The Spring ISD Board of Trustees met at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 22 in person, and streamed via video conferencing, to address items on the agenda. President Justine Durant called the meeting to order and the Dekaney High School Navy JROTC led the presentation of colors, with Cadet Cmdr. Enock Gota leading the pledges to the flags. Carrying the U.S. Flag was Cadet Lt. Cmdr. Emily Salinas. Carrying the Texas Flag was Cadet Chief Petty Officer Thi’ler Rosette-Simien. Left Rifle was Cadet Lt. Avery Closner. Right Rifle was Cadet Ensign Andrea Martinez. The Dekaney Wildcat Navy JROTC Battalion is under the direction of Chief Victor Adams and Chief Robert Dunn.
Since January 1984, the Board has recognized students and staff for major accomplishments beyond the District with Points of Pride awards. ABCD awards are presented to individuals or groups that go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty.

Special ceremony for Devarjaye “DJ” Daniel sworn in as an honorary member of the Spring ISD Police Department

During the meeting, trustees had the opportunity to witness a very special Spring ISD Police Department ceremony welcoming the department’s youngest-ever new sergeant – 10-year-old Devarjaye “DJ” Daniel.

“We’re swearing in someone tonight,” Spring ISD Police Chief Ken Culbreath told the trustees, “and it’s a true honor for us.”

Daniel, whose family lives in Pearland, has been battling brain and spine cancer for several years. Inspired by his dream of becoming a police officer when he grows up, Daniel set a goal to be sworn in by 100 law enforcement agencies in an effort to bring greater awareness to childhood cancer.

Since announcing his goal, Daniel has received an outpouring of support from police departments and other law enforcement agencies. He met his initial goal of 100 agencies in January, but hasn’t stopped there, and the invitations keep coming. By the time Culbreath swore in “Sergeant DJ” as an honorary member of the Spring ISD Police Department, Daniel had been sworn in by nearly 400 law enforcement agencies.

“Chief Culbreath believes that sergeants are the cornerstone of any innovative and highly productive law enforcement agency,” said Superintendent Dr. Lupita Hinojosa before Daniel raised his right hand to take the official oath. “Sergeants are responsible for ensuring that every police officer values human life and treats everyone with dignity and respect.”

Daniel’s father, Theodis Daniel, addressed the Board after the swearing-in ceremony, thanking them and the Spring ISD Police Department for supporting his son’s dream and helping to promote awareness of the special challenges faced by children with cancer and their families. In particular, he thanked those present for “just caring and showing compassion for him.”

“We’re going to keep on going as far as we can go,” he said, noting that his son’s efforts were also meant to honor the memory of Abigail Arias, a Freeport girl who died at just seven years old in 2019 after her own struggle with a rare kidney cancer, but not before fulfilling her dream of being sworn in as an honorary member of the Freeport Police Department just a few months before her death.

Culbreath said that Daniel’s story – together with his inspiring spirit – had touched the hearts of Spring ISD’s police force and meant a lot to them as law enforcement officers who work regularly with children. He thanked all those who had helped coordinate the swearing-in ceremony for Spring ISD’s own “Sergeant DJ.”

“I want to acknowledge our police department,” Chief Culbreath said. “They’ve championed this from the beginning.”

Women’s History Month Essay Contest winners honored

Trustees recognized the winners of this year’s Women’s History Month Essay Contest, which was open to all Spring ISD students, from prekindergarten through high school.

Chief of Innovation Dr. Matt Pariseau explained that the contest was designed to help students at every grade level learn more about exciting people and events in women’s history while at the same time developing important academic skills related to research, writing, and critical thinking, such as balancing central ideas with supporting evidence.

“It helps empower our students to see what they can accomplish, and to dream beyond their own dreams,” Pariseau said.

