The Spring ISD Board of Trustees met at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, September 12, in person, and streamed via video conferencing, to address items on the agenda. President Justine Durant called the meeting to order. The Spring High School Navy JROTC led the presentation of colors, with Cadet Petty Officer 1st Class Akai Thompson leading the pledges to the flags. Commanding the Color Guard and carrying the United States Flag was Cadet Lt. Cmdr. Ma’Kayla Marks. Carrying the Texas Flag was Cadet Lt. Cmdr. Genesis Calles. The United States Rifle Guard was Cadet Cmdr. Aidan Jordan. The Texas Rifle Guard was Cadet Lt. Cmdr. Michelle Tellez. The Spring High School Navy JROTC program is under the direction of Master Chief Mark Clarke.

Recognitions

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.

Points of Pride, ABCD Awards and Spotlights

Texas Police Chiefs Association recognizes Spring ISD Police Dept. with renewed accreditation status

During the meeting, the Board hosted a special presentation made on behalf of the Texas Police Chiefs Association (TPCA), officially recertifying the Spring ISD Police Department under the statewide TPCA Law Enforcement Accreditation Program.

Of the 2,800 law enforcement agencies in Texas, only 197 agencies have ever achieved accredited status – which is 7% of Texas agencies. Additionally, Spring ISD’s police department was one of just seven school district-affiliated agencies in the state to make the cut.

In addition to a yearly review process, the official re-accreditation includes a full onsite audit conducted every four years by visiting assessors, including police chiefs and law enforcement command officers from around the state. Spring ISD completed its most recent audit over the summer months.

“Approximately eight years ago, the Spring ISD Police Department first attained their accredited status with the TPCA,” said Tomball Police Department Chief Jeff Bert, who was on hand to present the department with its certificate of re-accreditation. “And it was not easy to do. The agency had to conduct a complete audit of all of its policies, procedures and operations in order to meet these standards.”

After accepting the certificate of renewed accreditation on behalf of the district’s police team, Spring ISD Police Chief Matthew Rodrigue thanked several members of the department whose work especially helped make the recertification possible: Lt. David Borchardt, who serves as the department’s team lead on the TPCA accreditation process; Lt. Andre Jones; Sgt. Laura Robeson; Sgt. Jarrod Morton; Cpl. Janet Helaire; Officer Shanee’ Clewis; and Officer Jessyca Aseme. Rodrigue also thanked his assistant and longtime department member Gretchen Mitchell.

“This sets a standard,” Rodrigue said of the TPCA program. “This sets the excellence mark for law enforcement in the State of Texas. They were doing this before I got here, and I’m very glad to be part of the team, over the past two years, that’s worked to get this reaccreditation.”

Board President Justine Durant congratulated Rodrigue and his whole department, adding that the trustees were especially proud to see Spring ISD leading the way among school district police departments in achieving the accreditation.

“We’re so proud of the work that you do, because we do community policing – we work with students, and it’s different than working in another agency,” Durant said. “This is an amazing accomplishment.”

Read more.

Point of Pride – Hirsch ES Principal LaToya Patterson joins TEPSA Board of Directors

Next, the Board recognized Hirsch Elementary School Principal LaToya Patterson, who was named to the Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association (TEPSA) Board of Directors for 2023-24, where she will serve as Standing Chair of TEPSA’s Programs and Services Committee.

“TEPSA has more than 6,000 members statewide who together help ensure a quality education for more than 3 million Texas schoolchildren,” Chief of Communications Shane Strubhart said during his remarks at the meeting. “We’re grateful for all that Ms. Patterson does to support student success and the success of her fellow educators, and the district is proud to congratulate her on joining this year’s TEPSA Board of Directors.”

Administrators serving on the TEPSA Board of Directors help set and lead the association’s strategic direction and help maintain a positive impact on legislators, policymakers and other stakeholders to ensure a quality education for all Pre-K through 8th grade students in Texas.

“TEPSA’s Board of Directors plays a critical role in advancing the Association’s mission,” Executive Director Harley Eckhart said in a statement announcing this year’s board members. “We appreciate their dedication to supporting and advocating for Texas PK-8 school leaders.”

Patterson has been an active member with TEPSA in recent years, and previously served as TEPSA’s Region 4 President, a role she was elected to while serving as an assistant principal – a rarity among TEPSA board members, who are generally already working as campus principals at the time of their election.

A number of fellow district administrators and campus staff members attended the meeting to celebrate the recognition along with Patterson, who Strubhart noted was one of the district’s homegrown leaders.

“A 2015 Spring ISD Elementary Teacher of the Year and finalist for Region 4 Teacher of the Year, Ms. Patterson – as many of you already know – also grew up in Spring ISD schools, attending Hirsch Elementary, Twin Creeks Middle School and Spring High School,” Strubhart said. “She taught at Dekaney High School and at Anderson Elementary before becoming Anderson’s assistant principal in 2017.”

