May 7, 2002
The Board presented "Extra Mile Awards" to the following individuals and organizations for May:
| Individual/Organization | Recognized Activity |
| Mary Ryan Parent Volunteer |
Fall Fun Raiser and Spring Cherry Festival Organizer and Volunteer at Bess Brannen Elementary |
| Dave Wiegand Parent Volunteer |
Donating his "Fridays Off" to Volunteer at Bess Brannen Elementary |
| Brazosport Rotary Club | Continued Financial and Volunteer Support to BISD |
| Brazoria County Fair Association | Dedication to children, Science, and Social Studies in BISD |
The Board recognized students
for their academic and extracurricular achievements during the past school year.
A complete listing of these recognitions is included below as a supplement to
this month's Highlights.
The Board of Trustees recognized the following campuses for being named recipients of Texas Successful School Awards:
A.P. Beutel Elementary School
Bess Brannen Elementary School
T.W. Ogg Elementary School
Clute Intermediate School
The monetary awards are provided by the State of Texas to schools that have demonstrated the highest levels of sustained success or the greatest improvement in achieving education goals.
Kurt Evans, Co-Chairman of the Master Facility Planning Committee, presented the Committee's facility recommendations to the Board for their approval. Mr. Evans explained that the $133.4 million, multi-year plan addresses facility needs district-wide and will require voter approval for its implementation. After approving the Committee's recommendation, Board President, Ron Miles, and Superintendent Okruhlik congratulated Mr. Evans and the Committee members for their hard work and diligence in developing the plan.
Becky Rinehart, Coordinator
of Assessment, presented Board members with the 2002 preliminary TAAS exit-level
results. Mrs. Rinehart explained that the results, which are still subject
to mobility adjustments, indicate that all students and all student groups
tested performed at the "Exemplary" passing standard on all three
subject area tests, with scores of 98%, 98%, and 97%, respectively, for reading,
math, and writing. The preliminary results indicate that Brazosport High
School will retain its "Exemplary" accountability rating for the 2002
school year and Brazoswood High School will be a "Recognized" campus.
Board members congratulated both high schools for their outstanding results,
which are expected to contribute to an overall "Exemplary" rating for
the District for the 2001-2002 school year.
Susan Wood, Brazoswood High School Assistant Principal, reported on Keller Independent School District's innovative and successful Guidance and Counseling Program, and the results of a recently completed visit to that district by Ms. Wood and several members of the District's counseling staff. Ms. Wood identified a list of identified "dangers to school success," and described steps Keller has taken to enhance collaborative efforts among counselors and between departments. Ms. Wood also presented a list of district-wide benefits enjoyed by Keller as a result of their program improvements, and concluded by asking Gail Cole, Brazosport High School Counselor, and Julie Engelking, Lake Jackson Intermediate School Counselor, to comment on their observations and reactions to the Keller visit. Board members thanked the presenters for their report, and expressed pleasure with the District's efforts to improve its own Guidance and Counseling Program.
Char Burgner, Director of Instruction, presented an update to the Board on the District's Dual Credit Program with Brazosport College. Mrs. Burgner began her presentation with general information concerning the Dual Credit Program; including, program guidelines, student qualifications for participation, and historical participation statistics. Mrs. Burgner continued with a discussion of "weighted grading" policy issues related to the Dual Credit Program, and an examination of how surrounding school districts are addressing the weighted grading issue. Mrs. Burgner concluded by reviewing a list of future study issues associated with the Dual Credit Program, and stated that a recommendation concerning grade weighting for dual credit courses will be presented to the Board for their consideration in June. Board members thanked Mrs. Burgner and her staff for their presentation, and encouraged the formation of a task force to study the issue and develop a recommendation.
Board members approved leasing property directly south of the B.I.S.D. Administration Building to the Brazosport Teachers Federal Credit Union for purposes of constructing a new Credit Union facility. The lease has an initial term of fifteen years, with up to five subsequent ten-year renewals, and calls for the new Credit Union facility to be completed by no later than February 2003. Credit Union officials hope to break ground on the new facility by August, with completion scheduled for year-end.
Board members canvassed the May 4, 2002, Bond and Trustee Election returns and declared Jay Bart Luce elected to the Board of Trustees representing Single-Member Trustee District 6.
The Oath of Office was
administered to newly elected Board members, Jay Bart Luce and James P.
Saccomanno. Mr. Saccomanno had previously been declared elected by the
Board as an unopposed candidate representing Single-Member Trustee District 7.
The Board elected the following officers for 2002-2003:
| President | Ron Miles |
| Vice President | James P. Saccomanno |
| Secretary | Mazie Mack |
| Assistant Secretary | Louis Walker |
Mr. Okruhlik reviewed the construction packages being developed by the District's architects, PBK Architects, Inc., in connection with the $6 million "interim bond" issue recently approved by voters. Superintendent Okruhlik explained that the packages call for much of the work to be completed during summer 2002, with the remainder of the projects being completed during evening hours and weekends. Board members are scheduled to consider the first package at their June 10, 2002, workshop meeting.