Six student essays from across the district were selected for special recognition, including entries in English and Spanish. The winning students for the March 2022 Women’s History Month Essay Contest are:

Pre-K through Grade 2 Category

Student: Angelina Martinez
Grade 2nd
Campus: Northgate Crossing Elementary
Subject: Frida Kahlo
Essay Language: English

Student: Rosario Quintero
Grade: Kindergarten
Campus: Link Elementary School
Subject: Marie Curie
Essay Language: Spanish

Grade 3-5 Category

Student: Parker Thomas
Grade: 4th
Campus: McNabb Elementary School 
Subject: Helen Keller
Essay Language: English

Student: Beija Castillo 
Grade: 3rd
Campus: Jenkins Elementary School
Subject: Frida Kahlo
Essay Language: Spanish

Grade 6-8 Category

Student: Sanaia Kabara
Grade: 7th
Campus: School for International Studies at Bammel 
Subject: Lusia Harris
Essay Language: English

Grade 9-12 Category

Student: Tina Tran
Grade 10th
Campus: Westfield High School
Subject: Mabel Ping-Hua Lee
Essay Language: English

Pariseau also thanked Instructional Technology Specialist Jessica Jackson, who helped oversee this year’s essay contest, as well as the parents and campus-based library and media center staff who had supported students throughout the district participating in the contest.

“It is always amazing when you see what our students put together,” Pariseau said. “It's so inspiring.”

Spotlight Recognizes District Spelling Bee Winners

Trustees also celebrated a Spotlight recognition for the winners of Spring ISD’s 2022 district Spelling Bee, which took place Feb. 23 at Carl Wunsche Sr. High School.

“The Spelling Bee is so important,” said Chief of Innovation Dr. Matt Pariseau during his remarks. “It goes beyond just the vocabulary learned, although that's definitely a great outcome of it. It also includes helping our students expand their skills with thinking, self-confidence, communication, and being able to persevere under pressure.”

In all, 29 district students represented their campuses at the districtwide event in February. The Spelling Bee Champion for the district was Northgate Crossing Elementary School fifth grader Dylan Jackson, who went on to represent Northgate and Spring ISD during this year’s Regional Houston Public Media Spelling Bee.

The district’s runner-up – and alternate for the regional competition – was Chimaobi Ezekwem, an eighth grade student at the School for International Studies at Bammel.

“We know that took a lot of volunteers, community members, Spelling Bee coordinators and principals to ensure the success,” Pariseau said of the district event, “and also to comfort our students as they went through that process – including our Curriculum Specialists Khristian Jones and Tiffany McQuaig-Wallace, who are here as well.”

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Dr. Clare Resilla – 2022 Distinguished Educator of the Year Recipient

Hirsch Elementary School Principal Dr. Clare Resilla was recognized for being named a 2022 Distinguished Educator of the Year by Sam Houston State University’s College of Education.

Resilla is one of only five recipients selected in 2022 to receive the Distinguished Educator of the Year award, which honors accomplished Sam Houston alumni making a positive difference in education around the region and across the state.

“This is the highest alumni award presented by the College of Education at Sam Houston,” said Chief of Communications Lester Gretsch during his remarks, “and Spring ISD joins in celebrating Dr. Resilla’s accomplishment, along with her deep commitment to the field of education and her passionate dedication to student success.”

Chief of Schools Dr. Miguel Perez was also on hand for the presentation, and noted that Resilla had worked in several capacities in Spring ISD since her arrival in the district, including supporting the district’s emerging bilingual scholars before joining the administration at Hirsch.

“The environment and the atmosphere that she has at her campus, it's phenomenal,” Perez said. “Her leadership permeates throughout the school. The culture there, it's exciting, the counselors and the community love her. So, this is just a little appreciation for all that you have done.”

Resilla thanked the trustees – both in English and then, briefly, in the language of the Philippines, where she was born – emphasizing the long journey she had made in her own life and how it had shaped her views on serving others, especially students.

“As an Asian immigrant, never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I would be standing here in front of you to receive this recognition,” Resilla said. “I am grateful for the opportunity to fulfill my mission in a district which continues to provide hope, believing in the idea that education is the greatest equalizer.”

Board President Justine Durant congratulated Resilla on behalf of the district, both for her work as principal at Hirsch and for all her contributions to Spring ISD.

“Thank you for all of your hard work, commitment and dedication,” Durant said. “We're blessed and honored to have such a valuable asset to our team and our organization.”

Trustee Natasha McDaniel – who met Resilla several years ago when both were employed in Aldine ISD – also applauded her for the award.

“You are truly deserving of this honor – for your passion, your dedication to, especially, marginalized students, your willingness to listen to the community that you serve,” McDaniel said. “So I just want to say congratulations, and you truly, truly deserve it.”

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Point of Pride – Texas School Public Relations Association (TSPRA) Star Awards

Trustees recognized the Spring ISD Communications Department with a Point of Pride award for recently winning 36 Star Awards from the Texas School Public Relations Association (TSPRA) for excellence in school communications during the 2020-21 school year. Every year, TSPRA recognizes and honors exceptional work in print, electronic and visual communications.