TEPSA, whose hallmark is “educational leaders learning with and from each other,” has served Texas PK-8 school leaders since 1917.

ABCD Award – Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis

Next up was a Spring ISD Above and Beyond the Call of Duty (ABCD) Award presented to Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis.

With remarks from Board President Justine Durant, the board recognized Commissioner Ellis in gratitude for his support of the district and its students. Specifically, as noted by Durant, Ellis’ leadership has been instrumental in the construction of much-needed sidewalks on Ella Blvd. to allow safer travel along this busy thoroughfare, including for students attending The School for International Studies at Bammel and Westfield High School.

“As a school district, it is imperative that we work with all stakeholders to ensure our students have what they need to be successful both in school and in life,” Durant said. “It is our goal to educate children in safe learning environments. Today we are pleased to recognize an outstanding public servant who answered the call to serve our students and families by meeting their safety needs.”

The district has long collaborated with elected officials to address safety concerns, and with construction of the new sidewalks nearing completion, Durant expressed gratitude on behalf of the many Spring ISD families and students who live and travel along Ella Blvd.

“Thanks to Commissioner Rodney Ellis, our students can now walk to and from school safely,” Durant said.

Ellis was sworn in as Harris County Precinct One Commissioner on January 1, 2017. A longtime public servant, he served three terms on the Houston City Council before being elected to the Texas Senate in 1990, where he went on to represent Texas’ 13th senate district for 26 years and worked to pass more than 700 pieces of legislation to help improve the quality of life of area residents. 

Ellis thanked the trustees for the recognition, and applauded them for their service and the gift of their time and talent in support of public education and the well-being of area schoolchildren.

“What you all do is so important,” Ellis said, “So thank you all for what you do, and thanks to the parents and staff.”

Point of Pride – Texas Art Education Association (TAEA) – 2023 District of Distinction Award

Over the summer, Spring ISD was once again named a “District of Distinction” by the Texas Art Education Association (TAEA). The 2023 award marks the district’s fifth-consecutive win.

“The District of Distinction award recognizes districts that are committed to providing a well-rounded curriculum that includes strong visual arts education across all schools and grade levels,” said Director of Performing & Visual Arts Dr. Joe Clark during his introductory remarks.

Participating districts submit documentation showing their performance across various aspects of the program’s 14-point rubric during the previous school year. Out of more than 1,200 districts eligible for the 2023 award, only 68 met the standard.

After being named one of the award’s inaugural recipients in 2019 and continuing to win each year, Spring ISD is now one of only 16 districts that have achieved District of Distinction status every year since the award has been available – together forming “the top 1.3% of all visual art programming in Texas,” according to a TAEA press release.

“Only 16 districts across the state have done this,” Clark said, “so this is extremely exciting!”

Spring ISD and other winning districts will be honored in November during the TAEA Fall Conference General Assembly in Allen, Texas.

Read more.

Point of Pride – Spring ISD Office of Communications earns 34 National School Communication Awards

The Board concluded with a recognition of Spring ISD’s award-winning Office of Communications, which received 34 awards from the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) in the organization’s 2023 National School Communication Awards program, including 15 top Awards of Excellence.

The awards highlight work in education communication and marketing, covering print, electronic communications, video, graphic design, writing, website development, and social media campaigns.

“Chief Strubhart and our entire communications team have stayed busy this past year, supporting our schools with both day-to-day needs and crisis communications, working with local media outlets, and making sure our community stays informed about the great opportunities available to students here in Spring ISD,” said Superintendent Dr. Lupita Hinojosa during the presentation.

“They help keep the lines of communication open between the district and our stakeholders, and they work hard to ensure that Spring ISD remains a trusted source of information for those in our community,” Hinojosa continued. “These national awards are a testament to their unwavering dedication, exceptional talent, and tireless efforts in effectively communicating the remarkable stories and achievements of our students, staff and families.”

The NSPRA awards were officially presented during the organization’s 2023 national seminar held July 16-19 in St. Louis, where Hinojosa also accepted the organization’s 2022 “Superintendents to Watch” honor.

Read more.

Superintendent's Report

Superintendent Dr. Lupita Hinojosa used her remarks to honor the life of Shantavia Reddick, who was killed the weekend before the meeting. Ms. Reddick was a teacher at Smith Elementary, and was named the district’s Rookie Teacher of the Year in the 2021-22 school year. 

“She had a deep love for her students and her colleagues at Smith Elementary. many of whom articulated just how sweet, caring, and joyful she was,” Dr. Hinojosa said. “One of her colleagues said to me just this morning that she was a ray of sunshine and hope, with her bubbly personality that always made everyone smile. We are going to miss her deeply.”

