School Board Meeting: June 22, 2026

001Good evening everyone. Um I'm glad to see  everybody here. Want to go ahead and call   the meeting to order. Going to have the uh  pledge of allegiance by Miss Kania, please. To the flag of the United States of America  and to the republic for which it stands.   One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty  and justice for all. The invocation by Mr. Hobus.   Please join me in prayer. Father, we come before  you humbly, Lord, asking for guidance and asking   for your hand to be around us. Father, we pray  for all of PSJ, our employees, our students,   and tonight we get a special occasion to  celebrate some of the successes. Father,   I ask that as we meet tonight to make decisions  that have the potential of affecting destinies,   that the words of our mouths and  the meditations

002of our souls be   acceptable to you. These things I ask for  in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen. Thank you. We're going to go ahead and move on  to number three, recognition. Dr. Diaz. Yes. Uh,   Mr. President, under recognition, we have  Career and Technology Education Students,   Future Farmers of America, and this  presentation will be by Director Adriana Garcia. Good evening, Mr. Board President,  members of the board, and Dr. Leas. Today,   we would like to recognize our PSJISD career  and technical education students from our   future farmers of America, also known as FFA.  This student organization grants students the   ability to further their further their  knowledge and skills by participating   in various competitions in categories related  to leadership development, career development,   and speaking development. And this is a very  unique situation with this organization. It   encompasses

003the events that elevate our students  to be college and career ready. These school these   skills that they can utilize in various career  pathways that they pursue as their futures as   well as it provides opportunities for them to  showcase their talents. The students present   today with the guidance of their sponsors each  competed at the area level and advanced to   compete at the state level individually or as a  team in their respective organization and event.   We are very proud of their hard work as well  as the commitment their sponsors have made to   support them along the way. We'd like  to get started with our first chapter   from PSJ Early College High School. If  the students and sponsors can join me. Students, as I call your name, if you'll raise your hand to  be recognized. Student Ava Garza,

004she is a member   of the veterary science and she qualified for  state. I have Aubrey Garcia, also part of the   team of veterary science qualifying and uh placing  at state. We have Emmed Deagarsa, part of the milk   quality of products at state. Kaani deoyos, part  of the milk quality and products at state. Mr.   Juan Gutierrez, also part of milk quality and  products at state. Allora de laser in range   judging at state. Mia Lamas, range judging at  state. Amelia Pollano for plant identification at   state. Isabella Sandoval for plant judging plant  identification excuse me at state and Zuri Lopez   present for plant identification at state as well.  These students in their different organizations   and their different events qualified for state and  did very well. We want to recognize them today. We also want to make sure we

005acknowledge their  sponsor, Mr. Santana Garca. There are also two   other sponsors that are not present with us, Mr.  Pablo Trevinho and Miss Vanessa Pñena as well. Congratulations. Thank you sir for all the Thank you Dr. Thank you. You can come all the way down over here. Next, if we can have PSJ  Memorial Early College High qualifying for Memorial for State um  qualifiers in the cotton evaluation   division, we have Octavio Wades  and Miss Amy Martinez. and they are   um coached by their sponsors, Mr.  Rebecca Robles and Mr. Antonio Ramirez. Thank you so Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I just wanted to make a note  that these students, you know, with the   different events that they have in leadership  skills, career skills, and speaking skills,   um, this is why we're bringing them back  now because at

006the time when we did our   recognitions for our other CTSO organizations,  they were actually out competing. So,   we wanted to make sure that as they were done with  their fullear term of competitions that they were   recognized for those accomplishments. And then  I also do want to recognize Miss Vodgas. Um,   she is the CT coordinator that oversees  our agriculture program. Thank you. Uh first of all, I want to commend all of  you all. Congratulations. We're very proud   of you. Um I know a little bit how all the  hard work you have to do. My granddaughter   was in FFA Ramirez. Thank you for for that is  Robles. Um so I know all that hard work and   dedication that it takes to to be successful  in the FFA. So I want to commend you all the   sponsors also.

007Thank you for all your hard  work also. So thanks again. Appreciate you. Okay, at this time students uh  you can be dismissed. Thank you. Oh, okay. How many public comments do we have? We have  uh three people signed up for public comment.   Mr. Board President, um before I call them up,  the PSJA Board of Trustees welcome members of   the community to speak on agenda items that  will be voted on during the meeting. Members   who sign up before the 5:00 p.m. deadline  will be asked to speak in the order the form   was received. If individuals signed up but  are not present when their name is called,   the submission will be voided. The PSJ School  Board permits each person to speak within an   established three-minute window. Please remember  that only items on the agenda may be addressed  

008by the individual speaking before the board.  Individuals intending to speak on items not on   the agenda will be directed to the superintendent  or designate. As part of the process, specific   factual information or recitation of existing  policy may be used in response to inquiries   presented, but keep in mind the board will not  deliberate or enter into dialogue with members   of the public during this portion of the meeting.  If a member of the public causes disruption by his   or her words or actions during the meeting and  continues to do so after at least one warning,   the presiding officer may request assistance from  law enforcement officials for the individual to   be removed from the meeting. The first  person signed up is Miss Maria Kintania. Miss Maria Kintania. Are any of you Maria Kintania?  Okay. Natalie Gases Flores. Right

009up here. Okay. Sorry, my first time. All  right. Go ahead. Three minutes. Whenever you're   ready. Good evening, president, board members,  Dr. and distinguished guest. My name is Natalie   Cases Flores and I would like to I would like to  thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight. I   want to take a moment to celebrate the incredible  work happening across our district. Our teachers,   students, campus staff, custodian, cafeteria  workers, maintenance workers, bus drivers,   district departments, board members, and of  course, Dr. Leas have all played a vital role in   the strong preliminary results we are seeing for  the star. What we are witnessing in this direct   result to the true is true collaboration.  Our teachers have shown have shown ex I'm   sorry. Our teachers have shown extraordinary  commitment. Our students have demonstrated   resilience and determination and our staff

010has  supported was supported in every effort behind   the scene. The board's leadership especially  your commitment to securing the resources our   students and teachers need has made a measurable  difference in classrooms across the district. That support is not abstract. It is visible in  instructional material, technology, intervention   tools, and professional learning that directly  impact student success. I want to highlight   the leadership of Dr. Elias. Although he was not  selected as superintendent of the year, but he was   in the top three finalist. His vision, guidance,  and unwavering belief is what our district can   achieve can achieve have shaped this moment. His  leadership has helped align our goals, strengthen   our system, and keep our focus on what matters  most, student learning. The results we are seeing   today are a reflection of that steady direction.  Districtwide, our preliminary scores are

011strong.   In fact, they are positioning us toward becoming  an aid district. This is something every single   person in this room and every person working  across our campuses should feel proud of and focus   on. What makes this even more impressive is that  we are still waiting on two major assessments,   fifth grade science and biology. Even without  those scores included, the data has already shown   that our collective efforts are paying off. This  success is not the work of one department or one   campus. It is a result of a district that believes  in teamwork, shared responsibilities, and doing   what is right for the kids. When teachers feel  supported, when students have what they need,   and when leadership is aligned, outcomes improve.  That is exactly what we are seeing. So tonight,   I want to say thank you. Thank you

012to our teachers  for your dedication. Thank you to our students   for your hard work. Thank you to our staff for  keeping our district running with excellence.   Thank you to the board for your continual  support and investment. Thank you, Dr. Elias,   for your leadership and vision. Together,  we are proving what is possible. Together,   we are moving toward becoming an a district, and  together we will continue to rise. Thank you. Thank you. The next person  signed up is Christella Guzman. Good evening, President, members of the board,  and superintendent Dr. Elas. My name is Christella   Guzman. I'm a member of Texas Classroom Teachers  Association. And tonight, I want to take a moment   to recognize you, not for the titles or positions,  but for the intentional way you choose to honor   the people who make PSJA what it is.

013One of the  things that consistently stands out in our board   meetings is the time you dedicate to celebrating  our students and staff. Month after month,   we see you highlight academic excellence. From our  validictorian and celebratoran to our destination   imagination, global winners who represented our  district on an inter uh international stage. We   see you recognize student athletes across every  sport, football, baseball, softball, water polo,   and more. We see you shine a spotlight on the  incredible talent in our high school bands,   orchestras, and the other fine arts. You also  make space to honor our staff, including teachers   nominated for the HB Excellence in Education  Awards, one of the most respected recognitions   in our state. These moments matter. They remind  our community that hard work is seen, valued, and   worth celebrating. TIA, a few months ago, members  of

014the TCTA from a neighboring district attended   one of our meetings. It was a chaotic night.  people speaking out of turn, emotions running   high, yet even in that environment, they walked  away impressed. They told us their board meetings   don't look anything like ours in a good way. They  were astonished by how much time was devoted to   recognizing students and staff. They were equally  impressed by the transparency shown during the   benchmark 2 data presentation. To them, that level  of openness and celebration was something rare.   That perspective is important because  while it's true that not everyone in our   district is always focused on students  and staff, those of us who watch these   meetings objectively can clearly see who  is. We see the people who show up for PSJA,   who prioritize our students achievements, our  teachers dedication, and our

015community pride.   So tonight, we simply want to thank you. Thank you  for keeping recognition at the forefront. Thank   you for following valuing transparency. Thank you  for modeling what it looks like when leadership   stays centered on students, staff, and community.  PSJ is stronger when we celebrate the good,   and you make that visible priority. Many of  us do notice and we appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. These are all the public comments. Yes. Uh Mr. President, we move to  Superintendent of Schools. Item five,   letter A, discuss and consider board  approval of a delegate and alternate   to the 2026 Texas Association of School  Boards known as TASBY and delegate assembly. Any discussion? I need a U nomination for  the delegate and an alter. Mr. President,   go ahead. I'll make a nomination for you, Mr. President. And Ramona

016Varon. Thank you.  And being a nomination for for me to serve as a   delegate and for Mrs. Ramona Varon to be the  alternate for the 2026 Texas Association of   School Boards Delegate Assembly. All those for  the motion signify by raising your right hand.   All those against one against. No, no, no. Oh,   so let's do it again. All those for the  motion signify. Raise your right hand. Okay. Okay. All right. Motion passes.  Okay. Yes. U Mr. President,   we move to finance and we have letter A, approve  the 2025 2026 functional budget amendments. There's any discussion and if not we can  any discussion any question Mr. President   there are no discussions I'll make a motion  to approve okay I have a motion for approval   by Mr. Viegas and a second by Miss Baron all  those from the

017motion second by raising right   hand motion passes thank you yes uh Mr. President,  we move to item B. Approve the use of facilities   for the Idalgo County general election and  general runoff election. I need a motion. I motion to approve. Great. Motion by Miss  Castile. I have a second. I'll second. Second   by Mr. Viegas. All those from the motion six and  five raand. Mr. President, can I ask questions on   this real quick? Uh, I was just wondering, I'm  sure there's some expenses that are incurred.   Does the county reimburse us for any of that or I  don't know how that works. No electricity and no.   Okay. No, that's all the questions I have. Okay.  So, I have u we had a motion and a second. All   those motion signify by raising right hand. Motion  passes. Thank

018you. Next. Yes. Uh Mr. President,   we move to item C. Approve the notice and order  of election for the 2026 school trustee election.   Move to approve. Moved by Mr. Robas. Can I have  a second? Second by Miss Castile. All those for   the motion signify by raising right hand. Motion  passes. Next item. Yes. Uh Mr. President, item D,   approves the secretary ex official for the  2026 school trustee election. Any discussion? Do we need to nominate a delegate or what?  Uh that will be Miss Gonzalez finance. Well,   I need a I need a motion. A motion  to approve. Motion by Miss Castillo,   second by Mrs. Baron. All those for the motion  signify by raising right hand. Motion passes.   Thank you. Yes. Uh Mr. President, we move  to item E. Approve awarding a proposal   for student athletic accident

019insurance and  voluntary accident insurance for $260,992. I have a comment, Mr. President. Go ahead,  Miss Contin. Um, just to um ensure that this   is the same um if you can just tell us a  little bit about the insurance company. The insurance company is a company out  of Harlington, Texas Insurance Service   Center. Uh his name, I believe, is Alberto  Travinho. Um we've been doing business with him   uh for a few years. It's a very rare product.  Not a lot of agents carry it. And this is this   is the third renewal. So at the end of this  school year, we'll have to go out on bid and   um ask you all to approve. And the cost  has remained the same for the three years.   Correct. He held his he held his rate.  Thank you. Any other discussion?

020Well, there wasn't any other and you answered the  question. I'll turn to proposals. you know,   he's it's probably unique market. It is. It's  it's a very few agents. I think there might   be one out of San Antonio that bids every once  in a while, but it's it's a very rare product   for agents to carry. So, for next year, we're  going to go out for a bid. Yes. This is the   third renewal on a bid that was approved two  years ago for two additional renewals. So,   this is the last one and then we'll have  to bid that out. Mr. President, go ahead.   So for the last three years we've had the same  amount cost. Yes. He has held his right. Yes. Okay. Uh I had a motion and a second. Right. No. I  thought it was

021okay. Motion by Miss Balon. I have   a second. Second by Miss Kintania. All those for  the motion. Second by raising right hand. Motion   passes. Yes. And Mr. President, we move to item F.  approved the renewal of the proposal for standby   ambulance services for districtwide for $70,000  as a retainer. Correct. Yes. This is also on its   third year and so we'll put out a proposal at the  end of this school year for the following year.   When when is it when is it falling? What month  does it fall for the It's usually May or June. Oh,   okay. Any discussion? Yeah, I've got a question.  So, The estimated annual expenditure is 70, but   the actual cost is 81250. Is that correct? Or how  does that retainer work? The 70,000. The 70,000 is   an estimated amount. Um the 81,000

022is probably the  calculation from our software bid. Okay, that's   not on this slide. So, we have to put in a a set  number into our software so that it calculates   some kind of estimate. This estimate is based on  what we actually paid out. Okay. Thank you. Just   an estimate. So for some reason then it doesn't  use up all the 70,000 then we don't have to pay   the the rest of it. Right. Okay. Okay. No, that  was my question. Uh if the $70,000 is all that   we have to spend, do we spend it all at the end of  the year or or it hasn't been spent fully? I mean,   I know with that we're approving 70,000. So  my question is uh have they ever come short   like I mean they've uh maybe uh build us for

02360  or 65 and there's the balance or have we had to   pay additional? It's been both. Um because it's an  ambulance service. If our teams go to the playoffs   then depending on how many rounds they go we have  the ambulances there. So it's gone both ways.   It's hard to tell if we'll come in under or if  we'll come in above. So we award by the hour and   um this vendor was half the price by hour compared  to the other vendor that submitted. So thank you.   So this this year this possibility it might go  up 70,000 and and I'm going to brag it because   we have a lot of teams that go. That's why  yeah that that's a tough question to answer,   right? It depends on how many games we play. Yeah.  I just thought I'd

024brag about our district. Thank   you. Okay, that's it. Okay. So, I need a motion.  Motion. Motion by Miss Kanyang. You have a second.   Second by Miss Castillo. All those for the motion  signify by raising right hand. Motion passes.   Yes. Uh, Mr. President, we move to item seven,  student services, letter A, approve the memorandum   of understanding between PSJA and the county of  Idalgo to operate a juvenile justice alternative   education program for the 26 27 school year. I I  have a question a couple of questions. Uh number   one, um is this the first time that that we're  getting anou with them or have we had it? It's   every year we have anou that we do with uh JJ and  it's only for those students we usually reserve   eight spots but if we don't use those eight  spots

