Board Report
October 2023
OCTOBER 18 MEETING HIGHLIGHTS
STUDENTS OF THE MONTH
Aquia Rodriguez, a third-grade student at Elm Creek Elementary, was chosen as the Student of the Month. Her educational journey at Elm Creek Elementary started when she returned to the campus in second grade after a hiatus following her Pre-K experience. During her time away from school, Aquia didn't interact much with others nor attended school regularly. However, to everyone's surprise, Aquia was found to be quite close to being on par with her grade level. It turned out that Aquia had taught herself to read by watching books on video and reading signs while riding in the car.
Aquia's dedication to learning is evident in her consistently excellent grades, as she has achieved straight A's. At home, Aquia also plays a crucial role in keeping her father informed about school-related news by using sign language and teaching him how to use technology. This same spirit of helpfulness extends to the classroom, where Aquia readily assists her peers. Elm Creek Elementary is fortunate to have Aquia as part of its student body, and she truly embodies the spirit of an Explorer.
McNair Middle School recognized Yaneli Lopez-Martinez, an eighth-grade student, as the Student of the Month. Yaneli is a multi-talented student-athlete who participated in cross country, basketball, and soccer and was named the overall Challenger Warrior last year. In addition to her athletic achievements, Yaneli excels academically, being a part of the gifted and talented program, an honors student, and achieving a master's level score on the STAAR exam. Yaneli serves as the class manager for Mr. Martinez's math class, providing invaluable assistance. For instance, when one of her teacher’s was absent, Yaneli stepped up to help the substitute teacher manage the class, handling warm-up activities and assignments. Yaneli embodies what it means to be a Challenger, both inside and outside the classroom.
Southwest High School recognized 10th-grade student Emmalee Gonzalez as Student of the Month. Emmalee is the section leader for the award-winning Dragon Band and a member of the Dragon tennis team. She is in honors classes, maintains all A's in her courses, and participates in the book club. Emmalee plans to attend college after high school and pursue a career in either therapy or marketing. Emmalee is a true leader on campus, and we are proud to call her a Dragon!
SPECIAL HONORS
Texas Education Human Resources Day
Governor Greg Abbott proclaimed October 11, 2023, as Texas Education Human Resources Day—a day set aside to recognize and honor the significant contributions made by school staff in Human Resources. Human Resources staff work hard each day to make sure our schools are staffed with high-quality employees and that those employees have a positive work environment. Thank you to our Human Resources staff for all they do.
TASA/TASB Distinction
Southwest ISD recently received recognition during the TASA/TASB conference. We were awarded the Exhibit of School Architecture Stars of Distinction for the amazing renovations and additions at Southwest High School.
MASBA Awards
Southwest ISD achieved a remarkable feat at this year’s Mexican American School Board Association Conference, securing two prestigious MASBA awards. Our Warrior Program has been recognized as the Outstanding Cultural Initiative, for our commitment to diversity and inclusivity. Furthermore, our dedicated school board members have earned the title of Outstanding District Board, a testament to their consistent dedication to advancing our mission daily.
During the month of September, students and parents at all campuses throughout Southwest ISD participated in an Attendance Awareness campaign led by Executive Director of Administration Adrian Ramirez and Truancy and Dropout Prevention Coordinator Laura Garza . The purpose of the campaign was to raise awareness of the importance and benefits of daily school attendance.
Classrooms with perfect attendance each week enjoyed a number of awards and celebrated their accomplishments. Individual students with perfect attendance were also rewarded for their efforts. Students and parents made pledges to make daily student attendance a top priority.
As part of the campaign, all classrooms across the district were also invited to participate in the SOUTHWEST Challenge. Each day in September that a classroom had perfect attendance, students were able to earn one letter toward spelling “SOUTHWEST,” which amounted to 9 days of perfect attendance for the month of September. At the end of the month, a total of 17 classrooms met this challenge.
Attendance Team Members will present trophies to classrooms meeting this “SOUTHWEST” challenge which are listed below:
Elm Creek ES - 3 classrooms
Hidden Cove Steam Academy - 1 classroom
Kriewald Road School of the Arts - 1 classroom
Sky Harbour ES - 2 classrooms
Medio Creek ES - 1 classroom
Bob Hope ES - 1 classroom
Indian Creek ES - 1 classroom
McNair MS - 3 classrooms
Scobee MS - 3 classrooms
Resnik MS - 1 classroom
Elementary, middle school, and high school campuses with the greatest percentage of student pledges will receive the traveling trophy for their win. In addition, parents with the greatest percentage of pledges submitted will win a trophy for their children’s campus. Campus winners in this category will also be announced.
Attendance Awareness campaign winners will be announced at a later date.
Presentations
Construction Update
Thomas Krueger, Director of Facilities and Maintenance, gave an update on various construction bond projects around the District, including the preliminary work in redesigning Central Office and Professional Development Center.
Resilient Schools Support Program Update
During a presentation by Velia Terrazas, the Executive Director of Elementary Education, she highlighted the Resilient Schools Support Program (RSSP).