After a moment of silence, Dr. Hinojosa asked the audience to continue to honor the life and work of Ms. Reddick, and to hug a teacher in memory of her.

Trustees Remarks

At each regular board meeting, during Opening Remarks, each board member is given the opportunity to share information with those present.

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

Trustee Kelly P. Hodges began the remarks by reminding the community that the work of the Board of Trustees is entirely volunteer, and that the trustees are unpaid and they serve as elected officials. 

“The times that we're here until one and two o’clock in the morning for board meetings. It's time that we're taking away from our families because we really love what we're doing,” she said. “And we're committed to this community.”

She also mentioned the opportunity she had to take part in the Timberline Labor Day Parade. She thanked coordinators for inviting her to attend. She also mentioned the district’s Success Walk, which took place the previous weekend.

“When we go to those homes and meet those families and talk to those students, to see them come and really react to what we're doing,” she said. “That is a success if we can reach one child.”

Trustee Dr. Deborah Jensen followed up by talking about her and Trustee McDaniel’s involvement in the College Colors Day at Marshall Elementary School. 

“I thought the excitement of the students [was inspiring],” she said. “And I was struck by how important it is to attend school every day, and to try hard, and I thought it was a wonderful event.”

She also talked about how she met a crossing guard and school volunteer outside of the school, and went on to thank all of the school volunteers who offer up their time at campuses across Spring ISD.

Board President Justine Durant then thanked her colleagues on the Board as well as members of the Senior Leadership Team for their work on a board workshop over the weekend. After the Success Walk, the Trustees had a board workshop and did some exercises to evaluate the district’s mission, vision, and related goals. 

She also discussed a story from the Success Walk as well. 

“We had a young man we were speaking with and his grandmother was holding my hand and crying and speaking in Spanish,” she said. “She was saying that he's a knucklehead and hard headed and thanked us for coming. And then when we got back to [Momentum High School], he was walking in the door to register. Those are the type of rewards that you can't buy.”

Updates

Audit Committee provides update

Assistant Secretary Rhonda Newhouse recounted a recent committee meeting with Chief Financial Officer Ann Westbrooks and Chief of Human Resource Services Dr. Terrell King to discuss action plans for human resources rebuilding in the district. The committee is also working with the district’s internal auditor, Patricia Rios, to coordinate the round of 2023-24 audits, beginning with successful audits related to procurement cards, distribution services, child nutrition, financial services and transportation.

“I know it's a busy season for Ms. Rios, but we appreciate her continuing to reach out to these departments to do an internal audit for the Board,” Newhouse said. “She works under our discretion to audit these departments, and she will continue to audit schools and other departments, so thank you, Ms. Rios.”

Governance Committee provides update

Trustee Dr. Deborah Jensen said the committee had met in September and was evaluating current governance needs in light of its mission to review and edit local policies, connect district priorities to broader legislative advocacy, and to recognize standout employees of the district.

“With that, we're looking at which policies should be reviewed this year, and also looking at governing ourselves as a board of trustees,” Jensen said. “We reviewed advocacy issues in the light of current public climate, including public school funding, some of the things that are going on in other districts, and safety.”

Jensen also noted planned changes to the Board’s Employee Excellence Awards for the current school year, including batching the 2023-24 awards into three groups of three – fall recognitions, winter recognitions, and spring recognitions.

Trustee Natasha McDaniel also briefly outlined plans for increasing the role of students in the governance process through the establishment of a student governance fellowship pilot program

“We know that our students have ideas, they have their own voice, they have their own interests,” McDaniel said, adding that the student governance fellowship would offer a way of “cultivating a space where their voices can be heard, where they can bring forth issues that they feel are important and things they would like to see in the district.”

The pilot program would draw on work already in progress with the Superintendent’s Student Advisory Committee, but would also seek ways to incorporate the voices of a broad range of students, including those who may not already be involved in student council or advisory groups.

Equity Committee provides update

Vice President Winford Adams Jr. gave a brief update on the addition of the district’s equity statement to other materials already available on the district website, all related to Spring ISD’s vision, mission, and guiding principles of meeting the needs of each student and promoting academic success for all.

Community Engagement Committee provides update

Board Secretary Kelly P. Hodges shared an update on activities related to the committee’s goal of partnering with the district and key stakeholders to develop and implement opportunities to improve communication and awareness between the district, parents, and the community.

“We're doing this by using community surveys, public forums, town hall meetings, workshops and special events,” Hodges said. “And we as a committee – and as a board – want to thank all of the community members that participated in our Building Bridges and also our Table Talks, and those that have come out to the anti-bullying workshop that we had, our college readiness resource fair, and our financial literacy and safety forum.”

