The Board of Trustees approved an attendance zoning scenario for the 2020–21 school year, considered budget and major maintenance options for the new fiscal year, and reviewed the district efforts at suicide education and prevention at its June 6 meeting.
Trustees approve Attendance Zoning Scenario F for the 2020–21 school year
With the opening of Danielson Middle School in 2020, Trustees adopted attendance zone scenario F for the 2020–21 school year, including the student transfer exceptions for impacted students. The transfer exceptions align with previous practices in zoning changes.
“I want to thank our community for its continued engagement throughout this conversation,” Board President Aaron Johnson said. “Attendance rezoning is never easy, but the deliberate, inclusive way LISD moved through the process with the community helped secure the best outcome for the largest number of families.”
For more information about the Leander ISD attendance zone adjustment process, please visit www.leanderisd.org/msaz.
Trustees review major maintenance, budget for 2019–2020
Leander ISD will spend more than $11 million on nearly 100 major maintenance and campus improvement projects in 2019 as a part of its annual funding for regular maintenance, in addition to its bond programs. This includes the planned schedule for replacement or repair of building components, equipment, and site features to accomplish proper maintenance and avoid untimely failure.
The Board’s budget discussion, set to continue at a special called meeting on June 19, touched on legislative action to up state funding of public ed. However, there is currently some uncertainty given lack of guidance (pending) by TEA on how to apply the new directive.
“Leander ISD has been an outstanding steward of our taxpayer funds during my time here,” said Superintendent Dan Troxell, Ph.D. “As we continue to get clarification on the changes to school finances, we will continue to be conservative and responsible to ensure the best possible outcome.”
The Board must make a decision on its compensation and salary updates by June 20.
LISD works to educate staff, students and community about suicide prevention
LISD has dedicated counseling professionals that work hard to educate our staff, students and community about suicide awareness and prevention through multiple programs. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death for ages 10-24. In fact, 13.3% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 had at least one major depressive episode in 2017 and 90% of people who die by suicide have a mental health condition at the time of death.
“Having that wingman concept and teaching that early on goes a long way so that people don’t feel isolated or are left alone to entertain suicidal thoughts,” Trustee Jim MacKay said. “I really want this to be an ongoing conversation where were are talking about all the pillars that go into mental health.”
According to LISD Counseling Services Director Steve Clark, suicide-related behavior is complicated and rarely the result of a single source of trauma or stress. Suicide prevention education in LISD includes developmentally appropriate lessons at all age levels taught by counselors, which address healthy coping skills. The Second Step curriculum is a K-5 social skills curriculum taught at all Leander ISD elementary schools. The Adolescent Depression Awareness Program developed by Johns Hopkins University, is taught by counselors to ninth-grade students.
LISD has seen a 25.6% increase in depression literacy from students after taking the course, and 86.4% of students are able to identify a trusted adult to seek out for help. Although not directly related to mental health, high school one-on-one conferences are proactive ways counselors can meet and connect with students.
“The mental, physical and emotional well-being of our students is paramount,” said Superintendent Dan Troxell, Ph.D. “We can never be less than diligent in this effort, and I’m proud of our dedicated counseling staff for working tirelessly to educate our students and families about good mental health.”