025then we don't pay for those spots. We   get reimbursed back. All right. So question number  two is uh because we didn't get any for for for us   that are new. We I didn't get anything to read up  on it and how it works and all that stuff. Okay.   And then Dr. Nyola can explain a little more on  it. If you want to show the presentation. Okay.   Um if you would go to the next slide Dr. Just to  give you some little background on it. You know   chapter 37 which is the Texas education code that  we use in the state of Texas. It does require that   the county of Idalgo have and their juvenile  board establish and operate a juvenile justice   alternative education program. We call it JJ A  and it's for the youth uh who

026are expelled from   school from the school district. They go to what  we call it sometimes county school. So it goes   to the county. It it's mandatory for the students  who commit felonies. So they have to go over there   on on campus or at a school related off-campus  activities will be expelled to JJ and we can also   send them over there for discretionary purposes.  That's number three. It says it is discretionary   to expel students to JJ A for serious persistent  misbehavior. They you know sometimes we we send   them let's say to buoy but they don't behave. So  then we can move them over to the county school JJ   AP and it's if it's discretionary then we have to  pay because we're sending them over there and it's   not mandatory but when it is mandatory we don't 

027have to pay exactly what Dr. Elias said. If you go   to the next slide. So the memorandum is between us  of course and the county of Vidalgo and uh through   its Idalgo County Juvenile Board to operate what  at JJ and it'll be effective August 1st all the   way through July 31st of uh this uh coming year.  Go to the next slide. When we say mandatory uh we   get five spaces at no cost to the district. That's  what Dr. Julius was saying and it's true when they   commit felonies on campus or a school related  activity we need to send them out. Uh but we   also what we do is we ask them you know uh save us  some spots eight discretionary and we use four for   the fall and four for the spring and that will

028be  a cost to us $115 per student per day. So, we're   looking at for 60 days, it'll be about $55,200.  And uh discretionary student space monies that   are not used, they return them to us at the end of  the year. So, we have to provide the money first   at the beginning of the year and then at the end  of the year, if we didn't use for discretionary   reasons, they'll return everything to us. The  funding source of course is local funds. And then   um what we're asking or recommending is that  you approve the memorandum. Um there should   have been at least theou in your packet. Yes,  it's not in there. Okay. No. Okay. There's anou   and it explains everything. Basically, I just took  out the the items that we need to know. Usually,   if you want

029to know how many students, uh I'm  going to say we only send one student per year,   basically mandatory. We're very good. And I I'm  going to give a lot of credit to the principles,   assistant principles. They work very well with  the students. They have arrangements. They talk   to them. You know, if they have to suspend them,  they'll suspend them. If uh they they do quite a   lot. We're very honored, I'm going to say, to have  principles and assistant principles that work with   the students a lot. Okay. Sure. Go ahead. Dr. A  when you say that uh maybe one per year those are   the mandatory um do you have um any late lately  any discretionary that the district has been uh   sending? We don't send usually discretionary sir  but mandatory we will and well that's a

030low number   and I'm glad to hear that but uh so actually your  office hasn't uh decided there are discretionary   uh right recommendations and and they they do ask  us to separate some spots just in case. So every   year we do that but we never really send anybody.  So we're getting we're getting reimbursed for   non-usage. Okay. Thank you Mr. President. I have  a question, sir. Sure. For that one one student,   do we send work for them? How does that work?  Well, we're supposed to send everything about   that student, any documentation, their grades,  attendance, if they have uh in special programs,   things like that. Uh we send everything to them  and they're the ones that produce everything.   They provide the the learning over there,  the teaching to the students, not not us.   No. Um I I would

031imagine the time would uh differ  depending on the offense. Like how much time are   they there depending on the minimum they ask  for is 30 days. I see. Okay. And what the way   they do it? If we send them over and they don't  behave, they just add a day to it. It's it's not   31. Uh but if they behave, then after their 30  days, that's the minimum. Uh they can come back   to us to the district. But they need to fulfill  the days that we send them. We usually send them   at at a minimum 60 days, but they're saying at  least 30, but we send them usually 60 days. We   can go all the way to 90. I have a question. The  are they responsible for testing the students? Uh   they do ask us and

032we send uh uh someone with all  the materials and over there to help them test. Okay. Any other discussion? Yes. Go ahead. So if  give me an example maybe of the past three years,   let's say what type of offense has the student  um done. Okay. Whether it's in within the school   um grounds or outside. I'm trying I'm trying  to figure out if it's if it's like are they   committing an actual crime outside or considered  a crime or It has to be on campus and usually it's   the number of Xanax pills. Let's say we caught  someone with Xanax pills. If it's uh three or   four, we're supposed to take care of that inhouse.  But if it's more, usually it has to be more than   30 usually then we send them out and we need  a police

033report with you know and all of that.   So, usually those are the really mandatory  ones that we send out. If they had uh a gun,   which thank God we have to report every year  if there's a gun or not. We haven't had guns.   Thank God. Um also, if they have a gun, they  go automatically over there. You know, all   those real serious type of crimes, those are the  ones that need to go out immediately. Okay. So,   then the school does their their job by filing a  police report and sending them to JJ. that student   goes through the court system, h how much like how  does that work if he's committed a crime? How does   that work? And how does I'm sorry and I don't mean  to sorry to keep interrupting you. Um and then   what

034happens if he gets um you know found guilty  then he goes to actual jail or he stays in JJ? It   depends if they're minors. if they're minors. And  of course, we have to call the police. The police   report has to be attached to all the information  we submit to JJAP. JJ is like it's a school. It's   a school for the county. The county uh runs it.  We don't. And we just send them and they provide   all the teaching, the learning. That's it. If  they're minors, then they go see the juvenile   court with one of the judges, right? and they're  the ones that run whether you know uh if they're   guilty not guilty if they're going to spend time  with them at the juvenile uh detention center. So   it's up to them. We don't really control

035that. The  the county does if they're uh u over 17 years old,   they're considered already adults. So then they  would go immediately to county and and then um at   that point we there is no service from the school  district. cannot do anything once they're an adult   and at the county when they come out if we decided  to send them to JJ [ __ ] which we should then   they serve the time that we say 30 days 60 days 90  days at the county uh school which is JJAP during   that time that they're there and if they're under  special ed services is that also on them on them   yes so they they are all the information that  we have gets transferred to them and they're   supposed to you know they have to carry out what  the IEP says

036They do. Yes. Um, Mr. President,   I if we can at least have a copy of that, maybe  an in executive session and we can come back and   vote on this. I don't feel comfortable voting  on something without looking at anything that   I could read and and have more questions, but  I don't see I don't think we should table it   because I know that there's a timeline, right? But  if we could get a copy of that um and maybe share   it during executive. Can we skip it and then come  back? didn't actually have the I don't know if my   ying Yeah, we don't have it. Yeah, it might have  been I don't know. It's not even not even on the I I can read it and pass it along. Thank you.  Okay, we're going to come

037back. We're going to   let me just just a quick question. So thatouou  will uh clear up all the questions because I   mean my follow-up questions were were uh uh the  question that I had was basically because you   said they they send off uh homework and stuff  over there. So they're not doing their own   teaching over there. We're sending the material  and then grading them here. How and what I mean   by material is if they're in special ed, the IP  IEP has to be in there. the plan, everything,   the behavior intervention plan is in there. If  they're bilingual, we'll send them and we'll   let them know that they're bilingual. If they're  504, we tell them this is the 504 plan for that   student. That's what I meant by by the material.  So, what if it's just

038a regular student? If it's   a regular student, they still want us to submit  to them, you know, what grade level they're in,   what are the classes, their transcript, their  grades, their attendance, their misbehavior. So   they want all that information plus some other  stuff like their social security and other   u so classroom instruction happens over there  they have their own teachers and they have   their own they have their own yes their own  materials correctly I guess I'm looking at at   the lateral part of it like depending on what  age they are I mean if if they're high school   kids you know then are we are they graduating are  they staying behind I mean what what's happening   Once they come back, then we figure that out  because all we do is a transfer of grades,   transfer of

039transcript. What he's talking about  is all documentation only. Okay? So, we don't send   them work. We don't do any of that. Then they'll  send us back if the student did uh certain credits   or certain classes, they'll send us back their  grades and then we input that as as their grades   when they come back. It's as if they left the  district. They get withdrawn automatically and   they go over there. So they don't pertain to PSJ  anymore. But if we don't elect JJAP has been with   PSJ as long as I can remember. If we don't  elect to do that, then we have to answer to   the community what happens to students that are  under title five, which is considered a felony.   So, do we want those students to stay within  the district if they went and held

040up a store at   gunpoint or do we want Yes, we are always looking  out for the students say, but these students need   to be sent just like anybody else that commits a  crime. There's a consequence. So, they need to be   sent out to a facility that does not pertain to  us. It pertains to the county and then the county   based on the judge's sentence, they can elect to  even keep them there a full year. But that's up to   the judge and it's at no cost to the district  because that's mandatory. So up to now the   what theou is saying we have eight sections that  we're requesting but five of them are not they're   mandatory. The other eight are discretionary.  We've never used. Okay. So up to now the district   has not paid. All we're doing

041is signing an MOU  saying that in case we do get a student that does   such a felony, then we have the capability to send  them out of the district to not mix them back in   with the rest of the students. Okay. So, none of  those kids get to go to BU. Is that a different   uh bu is for other things? This is just for  filling, right? Okay. Bu usually is for vape   vaping. Uh maybe made a threat. Anything that's  not a a felony, right? If it's a misdemeanor,   they can stay at BU. But once it's a felony,  that is a a bigger scale of crime. So, of course,   you have to go somewhere else. Okay. I know  they were using Bu, but the name's been changed   to Buoie. It's buoyancy. So, Bu is the form, 

042but Buoylication. Yes. So, the facility has   changed to Buoie now. To Buoie. Exactly. Um,  no. Trusty Baron, a lot of the questions you   have are answered in the in theou. I think if  we would have had this, sorry, we wouldn't be   asking so many questions. That's right. Um I know  there's clarification here on on students under   um under they fall under IDEA and how there's an  art and making sure that their behavior is not   part of their uh disability like so like it would  have answered all their questions. Okay. So, um,   we can I understand that it we have to approve. I  mean, we there's no way out of it. We have to, but   it, um, I'm not questioning the fact that we have  to or not. It was I just wanted to be aware

043of the   information that goes along with theou. Um, with  what I've seen, I'm I'm comfortable. Okay. Um,   going through with I don't know if anybody else  wants to take a look at it. No. Okay. I think most   of the questions were answered by by Okay. Yeah. I  think it's basically like transferring to Macallen   except it's they're transferring to they have to  be away from school district PSJA someplace else   because of what the seriousness of what they've  done. Exactly. With that in mind, Mr. President,   I'd like to make a motion to approve. Okay. I  have a motion for approval by Mrs. uh Bon. I   have a second. Second. Second by Mr. Robas. All  those for the motion six raising right hand.   I I I motion passes. Okay. Next item. Thank you.  Yes. Uh Mr. President, we

044move to item eight under   curriculum and instruction and the next three will  be presentations and the first one is letter A,   presentation on the early literacy data and  Mr. Marquez will be present. Dr. Marquez.   Yes. Good evening, President Rodriguez, members  of the board, Dr. Leas. We have uh three great   presentations for you tonight. And at PSJ, first  of all, we place a strong emphasis on our early   childhood program since it is a foundation of  learning and uh for long-term student success.   It is a really good indicator of long-term  student success. So over the past several years,   we have invested a lot of time and energy into our  pre preK program and this presentation highlights   the impact of this work. Uh, as you will see, our  early childhood data reflects continued growth in   both literacy and

045mathematics with clear progress  from the beginning of the year to the end of   the year across grade levels. You'll also see  encouraging trends in kindergarten readiness,   which is a key indicator that our youngest  learners are entering school better prepared   than in previous years. Um, these results reflect  a systemwide commitment to early learning and a   clear focus on building strong foundations that  support student success in the years ahead. So,   Dr. Cla Gonzalez will now present on the early  childhood program assessments and results. Good evening, uh, board president, Mr.  Rodriguez, members of the board, and Dr.   as um it is my pleasure to present our early  childhood education data highlighting student   progress in literacy and mathematics from pre  kindergarten 3 through 2 grade. Uh the results   demonstrate our district continued commitment to  providing highquality early learning experiences  

046that establish a strong academic foundation and  support long-term student success. Just like Dr.   uh Marquez stated here in our first slide. Um  this slide repres uh presents the literacy results   for our prek3 and prek4 students on the lion leon  diagn diagnostic assessment which is administered   at the beginning, middle, and end of school year.  This data reflects a positive two-year trend with   students demonstrating consistent growth  from the beginning to the end of each year.   These results highlight the effectiveness of our  early literacy instruction and interventions. So   if you notice there, it's all positive.  There's a two-year trend and we've had   positive results there. Go ahead. On our next  slide, this does uh displays the mathematics   performance for our preK3 and preK4 students on  the Lion Leon assessment. Similar to literacy,   the data shows a strong upward

047trend over  the past two years, demonstrating again that   continued growth and increased mathematical  readiness amongst our youngest learners. In our next slide, uh this presents the combined  literacy data for students in kindergarten through   2 grade using the TPRI and the le diagnostic  assessments. So this is what is given to our   our youngest learners. The assessment as shown  student performance continues to trend upward   across all grade levels. I would also like to  highlight that we have exceeded our endofear   2026 board progress measure goals in every  grade level. So those are the ones that you   see to the right in blue. Kindergarten students  are currently six percentage points above the goal   at the end of the school year. In first grade  students are 16 points above the end of year   goal and second grade students are nine

048points  above the goal. These accomplishments reflect   the dedication and collaborative efforts of our  teachers, campus leaders, instructional staff,   and district personnel. So, we're very happy  to show this because, you know, we struggled   a little bit at the beginning, but we're showing  that that strong growth. Um on the next uh slide,   this slide highlights our kindergarten readiness  data which demonstrate continued improvement in   the effectiveness of our prek programs across the  district. Kindergarten readiness is reported on a   one-year lag and the current year's results will  be available in fall 2026. That's why you see that   empty spots there spot there. That will be coming  in in fall. in the fall. The trend data shows   that an increasing number of students are entering  kindergarten equipped with the foundational skills   necessary for academic success, reinforcing the  positive impact of

049our early childhood program. And I will say that across the  region, right, across the region,   we are actually leading most of our our school  districts that are within our range. Edinburg,   Macallen, La Hoya. Uh I will tell you we were  recently uh were part of a seed grant, right,   which is an early childhood grant that we uh  attend region one uh to participate with this   grant and within all the districts that  were there, we actually had the highest   kinder readiness results, which is,  you know, we're really proud of that. But we have a we still have uh room for growth  like always. On this slide, this represents   uh or presents the first grade literacy  diagnostic data. The blue bars represent   the English assessment which is called TPRI,  Texas proficiency reading inventory while the   red bars

050represent the Spanish assessment which  is called the data show significant growth in   reading fluency from the beginning to the end of  the school year in both languages. Additionally,   the percentage of students performing at the  frustrational level decreases over time if you   see it from beginning to end of year. while  the percent of percentage of students reading   fluently increases demonstrating strong progress  in foundational literacy skills. So if you see   that in the beginning of the year the light blue  which is the students are listening they're not   reading by the end of end of year that decreases  from 76 to 25% in TPRI and then the readability   goes from 24 to 75 so it actually flips over  which is what we want to see. We want that   trend to to flip. The non-readers become readers,  right? And

