The Board of Trustees welcomed new members, considered the process for the development of the upcoming academic calendar and reviewed submissions for the naming of its newest schools at its Nov. 29 meeting.
To review the entire agenda, please click here.
Grimes, Gonzales-Dholakia sworn is as new LISD Trustees
Recently elected trustees Elexis Grimes and Gloria Gonzales-Dholakia were sworn in as the newest LISD board members. Gonzalez-Dholakia and Grimes replace two longtime trustees who did not seek re-election, Don Hisle and Will Streit.
“As a parent and community member in Leander ISD, I am excited to bring my passion for education to our Board of Trustees,” Grimes said. “I look forward to learning and continuing to uphold LISD as a destination district through my commitment to academic excellence, balanced fiscal approach and community collaboration.”
Gonzales-Dholakia, a former executive director of the LISD Educational Excellence Foundation (LEEF), knows firsthand about the talented teachers that drive LISD’s success.
“As a newly elected trustee, I have been entrusted by the community to work alongside my fellow board members to govern Leander ISD and ensure everything we do as a system is in the best interests of students, their safety and their learning,” Gonzales-Dholakia said. “We only exist as a system to support and foster student learning and success. I am humbled to serve LISD students, staff and our community. I look forward to engaging with all stakeholders as we work to fulfill our mission.”
Board President Aaron Johnson and Trish Bode also took the oath of office after winning re-election on Nov. 6.
Board reviews development of 2019–20 academic calendar
The development of next year’s academic calendar is underway, with a proposal to the Board due in January 2019. LISD staff will also consider creating a working draft of the 2020-2021 academic calendar for community planning purposes.
Based on feedback from teachers and parents, the LISD administration recommends a mid-August start day with a short first week, six days set aside for professional learning, and several early release days to accommodate testing and student-teacher conferences. The last day of the school year would fall at the end of May.
“The academic calendar is intended to reflect what is best for student learning and success,” Board President Aaron Johnson said. ”I applaud the administration getting input from teachers, parents and the LISD community as a whole to construct future calendars that accomplish that goal.”
Trustees consider school naming suggestions from the community
The Board of Trustees discussed naming for Elementary School 27 and Middle School 9, reviewing options in three categories: geographical, historical or national figure, or a local contributor to Leander ISD.
Elementary School 27 will be located in the Larkspur subdivision. Middle School 9 will be located across from Glenn High School. The Board will begin reviewing possible zoning scenarios in the next three to six months.
“As a fast-growth district slated to open five new schools in the next five years, the board felt it was important to carefully consider namesake nominations well in advance,” Trustee Pamela Waggoner said. “We appreciate our community’s involvement in this process as consider their submissions.”
