Hawkins ISD Board of Trustees
$58K furnishings budget OK’d; Construction “wraps” mid-March
By JOHN SPARKS

Meeting in regular session Monday, January 14, trustees of the Hawkins Independent School District approved a budget amendment that will provide new furniture and furnishings for the newly constructed wing at the elementary school and the addition of a teacher for the kindergarten program. Trustees also heard a report that the construction projects will be “wrapped-up” completely by March 15. A proposal to reorganize the board was defeated after the board discussed the proposal in executive session.

Trustees were presented with cost estimates for furniture and furnishings for the new wing at the elementary school and for the new cafetorium. Robert Fair, HISD Business Manager, advised board members that $13,734 would be needed to furnish four new classrooms, while 40 new round tables and 240 chairs along with 8 rectangular tables with attached stools for the cafetorium would cost $29,583. A three-unit portable stage will cost $7,453. The board approved the acquisitions of the above along with the addition of 10 additional round tables and 60 chairs at a total cost not to exceed $58,000. These funds will come from the fund balance and not from the $25-million in bonds being used to renovate existing buildings and construct a new building to house the cafetorium and the new varsity gymnasium and the wing for the elementary school.
 

Brice Davis, the architect overseeing the construction and renovation program reported all phases of the construction will be “wrapped-up” by March 15. He indicted the district will have occupancy of the elementary wing, the cafetorium and the gymnasium by February 28. The locker rooms will be the last element in the new buildings to be completed. That work is expected to be completed by March 15. The board approved a change in the specifications for the lockers in the varsity dressing rooms opting for 15-inch-by-15-inch lockers rather than the smaller 12X15 size originally specified. This change necessitated an additional expenditure of $6,802 and a reduction in the number of units from 108 to 88.
 

Trustee Steven Holland asked the board to consider a re-organization of the board. Officers were last elected in June 2007 after the most recent election in May. The Board went into executive session for approximately 45 minutes to discuss the proposal. Upon reconvening, trustees voted not to reorganize.
 

The board acknowledged two resignations/retirements. Charles Leffall, high school principal resigned effective June 30, 2008 while Ricky Parker, band director has resigned effective January 31, 2008. Donna Meyers was hired as an elementary teacher, assigned to the kindergarten program.
 

Superintendent Dan Rose reported he will be meeting with the contractor who repaired the floor in the elementary gymnasium. He said the floor looks very good, but there are some “soft spots” that are apparently not uncommon on a “floating” gymnasium floor. But Rose said he wants to discuss these with the contractor.
 

Rose and Debi Crawford, Coordinator of Curriculum discussed the progress in instituting the Raptor security system throughout the campus. The hardware and software has been received and initial operating procedures have been adopted, but the system is not yet in place. Picture identifications (driver’s licenses) will be required for the system.
 

In other matters, trustees:
- Heard an enrollment report of 752 students at the end of the second six-week grading period, the same number as last year at the same time. The Elementary School had 384 students compared with 395 in 2006-2007, while the Middle School had 169 this year and 152 last year, and the High School stood at 199 compared with 205 last year.
- Heard a brief report on fund raising programs, activities and vendors and recommend any policy changes. Changes in procedures are being recommended for fund raising programs involving elementary school students. Trustees Dr. Shane Bogard and Wende Haney are serving on the committee along with representatives of each campus.
- Heard the UIL competition readings by three participating students.
- Designated Dan Rose, Superintendent and Robert Fair, Business Manager as investment officers for the district and approved an unchanged investment policy.
 

The next regularly scheduled meeting of the HISD Board of Trustees is set for Monday, February 4 at 7 p.m. A special meeting (closed session) is being held January 17 to review the Superintendent’s evaluation.