INSIDE DSISD
The latest news from Dripping Springs ISD
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 20, 2023
BOARD OF TRUSTEES VOTES UNANIMOUSLY TO CALL FOR MAY BOND ELECTION
In a special meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 15, the Dripping Springs ISD Board of Trustees voted unanimously to call for a $223.7 million bond referendum for the May 6, 2023 election.
The work on the May 2023 bond began following the November election with a series of Board workshops to regroup and develop a plan to serve the district’s rising student enrollment and capital improvement requests. These workshops focused on reviewing and confirming the project requests, understanding the reasons why voters rejected the district’s November 2022 bond referendum, analyzing line item pricing, including the analysis and validation by an outside third-party pricing consultant, tours of the district’s oldest properties to view the renovation and repair requests, and developing different packaging options for consideration.
The May 2023 bond package includes both a focus on the district’s growth, as well as capital improvements and renovations on DSISD’s oldest campuses and campus security and ADA updates on all district campuses.
2023 Bond Package:
- Build Elementary School #6 (850 Student Capacity)
- Expand Sycamore Springs MS to 1,200 Student Capacity
- Build New Facility for Special Education 18+ Program
- Design Elementary School #7, Middle School #3, and High School #2
- Capital Improvements & Renovations at Dripping Springs Elementary, Dripping Springs Middle School, and Dripping Springs High School
- Security Updates for all Campuses
- Reconfigure CL&I and Maker Space at Rooster Springs Elementary and Dripping Springs Elementary
- Update Sound and Lighting Systems in Spaces at Various Campuses
- Replace Pressure Reducing Valves at Various Campuses
- ADA Updates
- Land for Future Facilities
- 13 Replacement Buses for Aging Fleet
- Classroom Portables
- Child Nutrition Services (Kitchen) Equipment Replacements
- Technology Infrastructure (Network, Servers, Firewall, AV)
Any registered voter who resides within the DSISD attendance boundary is eligible to vote in this bond election. The deadline to register to vote is Thursday, April 6. The first day of early voting is Monday, April 24 and Election Day is Tuesday, May 6, 2023.
JUNIOR WRESTLER PLACES THIRD AT UIL STATE MEET
Dripping Springs High School junior Alec Rill placed third in the 215-pound weight class to help the Tigers finish 13th at the UIL 6A State Wrestling Championships on Saturday, Feb. 18 at the Berry Center in Cypress.
After winning his opening round contest, Rill suffered a defeat to Keller’s Andrew Jurasek in the quarterfinals but responded by winning four-straight matches to earn third place honors. In the third-place match, Rill recorded a fall 1:56 into the contest to defeat Cy-Fair’s Ethan Anderson and collect the bronze medal. His third-place finish is the best for the Tigers since Chase Warden won back-to-back state titles in 2019 and 2020.
Rill concluded the 2022-23 season with a 56-4 record, improving on his fifth-place state finish in the 195 weight class from a season ago. He scored 23 points to help the Tigers tie for 13th as a team out of 96 schools with 34 points.
Jackson Shipley (106 pounds) and Ben Lourens (190) each won their opening round contests before falling in the quarterfinals and consolation matches. Hagen Shipley (126) won two matches and Cole Sides (120) collected one victory to also score points for the Tigers. Shane Bookbinder, Raphael Siewen, Taylor Van De Walle and Addison Williams also represented Dripping Springs at the state championships. Williams is just the fourth female in school history to advance to the state competition.
FRESHMAN ADVANCES TO TEXAS HISTORY DAY CONTEST
Dripping Springs High School freshman Grant Gillum captured first place in the Senior Division Individual Website category at the Cen-Tex History Day Contest to advance to the state competition. He is the first Dripping Springs ISD student to compete in the Senior Division in a National History Day® contest event.
Gillum is a two-time state champion and placed third at the national contest in 2021. His website, “Power for the People: Taming the Texas Hill Country Electrification Frontier” was based on the 2022-23 theme, “Frontiers in History: People, Places, and Ideas.” Gillum’s faculty sponsor is long-time National History Day teacher Kibbie Jensen.
The National History Day® contest encourages more than 300,000 students nationwide to conduct historical research on a topic of their choice. Each year, a theme is chosen for broad application to world, national, or state history and its relevance to ancient history or to the more recent past.
Gillum will compete in the Texas History Day Contest on Saturday, April 15 in Austin.
ORCHESTRA STUDENTS EARN HONORS AT REGION SOLO & ENSEMBLE CONTEST
Three Dripping Springs High School orchestra students achieved honors at the UIL Region 18 Solo and Ensemble Contest on Saturday, Jan. 28 at Akins High School in Austin.
Freshman Adrian Fisher memorized his Class I solo and earned a Division I Rating on cello to advance to the Texas State Solo-Ensemble Contest. In November, Fisher was also named second chair in the Region 18 Orchestra.
Also earning honors were junior Kira Granberry, who earned a Division I Rating for her Class I solo on viola, and sophomore Sophie Chapo, who collected a Division I Rating for her Class 3 solo on violin.
The Texas State Solo-Ensemble Contest will be held May 27 in Austin.
CHOIR ADVANCES 15 STUDENTS TO STATE SOLO & ENSEMBLE CONTEST
The Dripping Springs High School choir program was well represented at the UIL Region 18 Solo and Ensemble Contest on Friday, Feb. 17 at Hays High School in Buda.
Fifteen Dripping Springs students performed a Class I solo and earned a Superior Rating to qualify for the Texas State Solo-Ensemble Contest. All 27 DSHS students, in addition to one ensemble, received Superior or Excellent Ratings from the judges.
The Texas State Solo-Ensemble Contest will be held May 27 in Austin.
STATE QUALIFIERS
Kirby Brandon
Nancy Devane
Michelle Hinojosa
Isaiah Hoffman
Amelie Lawrence
Preston LeBas
Daniel McIver
Kate Nolen
Olive Orsak
David Perez
Maarete Revill
Kaylee Ritchey
Portia Schaeffer-Preston
Cole Thomas
Colin Tuohy