“You probably don't see them–except the flashing lights–because they often stay behind the scenes supporting our campuses and departments, responding to the request from the media, and helping tell our story to the community,” Superintendent Dr. Lupita Hinojosa said. “Their work is an important part of ensuring the district is a trusted source of information for those we serve, and providing timely and transparent communications about the things that matter to our families, staff and students.”

Hinojosa noted that the team was also awarded a Crystal Award Finalist for a photography portfolio, four Best Of Category awards, 22 Gold Stars, 11 Silver Stars and two Bronze Stars. For its Crystal Awards finalist, Spring ISD was honored for its Photography Portfolio. The four Best of Category Awards included the Reading Colors Your World flier, a blog article about a Spring Early College Academy student accepted to every Ivy League school, the Spring ISD website redesign, and the financial report computerized presentation.

“We’re grateful for the work that the department does, in particular, for how their work connects the district to the community, while celebrating the achievements of our students, staff and schools,” Hinojosa expressed.

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Superintendent's Report

Superintendent Dr. Lupita Hinojosa began her remarks by going over the district’s efforts in raising funds for the Spring Tri-Club Livestock Show & Fair, which is being held this weekend, March 24 through 26. This annual event features the efforts of Spring ISD students involved in the Future Farmers of America organization; the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America organization; and the 4-H Clubs. 

In support of these students and their efforts, the district hosts the Superintendent Stampede every year. This year’s goal is to raise $20,000 towards purchasing at the Livestock Show’s auction on Saturday. These funds go directly to the students and scholarships available to them.

Dr. Hinojosa encouraged those in attendance to donate towards the $20,000 goal.

She then went on to announce a few other upcoming events, including the Spanish-language spelling bee, which will be held on Saturday, April 2, as well as the Pre-K Roundup which begins April 4. 

“Our board has made a decision that we will offer pre-K for all students,” Dr. Hinojosa said. “So anyone that's out there, if you are online listening, or you have a little neighbor that you know will be turning four years old [by] September 1, that's the only requirement.”

Parents can register students at the nearest elementary school, or on the district website. Registration begins April 4.

Dr. Hinojosa also highlighted the dual-language studies at School for International Studies at Bammel, which begins at pre-K. Interested parents can enroll their students in the program, and students will learn in both English and Spanish from the very start of their educational journey.

She then encouraged parents to pay attention to all communication coming from schools as the current school year winds down and students and parents prepare for the new school year. 

She then finished her remarks by introducing three newly named leaders from throughout the district.

Dr. Matt Pariseau was named Chief of Innovation, and will focus on innovation and specialty programs throughout the district. Dr. Pariseau has served in various roles in Spring ISD since joining the district in 2013, including as an instructional coach, Special Education supervisor and director, as well as in his most recent role as Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Workforce Development.

Laura Hunter was named as the principal of Westfield High School. Ms. Hunter has been an educator for 30 years. She has served in multiple roles including teacher, assistant principal, associate principal, principal, and central office administrator. 

Dr. Hilarion Martinez will be joining Spring ISD as Assistant Superintendent for Feeder Pattern 1, which includes Anderson, Booker, Burchett, Cooper, and Jenkins elementary schools; and Bailey and Dueitt middle schools. Dr. Martinez comes from Houston ISD, where he served for the past six years as School Support Officer for the district’s Achieve 180 campuses – designated as the most underserved and underperforming in the district. 

Deborah Jensen
Position 1

Kelly P. Hodges
Position 2

Justine Durant
Position 3

Winford Adams Jr.
Position 4

Rhonda Newhouse
Position 5

Carmen Correa
Position 6

Natasha McDaniel
Position 7

Dr. Deborah Jensen began the Trustee Remarks by recognizing Dr. Clare Resilla, who recently was named one of the 2022 Distinguished Educators of the Year, an alumni award from the Sam Houston State University College of Education. Dr. Jensen also stated she is a fellow alum of SHSU.

Dr. Jensen then went on to highlight her experiences at the community forum event at Springwoods Village Middle School, which highlighted the service projects of 8th graders enrolled in the International Baccalaureate program. She mentioned projects spanning from a bee preservation effort, a group teaching volleyball to elementary school children, and a pair of 8th grade boys who read to students at neighboring Northgate Crossing Elementary.