051the same thing in our Spanish readers. Similar to first grade, second grade  students demonstrate meaningful growth   in reading proficiency. The data shows a  decrease in the number of students also   who are not yet reading fluently  and an increase in the number of   students achieving fluent reading levels  in both English and Spanish. These results   reflect continued literacy development as  students progress through the primary grades. In addition, we also wanted to share  um some highlights of our first grade   reading performance using the I Ready Diagnostic  Assessment, which is an a diagnostic assessment   uh technology assessment that our students  uh participate in on a daily basis.   I Ready is one of the instructional tools used to  support literacy and mathematics achievement. The   data here shows a 44% point increase in the  number of students performing on grade level  

052from the beginning of the year to the end of  year. Those are the two at the top, the BOI and   EO. So you're basically looking at the two green  bars, the one with the uh diagonal lines and the   basic green one. Again, this is demonstrating  substantial growth in reading achievement. So,   this is just another tool that we use to uh as  another source of data to measure our student   success. This slide represents our second  grade students reading performance on the   I Ready Diagnostic Assessment. The results show  a 36 percentage point increase in the number of   students performing on grade level from beginning  of year to end of year reflecting strong gains in   literacy achievement. Again, the next slide  displays our first grade mathematic results   from the I Ready Diagnostic Assessment,  which shows uh and demonstrates

053student   performance increased significantly significantly  throughout the year with a 43 percentage point   increase in the number of students performing  on grade level from beginning to end of year.   And our final slide highlights our second grade  mathematics performance on the I Ready Diagnostic   Assessment. The data shows a 36 percentage point  increase in students performing on grade level   from beginning to end of school year. Overall,  these results demonstrate the positive impact of   our early childhood and elementary instructional  programs. The consistent growth across literacy   and mathematic reflects the hard work of  our students, educators, administrators,   and families, as well as our district's commitment  to ensuring every child's prepared for future   academic success. This data demonstrates  a strong foundation that directly impacts   student performance in our state accountability  results, which will be re uh presented next.   Okay, just a

054quick uh point. Those last  slides beginning with board outcome goal two,   they were very difficult to see in the packet  and that's why I kind of tried to look. I don't   know if we can get a printed printed copy of  just goal two. Yes, sir. Thank you. The uh   building blocks campuses that we have, do they do  they help with this with this positive results?   Uh, building blocks is one that we it's it's a  really good program. I mean, well, not program,   but it's a school, right? And the positive thing  about having a building blocks academy is that   um it's very focused on early childhood. So, you  know, versus the other grade the other schools   that have pre-K3 through fifth grade, this one is  solely focused on our preK 3, preK4, kindergarten,   and we have

055a school with first grade also. So  that along with early start we have we partner   with approximately 3540 uh childcare centers  that we partner with right. So that in addition   and then along with we're also part we also  partner with Idalgo County Head Start we have   five elementaryaries that coming this coming  school year we will have uh right that will be   part or that have been part but we will continue  to be part partnering with them. Of course,   we were also expanding with our Ceta Cesar Chavez  Elementary, which will actually have a whole   um hallway, right, that is going to be solely  dedicated to to Idalgo County Head Start. So,   all of the partnerships that we have with them,  um the grants that we've been able to obtain   have really helped. But I will tell

056you that every  grant that we obtain, uh we're learning from them,   but they're also learning from us. I will say,  you know, which is something great because it just   verifies that what we're doing is something  good, the structure that we have in place,   but then what it does is it of course makes us  reflect and make it even stronger. Yes. Just   want to commend all your staff that work with us.  That's a very good positive result. So I'm very   grateful and congratulations for all that. Yes.  And I want to really thank our early educators,   the teachers, our prek3, prek4 teachers,  kindergarten first, all of the early literacy,   but I want to say especially our prek3 and prek4  kindergarten teachers because it is a different   world. I will say those that have been that know  it,

057it is different. It is different and it is   very important. Um PSJA has been a trends setter  in early education and they we continue to be that   trends setter and we want to continue to do that  you know to uh we're constantly being highlighted   by TEA by region one you know and we want to  continue that you know but more than anything   um we're very happy you know we feel very  enthused about our results but then you   will see our academic results with STAR right  with the accountability accountability system   so all of this feeds into that Right. It's that  foundation that builds that needs to be built in   order to have success in in their future. Great.  Mr. President, go ahead. Miss um I am excited.   Uh this is very good news. I think that

058of course  you know we are always looking at um kinder ready   kinder ready and I know that if we have a very  strong early childhood program addressing the   funological aware the funological awareness the  phonics early on and a lot of handson uh ensuring   that children uh really learn through concept  based instruction and so I'm excited because I   know that if uh we're doing this well, we should  be addressing the gaps a lot earlier. And so,   one of the things that that I know this program  um will do is ensure that when children get to   first and second grade um they have the the uh  the reading um downpacked so that they can uh   so that we can have them reading 60 minutes in in  first grade, 90 minutes in second, 120 in third.   And so

059when children are able are able to read,  then the comprehension will be there. You know,   they the teachers don't have to spend so much  time in when they're getting them ready for   a start. It's difficult when children are not  reading yet because then they won't they don't   have the comprehension. So I'm excited and and  this is um great work. Incredible. Yes, I've been   in preK3 classrooms and preK4 classrooms and it is  so exciting to see how we have incredible teachers   that are very passionate and compassionate and so  um good work. I I'm excited and and I commend you   all for for really focusing on in this especially  in in this in this grades because you said it and   and we all know it. That's the foundation. Once  we give children a very good solid foundation,  

060then the rest will follow and alignment. Before I  conclude, I I do want to thank our coordinators,   our specialists that work really hard with that.  And we have two early childhood specialists that   work specifically with preK 3 and four and we  thank you for that assistance because like I said,   it's a different world in prek. Uh but they  provide a lot of support. I I have a Miss Gutter   has a question. Yes, ma'am. you on? Yes. Yes.  Uh good good evening everyone. Uh Miss Ramontes,   I I have a concerns and questions about those  concerns. We have um uh for for a long time we've   had the building blocks um schools, if you want to  call them that. Um and uh we also have the prek in   the schools. There's been a lot of um concern

061from  the schools, from the staff in the schools, from   the great teachers that some um building blocks  recruits students that end up leaving our schools   and going to building blocks. Our total enrollment  has gone down. the projection I was looking on um   on my notes right now the pro we're projecting um  this we're going to have less students next year   than this year and now um we added another early  childhood component um head start which as I told   Dr. as I think uh last um meeting we had walked  away from because it's an outdated program because   you know um because we had competing programs as  well with um with the building blocks and uh the cut off she's mute you're mute you're well um you  I don't mute on this side. You can see my

062hands   here. I don't mute on this side. So any muting  that's happening, it's happening on that side.   And so my question is uh Miss uh Braontes, um does  Head Start pay us? No, they they do not pay us.   Actually, what they do is they provide support. Uh  with Head Start, we have actually an additional I   guess you can see almost like it's it's called a  director, right? but it's like almost as an like   an additional assistant principal that is leading  the head start section of the campus. So they help   us with supporting uh they do meet with our of  course our principal has the ultimate decisions   and you know uh on anything that goes on with  those classrooms and they are they completely   follow the district curriculum everything that the  district has. Um it's just

063they provide that extra   support with that and then in addition they also  provide the what we would call our instructional   aids. So they have teachers right they call them  teachers that are all of them have some sort of   either associates or bachelor's degree they are  required to have that and they work with us but   they're not required to be certified teachers.  No, but they're they work as so basically instead   of us having the teacher aid providing the  teacher aid and paying for the teacher aid from   the district uh budget the head start provides  that teacher aid for say for these classrooms.   So in but there is a certified teacher in the  classroom. Yes. The certified teacher is a PSJ   certified teacher. Yes. Yes ma'am. Yes sir. Okay.  Who's doing the presentation? Claudia. Right. So   uh

064Claudia u so the the question Mr. President  Gutierz's time has elapsed on this item start to   um Gutierrez uh schools and all that. Miss  Gutierrez, I'm sorry your time has run out.   Apologize your time. You want to just answer  the last question, but the time is up. Sorry,   I didn't hear it. What was the last question,  Miss Gutier? It's the same one that I asked   at the beginning. What are we doing? What is the  concern about the the the enrollment that's going   down and now we're adding another yet another  uh uh program that competes with our um you know   Head Start and and our schools um early childhood  classrooms are competing with uh building blocks   and building blocks is competing with them because  it's basically the same thing. Yeah, they are the   same. It's nothing.

065Go ahead. They are the same.  Um the enrollment is all like the prek3 students,   prek4 students across the district, whether  they be head start, building blocks,   uh early start, childcare centers, they are all  part of our district, right? Um I think the reason   that we tried to grow these are, you know, to a  piece we have parents um and especially with the   little ones, parents are very picky and they have  different thoughts of how they want to, you know,   how their children they want their children to  enter school. Some want them to keep them in   childcare centers. And we can say, you know what,  why aren't they coming to our schools instead of   being in a childcare center? But you know what?  You have over 450 students that we have in early   start that if

066we didn't get those students, they'd  be sitting there in a in a child care center uh   not being serviced by us. So, we're tapping  into that and providing a teacher for that.   uh BBA it is I would say a bit more attractive  because it just focuses on the early grades.   Um and then we have like I said the supporting  uh head start but they're all our children like   all of them they follow the district curriculum  exactly they follow everything that that the rest   of the students and our No, I I get that. I know  what the programs are. I get what they do. It's   just the uh the the the competition between  programs because we continue to add the same   uh they're like layers of the same thing. So  uh what I would like to

067see u Miss Baramontes   and Dr. Elas if you can direct your staff to uh  prepare a uh uh report but please do send us the   report because I've asked for several things uh in  the past few months and have not gotten anything.   um a report of how much or how many students  have come into the district for those programs.   You know, how much has our um enrollment gone  up and uh each school when we started with   uh building blocks because that's the that's the  the complaint that they're losing children to   uh building blocks. So, a report that that  gives us an idea of how that's going. Thank you,   MZ. Any anybody else have any quick Mr. President?  Dr. Elas, if I understand correctly, I'm sorry. I   think Miss Castillo has already spoken on this  item.

068Okay. Anybody else? Uh, yes. Go ahead,   Miss Contin. Just for clarifi clarification  purposes. So, the the test the lion does it does   it stand for something or is just it's just called  lion? It's called Lion. It's kind Lion and Leon.   Leon in Spanish. Yeah. Okay. Just wanted to make  sure. So the these three whether it's Head Start,   Early Start, Building Blocks, you're saying that  they cover the same curriculum. So who provides   that curriculum to like Head Start? So we do we  do because remember it like I we were stating   it's our teachers that are there in the classrooms  in our schools. It's just Head Start is providing   that additional aid so that we don't we actually  do not pay for that aid. So, we're actually saving   money in that sense. And then there's a director 

069that oversees just that Head Start area. Uh just   kind of like monitoring them. They also help us  with other uh things such as like vaccinations,   you know, uh sometimes when the children don't  have the uniforms, you know, they provide uniforms   for them. There's all the other items that  they assist us with, you know, but like I said,   one of the major ones is that additional aid. Uh  they even provide us with furniture if needed. So,   they bring in their furniture and set  up the classrooms. Um it's like I said,   it's pretty much but everything that has to do  with the start and end time, transportation,   uh curriculum, everything is followed at just like  all the other campuses at the district. Okay. So,   the funding is the same whether they attend Head  Start um Head Start,

070Early Start, Building Blocks,   the the school district gets the funding for that.  Yes. Okay. And um I great I mean I've seen and   considering that we're talking about very young  and I agree with with U trusty Castillo is that   that's so important and obviously comparing  the beginning of the year to the end of the   year the progress is there. Uh but there is a  substantial number of students um who are from   what I see at least you show zero at three grades  uh or lower you know uh below level but we do have   a sub substantial amount of students um two grade  levels or lower. What is being done um to either   identify them because it could be that they just  have uh some type of learning disability. So,   what is being done to um

071as an intervention or  as uh to identify that they may have and I know   that they're fairly young, but what is being done  to make sure because if they're not on on reading   level by third grade, Yes. you know, then it's  just going to be harder later on. Um so I think   and I I'll go back to some of the grants only  because we've been part of the TXRL sex leads   Texas reads uh which guided us well actually we  had come up with something a structured literacy   block that we have for all of the classrooms where  we assure that all of them like Miss Castillo   mentioned that they cover phon awareness  uh phonmic awareness phonics uh vocabulary   comprehension all the components of reading like  we've been very very intentional with that we   also have a

072coordinator uh specialists, our RLA uh  coordinators and specialists that work with that   also with specifically with first and second  grade because sometimes we focus on the real   little ones and we focus on the testing grades  but we leave out first grade and second grade.   And that's something that I will say that when  Dr. Elias came in, we had that conversation about,   you know, would we would like to make this these  specialists specific to first and second grade.   uh because sometimes that's your grade that you  don't focus on and and that has I mean it shows   the results. uh the teachers, the coordinators and  specialists actually go out into the classrooms.   They help them set up their their groups, right?  They follow the blended learning, everything that   the other grade levels do and uh they model

073for  the teachers. There's trainings that we provide   um there's trainings that we provided for the  administrators uh through TXRL that was for   the for the actual leaders because if the leader  does not know the early literacy then how can they   support their teachers at the campus level. So we  do provide a lot of training for our leaders at   the campus level. So there's 230 students who are  two grade levels below in second grade. Um what is   being done for them? We have like I said we have  for one we've estab we've uh recently adopted a   mossy magnetic which is a program that we because  for a long time we try to align it district-wide   like the phonics programs uh because a lot of the  phonics was only done in the early early grades   prek you

074know second grade was already like oh  they're reading third grade they're reading but   no so now we provide a pro a program the phonics  program from kinder through 2 grade um it is   completely provided for every single student in  the district across all campuses. So if they go   from one campus to the other uh they will follow  the program and that is something that is amazing.   We're in our this was our first year actually  first year I'm already feels like forever. This is   our first year that we we had this pro program and  it's been you know so far to show good results.   I want to end by thanking you for putting the  presentation and uh tying it to our schoolboard   goals that um I think I had asked for that for the  um college

075readiness department to do something   similar. I have not received that as well but I  would like to see that because it helps us when   we're looking at it and obviously you all are  ahead um of where u you had stated to be. So,   thank you for that and congratulations to all  the hardworking um specialists and teachers and   everybody that that works with that that great.  Good job. Anybody else have a question? Go ahead,   Mr. Dude. And and Claudia, you can answer it or  Dr. So when we started this, we had a goal in mind   uh because of the need for these small kids to  get some valuable training. Uh we're seeing the   student outcomes I think reflected uh because the  younger we teach our children u the more success   we're seeing at the upper levels.

