Superintendent's Report
Elementary Attendance Boundaries Our public forums for community input on the Attendance Boundaries maps begins this evening, Tuesday, January 22, at Lake Belton Middle School and Thursday, January 24, at South Belton Middle School. Both forums will be held from 6-7:30 p.m. Our goal is to consider feedback from those forums and bring a recommendation for elementary attendance boundaries to the Board in February.
Trustee Election
The Trustee Election will be held on May 11. Early voting begins on April 29, and the last day to register to vote in this election is April 11. Area 1, currently held by Penny Digby, Area 3 (vacant), and Area 5, currently held by Mike Cowan, are included in this election. Filing dates are January 30 to March 1.
Legislative Update
Our legislators are now in session. Three areas to focus on this session include: 1) school finance, 2) state testing, especially for end-of-course exams, and 3) the issue of privatization, including funding for charter schools and vouchers. Both the House and Senate are discussing budgets that include funding for growth, but there are no conversations about restoring cuts from the previous biennium.
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City of Belton Presentation
Belton City Manager, Sam Listi, made a presentation of $26,715.27 which will be used for school crossing guards. Funds are obtained from auto registration fees through Bell County which are then passed through the City to the District. We are grateful for our strong partnership with the City of Belton. |
Construction Update
Work is progressing at High Point Elementary, and the school is now easily seen from Hwy. 317. The building should be "dried-in" by the end of the month. We project that we will be able to begin moving into the building at the end of July as anticipated. Also, the GMP (Guaranteed Maximum Price) for North Belton Middle School should be presented to the Board at the March Board meeting, and the GMP for Chisholm Trail Elementary at the May Board meeting.
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Technology in the Special Education Program
Jill Ross, Executive Director of Special Programs, presented advances in technology through iPad apps and software which help our special education students be more successful. Programs such as Proloquo2Go augments communication abilities; AIMS teachers use the app Classdojo to collect data to manage student behavior; and home bound students are able to use DropBox to turn in assignments electronically and use FaceTime to stay more closely connected with classroom instruction. |
2011-2012 Audit Report
Our independent auditor reported that Belton ISD received a "clean" opinion with no deficiencies. We are extremely proud of this report and our Business Office staff who work so diligently to make this possible.
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AVID Report
Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction Kim Christy-Anderson, and BHS AVID Coordinator Elayne Kaufman, reported on the AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) program that supports students in the "academic middle" sp that they can achieve the goal of a post-secondary education. An AVID Celebration will be held Thursday, Jan. 31 at 6 p.m. at the BHS Commons. |