She then mentioned that the International Baccalaureate program could be beneficial for all Spring ISD students.

Vice President Winford Adams, Jr. followed, and spoke about a recent conference he attended. The keynote speaker spoke about cultural awareness and diversity, and how it can affect students. He admitted to mistakes he made in the past in the classroom, and encouraged board members to keep equity and cultural awareness in mind in all decisions.

He then spoke about another experience at the Texas Caucus Black School Board Members educational summit. He spoke about a project from Corsicana ISD.

“The Penguin Project pairs differently abled students [with] neurotypical students to do musical theater,” Adams said. “They had data and results that showed all sorts of tangential benefits in terms of growth for special needs students.”

He expressed his interest in potentially pursuing a similar program for Spring ISD.

Trustee Natasha McDaniel spoke next about the Rising Writers Expo, and the students involved with that program. She thanked the students for sharing their work with the board and the greater community. She also thanked all the staff and teachers involved with the Expo, as well as encouraging literacy and writing in Spring ISD students. 

“I just wanted to applaud our students who entered the Expo because their work was truly phenomenal,” McDaniel said. “They shared their personal stories, they shared the love they have for their community and their families. They shared a lot of internal issues they’re dealing with, and I just applaud our children for expressing themselves. I encourage you to continue writing poetry because it can help you to get those thoughts and feelings out, but it can also help other people who read your work.”

McDaniel also recounted her opportunity to tour the Black History Museum at Marshall Elementary School. She recognized the leadership of Principal Shimona Eason, as well as the work of fourth grade teacher Alivia Hardges. 

Assistant Secretary Rhonda Newhouse recognized the Westfield High School boys basketball team, who won district and went on to represent Spring ISD in the regional round. 

“We are very proud of their accomplishments,” Newhouse said. “Job well done, you made us proud.”

Secretary Kelly Hodges echoed Newhouse by commending all the district athletes that were recognized at the athletic banquet.

“I know that we are successful in football and basketball, but to see [them also recognized] with academics really made me proud, as a former student athlete,” Hodges said. “I just wanted to recognize those athletes for the awards that they received.”

Trustee Carmen Correa spoke next about her experiences at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo this weekend, where several Spring ISD art students were represented in the student art show.

“I just wanted to say congratulations to all the artists and to the art program,” Correa said. “And it's always good to get that kind of exposure and it’s very much a point of pride.”

Finally, President Justine Durant thanked the board for their efforts in introducing Dr. Hinojosa over the past few months as the new Spring ISD superintendent, at district and community events.

President Durant also mentioned the Spring Tri-Club Livestock Show and Fair, and encouraged community members to attend and offer support.

“These kids get up every single day — rain, sleet. And snow even sometimes here lately — to take care of those animals and raise them. This is an opportunity for them to showcase that hard work and for us to support them in that,” Durant said.

Updates

Board Equity Committee Provides Update

Trustee Winford Adams led a brief discussion on equity, where he shared that the Board Equity Committee recently attended a governance conference in Galveston in hopes of bringing cultural awareness training to Spring ISD.

“I think that's something that we want to make available for teachers, so we're coming up with the plan [for] some professional development options for our educators to help them be more culturally aware and serve our students better,” Adams said.

Trustee Natasha McDaniel piggybacked off Adams’ comments by expressing the need for school leaders and administration to address personal biases in order to have a better understanding of the students served in the district.

“It's important that we are not just checking a box when we do this work,” McDaniel said. “It all starts with self–from the board, to our superintendent, leadership, our teachers and our staff, it is important that we are doing that work. Just like Trustee Adams said, we all have biases depending on where we were born, where we grew up and what we experience, so it's important that we're able to better serve our students and let them know that we are committed to equity.”

McDaniel also shared her role on the committee–a focus on literacy initiatives–and the importance of creating a culturally responsive curriculum in Spring ISD.

“Literacy is really key to success,” McDaniel said. “It is key to liberation, it helps our children to really understand their identity, it helps them to develop and be able to critically think, and we want them to be prepared for society.”

President Justine Durant wrapped up the update by expressing how she found the governance conference to be rewarding.

“We know we are required to meet so many continuing education hours a year, and we go to the conferences in which to do that,” Durant said. “There are often times when we have an opportunity to learn things that we can bring back, and there's a lot of times when it's stuff we've already been doing all along–but the conference in Galveston was very rewarding.”