076But I'd like  to ask Dr. Elas. So we have two BBAs and a third   one in South uh or it's actually we have three  BBAs currently Mr. Viegas and the Southfire is a   partnership with Head Start. Okay. The three  Yeah. Okay. We have three and then you just   uh coordinated the one in South correct. So we  have a total of how many are enrolled muscle meals   between the BBAs and the head starts? You're  talking all the head starts with BBAs or Yes,   we're looking prek three and four. We currently  have about 3,400 students more or less.   you wouldn't have any beautiful  number out there in terms of the uh the money that uh we're getting from the  state on that. Currently with uh preK3 we   get half funding per student based again on ADA  the

077the the time that they spend on attendance.   But when it's prek4, we get full funding. And then  we do have some also with the partnerships that we   have with the different daycarees that we have  throughout the cities. We even expand out of the   PSJ area and then those also give us fundings  if it's a prek3 or prek4 students also. So we   collect funding on those also and we also provide  staffing. Now I beg to differ with the trustee on   saying that we don't benefit from Head Start. We  do benefit from Head Start. Currently with the   partnership that we have with Head Start, there  is 30 Head Start about 30 Head Start classrooms   throughout the district. They provide different  resources. They provide different support services   for students. And we're saving about $1.5  million that the district

078would have to spend   on a teacher aid. So we don't have to spend  on that. We just spend on the actual teacher.   They're still a principal of record, but they also  provide a director. They provide the meals for the   students also, and they provide a lot of different  services for the students. So, to me, it's a win   for the district when we partner with Head Start.  And it's something that is also in conjunction   with the county. It has to have approval from the  county for us to open that partnership that we did   for 10 classrooms in the south area of FAR. It's  going to grow our enrollment. There's a lot of   uh valley view all that area they have prek3  prek 4 and as we say launch it well if we don't   provide those services

079then somebody else will  well and to me that's an area that is very well   known very in need of those support services.  So to me it's uh you know let's provide those   services. It's we're saving 1.5 million in in  teacher aids and these teachers are certified   teachers. The teacher aids that they're providing  have an associates degree. They're requiring them   to have that. Some even a bachelor's degree. So  we it's like having almost two teachers in the   classroom. So to me that's a great service. And  the curriculum, they're following what we want.   They're following what we want for the students.  And that's the reason we're performing so well.   Well, I just want to commend you for that because  um it goes along with your vision for growing PSJ   and at the same time providing what we

080need to do  for student outcomes at such an early age. Uh when   so many districts are struggling with the loss of  enrollment, we're going in an opposite direction.   So we're maintaining we're maintaining and and  I know other districts are losing at a drastic   range where they're having to you know cut down  with staffing at 200 250 even small districts   I'm hearing 70 80 teachers that they're having to  cut down up to now the only thing we've done is of   course to match our enrollment because everybody's  losing the whole state is losing in enrollment. So   all we're trying to do is match what we're  losing, but through attrition. We're not   laying off people. We're not going there  and I'm not going to go there because I'm   not about to hurt families. We know that, you  know,

081we are the biggest employer in the three   cities and to me that says we got to take care  of family and I keep saying we are family. Well,   I think you're doing a tremendous job. I  don't want to say anymore because I think   I've got some comments I haven't related to u  anticipated star results in a little while. But   uh I I I do want to get ahead of myself right now  and I want to thank anybody that is involved with   uh education and our kids and they're all here  from our EOS to our specialists and coordinators   and principles and pair professionals everybody.  So, congratulations to PSJ for staying on top.   Thank you, Dr. Elas. Thank you. Thank you.  Mr. President, okay, go. We're going on to   the uh Yes. Preliminary 2020 star results.  Mr.

082President, can you hear me? Go ahead,   Mut. Yeah. No, I just have a comment for legal.  I just want to uh Is legal uh there? Yes,   I'm here. Yes. Okay. I just want to clarify that  no I didn't hear any board trustee Dr. Elas was   referring to me saying that the program doesn't  work. I did not say that any time and I didn't   hear any other board trustee saying that. So just  to clarify because you just said uh uh contrary   to what the trustee said about it not working.  I never said that for the record. Let's stay   professional. Miss Gutierrez. Okay. Going on to  the next item. Exactly. Let's stay professional.   Let me remind you that. Thank you, Miss Gutierz.  Going on to the next presentation, please. Okay.   Thank you. Uh proud of that celebration

083of how  well the early childhood program is doing. Well,   let me read the line because I know we didn't get  to read the line item on the agenda. Sorry about   that. That we I tempted the the people who are  watching can get to hear that. It's a letter B of   course on curriculum and instruction presentation  on the preliminary 2026 star results and this will   be presented by Dr. Marquez. Thank you Dr. So in  the prior presentation you saw our early literacy   results and the strong foundation being built in  our elementary grades. Uh now we're going to be   sharing our 2026 preliminary grades 3 to eight  star and end of course results from across the   district. Before we begin, I want to clarify that  this data is preliminary and based on the results   currently released by

084the Texas Education Agency.  For science in particular, I really want you to   make a note that due to the standard setting  for the grade five and grade 8 assessments,   combined science performance levels have not  yet been released. Those will be released at the   very end of of July. At this time, only biology  results are available. For purposes of analysis   and context, we are presenting our grades five  and grade 8 science performance using last year's   cut points. These are temporary and will change  once TEA releases the updated standards. This may   increase or decrease our fifth and eighth grade  science results. Or if they leave them the same,   our scores will stay the same in those two grades.  In addition, the test results have been released   to families according to the state's reporting  timeline with end of

085course results made available   on June 10th and grades 3 to eight results on  June 16th. The parent access link has been shared   through our district website and social media so  that families can review student performance. It's   a really good interactive website if you as a  parent uh would like to go in and and check it   out. It's really great information for our  parents. This presentation uh is going to   provide an overview of student performance at  the elementary, middle, and high school levels,   including key indicators such as approaches,  meets, and masters across content areas. We're   proud of the result results that you're about to  see as our students continue to outperform the   region and the state across different levels.  At the same time, we recognize there is still   important work ahead to ensure that even more

086of  our students are meeting and exceeding grade level   expectations. to your point, Miss Kanya. Um, but  you, as you will see, these results reflect the   progress that our students are making and the  impact of aligned efforts across campuses and   departments. So, at this time, our executive  officers will present the results by level. Good evening, President Rodriguez, board members,  Dr. Elas, and thank you, Mr. Dr. Marquez.   Tonight I am honored and I'm very proud  to represent the elementary academics   team that includes Dr. Claud Gonzalez, Dr. Verna  Basan, our amazing coordinators and specialists, campus administrators, teachers, and myself.  Before we begin, I want to emphasize that the   results you will see tonight did not happen  by chance. They are the result of intentional   planning, strong leadership, effective systems,  and the collective commitment of our elementary   staff. Under

087the leadership of Dr. Elias  and Dr. from our guests. Our district has   remained focused on improving outcomes  for all students through collaborative   efforts across our execut across our executive  leadership team. We have implemented targeted   initiatives led by the elementary executive  officers to measure progress and to provide   the support necessary to ensure quite high  quality instruction across all our campuses.   We are especially grateful to Dr. Marquez  and the academic executive officer team for   the targeted improvement plan work that has been  led for the past three years. Those efforts have   strengthened our systems of accountability,  data analysis, and continuous improvement,   creating a strong foundation for the  results we are celebrating tonight.   These accomplishments reflect the power of team  PSJA working together with a shared commitment to   student success. We will begin with our elementary  preliminary student achievement

088results. Our elementary students demonstrated strong  performance across all tested grade levels and   subjects. we with every assessment exceeding  70% at the approaches level. Several of the   highlights that stand out are include first fifth  grade mathematics delivered exceptional results   with 84% of the students achieving approaches,  57 achieving meets and 24% achieving masters.   Reading continues to be a district strength  in elementary. In fifth grade reading, 81% of   the students achieved approaches, 61% achieved  meats, and an impressive 37% achieved masters. We are particularly encouraged by the high  number of students reaching the meets and   masters performance levels. Multiple assessments  exceeded 57% meets performance while M's rates   range from 19 to 36% across many content areas.  The most important takeaway is that our students   are not simply passing assessments. Our students  are demonstrating mastery on the standards   at increasingly

089high levels. These strong  district-wide results reflect the effectiveness   of the systems and instructional practices being  implemented across our campuses. Next, we will   examine the performance of one of our largest  student groups, our emerging bilingual students. Our emerging bilingual students continue to  demonstrate strong achievement across grade   levels and content areas. What stands out the most  is how closely their performance mirrors that of   our overall student population, providing  evidence that our systems and supports are   effectively serving all our students. Mathematics  performance was particularly strong with several   grade levels performing at rates comparable to  district averages. Reading achievement remains   equally encouraging in both fourth and fifth grade  reading. More than half of our emerging bilingual   students achieve the meat standards demonstrating  strong literacy development while act acquiring   a second language. Perhaps the most significant  story in the narrowing

090of perform is the narrowing   of performance gaps. Across most assessments, the  difference between emerging bilingual students and   the overall student population is only one to four  percentage points. In fifth grade reading, 33% of   emerging bilingual students achieve master's grade  level, nearly matching the district-wide rate of   36%. These results affirm that language  is not a barrier to achievement at PSJA.   Next, our special education students continue to  show encouraging progress across grade levels and   content areas. One notable area of strength is  fifth grade mathematics where 70% of our students   achieve the approach's standards, 40% achieve  meets and 15% achieve the master's performance   level. We are also encouraged by the consistency  of performance across grades in both reading and   mathematics at the third and fourth grade levels.  Approximately half of our students achieve   the approaches standards providing a

091strong  foundation for continuous growth. Additionally,   we are seeing students reach the highest levels  of achievement with master's performance ranging   from 7% to 16% across sever several assessments.  We we remain committed to accelerate outcomes for   our special education students while building  on the progress we are celebrating tonight. As we conclude our elementary results, I would  like to highlight what may be the most important   story of this evening student growth. When  comparing our preliminary 2026 results to the   2025 star performance, we see improvement across  every performance level for elementary schools.   At the approaches level, performance increased  from 74% to 77% representing a threepoint gain.   At the meets level, performance increased from 47%  to 54% a gain of seven seven percentage points.   At the master's level, our highest level of  achievement, performance also increased by   seven percentage points,

092rising from 21% to  28%. These gains exceeded both regional and   state improvements and demonstrate the more that  more students are not only meeting expectations,   but achieving at incredibly rigorous levels.  Some of our strongest growth occurred in grades   five mathematics, grade five reading, grade  three reading, and grade four mathematics with   several areas showing double district gains at  the meets and masters level. These results are   evidence that the systems we have implemented,  the targeted supports provided to campuses and   our unwavering focus on student achievement are  producing meaningful outcomes for students. While   these are preliminary results, we are proud of the  progress our elementary students have made. Now,   Dr. Wajardo will continue with a middle school  preliminary data presentation. Could I ask you   question? Mr. President, hold on. I got Mr.  Rob. Just just a quick uh can

093you go back   to the one of the bar graph slides? Anyone that  that Well, let's go. No, let's go back a couple that one will work. And for those people that  might be viewing this online, can you explain?   And if we'd look at fourth grade reading, one  would expect to see the total of those bars to   equal to 100, but you got 80, 57, and 27. So, can  you explain that it is the reporting the way TEA   wants it? Correct. Thank you, uh, Mr. Robles for  that question. Yes, absolutely. You're absolutely   right. So, the way that we, uh, report the data is  that it's commumulative. So for example, we start   with a masters which is the green one. 27% of  our students in fourth grade reading scored at a   master's performance level. Now if we

094look at the  next bar which is the blue one that is the meats.   But those 27% of students that got messes are  included within the 57%. The same applies to the   purple bar. So when we look at the 80% the 27% of  masters the 30% of meats are included in the 80%.   Yes, just for the viewing public in case they're  wondering. Well, that doesn't equal to 100.   Correct. Just wanted to make that. Okay. Thank  you. Yes. You're welcome. Um my question was   if we were going to be able to um have our two  minutes with each um you know, elementary and   secondary or like for example, did Mr. Rollles  just use up his two minutes for this? Um that   was 15 seconds. I know. But I know. But uh based  on the rules, once you

095speak up and then then you   hand off. You You've lost the rest of your  two minutes. I would say two minutes for each   section. Well, that's up to the president.  So, Mr. President, I have a um a comment for   uh Miss Arondo. Dr. Hold on, Miss Gutz. Yes. Did  you have Were you going to ask a question to Well,   my question is if I asked a question now, will  I not be able to ask a question for secondary   illegal? It's up to you if you want  to determine. This is one agenda item,   the presentation on the preliminary star results,  but if you want to divide it up so that they can   ask based on the presenter, that's that's your  call, Mr. Board President. Yeah. Okay. Okay,   we'll do it. Okay. So, two minutes for the 

096uh early the elementary school results and   then another two minutes for the upper grades.  Yeah. Okay. All right. I have a I have a Hi.   Thank Thank you for bearing with us here on  this. Um oh let me just let yes let me just   uh remind you uh uh Mr. uh uh president that uh  I raised my hand. I have no other way other than   than interrupting. So the u in the previous item  that I spoke I had my hand raised before but you   didn't acknowledge please pay attention. I  would appreciate it. Okay. Go ahead. Minia. I already forgot. I'm just kidding. I'm just  kidding. Um so I'm looking um I looked at this   data and let's take for example the all student  population and then at the end what you showed   the you know

097the two years um you can move to that  one. I was just comparing the numbers. So here um   for the where it says math let's say third grade  mathematics and you have uh 2026 star is 70%.   But for third grade math on the all student  population you have 69%. Did you round off or   are these based on two different numbers? Grade  third reading you have 76 but over here you   have 74 and grade four math is 75 but you put  76. We actually work with Miss U Sandra Serna   today and she updated this um chart that you see  before you. uh we went back and we updated but I   believe we didn't up we didn't provide the most  updated presentation to Dr. Davalos because the   last one we were working on and we printed it 

098does have the updated data but based on what I   see it's not right. Okay. Can we go back to the  first slide? Can you go back please? I believe   there it is. We updated that information today.  Ma'am, I believe there it is. Maybe the Yes, the   the one on the chart is is the one that's mostly  updated, not the graph. This one is or not the No,   I thought I'm I'm asking. I don't know. They  should be They should be I I I did make sure   to update this one to match the other one. Maybe  it might not be updated. I So if we look at third   grade math for example, it's 70% approaches, 49%  meets and 25% masters. And if we go to two slides,   it's uh 70 49 25. the data okay because

099the data  that we received yes is not up to date I mean it's   not correct the most updated the thing is that  we keep receiving data ma'am that's why we call   it preliminary datam because we keep receiving  data rescoring also for ECR so as missandra is   uh putting together the the data for us we're  updating it and we wanted to bring the data   that was the most uh up todate and we wanted  this particular table to match the graph so   that's why we updated for Thank you. Well,  these numbers on the table look better. So,   uh so yes, I will I will take the table. Yes.  Okay. Thank you. You're welcome. Because as the uh   resources are coming in, uh they're only improving  the scores. They're not decreasing the scores. So,   that's good. Go ahead,

100Mutier. Yes. Thank  you, Mr. President. Um Mondo, Dr. Just,   uh wanted uh you were in the right one there. Um  I want to continue with that one. I'm very pleased   uh to see that we have improved especially because  um you know co did a number on you know all of the   children the teachers you know the the systems  and everything. So I just uh wanted to say I'm   happy to see uh improvement in in all areas.  I I mean ideally we would be doing much better   but but I think uh the numbers th that 13% 11% uh  those are very very good numbers um compared also   to region and state um what happened in uh fourth  grade reading um you know because that's the one   um the one bracket where we didn't improve. Do  you

101have any idea? Have you guys done any Yeah.   So any assessment any so even though the data  shows that we have we decrease when we compare   to the region and to the state it doesn't it tells  a different story. So once we have all that data   and we come back and we present taper I'm sure  you will be very pleased to see that data. Now,   we've also been getting some data from the state  as far as ECRs and how they have been a little bit   more rigorous the way that they're rating it. So,  that is another factor. Now, another factor that   um thank you for reminding me that I do want to  point out for elementary is that this is year one   of a new HQIM, highquality instruction curriculum  for RLA. So, this is year

102one of SAVAs and also   this is year one of blue bonded mathematics. So  even so, I mean, we're very thrilled to share   this data because it's evident that we have great  systems, we have great leadership, and we're we're   working hard to make sure that that does not  impact our data. So I just wanted to just maybe   looking at at the fourth grade what's happening  in fourth grade that um you know in in reading   that did not you know uh have a a good impact  because the comparison is from 25 to 26 correct 20   uh 24 25 26 correct correct yeah so just looking  at fourth grade and and um and it would be great   if you guys can can see what happened maybe  the program and maybe the the resources   um you know just providing

103those fourth grade  teachers the support they need you know to to   also be um to also improve. Thank you so much um  Dr. And congratulations to all of the teachers, to   everyone. Um there despite all of the changes in  legislation, the changes in funding, the changes   and all the challenges, um you know, despite all  that, our teachers are are the ones that that   um that work with the kids dayto day because we  can provide them all of the great resources and   all of the support, but the teachers if a teacher  is not implementing it correctly, you know, it   um it there's no effect. So congratulations to  all of the teachers to you know for all of the   elementary and I'm hoping to see same results or  similar results with middle schools. Thank you.   Thank you.

