PEOPLE
Tabitha Branum Richardson ISD superintendent
budget right now is the demand for teachers. We need additional support and resources from the state to help us ensure that we have the resources to compensate our educators fairly. HOW HAS THE DISTRICT ADDRESSED OR PLANNED TO CONTINUE ADDRESSING LEARNING LOSS DUE TO THE COVID 19 PANDEMIC? Our campus leadership and our teachers really recognize that there were two impacts of the pandemic. One was the social and emotional challenges that our students had on the heels of the pandemic, and then academic de cits. Our sta has been all in on really making sure our students have what they need for both of those. [There has been a focus] on how to provide great daily instruction, ... having strong tutoring and strong interventions in place when we see a student doesn’t have a grade-level understanding. WITH THE UPTICK IN SCHOOL VIOLENCE, HOW DOES RISD
BY CECILIA LENZEN
Heading into her second school year as Richardson ISD superintendent, Tabitha Branum spoke with Community Impact about goals and challenges for the upcoming year. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
PLAN TO ADDRESS MENTAL HEALTH AMONG STUDENTS? Trauma-informed care is some- thing we’re investing in. We have a strong partnership with places like the Momentous Institute, who come into our schools, work with our teachers and provide them with the strategies they need to identify when a student might be in crisis and help them de-escalate. We also are work- ing with all of our campus counselors so they can partner with parents. If we know that a child is in crisis and we know that they have experienced trauma, we can make sure that they have the resources that they need, even above and beyond what the district can provide. Tabitha Branum was named Richardson ISD’s superintendent in 2022. COURTESY RICHARDSON ISD
WHAT ARE YOUR MAIN GOALS HEADING INTO THE 2023 24 SCHOOL YEAR? We want to ensure that every stu- dent, every teacher and every leader meets or exceeds [their] growth goal. How do we make sure that our entire system is focused on ensuring that they are growing academically, socially and emotionally? That is coupled with a continued emphasis on a safe and secure environment. We know our students can’t focus on learning if they walk into school and don’t feel like they are protected. Continuing to implement our safety measures, making sure that our safety protocols are being followed by our campuses and that
we’re communicating with our parents [is a priority]. WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES RISD IS FACING? I have to start with the budget. We are currently operating under the same basic allotment per student expenditures as [the district did in] 2019, even though we’ve experienced record in ation. Knowing that we adopted a $14 million de cit budget, how do we rightsize our budget while still ensuring the high-quality programs and instruction that our community deserves? We will continue to advocate with the state to fund public education. One of the greatest strains on our
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