Through this program, Ed Direction has actively supported SWISD in our ongoing efforts to enhance our most impactful recovery and acceleration strategies. These enhancements encompass a range of actions, such as strategic interventions in tier one instruction, adapting existing curriculum, adopting new curriculum materials, facilitating teacher development, revising schedules, and better catering to special populations, among other related topics. SWISD has been collaborating closely with Ed Direction to establish a structured approach to our RSSP partnership. This approach involves deliberate data collection and analysis from a diverse array of stakeholders, the identification of prevailing trends, and the development of closely aligned goals and support mechanisms.
Detection Audit Report Findings
The top priority for the Southwest Independent School District and the State of Texas is to ensure the safety of students and staff on a daily basis. Recently, an Intruder Detection Audit was conducted at one of the district's campuses by the Texas School Safety Center. This audit assesses the accessibility of a campus to unauthorized individuals. It is part of the school safety directives established by Governor Abbott for all school systems, following the tragic events in Uvalde. The primary objective of the audit is to assist districts in identifying areas for improvement in student safety, including measures such as securing exterior doors. The audit offers an opportunity to create a safer learning environment for students and staff.
The District is closely collaborating with its School Safety & Security Committee to ensure that all staff members are trained and that campus doors are secured to protect everyone at the campuses. The support from the state in conducting Intruder Detection Audits is just one of the numerous measures being taken to enhance school safety. It is recognized that this ongoing effort demands continuous attention, and the district is grateful for the Board's support.
While the district acknowledges that parents and community members may have a strong interest in the audit results, it is in the students' best interest not to publicly disclose this information, as doing so could compromise critical campus security details. Specific audit findings will be discussed in executive sessions and shared with the Safety and Security Committee. Southwest ISD remains dedicated to providing a safe and secure learning environment for students and staff.
Emerging Educator Award
Southwest ISD (SWISD) will introduce a new recognition program known as the Emerging Educator Award. This award is specifically designed for teachers who are in their first 12 months of their teaching career. The primary goal of this award is to provide motivation and boost the confidence of new teachers, all while acknowledging their dedicated efforts in terms of professionalism, character, and performance throughout the year. It's worth noting that this award process will run parallel to the Teacher of the Year recognition, but it will exclusively be open to teachers who are new to the field of education.
Items Approved
The Board approve the purchase and continued use of GoGuardian Suite. This program allows teachers to actively monitor student online activity live in real-time, as well as interact with students virtually as well as Face-to-Face. The teacher suite gives teachers the ability to assign
content, work with students in groups, and keep track of student activity during their class
period. The admin suite allows administrators at both the campus and district levels to track
student engagement, view browsing history on school devices and accounts, and collect
usage/engagement data for all students. Data shows that teacher usage is extremely high,
so we would like to continue its use this school year.
Bexar County Head Start ESC-20/Southwest ISD Partnership
The Board approved the Bexar County Head Start ESC-20/Southwest ISD Partnership contract.
Under this agreement, ESC Region 20 is extending the opportunity for Southwest ISD (SWISD) to maintain an ongoing partnership, allowing 4-year-old students, who meet the qualifying criteria and are eligible by September 1st, to enroll in a PreK4 Head Start Classroom. In the event that additional spaces become available, SWISD has the option to fill these seats with students who do not meet the Head Start eligibility criteria. The contract period spans from September 1, 2023, to August 31, 2024.
Purchase of School Buses
The Board approved the acquisition of six 72-passenger diesel-engine buses, along with two special needs buses and two activity buses, all sourced from Thomas Built Buses, at a combined cost of $1,382,700.00. The decision to proceed with this purchase is rooted in the Transportation department's essential requirement to replace aging buses. District staff is specifically requesting these additions to the district fleet, and they will ensure that all buses come equipped with air-conditioning, seat belts, and interior cameras for enhanced safety. Thomas Built Buses is known for its cost-effective fuel consumption, lower maintenance expenses, and reduced replacement part costs. Additionally, Thomas Built Buses exhibit superior durability when compared to the other two competing vendors. It's important to note that the district obtained price quotes from vendors who are part of TASB's BuyBoard purchasing cooperative.
Purchase of Police Vehicles
The Board approved the Southwest ISD Police Department's request to acquire three police vehicles. These vehicles are intended to replace older fleet vehicles that have been retired due to excessive mileage and aging. The total cost of this purchase amounts to $131,574.24, and the acquisition will be funded from the locally budgeted funds.
Southwest ISD District of Innovation Plan Amendment.
The Board has approved an amendment to the Southwest ISD District of Innovation plan, specifically pertaining to teacher certification. The current Southwest ISD Innovation plan outlines the Education Code requirements from which the district seeks exemptions. This particular amendment addresses teacher certification. Southwest ISD remains committed to pursuing traditionally certified candidates for all teaching positions. However, in situations where there are vacancies in specialized settings, such as advanced academic and career and technical education (CTE) settings, librarian roles, hard-to-fill core content areas, dual credit courses, and campus administrator positions, where a traditionally certified and qualified candidate is not readily available, the District will have the flexibility to hire individuals who are most qualified and possess experience and expertise in these fields. It's important to note that the effective dates for Southwest ISD's current innovation plan remain in effect from July 19, 2022, through June 30, 2027.
Southwest Independent School District
Website: www.swisd.net
Location: Southwest Independent School District, TX, USA
Phone: 210-622-4300
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SWISDsatx
Twitter: @swisd