104You want to next one? Thank you miss  hold on. I'm sorry. Miss Castillo has a customer.   Um again I I do want to thank everybody that has  been involved in in this uh producing this awesome   scores. And as I look at this course, I don't  look just at numbers, but this course represent   students. And it makes me feel good to see that  we are providing the tools and the knowledge and   the confidence for these children to succeed in  life. And so thank you to all of you who have   had a hand in this because not only are we are  they representing students, but these scores also   represent the hope that our that our families  have on on they're counting on us to get their   kids ready. And so I know that it's much more than 

105meeting expectations, but giving these children a   chance in life and parents knowing that they can  continue to trust us to give their children a a   just and fair education. Thank you all for all  that you do. This is incredible work. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Mr. President. May  I comment? Go ahead. uh on the uh fourth grade   reading. Um sometimes from a year to another  year, the test is just more difficult. This is   a statewide trend. That drop in that particular  grade level. It happened across the state. It's   not isolated to PSJ. And what we can usually  attribute that to is not programs or teacher   effectiveness or resources. It's usually something  about the test where you see that it's not just in   the region. And it's not just in the neighboring  districts, it's

106across the state. There's a a   uniform drop. That's probably what happened  in this case. But um what I want to draw your   attention to uh as a board is as we present uh by  level looking at the district performance compared   to the region and the state performance because  this is something that's really never happened   in PSJA as consistently and uniformly. and it's  a great credit to our teachers, our students,   and all of our PSJ staff. So, I think that really  needs to be celebrated. You're gonna you see   that we're uh well above the state and above  the region uh across all performance levels. Thank you for that, Dr. Mas. And thank you.  I also want to add one more thing. Sorry,   just keeping it. Anytime you initiate new  curriculum, you're always going to have   uh

107the score is going to go down. Anytime  new curriculum, we're not showing that. So,   I just want to commend all of you for that  because that's very hard for you to do.   Congratulations on that. Thank you so much. Thank  you. And I do want to thank Dr. Ardondo because   I'm glad that the elementary presentation  showed such positive improvement. Right.   Uh Dr. Gonzalez started first with our early  childhood foundation, our elementary showing   tremendous growth and you're going to continue  to see that trend in the middle school and high   school. Super excited about that. So Dr. Elias,  um President Rodriguez and board of trustees,   I'm now going to be presenting uh transitioning  into our middle school results. And I also want   to begin by recognizing the outstanding work of  our middle school campus leaders who many of

108them   are probably watching right now and and just as  excited as all of us will be at the end of this   presentation. Our coordinators and specialists  who are are here, they do an amazing amazing job   supporting our teachers and our students and our  leaders on campus. So a lot of it is their work,   our dedicated teachers that put in the  work every single day in those classrooms,   our support staff at every campus, and  especially our students and our families. In the next in the next slide, these  preliminary star results demonstrate   strong student achievement across multiple  content areas. We continue to see particularly   impressive performance in algebra 1 where 100%  of students achieved the approaches level and   96% achieved meets grade level. Our grade 8  reading results remain a significant strength   with 86% of students reaching

109approaches and  57% reaching meets performance. Grade 8 math,   grade eight science, grade seven reading, and  grade six reading also show solid performance with   well over 50% achieving meets performance. And  that's that on-grade level work that we hope for   all of our kids. Well over 50% of our students are  performing there. Another area worth celebrating   is the notable improvement in social studies  performance which is an area we've been focusing   on for several years and as Dr. Marquez mentioned  that comparison to the state and the region   uh will be shared later on with every specifics  but we will see dips sometimes in certain contents   but not at PSJA. These results reflect the  effectiveness of our instructional systems,   personalized interventions, and the commitment of  our educators to ensuring student success. On the   next slide, as we examine the

110performance of our  emergent bilingual students, it's important to   recognize that these students continue to achieve  at levels that closely mirror the per performance   of our overall student population in many areas.  For example, emergent bilingual students achieved   96% meets grade level in algebra uh matching the  performance of the overall student population.   In grade 8 math, MEE's performance was 53%  compared to 57% for our all students. And in   grade 8 reading, ME's performance was also 53%  compared to 57% for our students. These results   demonstrate that our emergent bilingual  students are successfully access accessing   rigorous academic content while simultaneously  developing English language proficiency. The   relatively small performance gaps between this  group and our overall student population reflect   the effectiveness of our instructional  supports, language acquisition programs,   and targeted interventions. On the next slide,  we will highlight the performance

111of our special   education students and showcase several areas  of notable strength when compared to our overall   student population. Most significantly, students  enrolled in algebra 1 achieved 100% at both the   approaches and the meets grade level standards,  exceeding the already strong performance of our   all overall student population. This demonstrates  that students receiving special education services   can excel in rigorous coursework when provided  with the appropriate supports and instructional   opportunities. We also see that encouraging  performance in grade 8 math where 59% of   special education students achieved approaches  compared to 80% of all students and in grade 8   reading where 64% achieved approaches compared  to 86% overall. While achievement gaps remain,   these results reflect meaningful progress  and increasing access to grade level content.   Perhaps most importantly, when we compare  our special education results to the overall   student performance, we

112see evidence that our  inclusive practices, intervention systems,   and collaborative instructional models are  producing positive outcomes for students.   This next slide provides one of the most  important perspectives in our presentation,   the comparison of our performance from 25 2025  to 2026. Across the district, you'll see the   gains and sustained achievement levels in key  middle school assessments. When combining the   performance of all middle school students across  assess assessed subjects and performance levels,   PSJISD per outperformed both the region and  the state at every single performance level. You'll see in approaches performance PSJISD  increased three percentage points at to a   72% and outperformed the region and the state at  71. In meat's performance level, PSJA increased   five percentage points and outperformed the  region and the state at 45 and 46 respectively.   At the M's performance level, PSJ increased seven  percentage

113points and outperformed the region and   the state at 20 and 22 respectively. These  these improvements did not happen by chance.   We are extremely proud of our teachers and our  students. Additionally, as we review yearover-year   performance, it is important to provide context  for some of the fluctuations that we see in   mathematics, particularly in grade 7 math and  algebra 1, which are a few of the red decreases   that you see. The implementation of Senate Bill  2124, which initiated the advanced mathematics   program in 2025, has significantly changed middle  school mathematics enrollment patterns across   Texas. As a result, fewer students are enrolled  in your traditional grade seven math courses while   a larger number of students are being accelerated  into advanced mathematics path pathways including   either grade seven college prep math where  students will take an eighth grade star at  

114the end of their seventh grade advanced co uh prep  college prep math or they're already going into   algebra one. Because of these shifting cohorts,  comparisons from one year to the next should be   interpreted carefully. The students remaining in  grade seven math represent a different population   than in previous years while enrollment in higher  level math courses has increased substantially.   This framing obviously helps everyone understand  that the mathematics declines are not necessarily   instructional setbacks, but are largely the  result of a more rigorous acceleration model   that is moving greater number of students into  advanced math pathways. And as you saw earlier,   we're performing in algebra 1 at very  high performance levels and increasing   the number of students that are um on that  pathway. Despite these changes, our middle   schools continue to demonstrate strong academic  outcomes, maintain high levels

115of achievement,   and improve student access to rigorous coursework.  This achievement uh belongs to all of our middle   school campus leaders and our curriculum team, but  especially to our teachers and to our students.   We're proud of what our middle schools have  accomplished together. I also would like to   give sincere gratitude to our superintendent,  Dr. Leas, our assistant superintendent,   Dr. Marquez and the board of trustees for the  steadfast support, the vision, and the belief   in the potential of every student. Your commitment  to high expectations and student success continues   to inspire and empower our schools to  achieve at the highest levels. Thank you. Now I'll turn it over unless there's questions.  Mr. Castile. Uh Dr. Yes. My question is when   you're saying that the the exams are more  rigorous. So are for next year are we aligning   our

116curriculum to ensure that we're um so  not necessarily are the exams more rigorous   um because of Senate Bill 2124. Um what happens  is after the fifth grade star exam and just by   what Dr. Adono presented right now, we'll have  an increased number of students at the coming   into sixth grade that are going to automatically  be enrolled in our advanced math pathway based   on their fifth grade performance. And so what  now happens is four courses get crunched into   three years. I see. They go into an advanced  path. They'll take sixth grade and some of   seventh grade course and they'll take the  sixth grade star and then they'll go into   the rest of seventh grade and all of eighth  grade course their seventh grade year and   they take the eighth grade star and they'll  take algebra 1

117by the eighth grade year. So,   what we've had is some fluctuating cohorts  where less students are are in the seventh grade   course because they've either gone on to that  advanced pathway or even into algebra one. So,   we have more students taking higher level maths  within their middle school years. I see. So,   but we're addressing that the curriculum is fully  aligned. Yes. I guess that's my question. Are are   we aligning the curriculum? Yes. the number of  students is increasing. Hopefully in the next   couple years we'll have a more consistent  uh cohort and now we'll be able to compare   um one year to the next with about the same amount  of students more comparable. Thank you. Yes. Any questions, Mr. President? Um if I can just ask I  know that Okay. thinking I know that uh   we

118have we will probably receive scores  by campus uh once everything comes in.   Yes. And so I guess at this point um based  on the preliminary data are all the middle   schools especially in these areas of not of  concern at this point. Uh but are have you   identified those campuses I get or or uh or that  subgroup of students that may need additional   um enrichment in in some of these um  area in some of these tests that um are going to be changing um have not  received any campus rating but by   just looking at the performance for each  campus our middle schools are very high   performing. That's what I wanted to hear.  Thank you. Very good. Okay. Okay. Now, Dr. Good evening, board president, members of the  board, and Dr. Leas. Uh tonight I'm excited   to

119present and share with you the preliminary  results for the high schools for the star end   of core exams. These results provide an early  snapshot of student performance in algebra,   English one, English 2, biology, and US history.   These results again are a testament of  the hard work in every single classroom   with our phenomenal teachers, our students,  our support staff, our families, our campus   leaders, and of course our amazing high school  administrators that are sitting over there with us as we prepare for the 26 27 Because  we're already planning school year,   we will continue using this data and more data  as we gather more data to inform our curriculum,   our campus targeted improvement plans, strengthen  instructional practices, monitor student progress,   and allocate resources strategically at every  single campus for every single student. Our   commitment remains consistent to

120provide every  student with high quality educational experiences   that promotes academic growth and a long-term  success. And this cannot happen without your   support, the leadership of our superintendent, Dr.  Leas, and Dr. Marquez. Can you go on to the next   slide? Slide one. This slide provides an overview  of the preliminary STARC performance for the all   student group. And I do want to share with you  that this includes every single student at our   high school that's also a retester student  in English one algebra biology English two   algebra biology and US history. The performance is  reported at the approaches grade level and above,   means grade level and above and master's grade  level. The all student group represents every   student who participated in each EOCC assessment  and the results reflect the collective performance   of every student. One of the most

121significant  celebrations from this preliminary data is that   more than 51% of our students met the meets grade  level that means sound grade level standard or   higher across the five EOCC assessments and we're  very very proud of that work from our teachers. This achievement demonstrates that the  majority of our students are performing   at a level that indicates strong understanding of  the Texas essential knowledge and skills and are   wellprepared for future academic success. While  we recognize there's always room for continued   growth, these preliminary results provide a solid  foundation in which we will continue to build as   we prepare for the next school year. I do want to  share our great results, an A really in algebra,   biology, and US history. Uh and then a 71 at  approaches in LA 1 and a 72 at approaches 2.   Go

122on to the next slide please. This slides again  highlights our preliminary results for the star   end of four assessment for emerging bilingual  students across the five tested subject areas.   These results provide valuable insights into the  effectiveness of our instructional practices in   developing both academic content knowledge  and the language proficiency necessary for   students to successfully access and demonstrate  mastery of the curriculum. Although these the   there are some performance gaps compared to the  all student groups minimal performance gaps the   differences are relatively small. Notably  emerging bilingual students achieved a meets   grade level and above performance exceeding  50% in four out of the five EOCC assessments   demonstrating strong academic achievement  across multiple content areas. Additionally,   the gaps in the master's grade level performance  are minimal when compared to the all student   group, indicating that many merchant bilingual  students

123are not only meeting expectations but   are also achieving the highest levels of academic  performance. Next slide, please. This slide shows   represents the preliminary star end of course  performance of our special ed student group   across the five tested areas. Again, as seen  in this slide, there are performance gaps when   compared to the O student group, highlighting the  continued need for targeted instructional supports   and intentional intervention. However, there's  an important accomplishment to celebrate in both   English one and English 2. Our special education  students exceeded the all student and emerging   bilingual group in the percentage of students  achieving master grade level standard. This is   a significant indicator that when provided with  rigorous instruction and appropriate supports, our   students are capable of performing at the highest  level of academic achievement. Next slide, please.   This slide compares our preliminary 2026 

124star end of course results with a 2025   star all administration full cycle testing  and demonstrating encouraging gains across   nearly every performance level and  tested subject in our high schools.   At the approaches grade level and above  standard, our students made strong progress   in algebra one in students increased  from an 86 to a 90% representing a 4   percentage point gain. In biology, there was an  improvement from an 89 to a 92% a 3% increase.   While in English one an increase of 5% and an  from 66 to 71 and English two from a 71 to a 72. Although US ex US history experienced a lot  a slight decre decrease in the two percentage   points the preliminary performance remains  exceptionally strong in US history with a   92% of our students achieving approaches grade  level and above. PSJ's high schools

125achieved an   84 performance rate at the approaches grade level  in all tested areas representing a 4% increase   from the previous year and we're only looking at  approaches grade level in all the tests combined.   The state achieved an overall performance of an 82  reflecting a 1% increase while the region improved   two percentage points. Overall, PSJ high schools  outperformed the state by two percentage points   and the region by three percentage points at the  approaches grade level and above. At the means   grade level and above, performance standards  were also observed observed positive results.   Algebra 1 increased three percentage points while  biology posted an outstanding 10point gain and we   have received results for biology. English one  maintained a strong 51% meets grade level and   above performance and English two increased from  a 57 to a 58 and meets and