Action Items and Presentations

Spring ISD Police and Emergency Management Provides School Safety Update

Spring ISD Chief of Police Ken Culbreath provided a detailed report to trustees on the most recent Emergency Management and School Safety updates for Spring ISD, highlighting efforts by the department to support campuses on a day-to-day basis while also responding proactively to incidents when they arise.

He discussed several current and upcoming initiatives for the department, including enhanced investigative capabilities, implementation of new crime prevention and crime displacement efforts, and a community policing strategy aimed at building stronger connections with the communities that surround Spring ISD’s schools, together with those living in them.

The first item he discussed was a new investigative process for threats that are made virtually, online through email or social media. This involves a new investigative flowchart, which helps the Police Department quickly and efficiently investigate the threat. This includes a process for determining the source, authority to subpoena digital records, and more. It also includes partnerships with various organizations that allow the PD to have more widespread investigative capabilities. These partners include the Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce, a digital recovery platform called Cellebrite, and access to partner databases from organizations like the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, Harris County Sheriff's Office, and almost 40 other databases.

The police department is also reaching out to parents with various documents to help them create children who are digitally responsible, including a 56-page document from Texas State University and Safer Schools Together called Raising Digitally Responsible Youth, A Texas Parent Guide. That can be found at SpringISD.org/TexasParentGuide.

Other safety and security updates include an app for emergency notification, kits and processes surrounding reunification of parents and students in emergency settings.

In addition, bleed kits for campuses and other district sites are being installed throughout the district, with training for staff and faculty this summer. 

Campus officers now have access to response lockers, with various tools and items needed quickly available to them. 

The Police Department is also working on updating the active shooter response plan, to assess new threats and updated technologies to help create a more robust and effective plan.

A real-time safety center has also been set up, where officers can monitor security footage in real-time and alert campuses or officers of activity happening as it occurs.

Finally, the Police Department is working with creating communication tools to get more information to parents and the surrounding community. The final approval for these communication tools will begin in the coming months.

Board approves 2022-2023 Additional Day School Year (ADSY) Calendar

On Tuesday evening, the Spring ISD Board of Trustees approved the 2022-23 Additional Days School Year (ADSY) calendar for the upcoming school year, which will have Clark Primary and Clark Intermediate students starting classes on Aug. 8, 2022 and finishing on June 30, 2023.

The Additional Days School Year (ADSY) is a program provided by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) that provides elementary schools in Texas with additional half-day funding to add up to 30 additional days of school to prevent the summer slide. The effort is designed to help students stay on track to maximize achievement gains. This will be the second year that Spring ISD has implemented this program. Under the approved calendar option for the 200-day program, the district will add 20 instructional days for students at the Clark campuses. 

During the Board Work Session on March 8, 2022, Chief of Schools Dr. Miguel Perez introduced both Clark campus principals – Principal Cynthia Gomez from Clark Primary, and Principal Katherine Fisher from Clark Intermediate – who shared about how two calendar options were presented to teachers and parents for their input, as well as some of the highlights of the program so far this year. 

Calendar Option A had teachers and students coming back a week earlier than the regular instructional calendar, and Calendar Option B had students coming back at the same time as the regular instructional calendar and teachers coming back the week before. Principal Gomez said both parents and teachers overwhelmingly recommended Calendar A for the coming school year. 

Gomez also shared that she has been encouraged by the implementation of the ADSY calendar program, citing a 12 percent and 13 percent rise in reading and math this school year, respectively, from data pulled from middle of year assessments.

“Right now we can see a big impact,” she said. “Having that extra time to get to know (our students) and build relationships … we’re able to do a lot with those extra days.”

Principal Fisher echoed that sentiment, saying ADSY gives more flexibility to be creative. 

“ADSY gives us the opportunity to think outside the box,” she said. “Number one, we get a chance to have additional planning for our teachers, where they’re able to engage in professional development and engage in planning around the curriculum – and also talk about some of those social and emotional needs of our students.”

To view the approved calendar, click here.

In other action, the Board approved:

• The minutes from the Feb. 8, 2022 regular meeting; and the Feb. 28, 2022 special called session;

• Approval of the second reading of proposed changes to investment policy CDA (LOCAL); 

• Approval of the engagement letter with Whitley Penn for the district’s annual audit, and;

• Taxpayer Refunds.