EDUCATION
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District sets sights on student achievement for 2022 BY BROOKE SJOBERG
Round Rock ISD puts superintendent on leave The board of trustees met during a special meeting Jan. 3 to consider action on a recommendation from Texas Education Agency Monitor David Faltys to put Superintendent Hefedh Azaiez on administrative leave. The recommendation is pending an investigation of underlying conduct described in a protective order the Travis County District Court issued in July 2021. A one-page letter from Faltys attached to the board agenda also recommended the hiring of an external investigator. The board originally voted June 14 to hire Azaiez as superintendent for a three-year contract with a $350,000 salary. The board took no action Jan. 3, but planned to meet and possibly take action on the same items Jan. 6, after the press deadline for this edition. District to hold public hearing on Texas Academic Performance Report Round Rock ISD called a public hearing for its 2021 Texas Academic Performance Report during the Jan. 20, 2022 meeting of the board of trustees. This report is compiled by the Texas Education Agency and includes State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness results by grade, military readiness, dropout and attendance rates, and college and career readiness, among other indicators, according to the district. The reports are available on the TEA website and on the district’s own performance indicators page. The reports show that for the 2020-21 school year, STAAR participation fell from 100% to 70% between 2019 and 2021. Tests were not administered in 2020.
TOP PRIORITIES As outgoing Round Rock ISD board president, Place 5 trustee Amy Weir discussed district priorities for 2022. TEACHER PAY: The district is in the middle of a salary study to see how it compares to other districts and where it can improve. STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT: Teachers and administrators are identifying where learning loss is occurring and how to combat it. STUDENT WELL BEING: The board is working to add a goal around student belonging and wellness to address concerns of mental health.
Student achievement and the continued battle against learning loss will be high priority for the Round Rock ISD school board in 2022. Speaking ahead of the board election in which she stepped down as president, Place 5 trustee Amy Weir on Dec. 15 shared some of the top-tier priorities the board will focus on in the coming year. “I do think that academics is going to be a very big focus for this board going into 2022,” Weir said. “We’re also concerned about our special education students who had probably more of a learning loss than our [general educa- tion] students.” In addition to academic priorities, Weir said the well being of students and teachers will also be a focus. She pointed to a recent hiring and retention bonus approved by the board as a starting point and said teacher pay overall will be part of this focus. “We’re having really big problems—everyone in Central Texas is—but we’re really making sure that our aides and educational assistants are compensated fairly,” Weir said. As an outgoing president, Weir said one of her personal
SOURCE: ROUND ROCK ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
goals for the board is to proceed in a manner more focused on students and less on each other. “Not that everybody talks about each other, but it hurts our board dynamics to have people air their grievances against each other in public,” Weir said. “My personal hope and wish is that we can all get past that and hopefully focus on our students.”
RRISDAquatic Center completion expected sometime inMarch
GATTIS SCHOOL RD.
SOURCE: ROUND ROCK ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER • SOLAR: The facility is designed so that solar panels can be added to the facility as an additional power source in the future. COMPETITIVEWATERS The new aquatic practice facility will come with special features. • MORE DEPTH: The 14-foot-deep competition-size pool simulates conditions seen at larger state and regional meets. • COMBINED HEAT POWER: The facility will be able to power on with turbines controlled by the pool’s heating cycle.
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faced some delays due to materials availability issues driven by the supply chain, but construction is on track for a spring opening and summer use. The district also recently announced the addition of water polo as an extracurricular activity for students beginning in fall 2022.
One of Round Rock ISD’s 2018 bond projects, a $16.4 million aquatic practice center on the Cedar Ridge High School campus, is expected to be completed by March or early April 2022. RRISD Chief Operating O cer Terry Worcester said the project has
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ROUND ROCK EDITION • JANUARY 2022
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