126above. US history cons   sustained its impressive 60% at meets grade  level and above demonstrating consistent   achievement from the previous year. Furthermore,  at the mess grade level and above performance,   and we're looking at all the tests combined,  there was an increase of three percentage   points compared to the 2025 full administration  cycle improving from a 56 to a 59. The state   improved two percentage points while the region  increased by four percentage points. Overall,   PSJ high schools perform outperformed the  region by one percentage point and perform   just one percentage point below the state  average of 60 at the ME's performance level.   At the master's grade level, performance also  reflects meaningful growth. Biology led the   district with an exceptional 15 percentage point  increase in student achieving M's performance. English 2 and US history also demonstrated gains  at the master

127level. Algebra experienced only a   1 percentage decrease. They're already  pretty high. And English one decreased   by two percentage points. The district  continues to show overall improvement   across across nearly every performance level  and content area tested. We are very proud of   our teachers and students. While the state  remained unchanged in master's grade level   performance and the region improved by 2%, the  district demonstrated an increase of a three   percentage points in the master grade level  performance compared to the previous year.   These preliminary results are a testament to the  dedication and expertise of our amazing teachers,   campus leaders, students, support  staff, our district coordinators,   our district staff, our district directors,  our superintendent, assistant superintendent.   They reflect the impact of a strong curriculum,  collaborative learning communities, targeted   interventions, strong monitoring practices, and  relentless focus on high quality instruction. As

128we stop and all of us celebrate this tremendous  results and successes, our work continues.   District and campus leadership teams are  already engaged in comprehensive data analysis,   collaborating with teachers to identify  strengths and opportunities for growth and   developing targeted action plans that will drive  even higher levels of student achievement during   this next school year. We are very very  proud of our results. Thank you. Anybody have questions? I just want to uh commend  everybody. I am so so proud of all of you,   especially the teachers also and for you all's  guidance also. I mean, this is tremendous. This   is great. I'm I'm just happy to be here.  You know, it's it's just it's I just can't   have don't have enough words to say, but I'm just  very very proud of everybody teachers out there.   I thank you

129very much for all your hard work,  dedication for the students succeeding. You know,   that's why we have a whole bunch of students  being very su successful getting their   uh uh STC and going on to higher in  colleges and stuff. So, thank you   for all your hard work. I really appreciate  it. Really appreciate all of you. Thank you. Well, next I don't want to repeat everything has  already been said throughout the presentation,   but yes, it's uh I think Dr. Elasa has u has  spoken about this in several board meetings   in the past about being a family and a family  working together to achieve one common goal.   And it's important to note that um regardless  of who's on the boat, everybody's got a pedal   and everybody's going in the same direction.  Whether you're like I said earlier,

130you're a   pair professional at a campus uh an administrator  or coordinators are specialists in our campus   principles and you guys as executive officers uh  you have an inordinate amount of pressure on you   because you don't have to have that pressure  put on by us as a board of trustees or Dr.   Elias as our superintendent, but you self-inflict  that pressure because you want to outdo everybody   around you. And I'm talking about the other  districts and you're doing an amazing job,   let me tell you. So, congratulations to each  and every one of you. Just as a matter of point,   uh we've talked about this before. There is  there is a reason that PSJ has 82% of our   teachers on TIA incentive money. So I want to  congratulate each and every one of those people and hopefully we'll

131we'll offer the  opportunity for more to jump on the   bandwagon. But uh you all are  amazing each and every one of   you. Uh congratulations. I'm excited to  see the final results and go go PSJA. Yeah. And maybe this is for um for Dr. Marquez.  Dr. Marquez in is there a way of showing   uh you know yearover-year or year-to-year  growth uh measures maybe in the table to   see how we're actually doing because when we  do the the meets and uh the approaches well   it's all going to be dependent on the number  of kids tested. So, I don't know if we could   show that just in a different format, but no,  congratulations to everybody for your hard work   and dedication. And I know I know what it takes,  you know, because I've been there even though,   you

132know, we weren't a subject that was tested,  but we were always supportive of the efforts   of of all the core areas. So, thank you for  your work and maybe we can just look at that   information as we move forward and match those to  our goal progress measures, the board's measures.   Yes, sir. We actually have that. We've shared it  in a prior uh board meeting, but I'll be glad to   uh email that to all of the board members. Uh  because I think you'll be uh very impressed   with the trajectory that our district has been  on in the last three or four years. Uh we always   compare ourselves to the district, to the region,  and the state. And we've always been kind of   clobbered by both. We've always been kind of like  the step brother, little stepbrother.

133But I think   uh every year we've gotten better and better. And  I think this is the year that we've stepped up and   really uh become the leader uh in in uh in those  comparisons. So I'll send that to you and we're   excited to share how we uh how the final report  comes out. Thank you, Mr. President. Go ahead,   Mr. Ken. Um yes, I'm pretty sure Dr. Marquez, you  will be sending that out to the entire board. Of   course. Yes. Yes. Um and u I I do want to applaud  everybody. I know um kind of what trustee Robble   said is that um he wants to see the scores you  know I guess compare apples to apples. However,   the accountability system is set up so that it  compares, you know, prior's year's performance   to this year's performance.

134And I've got I've  been I'm getting questions as far as, you know,   if it's only approaches, how can we be so happy  about just being approaches and then meets,   right? And we should be focusing on meets and  uh masters. But that is the rating that the   state has set. So for that for that reason and  that is how we measure and I am very grateful   um for the progress that it's demon that's that  uh it's being demonstrated across all grade levels   and it's even then it's not it's not easy kind  of like um like trustee Robles I've been there   right I I worked with some of you while I was the  dean and it was all about testing testing testing   so I I know what that um that requires so I I do  want to

135thank everybody here for taking that lead,   but I definitely want to thank every single  teacher at every campus who is in a testing   area and or outside a testing area but supports  the entire campus. I I do look forward to seeing   um the the ratings per campus so we can see what  the individual growth was in each campus and or   identify those campuses that may need additional  support. Um I am I am always very grateful for   that um hard work that we have to increase  our scores but we always have to keep in mind   our students our at risk students and see what we  can do with those sub populations to go ahead and   bring them up as well. It's not that I'm always  picking on on certain um groups, but I having been   a

136dean of instruction and having always, you  know, had a emphasis on all the special pops,   I want there to be also some major uh progress  in in not just, you know, showing let's say   that their scores are high, but you know, making  sure that there is substantial support for those   um special populations. So once again, thank you  so much. Um and continue the great work uh at   the campus levels. I know that's that's where  you know the rubber meets the road and um and   everybody here for supporting our our teachers,  teacher aids, um everybody at a campus. Thank you, Mr. Board President. Anybody else? I I just  have a comment. Um, you've been active. Go   ahead. As human beings, I think we thrive on  success and so this is a a a good success to  

137celebrate and we not only celebrate scores but  we celebrate a brighter future for our families,   for our students and for our community. So, uh,  congratulations to all of you and and again,   we keep focusing and and mentioning the  teachers. Um, yes, the teachers because   they're there every single day working  with those kids and it's just amazing the   uh caliber of of teachers that we have and I  keep saying compassionate, you know, passionate,   compassionate and talented. So again, thank  you teachers out there for all that you do and   thank you for their significant others because a  teacher is an incredible teacher when she's got   the support at home. So it's again it's a whole  family unit. So thank you everyone for really   working hard for for hum for little human beings  and big human beings. So

138thank you all. Gutierz Gutierz. Yes. Go ahead. Um, yes. Uh, is Dr.  Marquez still there? Yes. Yes. Dr. Marquez. Uh,   do all of these scores for um, especially for  high school, middle school and high school. Do   do the retester teachers have anything to do?  Are they included or um, you know, do they do   they contribute in any way? the scores that we  just saw. Of course. Yes. At the high school,   the retester uh students are included and the  efforts of the retester teachers of course help   the students prepare for the the exams. Okay.  Having been a uh retest teacher, I want to send   a big shout out to those uh teachers because uh  they work um or at least when I was a teacher,   they work without curriculum. they work without  uh uh guidance. You

139basically have to figure out   uh a pathway to help those students. So, I want to  send all those teachers a big shout out because uh   I know they spend a lot of time figuring out what  it is that the students that are not um passing   the the the test need, you know. So um just wanted  to make that comment and again like I said earlier   congratulations to all the teachers to all of the  EOS to everyone that contributes to you know the   the student success and let's keep working on um  improving those scores for next year. Thank you   um Dr. Marquez. Thank you Dr. Um well um have  being a member that does not have a background   in education you know these graphs really say a  lot you know I I I understand them I

140pick trustee   Castillos's mind all the time and I say what  is this what is this where do we apply it and   and basically there's so much going on that that  needs to be made a connection to for someone that   does not have this education ation background.  My background was totally different. And so,   uh, I congratulate everybody because I was able to  see the 20, 25, 26, and then I mean the 20, what   was it, 24, 25. And so, I kind of like got around  to understand a lot. And I knew from the get-go   that they were high scores. I mean just seeing  those bars so high and seeing even a hundreds   you know was was a a blessing to us because I mean  there's a lot of work that makes those graphs grow   and then

141it's out there in the campuses we don't  get to everybody to say thank you thank you for   everything that you do day in day out you know and  with the help of of EOS the help of coordinators   the help of everybody around them that makes  these things happen. So, congratulations to   everybody. May God bless you and may God  continue to bless PSJ with high scores. Okay. Yes. Uh Mr. President, just to make a quick  comment, I'm extremely humbled by what I see.   I think that you know our our teachers deserve  more than what we can actually express and you   know because they are the ones in the classroom  those full eight hours with the students and   again every single teacher out there but it also  takes the administration at each campus you know   it takes

142a lot of focus because there's always  a lot of noise everywhere and the focus in the   curriculum, the focus on what needs to happen  with instruction, them doing the walkthroughs   in and out and and and giving that immediate  feedback to every staff member, every teacher   out there so that we can continue to perform  at the level that we're doing. And then again,   it takes a lot of planning at at central office  and and the executive officers, the specialists,   the coordinators. It takes, like we say, a  village. a village to make sure that just   one student succeeds. But here we're seeing in  the upwards of almost close to 29,000 students,   you know, at a success rate. And when we talk  about, you know, numbers, if every student,   if the the actual numbers were there, once we

143look  at our rating and once we look at our attendance,   we have very good attendance in this district, but  the state always requires a 95% participation and   testing. So, we can't skew away and say, "Oh,  we're only going to test 50% of them." No. the   state requires you to have a 95% participation  rate actually here at PSJA and and we actually   have the assessment director here Miss uh Dr.  Basan and she can testify that most campuses   hit above 98% some even at 100%. So the students  are being tested. So the reflection of our scores   here, you're actually seeing true reflection  of PSJ student success. And again, you know,   I thank the teachers, I thank everybody, but I  also thank the community, the parents, because   it takes the parents bringing the students. It  takes the parents

144making sure that the students   complete their work at home, that the students  are involved, that the students are participating   in what they need in instruction for them to be  successful. And we've seen that throughout here   at PSJ because of all the systems that we put in  place. But again, it takes every single person.   And then even we think of our instructional  people, but it also takes the maintenance people,   it takes the cafeteria people. If the students are  not fed on a timely manner, if they're not fed in,   you know, accordingly with the the health  guidance that we have to take, if the maintenance,   the AC falls and and it needs to be repaired  immediately. I mean, there's so many factors that   come into play and there's 4,500 employees here.  So, I thank, you know, aside

145from my biggest thank   you to the teachers, to the administration  and and the instructional administrators,   I also thank the other part of PSJA. So, again,  it takes a village to see the success that we're   seeing. And this is not something that has been  seen here at PSJ. And I want to say this is this   is going to be something that once you get to  see and we get our actual this is preliminary,   but once we get our actual scores, y'all are going  to be very proud of our students and our teaching   staff and everybody else that is involved. So  again, thank you to every single one of you. Trying to come down from all that high Um going on  to the next presentation. Yes. Uh Mr. President,   the next one is a presentation on uh

146school  operations and it's item A under nine,   item nine and it's a presentation on the PSJISD  seat belt requirements, Texas Senate Bill 546,   school bus seat belt safety. Oh, you still have  one more presentation. The district improvement   plan. Oh yeah. Oh, sorry. I almost skipped and  then I just mentioned that she was here. Sorry.   I apologize. Targeted. I'm jumping the to the next  one. So, I'll go back. It's under still curriculum   and instruction letter C presentation on the  district targeted improvement plan. Thank you,   Dr. Leas. And that group that's leaving  was also a big part of what we're going   to talk about now. So, u needless to say, it's  been a very, very good year academically. Uh,   I would venture to say it's the best year  that PSJ has had since the implementation of   the

147ATF accountability system and possibly  even in the history of PSJ. It's a very,   very good year. And of course, it's all  preliminary. Uh, but we'll find out for   sure in uh early August, we'll bring you our  accountability uh ratings. Currently, we have   u uh every single campus has shown improvement,  and we're projecting u uh hopefully, Lord willing,   an A. um and over 20 A rated campuses, uh almost  20 B-rated campuses, no C's or D's. So, you know, and of course, uh it's a huge feather in our  cap to be leading in so many uh areas over the   region and the state. So, the things that  we stood before you a couple years ago and   and told you were our goals, we're starting to  see that fruit uh you know, taking place. So,   it doesn't happen

148by accident. It happens  by design and that's what this next part   is about. Uh we have something called  the targeted improvement plan that we   uh practice in our school district uh at the  district level first of all with all of our   leadership team but also at every single  campus. They look at their data and they   look at their needs and everybody in PSJA is  well-versed on the state accountability system.   I I would venture to say that in other districts.  You can't say that about uh every teacher,   about every administrator definitely. But the the  state accountability system is complex. It's not   simple. It rewards of course students passing at  approaches, but it also rewards uh academic growth   and it rewards closing the AC the achievement gap  with our subgroups. And not just at approaches,   it's at

149the meets level. So uh it's a it's a  comprehensive system that to earn an A under that   system it really takes a lot. It takes systemic  practices and a system of data analysis that has   to be very very uh intentional and that's what  our our district does in developing the district   targeted improvement plan. So uh here to present  uh what that process looks like here in PSJ is   our committee of goal area leads uh Dr. Risa Basan  followed by Dr. Miss Kintana and Olivia Martinez. Hello. Good evening. Uh board president, Dr.  Leas, members of the board. Um Miss Kintana,   Dr. Bisa Basan, and I will provide an overview of  our district uh targeted improvement plan process.   As the executive officers each mentioned  this uh tip, um this process is overseen   by Dr. Marquez and Dr.

