EDUCATION BRIEFS
News from Eanes, Lake Travis & Leander ISDs
HIGHLIGHTS LAKE TRAVIS ISD The district called an election May 6 for board of trustees places 6 and 7 at the Jan. 18 school board meeting. Place 6 is held by Trustee William Beard, and Place 7 is held by board Vice President Bob Dorsett Jr. The deadline to le for a place on the ballot was Feb. 17. LAKE TRAVIS ISD The district approved its instructional calendar for the 2023-24 school year at the Jan. 18 board meeting. The rst day of school is Aug. 16 with the last day being May 24, prior to Memorial Day. Student holidays remain largely the same between 2022-23 and 2023-2024 with a week for Thanksgiving, about two weeks for Christmas and a week for spring break. LAKE TRAVIS ISD The board approved the sale of 0.6 acres of land to the Texas Department of Transportation for the future RM 620 expansion project at the Jan. 18 school board meeting. The land is located in front of Lake Travis High School, and the nal sale price to TxDOT was about $1.16 million. EANES ISD The district will hold an election May 6 for three seats on the board of trustees following a vote at the Jan. 24 school board meeting. Place 1 is held by Trustee Kim McMath, and Place 2 is held by Trustee Laura Clark. Place 3 is held by Board President John Havenstrite. LEANDER ISD The district will host community forums in the coming weeks as the district begins its process to rezone secondary schools, scenarios for which were announced Jan. 23. There will be one Feb. 27 at Wiley Middle School at 1526 Raider Way, Leander, and a virtual forum Feb. 28 accessible through the district’s online calendar. All hearings are scheduled for 6:30-8 p.m. Eanes ISD board of trustees will meet March 28 at 6 p.m. at 601 Camp Craft Road, West Lake Hills. www.eanesisd.net Lake Travis ISD board of trustees will meet March 22 at 6 p.m. at 607 RM 620, Lakeway. www.ltisdschools.org Leander ISD board of trustees will meet Feb. 23 and March 23 at 6:15 p.m. at 300 W. South Drive, Leander. www.leanderisd.org MEETINGS WE COVER NUMBER TO KNOW This is the estimated total savings in operational costs if all e ciency measures in Eanes ISD’s bond are approved. $2.9 M
EISD bond would fund campus updates, safety EANES ISD Following months of discussion and pre- sentation to the district, Eanes ISD called a May 6 bond election for three propositions totaling $131.43 million at the Feb. 7 school board meeting. BY GRACE DICKENS FINAL BOND PROPOSAL Eanes ISD voters will consider three bond propositions totaling $131.43 million for the May 6 election. Total: $131.43M
“Our community-led Bond Advisory Committee took a hard look at safety, security, student programs, energy e ciency, conservation and facility needs,” board President John Havenstrite said in a press release from the district. “And the projects they recommended address all of those areas and, importantly, save us money.” Proposition A would issue $117.77 million for campus maintenance and repairs, safety and security upgrades, energy e ciency improvements, and parking lot resurfac- ing. Additional projects would include roof and ventilation repairs, playground resurfacing, and replacing ne arts equipment. The bond item also includes refurbishments of the district’s recently purchased property adjacent to Westlake High School. Proposition B would allocate $2.41 million for refurbish- ments at Chaparral Stadium, such as safety improvements, pole lighting replacements and track surface replacements. Proposition C would allot $11.25 million to replace sta and student devices along with classroom and lab computer equipment. The bond will not impact the district’s interest and sinking, or debt service, tax rate, which will remain $0.12 per $100 property valuation. If approved, some items included in the bond will reduce operational expenses and allow for more money to go toward teacher salaries, according to a press release from
Proposition A: $117.77M • campus maintenance • energy e ciency • parking lot resurfacing • ventilation improvements • replacement of ne arts equipment • refurbishment of newly purchased property
Proposition C: $11.25M Sta and student devices
Proposition B: $2.41M Chaparral Stadium refurbishments
SOURCE: EANES ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT
the district. For example, the installation of solar panels districtwide would save the district $800,000 annually in operating costs. The district’s most recent bond passed in 2019, authoriz- ing $80 million for a variety of projects, including the new Westlake High School aquatics center, the wrestling center, and robotics and engineering program space.
Committee backs LISD calling May bond
EISD forms Spanish immersion task force
BY GRANT CRAWFORD
Bond proposals A Leander ISD committee
LEANDER ISD The board of trustees for Leander ISD will decide whether to call a $563 million-$601 million bond at its Feb. 16 meeting, after press time. The Citizens’ Facility Advisory Committee, which had over 150 participating members, recom- mended Jan. 26 the LISD board of trustees call a bond election for May 6. CFAC co-chair Cara Owen said one of the committee’s largest priorities was ensuring the district does not fall behind on building maintenance as well as preventing overcrowding in schools. The largest of the recommen- dations—$218 million—includes modernizing two high schools. There are also two new elementary schools proposed in the bond.
BY GRACE DICKENS
recommended trustees call a $563 million-$601 million bond election. High schools • ventilation repairs, modernization, new facilities Elementary schools • two new elementary schools, ventilation updates Support services • facility grounds improvements, transportation facilities Middle schools • ventilation upgrades, competition eld turf Information technology • various upgrades to districtwide technology Security • cybersecurity upgrades, interior and exterior security upgrades
EANES ISD Following discussions in November and December about possible program cuts, Eanes ISD will convene a task force in Febru- ary for its Spanish immersion pro- gram comprised of 30 parents with a range of stakes in the program. “While it has been relatively quiet in the three weeks after returning from the vacation, I can assure you we’ve been hard at work,” Superin- tendent Je Arnett said at the Jan. 24 school board meeting. Program restructuring was pro- posed in November, which would cut class sizes from 30-40 students per grade level to 22. Discussion will likely take until at least the end of the current school year, if not into next fall, Arnett said.
SOURCE: LEANDER ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT
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LAKE TRAVIS WESTLAKE EDITION • FEBRUARY 2023
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