Round Rock Edition | January 2024

Education

BY BROOKE SJOBERG

Early College High School enrollment closes Jan. 26 Applications for enrollment for the 2024-25 school year at Round Rock ISD’s Early College High School opened Nov. 27. What you need to know The enrollment declaration, which includes three open-ended questions for prospective students to fill out, is due by Jan. 26, 2024, for early submission. Early College High School students can earn a high school diploma and up to 60 transferable college credit hours at no cost through a partnership between RRISD and Austin Community College. The details Applications will function as the student’s decla- ration to reserve a spot in their ECHS class. If more than 125 applications are received, a lottery will be used to determine placement in the program.

Hail storm damage to facilities totals $70M Round Rock ISD staff said the district could be looking at up to $70 million in necessary repairs to its facilities following a September hail storm. What you need to know RRISD staff members are working with the district’s insurance provider to identify needed repairs after a Sept. 24 hail storm caused damage to several district facilities. At a Nov. 16 board meeting, RRISD’s Chief Financial Officer Dennis Covington said the cost to address repairs needed immediately on six of the district’s 68 facilities is around $22 million. About two-thirds of the district’s facilities have been identified as damaged or requiring additional investigation into possible damage from the storm, district documents show. Covington said the broad scope of repairs is expected to cost between $50 million and

Trustee files for state education race Round Rock ISD Place 2 Trustee Mary Bone filed to run for the District 10 seat on the State Board of Education in the March Primary election, per a Dec. 7 filing. Bone was first elected to the Round Rock ISD board of trustees in November 2020, with her term set to end in 2024. Did you know? She is a consultant for the NASA Engineer- ing and Safety Center, as well as an associate professor for the University of South-East- ern Norway. Bone earned her Bachelor’s in Aerospace Engineering from Missouri University of Science & Technology, Master’s in Systems Engineering from Iowa State and Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology.

RRISD adds more holidays to calendar The Round Rock ISD board of trustees approved a 2024-25 district calendar option that includes more religious holidays after receiving community feedback. The 2024-25 calendar has a start date of Aug. 13, with the first semester ending Dec. 19 and the spring semester beginning Jan. 7. The last day of classes is May 22.

Eligibility qualifications

$22 million needed to address immediate issues Two-thirds of facilities had damage $1.4 million deductible to be paid by district before insurance covers other damages

Residency in Round Rock ISD

Attendance of the freshman orientation Summer Bridge program May 30-June 2 Acceptance that UIL sports and fine arts are not offered Meet all requirements to move on from eighth to ninth grade

SOURCE: ROUND ROCK ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT

• Rosh Hashanah, Oct. 2-4 • Yom Kippur, Oct. 11-12 • Diwali, Nov. 1 • Kwanzaa, Dec. 26-Jan. 2 • Christmas, Dec. 25 • Hanukkah, Dec. 25-Jan. 2 • Lunar New Year, Jan. 29 • Eid al-Fitr, March 31 • Good Friday, April 18

Students are eligible for RRISD transportation services if they reside more than 2 miles from the ECHS campus. To qualify, prospective ECHS students must be a resident of RRISD; complete the full appli- cation and complete all essay questions; return all documents to their counselor or mail them to the district; and attend the freshman orientation Summer Bridge program May 30-June 2.

$70 million, and it will take two to three years to complete. District documents state the damages are covered under the district’s property damage policy, which has a 2% deductible. Covington said this 2% works out to around $1.4 million that the district will have to pay. Covington said the length of time required to complete the repairs boils down to the level of damage each building received, with some in need of new roofs.

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