150Verna Vasan. and we  would like to thank them for their support   and their guidance. So I'm gonna um I'm going  to begin and then I'm going to be followed by   Miss Kintana and Dr. Risa Basan Basoro. Okay.  So this uh um uh process is how our district   uh targeted improvement plan is structured,  how committees monitor progress throughout the   school year and con we are going to conclude with  results from one of the quarter 4 interventions.   The tip serves as our district-wide framework  for continuous improvement by helping us   identify priority areas. Establish measurable  goals and let me tell you those goals are lofty.   Uh Dr. Marquez uh and Dr. Fisa Basan are very uh  they have high expectations and as you can see we   uh reach those uh expectations. Um we also have  we also implement

151targeted interventions and   monitor progress throughout the year. The process  begins with district committees identifying root   causes that impact student outcomes. We then  develop goals, establish quarterly checkpoints,   implement interventions, and regularly monitor  that progress. Throughout the year, committees   review evidence just as needed, and ensure  that our efforts remain focused on improving   student achievement and district performance. This  structured process allows us to be intentional,   datadriven, and responsive in meeting the  needs of our students and our campuses.   Next slide. The work of the district TIP is  guided by a crossdep departmental committee   made up of approximately 40 district leaders. The  committee includes executive officers, directors,   coordinators and support specialists from  various departments, assessment and data support   uh and other district representatives. Committee  members are then organized into goal specific   teams that focus on developing, implementing,  monitoring and adjusting

152strategies aligned to   our district priorities. This broad representation  is important because it ensures that expectations   are clearly communicated across departments and  that support for implementation is coordinated   throughout the district. By bringing together  multiple perspectives and areas of expertise,   the committees create a collaborative approach  to continuous improvement. Next slide,   please. The district tip process begins with a  root cause analysis. Committee members review   that data and identify the underlying factors  contributing to a particular challenging or   area for improvement. Once the root cause is  identified, the committee establishes the desired   annual outcome and develops quarterly goals that  best serve as checkpoints toward that outcome. For   each quarterly goal, specific interventions are  identified to guide implementation and support.   Because committee members represent various  departments, they communicate expectations back   to their teams, ensuring alignment and consistency  across the district. The

153work then moves from   planning to implementation as district and campus  staff provide support, monitor progress, and   gather evidence throughout the year. This process  creates a clear connection between district   planning and campus level action. I will now turn  the presentation over to Miss Gintenna. Thank you. Good evening board president, Dr. Leas, members  of the board. I'll continue with the slide on   quarterly goals and interventions. So part of  the tip we do have quarterly checkpoints which   help the district take manageable steps towards  the annual goal and each quarter has a clear   checkpoint and aligned interventions that can be  implemented monitored and adjusted throughout the   year. So if you see this we are broken up  into four different quarters and our first   quarter we set the foundation the expectation we  identify the goal and then the second quarter

154we   check the early progress the third quarter we  deepen supports and then the fourth we review   the final progress. Quarterly goals give each  committee a way to monitor momentum before the   final accountability outcome and interventions  define what the departments and the campuses   will implement and how this support will follow  through. So monitoring the implementation and   the and the progress right in the middle  we have the quarterly accountability here.   This happens four times a year and I should  say that this has already been established   uh for this year. So we already have those  checkpoints uh set on the dates and each goal   committee provides a brief PowerPoint update  to the full district tip committee and I think   we're scheduled to present this I think it's the  day we come back July 23rd so that's already set  

155and updates include progress towards the quarterly  goal the implementation how it's going to happen   the evidence the monitoring adjustments and  campus support so again we become we start with   the implementation right The interventions are  carried out by the departments by the campuses   that are established. We monitor through the  checkpoints so the progress is reviewed through   data observations and artifacts and we adjust if  necessary. So the committee identifies the next   steps and needed supports and then we present  this. So each goal committee shares whether the   quarterly goal was met. So we have three different  goals as part of the tip in the district.   So part of this collection we establish uh  evidence right we have to collect artifacts   and the artifacts document the implementation  the support reflection and inform adjustments   throughout the year. So here we

156see the quarterly  meeting cycle. We have summer planning which that   already took place. So we're kind of ahead of the  game, right? We schedule our quarterly reviews,   the progress updates, and then we do the  adjustments. Uh some of the artifacts that   we collect as evidence as part of every tip goal.  Um we collect agendas and signin sheets. If we say   we're going to do something, where's the evidence  that it occurred? uh planning tools, different   templates uh that are connected to our tip, any  monitoring forms, data summaries and training   and support survey for teachers and staff. I  know that uh Briea's going to cover that, but   we also have evidence such as videos and photos  that it's actually happening in the classroom so   that the artifacts create a consistent picture of  implementation, the progress, and the

157next steps   um across the district. And I just want to add  right, you know, in case I don't get the mic   back after this, but so our our tip is really um  we do include and I know that we talked, you know,   I know that Verna Bazan kind of oversees  the whole thing probably under her duties,   right? But the other executive officers as well  as Dr. Marquez participate in the tips with us.   It's not just divided by content specialist  and people from the bilingual department or   the special education department, but they sit  with us and also take part in the tips and you in   the tip goals and they challenge our thinking and  sometimes we think well you know 70% well why and   you know like no it has to be higher than that  right

158um and and also some of the walkthroughs   that we do with uh we've done with Dr. Marquez  and some of the focus schools, we see evidence   of the tip language, the the artifacts, you know,  where the students have their student trackers or   the teachers have their lesson internalization  guide, you know, some of the things that we're   creating to help support those goals. So, we  know that it's working, right? And a big shout   out also to our content specialist specialists  that have left, right? publicly recognizing   them because they they put a lot of energy and  effort in ensuring that the scores are up there,   right? And ultimately, you know, we reflect uh  student achievement, but I think it's it's it's   u part of this tip. I think that it's showing  helping show growth. So, I'll turn

159it on over to Good evening, board president, Dr. Leia,  and uh members of the board. Thank you   for allowing me to and as to present to  you this evening. As Miss Kintana shared,   artifacts are very important because they  provide evidence of what's going on and   what's happening across the district. One of  the artifacts that is aligned to goal one which   we would like to highlight this evening is  the training and support survey. This survey   allowed district leaders to hear directly from 458  respondents which which included teachers, CLLs,   coordinators, and campus administrators about  the support that they received throughout the   year. We were very encouraged by the results and  are pleased to share them with you this evening.   Respondents were provided statements and were  asked to rate each statement using an agreement   rating scale. For example,

160for the first survey  statement, respondents were asked to rate whether   they received the training and support needed  to effectively implement the district provided   curriculum. As you can see on this slide, 83%  agreed with that statement. Agreed or strongly   agreed. The second statement focused on lesson  internalization. For this statement, 84% of the   respondents agreed agreed and strongly agreed that  the lesson internalization processes help them   better plan instruction aligned to grade level  expectations. The next two statements focused   on professional learning and leadership support.  The third statement respondents 86% of respondents   agreed or strongly agreed that professional  learning opportunities supported their   instructional practices. And 86% of respondents  agreed or strongly agreed that campus and district   leadership monitored implementation in a way  that was supportive and helpful. Next slide. The positive results continue across the  feedback this uh across

161the survey for feedback,   instructional resources, and targeted support.  85% of respondents shared that feedback through   walkthroughs, coaching, and observations  helped improve instruction. 84% reported   that the district curriculum and instructional  materials were practical and useful for practi   for classroom instruction. One result that we're  especially proud of is that 88% agreed or strongly   agreed that district and campus improvement  strategies were implemented consistently at   their campus. This shows that the tip is  not simply a plan on paper that is being   put into action across all PSJ campuses.  In addition, 85% shared that they received   targeted support when instructional needs or  student performing concerns were identified. And next slide, please. In this slide, you  can see the results for overall impact and   support where 84% of respondents agreed or  strongly agreed that the supports provided   this year helped improve

162student learning and  achievement and 85% said that overall they felt   supported by district and campus initiatives  designed to improve instruction. Overall,   the survey results show an average  agreement across all 10 items of 85.1%. The highest agreement was implementation and  targeted support at 86.6%. And you can see   that responses were positive across all all  survey strands. Overall, the survey results   indicate that survey that indicate that staff  view district and campus supports as beneficial   to instruction and student outcomes. Lastly, I'd  like to share a few comments from respondents   that reflect their appreciation for their  support, their guidance, and the resources   provided throughout the year. For example,  one said that the tip helped as a road map   to help student achievement. Another stated that  instruction and training provided by our district   leaders was very helpful and the district

163and  campus administrators consistently provide the   support and resources needed to help to maximize  student success. Thank you once again for allowing   us to share this artifact and the district  implement plan process with you this evening. Mr. President, I've got just a quick question.  Uh, so what specifically is intervention three?   Is that that survey? The in Well, for this  intervention three, it's it's a survey that   we sent out uh to all teachers, all c um all CLLs,  um all campus administration. So, we had about I   wrote it down here. We sent it out to about 2,450.  Okay. So, the intervention is the survey itself.   And that's the artifact to what we brought to you  to today. Thank you. Yes, Mr. President. Danielle,   so you said you sent out about 2,50 2,450 2450.  And what I'm looking

164at is that there's there   were only 458 participants. 450. Okay. Were those  uh were you able to get that feedback by by grade   level, by like just in general? How would how did  you um divide that? We sent it an uh a survey that   it was anonymous so that respondents could feel  comfortable responding honestly. But we know   that the responses that we were receiving were  from either teachers, they were from CLL's the   staff at the campus level. So you targeted um  who did you target with this survey? Teachers.   Teachers. Campus administration. CLLL's. Um,  that was the target population. Yes. So, you   only got 458 back. Yes, ma'am. Okay. What efforts  will you do in the future to make sure that that   um amount is increased because you're you don't  even have 50%. Right. This is

165the first year   that we do send out this survey. Um, and for  next year, we could do maybe a follow-up email   uh as well. Um that could be something that  could generally potentially get more participants   because we do value their feedback. Yes, of  course. Yes. Because you um like for example   the the feedback obviously it's in the 80% which  is good you know satisfactory. Um but I don't   know is it coming from elementary teachers is it  coming from middle school teachers is it coming   from high school so that you we can kind of gauge  you know well the elementary is satisfied with   um you know all the support that that is being  given or designed through this um tip. Um and also when you say uh that there's training um  and support the training and

166support survey   um you only targeted that those people that  identified right so when you say staff is   everybody at the camp campus staff essentially  yes okay um and let's see what else did I write I   think that was um that was in in the committees I  guess that was another question in the committees   you're not including teachers in the in the in the  and I'm looking I don't know if somebody if you   could go back to one of the initial slides where  you say it's it's uh and I don't think it was it   was yeah I don't think it was I think it was thank  you for your feedback on the survey you take that   into yes because uh here the target the tip uh  committee the representation includes it says   executive officers directors content

167coordinators  do language special ed assessment data add and it   says additional district representation. So  nowhere in this are there campus represent   is there any campus representation? It's the  district tip. So the campus has their own campus   uh improvement plan. Yeah. So this is the district  where we highlight those three areas of need   within a district as a whole. So those three  areas of need are based on prior year's campus   improvement plans. So overall as the district  so one of the one of the goals was on the TELPAS   right because we needed to improve those score  scores the other one is on meeting expectation   and then the other one was on academic growth. So  those were where we identified the whole process   of identifying the root cause developing the  problem statement and creating the goal from  

168that. And so as so it was you know we have all the  content experts right fitting into the different   tip where where they fall into as well as the EOS  we have the sped coordinators the I understand we   do not have teachers as part of that what we  do is go out and support teachers and I wanted   to go back to the survey right we got a little  glimpse of those that responded but we're in the   classrooms collecting feedback from the teachers  were in their CLC meetings asking questions and   they're identifying this works, this doesn't work.  So just because we did this formally as a as a   survey, right, and it went out, we're continuously  gathering information from principles,   from classroom teachers at their meetings. And  that's why we say the evidence of signin sheets  

169and and different trainings providing that support  to come back and bring it together as a district   tip to say you know what we need to we need to  tweak tweak intervention too. it's not in line   with what they need at the school and that's why  we have those scheduled four quarterly dates where   we come back and say you know we need to tweak  it right you know and again I say the process   can always get better but you know and and I just  joined the team last year right but from last year   to this year I think we've made a lot of growth  there's a lot of people in our tip that are very   uh knowledgeable we're growing from each other  they're growing you know you know different   uh sped is growing from bilingual and

170content and  what's going to work and and what's going to help   going into those classrooms and and providing that  support and so the scores are evident of it being   you know uh functional right and that it's working  right we hope to to do better it's always you know   how how good are we going to get you know next  year with the scores so yes and the the reason I   was asking and you actually answered in that  um response is that you are in contact with   principles um when you go to their their meetings.  So that's the the outreach that I wanted to see   because I know I mean we could sit up here and  and even as board members and we're like we want   this goal and this goal and this goal but it may 

171not be realistic, right? And so I wanted to make   sure that in putting together the district goals  that you were in fact looking and hearing from   the campus so that it makes it easier when they  go back use the district to create their campus   improvement plan. Yes. Um so to add to that the  last meeting that we had on the tip I know that   we were plugging into our interventions the campus  administrator right and so the EOS asked us let's   step back what can we do to go out and do the  training instead of the principal let's us take   over right and own that right and go out there and  be visible and do the trainings for the teachers   right because we know that principles have a  million things to do so that is what

172that is   one of the things that they said Hey, let's see if  we can, you know, instead of transferring some of   these things that we think maybe principles  should do, let's let's do it ourselves as   a team. That's good. Thank you. Thank you all  three. Thank you. Thank you. Uh Mr. President,   go ahead. I just wanted to make a comment. I uh I  like the system that you that we that you have in   place. I think that we continue to build a culture  of teamwork and collaboration and it's evident.   Uh, so thank you for doing that. I I have a  recommendation. Well, not a recommendation. What   do you all think about maybe making yourselves  available um like I don't know once a week,   every two weeks an hour um like the last hour  of the

173day just so that way if anybody has a   question, a concern they can reach out to you.  I don't know like office hours like almost like   an office hour and I don't know whether we need  it every week but making yourselves available to   our principles through to our administrators  in case they have they need clarification in   case they need additional support. I don't know.  I'm thinking along those lines. I don't know that   I guess something to think about. Yeah, it it  seems something that we do so naturally, right?   anybody can reach out to us on Teams or our cell  phone and you know if if I have any reds at the   end of the day on teams you know I didn't you know  capture everything I should have done for that day   but I think

174that I can speak on behalf of of all  of our teams right and we know those that need   more support than others and so we you know we try  to focus on on those but I think that you know I I   mean I know personally I'm not in the practice of  trying to hold office hours right I'm available at   all times times if if they need the support and I  can speak for the rest of the tips. Yeah. Well, I   mean, if you're available, I mean, I I understand.  I I it just came to my mind if if you would   designate in a set hour to say at this time, we're  available, but I mean, if you're available all the   time, I mean, we don't need to have a to set aside  an hour, but

175thank you. This is very very good. Um   I'm assuming at the at the campus level we have  the same uh system in place because this is I   I like the way it's u it it's a system with um  consistency and continuity. I also like the fact   that um there's evidence and artifacts because  if it's not in writing it didn't happen. So thank   you all. Very good. Why didn't somebody guide me  before to do something like this? I did. I didn't   have it, but I didn't have it as as structured as  it is right now. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Now, now I move to the the real one, right?  I have my hand raised. Oh, sorry. Go ahead,   M. Apologize for that. Uh, Miss uh Miss Kintana,  good evening. Um and um Cleia and

176I didn't see   who who else u Miss Basan um I have a few I have  uh several questions. Did we have any campuses   that triggered the implementation of the plan?  I wrote the the the questions I had in advance.   Did we have any campuses specifically that  triggered uh um I I guess special help, you know,   as a school because of their scores, because of,  you know, um I know that we have several schools   who for a few years have been trying to improve  their not the the the star scores, but their   rating. Um so did were did we have any schools  that um that triggered using the the improvement   plan with them? Yes, Mutes. This is M this is Dr.  Marquez. Um to answer your question, we we did   have uh every campus that was

177rated a C and our  one campus that was rated a D uh was identified   as soon as we got the data in a year ago. And  uh as has been our custom, we provide additional   targeted support to those campuses. We're excited  to show you when we come back in in August and we   get the final results the uh outcomes for each of  those campuses because uh each campus in the last   three years that we've provided that additional  support to has had substantial gains. And again,   we're seeing the same thing where even our  lowest rated campus uh is you're going to be   impressed. they have preliminary right now an 11  point gain. So uh uh we go based on the data and   uh wherever the schools are. We even had a couple  of schools that were

