College Station Independent School District

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July 2020 CSISD Board Recap

July 2020 CSISD Board Recap
Posted on 07/21/2020
Image of Board Meeting

Note:  This is an overview of some of the items on the June board meeting agenda.  This recap does not include every item on the agenda. Official meeting minutes will be made available on www.csisd.org following approval at the August board meeting.  A video and audio recording of the meeting will be made available within seven business days of the meeting at csisd.org.

 COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The College Station ISD Board of Trustees met Tuesday, July 21.  The following discussions and actions are of note.

 MEETING

 Discussion regarding 2020-2021 operational and instructional plans:  After a detailed presentation of the instructional and operational plans presented to the board in a special meeting last Wednesday, CSISD Chief Administrative Officer Molley Perry presented the board with updates regarding the plans.

 CSISD plans to open schools on August 13, with families having a choice for their children to either attend in-person or virtually.  As of today, more than 4,000 students have committed to their preferred mode of instruction, with 68.9% choosing the on-site option.  The final deadline for families to commit to either on-site or virtual models of instruction is July 30.

 In addition, campus staff were asked to choose their preferred teaching method, with 59.3% of teachers indicating their preference for the on-site model, 23.6% had no preference, and 17% preferred teaching in the virtual model.

 Following ongoing discussion with campus administrators and the Brazos County Health District the requirement for masks has been extended to include all students in grades K-12. This requirement will remain in effect until at least the end of the first marking period. 

 Procedures for an individual at school who has tested positive or was deemed to have been in close contact with another person who tested positive were discussed.  Examples of scenarios will be posted to the CSISD Back-To-School website soon. 

 Additional information was provided and updates are reflected on the CSISD Back-To-School 2020 Website, specifically in the FAQ section.

 Matthew Pekar Named Assistant Principal at CSHS:  The CSISD Board of trustees approved the administrative contract of Matthew Pekar, Assistant Principal at College Station High School.

 Discussion regarding 2020-2021 budget development process:  Led by Chief Financial Officer Amy Drozd, the board discussed the 2020-2021 budget for the fourth consecutive month.

 The board reviewed a draft of revenue and expenditure numbers.  The current numbers, reflect an overall deficit budget of approximately $2.699 million for the General Fund.  Despite adopting deficit budgets in recent years, CSISD has traditionally ended the year with an audited surplus.  The adopted budget versus final audited budgets for the last five years are listed below.

Fiscal 

Year

Adopted 

Budget

Audited Budget Deficit / Surplus

2014-15

-$3.03M

+$325K

2015-16

-$1.84M

+$2.37M

2016-17

-$473K

+$2.98M

2017-18

-$2.41M

+$99 K

2018-19

-$4.6M

+$855K

2019-20

-$3.38M

In progress

A compensation plan for the 2020-21 school year was introduced for the first time, which, if approved, would increase beginning teacher salaries from $44,250 to $45,500.  In addition, the plan would ensure each eligible teacher would receive a minimum $1,000 increase from their current base salary, which is 1.92 percent of the midpoint teacher salary.

 Paraprofessional and auxiliary workers would receive a two percent increase from the paygrade midpoint and beginning pay for bus drivers would increase to $16.50 per hour.  Administrative and professional employees would receive a 1.5 percent increase from the paygrade midpoint.  This plan would add a net cost of $1,422,505 to the general fund budget. 

 The combined tax rate is estimated to be lowered one cent from $1.239 per $100 of valuation to $1.229. Last year, the tax rate was lowered 13.3 cents, marking a 10.4 percent decrease in the tax rate over the last two years.

 CSISD will continue to review staffing and budget requests, monitor and adjust revenue projections, and update expenditure projections over the next two months.

 The 2020-2021 budget and tax rate will be adopted at the August board meeting.

 Authorization to refinancing and pay off outstanding bond debt:  The board approved the authorization for the superintendent to refund and/or redeem eligible bonds at a future date.  This authorization will allow CSISD to take advantage of lower interest rates and save both the district and taxpayers interest over the long-term and pay debt off earlier than originally planned at the time of issuance.

 Purchases/Bid Approvals:

  •  Approved the purchase of an annual license for an integrated digital curriculum from Active Classroom in the amount of $51,793.92 using Instructional Materials Allotment Funds.
  •  Approved the purchase of property, casual, general liability and auto insurance for the 2020-2021 school year from ANCO Insurance in the amount of $982,925.00 from the general fund.

 -csisd-

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