THAT PIECE. AND. AND THIS KIND OF GOES BACK TO WHERE WE WERE WHEN WE APPROVED THIS BUDGET. WE THOUGHT THERE WAS ROOM IN THOSE SOFT COSTS LIKE THAT.
WE WE DO THINK THAT THAT THERE'S ROOM THERE, UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, UNTIL ALL THE DUST SETTLES.
BECAUSE I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT IN THE REVISED GMP, WE HAD TO BURN OUR CONTINGENCY UP. I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT. BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE FIRST PLACE WE WENT, RIGHT, AS OUR CONTINGENCY. WELL, WE BURNT THAT UP BECAUSE WE COULDN'T GET THE COST WHERE IT NEEDED TO GET. SO NOW WE'RE STUCK WITH THAT. SO OBVIOUSLY, SCOTT, SCOTT, I'M ASKING YOU TO PLEASE TRY TO DO THAT. UH, THIS BODY'S PRETTY PROUD, UH, NOT JUST BECAUSE, WAIT, YAY US, BUT LIKE THE COMMUNITY HOLDS US ACCOUNTABLE. EVERY PROJECT HAS BEEN ON TIME AND ON BUDGET UNTIL THIS ONE. AND I GUESS THAT'S WHY YOU SAW THE FRUSTRATION COME OUT OF ME TONIGHT. OH, PLEASE DON'T TAKE IT PERSONALLY. I RESPECT YOU DEARLY. BUT I'M SPEAKING FOR FRUSTRATION ON THIS BODY IS WE, WE DON'T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN BECAUSE THE COMMUNITY TRUSTS US NOT TO DO THAT WITH THE MONIES THEY GOT.
71,000 DOLLARS ISN'T A BIG AMOUNT. IF IT NEEDS TO GET DONE, LET'S GET IT DONE. LET'S ALSO FIGURE OUT THIS PUA THING PRETTY FAST.
IT SOUNDS LIKE WE'RE ON THE PATHWAY TO DO THAT. IS THAT CORRECT? WOULD YOU LIKE TO GIVE EVERYBODY AN UPDATE ON WHERE WE ARE WITH THAT? I THINK IT'D BE HELPFUL.
SO WE ARE... THE DETENTION POND IS THE ISSUE AT THIS POINT.
UM, WE ARE, WE WERE NOTIFIED BY THE PUA THAT THE DETENTION POND MIGHT HAVE BEEN UNDERSIZED ORIGINALLY. WE ARE, WE ARE SURVEYING IT TO VERIFY THAT RIGHT NOW.
IT'S, IT'S THEIR WATER QUALITY POND. SO WE'RE WORKING WITH THE PUA TO COME UP WITH OTHER ALTERNATIVES FOR REMOVING THE SOLIDS IN THE, IN THAT WATER. UM, OTHER BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IS WHAT THEY'RE CALLED. USING RAINWATER HARVESTING IS ONE THAT WE'RE, WE ARE USING.
WE'RE GOING TO APPLY FOR THAT CREDIT, AND THEN MAYBE SOME OTHER TYPES OF, OF UH, BMPS THAT WE CAN USE. SO WE'RE WORKING WITH THE PUA TO DO THAT, BUT OUR FIRST STEP WAS TO VERIFY THAT IT ACTUALLY WAS TOO SMALL.
UNDERSTAND. OKAY, AND THAT PROCESS IS STILL ONGOING.
IS THAT PROCESS GOING TO DELAY THIS PROJECT ANY FURTHER? NO, I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT'LL DELAY IT BECAUSE WE, WE'VE SEPARATED, THAT WAS OUR REQUEST TO THE PUA, WAS TO SEPARATE THE, THE WATER QUALITY PONDS AND THE WATER PERMIT.
AND I THINK THE PUA IS DOING A GOOD JOB BY HELPING US DO THAT.