178not C's, they were B's,   but we felt like they had potential to do  better. Uh they had been formerly higher   performing campuses. We provided them support as  well and they showed uh improvement uh also. Okay.   Um and what are the triggers? What are the root  causes? and and I looked up some like attendance,   teacher turnover, reading deficits, curriculum.  Uh aside from from that um uh rating and also from   uh when if you identified these um issues or this  triggers, were there any that um that that require   other departments to um to participate? And and  let me let me explain how where I'm coming from.   We know that poverty, we know that, you know,  uh having a household where uh is primarily uh   Spanish speaking, we know those um children have  more challenges when it comes

179to school, you know,   plenty times. So, I was talking to a friend  last night and we were talking about wraparound   um services and how sometimes, you know, what the  students do in school is not enough because if   they're hungry, they're not going to learn.  You know, if they're having issues at home,   uh other than uh in, you know, their education,  Mr. Board impact. So, Mr. Board President, that is   Trusty Gutierrez's time on this topic. Mutier, I'm  sorry. Okay. But he he he can answer that, right?   Yes, Dr. Um, yes, the the root causes are are  varied because every single campus conducts a   root cause analysis and the data is different from  campus to campus. So, in some cases it could be   uh a lack of attention to to an operations  detail as you're uh uh

180uh referencing or   um maybe perhaps like breakfast in the classroom  may be an issue that the kids are arriving late,   not getting breakfast. Sometimes it's things like  that. Other times it's a systemic practices and in   leadership and uh visibility and oversight of the  instruction that's happening in the classrooms. Uh   other times it's lack of parental engagement.  So it really varies from school to school.   uh but that's why we uh encourage and require  every campus to conduct their own targeted   improvement plan development to look at all  the data and make their own conclusions as to   what the root cause analysis is and their goal  areas are going to be and then we go in and we   provide support. So when we do our uh our support  walks, it includes our uh dual language uh people,   our

181specialists and coordinators, directors,  uh special education, our content coordinators   and specialists so that we can provide whatever  wraparound services are required. We uh ask our   counselors, our campus counselors to be present at  these meetings as well as our assistant principles   and principles. We talk directly to teachers. We  provide feedback. Uh so whatever their targeted   improvement plan is that's the first thing we look  at when we make our first visit to that campus and   then we support them in those efforts and we take  all of our team uh regularly especially to those   uh extra support campuses. We go at least six  to eight times uh uh per semester and we take   our team and we spend about half a day there at  least. So, uh, it whatever support is needed,   we're in constant communication with our 

182operations team, our human resources team.   Sometimes there's teachers that are are out due to  FMLA. We have to get it covered by a high quality   uh, teacher. Sometimes it's an administrator or  a assistant principal or principal in some cases.   So whatever support is needed at a campus,  we uh we provide that support and uh you know   we do our best to guide our teachers in and  principles especially into implementing these   u targeted improvement plans with fidelity and not  just a piece of paper that you create and then you   file it away. We we're constantly checking  even with ourselves at the district level.   We meet quarterly and the goal the goal is did  we do what we said we were going to do? Where's   the proof? And that's where the coordinators,  the directors bring pictures, bring

183artifacts,   and we'll make sure we keep ourselves in check  in that way. Thank you. Okay, I will I will   email you the the rest of the questions because  I had some Well, I I'll email them to Dr. Alias   because I still had questions on dual language,  on special education, and and and so forth. So,   I'll I'll email them to Dr. Alias. Thank you.  Thank you. Okay, good. Thanks, Okay. Yes. Uh,   Mr. President, the next item is under school  operations, letter A, presentation on the   PSJISD seat belt requirements, Texas Senate Bill  546, school bus seat belt safety, and this will   be presented by Rafael Gonzalez. Good evening, uh,  Mr. President, Dr. Leas, members of the board. Um,   I just want to take the time to to congratulate  the academic team. That that's fantastic all the   stuff

184that you guys are presenting. And I want to  tell you that in operations we'll continue to work   diligently to support you guys and make sure that  the staff has everything they need so they can   best support students. So I just want to let you  guys know about that is the I'll start off with   uh take the time to just some highlights from from  transportation. We don't get up here very often to   talk uh about what what that department does and  so I just want to kind of highlight some of the   stuff that we had uh as successes for this year.  Uh our our transportation department earned a top   10 top 100 fleet honorable mention. Is that not an  easy feat? That's a nationwide award. Uh they've   also achieved Oh, thank you. Uh they they've also 

185achieved their low accident rate as set out for   their annual goal. So they've reduced the amount  of accidents for the year. They've upgraded their   uh invested time uh as some of their budget to  upgrade equipment for their to better service   their buses and they've also improved in their  attendance as they set out also uh uh as a yearly   goal. So they've met and and all their the the  goals that they set out at the beginning of the   year they've met and exceeded those. And so I just  want to thank the transportation department for   a wonderful job that they do. they've always met  the call and uh go above and beyond. And so again,   I want to thank them for for for all they  do. Um so what I'll be presenting today,   it's doesn't require any

186action. It's just  a informative, but it is on Senate Bill 546,   and this requires that the all buses have  threepoint seat belts uh um that transport   children. The purpose of it is to strengthen  the Texas school bus safety requirements. School buses operated and contracted by the state  of Texas must be equipped with threepoint seat   belts for every passenger and that is effective  September 1st, 2029. It removes any exemptions   that we had before that anything older than 2017  was exempt. So that that's no longer on the table.   uh districts that cannot immediately comply with  this. Now, we don't fit into this because this is   more for small rural uh uh districts, but those  that cannot, they do need to go to the board and   determine in a public meeting that they cannot  afford to buy the

187buses that is required. And   they must also submit a report to TEA detailing  the number of buses with no seat belts and the   estimated cost to comply. And so, um, again,  that's not, uh, that's not us. That's more   for small, uh, rural districts with, you know,  200, 300 kids. Uh, they can't go out and buy,   uh, uh, uh, the buses that they require to be,  um, to meet the requirement. Compliance timeline,   we do have till 2029, September 1st. The role of  TA in this is TA must collect district reports in   which we've been given uh, through Sentinel.  We've been uploading all the reports that we   have and kind of our status as a district so that  that we can show them where we're at. Um they need   to calculate all these statewide findings so that 

188they can report to leadership and legislation on   January 1st, 2027. So they're going to compile all  the list of the state of Texas to see where we're   at with our buses and then they go out and and  make the determination what the state needs to do   to help us out. The takeaway to this is obviously  that the the three um the threepoint seat belt is   is mandatory and it's something that we need to  comply with. In the last slide here, what I done   is just kind of give you a a uh current position  for our PSJ transportation. And we do have 144   yellow buses of which uh we only have 44 buses  that do not meet that requirement. Those buses   are anywhere between 10 to 21 years old. All our  other buses do have the

189threepoint uh uh seat belt   to the cost to retrofit each bus is 35,000 per  bus. And what I mean by retrofit is take the bus   the existing bus we have and and implement the  seats that are required so that they can attach   the threepoint uh seat belt. If we do that for all  44 buses, that's about $1.5 million. In so far,   our transportation plan is to uh get 10 buses for  this next school year and then subsequent years   uh 15 buses per so that we can by 2029 have 40  buses uh 40 new buses in our fleet. At that point,   we will only have to retrofit, you know, maybe a  handful of buses. Now, I will say that in in all   this information, I know that the state what  we're hoping for is that the

190state's going to   analyze all their information and say, you know  what, the most districts are in are in need of   um funding and maybe they'll send us some. I  know that we just received an email actually   on a grant that that uh gives us about $6,000  per bus to retrofit. I know it's not much,   but I think it's just showing effort from  the state to to uh Annie up right with with   the needs for for the districts throughout the  state. So, um I think we're in a good position   and the plan that we have will be compliant  by the by the time 2029 comes around. Okay. Thank you. Anybody have questions? No. Okay. Thank  you, sir. Awesome. Appreciate it. Okay. Thank you.   I I do. Sorry, Miss Gutier. I didn't see you. Go  ahead. Go

191ahead. Yes. Uh so um uh good evening   um um and Ralph. Sorry. Uh so uh it's about a  million dollars to uh retrofit all of these uh   all of the buses that are non-compliant. Correct.  Uh yeah, about 1.5. Yes, ma'am. About 1.5 million.   and we have until 2029, September 1st, 2029. Um,  are there any grants that they're offering? So,   right now, the the only grant that we just  received an email on is uh it's a bus safety   grant, and it gives $6,000 per bus, up to $6,000  per bus to help retrofit, but we would still be   responsible for I think it's 28 or whatever it is,  uh, for the difference to retrofit. So, I mean,   we're going to apply for But that would be I'm  sorry. But that would be uh from the 1.5 million,  

192then we can uh get uh some grant money. No. So,  the 1.5 is just like that's like if we're going   to go tomorrow, retrofit all the buses, that's  what it's going to cost us. Mhm. What what the   what the grant does is per bus, right? Cuz it's  35,000 per bus, it helps us $6,000 per bus. So   assuming that we do all of them then yeah whatever  uh 6,000* 44 is but if not that's not the plan   that we have. The plan is that we maybe about  a couple a handful of buses the older the the   uh uh the 2017s 2016s that we have that we we can  work on retrofitting those so we can replace with   new ones all the older ones that we have. So,  we're gonna kind of work, you know, to replace  

193older ones and work our way up. Uh, we're we're  applying for the grant, but again, we don't I   don't think the plan for us is to uh retrofit  all the buses. Is to replace is the ultimate   goal. Okay. I I read that uh we have to if we're  in financial hardship to retrofit that uh we must   uh as a board take action and uh uh report it to  TA. Is that so they can help with an additional   funding for this or why what is that for? I think  the design of that the action that the board would   take right in reporting financial hardship for  this project uh or for this improvements with TA,   right? What would that get us? The so the I think  the design of that portion of the of the uh Senate  

194bill is to help uh small rural districts. So we we  would not qualify to be uh to take action on that   because we we we would we would have to prove that  we're in hardship and that we wouldn't be able to   do that. So I think that's not something that  is available to everyone. No. No. So that that   would be more so like I like I said so um I mean  I can't think of a rural town around here that   that maybe has a couple hundred students only,  right? Most of those students especially in a   rural area they're they're mostly all bus and  and so in order for them to replace all 10 15   it would be it would be you know uh it wouldn't be  feasible for them. So, they would have to uh

195apply   for that hardship. What the state's going to do  with that, I I'm not sure. They haven't indicated   if they're going to help them financially, but my  my hopes is that uh as this as this bill kind of   uh um has come to fruition. It's it's uh they've  asked us for additional information that they   didn't at the beginning. So that leads me to  believe that maybe TA is is gathering all this   information so that they can say well maybe we  need to allocate some money for that and that's   our hopes. Now we're not going to hang our hats  on that but but if it happens then great then   that that that'll help us Mr. President. Okay. Is  there um Mr. board president that is a trustee at   this time each year from here till 29

196uh how much  we will be spending more or less dividing that   1.5 between all of them or so so if we like let's  just say uh you know we stick to our plan here we   would we would be at 1.6 6 million the first year  and then 2.4 million the subsequent years. But uh   but again it it would be um to get to that 40 mark  and then any any bus after that we we would do a   retrofit for. So by the time we get to to 2029 we  should be fully compliant because we've worked our   way to to retrofit buses as we move along. Okay.  Thank you. So the 1.6 is not for all of them. It's   just for those to get to extra time on this item.  Well, the 1.6 is for all

197of them, assuming that   that's the route we're going to go. I just wanted  to give you a a ballpark number of how much it   would cost to retrofit all buses, but we're we're  going the replace route. Okay. Yeah. Um Dr. Alias,   so um direct our grants department to be on the  lookout just like uh with the u health services   and safety. uh every so often grants pop up re in  relation to all this changes um when they realize   that they just sit at uh the legislature making  changes without sending money. So if you can   direct our grants department Chloe to be on the  lookout and um you know and and and see if we can   get any monies for this. Thank you Mr. Gonzalez.  We will do that. Go ahead Miss Contin. Yes. So,   just

198to um make sure you understand the $6,000  grant still you still need to apply for that. Yes,   we it hasn't been received. No, ma'am. So, okay.  So, that you're going to apply for that. Is there   a limit to how many buses uh can you can apply  for? No, there's no limit. So technically you   could apply for the let's say the 44 buses times  the six if you would get the max of 6,000 and then   after that um I imagine there will be some kind of  of of report. So what we're looking at from here   to 2029 is that we will start working where like  the retrofitting on some buses and then but at   the same time look at some of our older buses and  possibly replace those with a new bus. Absolutely.   Yes. Okay. That's

199that's kind of so this amount  is just if we would if we would retrofit all the   buses. Yes, ma'am. But there may be a balance of  retrofit and maybe some purchase of new buses.   I think that usually is part of our our budget,  right? To purchase a certain number of buses on   a yearly basis. Yes, sir. Okay. Thank you. Y  Thank you, sir. Thank you. Okay. Uh going on   to next um item, executive session, government  code 551.071 through 55 551.084. If during the   course of meeting discussion of any items on the  agenda should be held in a closed meeting, the   board will conduct a close meeting in accordance  with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government   Code Chapter 551, CH chapters D and E, or Texas  government code section 418.183F before any closed   meeting and

200convene. The presiding officer will  publicly identify the section or sections of the   act authorizing the closed meeting. All final  votes, actions, and decisions will be taken in   open meeting. CPS for policy BC local and we're  at going into executive session at 9:08 p.m. Okay, we are back from executive session at uh  10 p.m. exactly. Uh go ahead and go with Mr.   Go ahead. Yes, Mr. President. We move to item  B employ under human resources employment of   non-eing professional personnel and the first one  is uh the recommendation done by the committee is   for principal at Ford Elementary School and the  recommendation by the committee is Gracie Marta. Okay, I need a motion. A motion to approve.  Second. Motion by Miss Castillo, second by Miss   Baron. All those for the motion signify by raising  right hand. I

201I abstain one one no I mean one no   and one abstainment with motion passes. Next item.  Yes. Uh Mr. President, item two, principal at LBJ   Middle School and the recommendation by the  committee is Marisa Santo. I need a motion for   approval. Motion to approve. Motion to approve.  Motion by Miss Gutierrez. Second. I have a second.   I'll second. Second by Mr. Viegas. All those  for the motion signify by raising right hand.   I I one no. Next item. Yes. Uh Mr. President, I'll  refer to council for the next items. So item C is   discussion and possible action regarding the level  three grievance of AC pursuant to PSJ board policy   DGBA local. And the recommended motion is going  to be to affirm the level two response and deny   the level three grievance. A motion. I'll make a  motion.

202Motion by Mr. Viegas. Can I have a second?   Second. Second by Miss Baron. All those for the  motion signify by raising right hand. I I motion   passes. Next item. That's it. Uh no. The next  item is discussion and possible action regarding   the level three grievance of YM pursuant  to PSJ board policy FNG local. Once again,   the recommended motion language is to affirm  the level two response and deny the level three   grievance. A motion. Can I have a motion? Motion.  Mr. Vgas, can I have a second? Second. Second by   Miss Von. All those for the motion signify by  raising right hand. I motion passes. Thank you,   Mr. Motion to adjourn. A motion for adjournment.  Can I have a second? Second by Mrs. Kintania.   All for the motion signify raise your right  hand. Motion passes unanimously. Thank

203you.