The Board of Trustees named Pamela Davis as Principal of O. M. Roberts Elementary School to replace retiring Principal, Ludina Jaster, and Ronald Speir as Director of Student Services.
In other actions, the Board of Trustees approved the official minutes for the April 2, April 8, and April 16, 2002, Board meetings, approved financial statements for March 2002, approved two State waivers for district textbook selections, approved non-resident student transfers, adopted a recommendation by the Brazoria County Property Tax Resale Committee to sell delinquent tax properties held in trust by Brazoria County, adopted a 2001-2002 Special Revenue Fund budget amendment, and awarded contracts for employee benefit plan administration and walk-in freezers and coolers for Bess Brannen and T. W. Ogg Elementary Schools.
Texas Independence Day Essay Contest
Lake Jackson Intermediate School
1st Place
Woody Kreuz
3rd Place
Emily Carr
Texas Math Counts T-Shirt Design
Contest
Mark Lotzenhiser
School Media Award
Jessica Ebach
Duke University Talent Identification
Program
State Recognition
| Rachel Barber | Alisha Gillis |
| Parag Bathia | Kevin Kreuz |
| Emily Carr | Tad Macaraeg |
| Tiffany Chen | Nicholas Moore |
| Adam Claeys | Ryan Parker |
| Alexander Darst | Alfredo Rangel |
| Erica Davis | Phillip Robinson |
| Bradley Dolsberry | Amanda Thomson |
| Anna Essington | Michael Walzel |
S.F. Austin Elementary
Miguel Nino - Silver Medal
Daniel Shirtum - Gold Medal and Best of Show
Angelica Aponte - Silver Medal
Dylan Guidry - Gold Medal
Tanner Viktorin - Bronze Medal
Colton Edwards-Silver Medal
A.P. Beutel Elementary
Gina Mangold, Cassidy Dorste - Bronze Medal
Phillup Heimeyer - Silver Medal
Zachary McCarthy - Gold Medal and Best of Show
Alan McCarthy - Gold Medal
Sara Morgan - Bronze Medal
Victoria Rodriguez - Bronze Medal
Robert Berg - Bronze Medal
Emily Terrell - Gold Medal and Best of Show
Bess Brannen Elementary
Hannah Shiller - Gold Medal
Chris Babbington - Bronze Medal
Cullen Babbington - Bronze Medal
Adrianna Brueggemann - Gold Medal and Best of Show
T.W. Ogg Elementary
Laura Garza - Bronze Medal
O.M. Roberts Elementary
Elissa Kneupper - Silver Medal
Andrea Dillon - Gold Medal
Ryan Compton - Bronze Medal
Taylor Pelton - Silver Medal
Sarah Hillabrand - Bronze Medal
Dylan Price - Gold Medal
Grady Rasco Middle School
Ethan Babbington - Silver Medal
Ben Welte, Joshua Welte - Gold Medal
Trey Goodson - Bronze Medal
Kathleen Pham, Natalie Roman - Bronze Medal
Amanda Simpson - Silver Medal
Marina Brueggemann - Gold Medal and Best of Show
Brandon Goodard - Bronze Medal
Romana Brueggemann - Bronze Medal
Lyndsay Phillips - Silver Medal
Jamie Beyer - Bronze Medal
Kajal Mehta - Gold Medal and Best of Show
Elisabet Ney Elementary
Kerry Schuette - Silver Medal
Lake Jackson Intermediate School
Ruth Burnette - Bronze Medal
Tess Holtzclaw, Lisa Paul, Courtnie Ghinaudo - Silver Medal
Mallory Wampler, Britni Dunn - Gold Medal
Lisa Chapa - Bronze Medal
Nicholas Hockstra, Brian Singhania - Silver Medal
Rachael Rinn, Sharla Chamberlain, Kelsi Orsak - Gold Medal
David Garcia, Varun Munjal - Bronze Medal
Ben Zeigler, Jacob Kilgore - Gold Medal
Freeport Intermediate School
Jason Bailey - Gold Medal
Clute Intermediate School
Taylor Fox - Silver Medal
Brazoswood High School
Morgan Self - Bronze Medal
Hannah Marman - Silver Medal
Emileigh Smircic - Gold Medal
Michael Walton - Bronze Medal
Cullen Williams - Bronze Medal
Meaghen Krebsbach - Silver Medal
Blake Novosad - Gold Medal
Kaela Astley - Gold Medal, U. S. Fisheries Wildlife Award and Sea Center Texas
Student Scientist Award
Lindsey McMillian - Bronze Medal
Angela Wright - Silver Medal
Leah McGee - Gold Medal
Lisa West - Bronze Medal
Jacob Stanley - Silver Medal
Jaxon Gluck - Gold Medal
Suzanne McNeill - Bronze Medal
Michael Henry - Silver Medal
Kristyn Phillips - Gold Medal and Best of Show
Courtney Nixon - Silver Medal
Steve Oin - Silver Medal
Darryl Stepien - Bronze Medal
Craig Newman - Silver Medal
Michael Pickering - Gold Medal
Brazosport High School
Gary Bailey - Bronze Medal