SO I'M GOING TO LEAVE THE MEETING TONIGHT WITH AN EXPECTATION, AND YOU TELL ME IF I CAN LEAVE IT WITH OR NOT, BECAUSE I DIDN'T GET A LOT OF FIDELITY DURING THE PRESENTATION. WE'RE GOING TO APPROVE A CHANGE ORDER FOR THIS AMOUNT OF MONEY, LET'S BE PRESUMPTIVE, AND WE'RE GOING TO BE FULL SPEED AHEAD. THERE WILL NOT BE ANOTHER DAY THAT I DRIVE BY THAT PROJECT THAT NOTHING IS NOT HAPPENING. WE ARE GOING TO WORK ON SATURDAYS, NOT, I DON'T WANT TO WORK ON THE SABBATH, SO LET'S NOT DO THAT, BUT SATURDAYS TO CATCH UP. ALL RIGHT, THE OVERTIME IDEA, THAT'S JUST MORE MONEY OUT THE DOOR FOR US IN JAIL.
LIKE, I'M NOT DOING THAT, OKAY? WE'RE GOING TO HUSTLE, AND WE'RE GOING TO GET THIS PROJECT DONE AS CLOSE TO THAT DEAL AS POSSIBLE, BECAUSE EVERY MONTH THAT IT DOES NOT, THOSE KIDS ARE NOT.
SO AM I GOING TO LEAVE WITH HERE WITH THAT UNDERSTANDING? IS THAT THAT IS THE DIRECTIVE THAT WE GAVE SWINERTON.
OKAY, SO WE'RE GOING TO HOLD ACCOUNTABILITY TO THAT. HERE, I'M LOOKING AT YOU NOW HERE BECAUSE JAMES ISN'T IN THE ROOM. OKAY, GUYS, SO THAT'S MY EXPECTATION, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO.
WITH THAT BEING SAID, I WILL BE QUIET.
SO I DIDN'T BRING THIS UP THE FIRST TIME BECAUSE ROB WAS ON FIRE, AND I DIDN'T WANT TO ADD TO THE FIRE. UM, THIS IS CHANGE ORDER NUMBER ONE, AND I BELIEVE MY QUESTION LAST WEEK WAS, WE DON'T ACTUALLY KNOW FOR SURE, FOR SURE THAT THE PUA WON'T COME BACK WITH YET ANOTHER SOMETHING.
AND SO THAT'S MY QUESTION, IS WHEN WILL WE FEEL CONFIDENT THAT WE HAVE PASSED OR JUMPED THROUGH ALL THE HOOPS WITH THE PUA? SO, LIKE I SAID, WE'RE VERIFYING THAT WATER QUALITY POND. I'VE SPOKEN WITH THE PUA. THEY'RE, THEY'RE ENTERTAINING THE IDEA OF SOME ALTERNATE, UM, MEASURES FOR WATER QUALITY, UM, BUT THERE MAY BE A COST ASSOCIATED WITH THEM. WE, WE VE'D OUR, OUR CISTERN AND OUR RAINWATER ON THE 18 PLUS BUILDING. THAT IS SOMETHING THAT I FEEL LIKE IS PROBABLY BACK IN PLAY NOW, BUT I WANT TO VERIFY. SO THERE WILL BE ANOTHER CHANGE ORDER ASSOCIATED WITH THAT WATER QUALITY POND,
[02:00:01]
UM, AND SO IT'S JUST GOING TO TAKE US A MINUTE TO WORK THROUGH IT AND TO COME UP WITH A CREATIVE SOLUTION, IS WHAT I'VE TOLD OUR ENGINEERS. I WANT A CREATIVE SOLUTION WHERE WE'RE NOT JUST GOING AND DIGGING A BIGGER POND. UM, AND SO, YEAH, IT'S GOING TO JUST TAKE A, A LITTLE BIT OF TIME TO WORK THROUGH THAT.BUT MEANWHILE, WE ARE PUSHING FORWARD ON, ON THE, UH, THE CONSTRUCTION OF 18 PLUS, BECAUSE WE WERE ABLE TO SEPARATE THOSE TWO ITEMS. THEY WERE HOLDING OUR PERMIT.