Information from the previous Building Bridges and Table Talks meetings can be found under the Outreach Efforts section of the Spring ISD Board of Trustees webpage, at the following links:

• Building Bridges with the Board

• Table Talks with the Board

This year, the committee hopes to augment its membership by adding three community members, as well as adding one principal from each comprehensive high school feeder pattern, with the hopes of engaging community members within each feeder pattern through targeted discussion groups and outreach activities.

“We're going to be very intentional about our meetings when we're in the community,” Hodges said, “and making sure that we are respectful of everyone's time.”

Hodges also thanked State Rep. Senfronia Thompson, who came to the district and hosted a town hall meeting on Sept. 5.

“It was really about the legislature and some of the things going on in the state legislature,” Hodges said. “It was really good to have her come out, and she also brought some individuals from major departments in the State of Texas to talk about things that are beneficial to our community, and I was very, very pleased at the attendance we had.”

Lastly, Hodges highlighted upcoming events and initiatives the committee will be involved in, including Building Bridges and Table Talk events later in the fall, as well as outreach in support of voter education and voter registration for community residents.

Action Items and Presentations

Board approves 2023 Tax Rate more than 14.5 cents lower than current rate

Following its final review, the Board voted unanimously to approve a property tax rate for the 2023 tax year of $1.1092 per $100 of assessed valuation.

The new tax rate is down more than 14.5 cents from the current rate of $1.2546 (which was itself a drop of close to six cents from the 2021 rate). The approved 2023 tax rate is the district’s lowest in years, a fact influenced by rising property values across the area, the state’s “no-new-revenue” tax rate guidelines, and elements related to school district funding contained in Senate Bill 2 (SB2), which was passed by the Texas Legislature during this year’s second called session and signed by the governor on July 22, 2023.

Although the increased homestead exemption outlined in SB2 still requires final approval from voters, Chief Financial Officer Ann Westbrooks explained that Texas school districts have been instructed to proceed with setting their tax rates with the assumption that the full bill will go into effect following the vote in November.

“The tax rate is calculated and our bills will be prepared as if Senate Bill 2 were in effect for tax year 2023,” Westbrooks told the trustees. “Senate Bill 2 includes additional tax compression as well as a homestead exemption of $100,000, which will be voted on at the November election.”

As required by state regulations, the district published its initial proposed tax rate in the Houston Chronicle on June 14, 2023. Upon receipt of certified property values from the Harris Central Appraisal District (HCAD) on Aug. 29, an additional review was conducted, resulting in the final proposed tax rate of $1.1092.

The district’s tax rate is made up of two components – a Maintenance & Operations (M&O) component, which supports the general fund budget, in an amount of $0.6692 for the 2023 tax year; and an Interest & Sinking (I&S) component, which supports the debt service, at an amount of $0.44.

In other action, the Board approved:

• Minutes from the Aug. 3, 2023 board work session; Aug. 5, 2023 special called sessions (a.m. and p.m.); and Aug. 8, 2023 regular meeting;

• Contract with Always Be Learning, Inc. (ABL) and Spring ISD;

• Memorandum of Understanding with Junior Achievement of Southeast Texas for the JA Company Program;

• Memorandum of Understanding Between the Honored Foundation and Spring ISD;

• Memorandum of Understanding Between OneGoal and Spring ISD (Recurring Item);

• Texas State University School of Social Work Affiliation Agreement;

• Affiliation Agreement with Texas Southern University;

• Residency Partnership Agreement with Prairie View A&M University;

• Resolution to Designate Non-business Days Relating to the Texas Public Information Act;

• Notice of Grant Award – 2023-2025 School Safety Standards Grant (Fencing Project);

• Certification of Anticipated Collection Rate for Spring;

• 2023 Appraisal Roll Certification (Recurring Item);

• Interlocal Contract Between Texas Department of Information Resources (Texas DIR) and Spring ISD for Future Cybersecurity Products and Services;

• Authorization for the Superintendent or a designee to negotiate, execute, and amend contracts for the following (in amounts not to exceed the overall project budget for each project):

  • (RFP) #23-026 – Third Party Code Review & Texas Accessibility Standards Services,

  • (RFQ) #23-021 – Architectural Professional Services – EPIC,

  • (RFQ) #23-022 – Architectural Professional Services – Spring High School,

  • (RFQ) #23-023 – Architectural Professional Services Over $15 Million,

  • (RFQ) #23-024 – Architectural Professional Services Below $15 Million,

  • (RFQ) #23-025 – Construction Related Professional Services;

• A resolution authorizing the district to join current litigation against the Texas Education Agency (TEA) regarding changes to the accountability system; and

• Taxpayer refunds (Recurring item).