THEY WERE, IT WAS ALL ONE. SO THEY, THEY, UH, WORKED WITH US AND, AND DID SEPARATE THOSE.
CAN YOU REMIND ME, ARE WE DOING NO RAINWATER COLLECTION RIGHT NOW? SO IF WE ADD THE CISTERN, IT'LL BE THE FIRST, THE FIRST ON THE BUILDING, OR WE ALREADY HAVE? WE HAVE RAINWATER AT SYCAMORE, UM.
WE, WE DO ON THE CISTERNS, AND THAT, THAT WE'RE COUNTING.
WE'RE GOING TO LOOK TO SEE THAT WE CAN COUNT THAT, SO WE'RE DOING THOSE CALCULATIONS.
BUT WE DID TAKE THE RAINWATER OFF OF THE 18 PLUS, THE CISTERN, WE DID.
I WOULD LIKE, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE PRICING FOR WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE TO PUT IT BACK IN, IN THE EVENT, BECAUSE I KNOW THE COST OF EXCAVATING AND MAKING THAT, MAKING THE RETENTION POND BIGGER, IT'D BE EXPONENTIALLY MORE EXPENSIVE. UM, AND IF I UNDERSTAND THAT MISTAKE, NOT POINTING FINGERS, THAT GOES WAY BACK. THAT'S ESSENTIALLY WHEN WE- THAT WAS IN 2015 OKAY.
MADAM PRESIDENT, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE PRICING FOR A WATER SOLUTION ON 18 PLUS, JUST IN THE EVENT THAT WE NEED TO GET THAT BACK IN. THANK YOU.
WOULD THAT BE SMART TO DO NOW INSTEAD OF WAITING ON HEARING BACK FROM THE PUA? I THINK THAT IT'S GONNA BE ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THEY REQUEST US DO REGARDLESS.
I DON'T KNOW THAT IT'S GONNA COMPLETELY COMPENSATE FOR THE SHORTAGE, BUT IT WILL, IT WILL HELP. AND SO I, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT OUR TEAM IS ALREADY, IS ALREADY WORKING ON THAT, THAT PIECE OF IT, SO WE CAN GET THOSE NUMBERS PRETTY QUICK.
IF I COULD ADD IN BRIEFLY, I- I- IT'S A, IT'S ONE OF THE PRIORITIES FOR THIS BODY, IS WATER CONSERVATION.
RIGHT? AND I WANT TO SAY, WHEN WE GOT THE GMP BACK, I EVEN KIND OF SAID, HEY, YOU KNOW, I THINK THERE'S AN INTEREST BY THIS BOARD OF BEING WILLING TO LOOK AT THAT TO HAVE ANYWAYS. NOW WE MIGHT NEED IT TO TRADE OFF IMPERVIOUS COVER, SO IT SOUNDS LIKE IT'S CERTAINLY WORTH. SO I'D AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUE. I THINK IT'S CERTAINLY WORTH EXPLORING AND POTENTIALLY EXECUTING HERE IN THE SHORT TERM.
I JUST WANTED TO ADD, I MEAN, I DO WANT US TO BE IN COMPLETE COMPLIANCE, BUT I ALSO, AND I THINK I MENTIONED LAST WEEK, AT THE END OF THE DAY, EVERYBODY'S REALLY BUSY, SWAMPED WITH WORK, AND I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE PUA UNDERSTANDS WHO WE ARE SERVING WITH THIS BUILDING, SO THAT IF THERE'S ANY EXTRA EMPATHY TO MAYBE PUSH THAT REVIEW A LITTLE FASTER, THEN, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE SHOULD MAKE SURE THAT THEY KNOW.
AGREE. ALL RIGHT. ANY MORE DISCUSSION? NOPE. ROB, I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION.
I MOVE THAT THE, UH, DSISD BOARD OF TRUSTEES APPROVE CHANGE ORDER NUMBER ONE TO THE SWINERTON CONTRACT FOR THE 18 PLUS CONSTRUCTION PROJECT IN THE AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED 71,290 DOLLARS.
A MOTION FROM ROB, A SECOND FROM MARY JANE. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? 7-0. ALL RIGHT, 10C AND 10D, WE WILL HAVE CONSULTATION WITH,
[11. REPORTS AND INFORMATION]
UM, OUR ATTORNEY IN CLOSED SESSION, SO WE WILL MOVE ON TO REPORTS AND INFORMATION.ANYTHING NEW ON OUR COMMUNICATIONS REPORT? NO, NOTHING NEW TO ADD.
I, I HAVE A QUESTION, JENNIFER, IF, UM, AND I THINK I'VE ASKED IT BEFORE, AND IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN HOLLY SAYING, NO, NOT THE RIGHT TIME. THE, UM, ON OUR SPIRIT SHOP, MHM.
ARE WE GOING TO HAVE AN OPTION TO PARTNER WITH OUR LOCAL, UM, ORGANIZATIONS, LIKE OUR PARENT ORGANIZATIONS, FOR ANY SORT OF SPIRIT WEAR FOR SPECIFIC SCHOOLS? UM, WE ARE LOOKING INTO THAT RIGHT NOW TO SEE IF WE CAN DO THE WEB STORES, LIKE, WHICH IS HOW THEY TYPICALLY LIKE TO DO THEIR ONLINE FUNDRAISERS.
SO WE'RE GETTING INFORMATION FROM OUR PRIMARY VENDORS TO SEE IF WE CAN OFFER THAT.
YES, SO WE'RE RESEARCHING THAT RIGHT NOW.
GOOD. OKAY, THAT'S IN THE WORKS. AWESOME. UM, LEARNING INNOVATION, LEARNING AND INNOVATION, ANYTHING NEW? THERE ARE NO UPDATES TO THE LEARNING AND INNOVATION REPORT.
FINANCE? NO, MA'AM, NO UPDATES.
[12. CLOSED SESSION]
AND SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT.WELL, I CAN'T BREAK THAT PATTERN, NO UPDATES.
OKAY, THE BOARD WILL NOW CONVENE IN A CLOSED MEETING TO DISCUSS THE FOLLOWING ITEMS POSTED ON OUR AGENDA THIS EVENING, AS ALLOWED BY THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE, SECTIONS 551.071, 551.072, 551.074,
[02:05:04]
551.076, 551.082, 551.0821, 551.089, AND 551.129. NO VOTING WILL TAKE PLACE IN THE CLOSED MEETING. ANY ACTION THE BOARD WISHES TO TAKE AS A RESULT OF DISCUSSION IN CLOSED SESSION WILL TAKE PLACE AFTER THE BOARD RECONVENES IN THE OPEN MEETING. THE BOARD WILL RECONVENE IN OPEN SESSION AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE CLOSED MEETING,[13. OPEN SESSION]
AND WE WILL GO INTO CLOSED AT 8:06 P.M. UH, THE, THERE SHE IS. THE TIME IS NOW 8:57[10. ACTION (Part 2 of 2)]
P.M. THE BOARD IS NOW BACK IN OPEN SESSION. UH, THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS 10C. WE WILL TAKE NO ACTION ON 10C TONIGHT, SO WE WILL MOVE ON TO 10D, UH, CONSIDERATION APPROVAL TO TERMINATE A DRIPPING SPRINGS MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHER TERM CONTRACT.UH, BASED ON OUR DISCUSSION IN CLOSED SESSION, I'LL, UH, MAKE A MOTION. I MOVE TO PROPOSE TERMINATION OF THE TERM CONTRACT OF OLIVIA TYLER AND SUSPEND THIS TEACHER WITHOUT PAY, AS RECOMMENDED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT, FINDING THAT GOOD CAUSE EXISTS FOR SUCH ACTIONS, AND DIRECT THE SUPERINTENDENT TO PROVIDE THE TEACHER WITH WRITTEN NOTICE OF THE BOARD'S ACTIONS. A MOTION FROM MARY JANE, A SECOND FROM KIM. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? 7-0.
WITH NO FURTHER ACTION, THE BOARD IS ADJOURNED AT 8:58 P.M.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.