001e e e uh this is a regular meeting of the board TR that is Tuesday March the 18 2025 it is 5:31 p.m uh for the record we have a quum everyone is present U the A2 is the invocation and the pledge of we come before you with grateful hearts for for the gift of our school Community bless our students teachers staff and families with wisdom patience and kindness guide our school board members in their decisions that they may lead with integrity compassion and a vision for for school Success May our efforts be United in creating a nurturing environment where knowledge and character grow grant us strength to face challenges and humility to celebrate our success in your name we pray amen amen amen at this time I'd like to invite the sapata high school
002student council president Javier Gara and vice president DEA is it DEA DEA sorry I pledge allegiance 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 Texas I pled alance to be Texas one State under God one and indivisible that we're going to move an item item G1 which is approval of a resolution to Proclaim April 2025 autism awareness good evening uh president Ramirez Dr trino and members of the board on behalf of the special education department and our uh parents we are honored to present our yearly resolution declaring April as Autism Awareness Month for sapata County ISD this initiative reflects our continued efforts to shine the light on autism promoting awareness accept and understanding of this
003disability currently our district serves 105 students identified with autism spectrum disorder with a total of 580 total students in our special ed program this means that approximately 18% of our students receiving special education services have this diagnosis in broader terms this equates to about one in every six students districtwide in our program for a comparison five years ago in 1920 we served 56 students with autism out of 448 that was 133% today special education department alongside parents of students with autism respectfully requ request that the about the county Independent School District approve of resolution in support of Autism Awareness Month by doing so we continue fostering an inclusive and supportive Community for individuals and families affected by autism at this time I would like to call Alberta Lopez our parent advisory uh committee secretary and
004our community Autism Awareness officer to read the resolution for your consideration hello everyone good evening um autism awareness and acceptance month whereas the sapata county Independent School District is committed to fostering an inclusive environment that values and supports all individuals within our diverse community and whereas autism spectrum disorder is a complex developmental condition that affects individuals of all racial ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds influencing communication social interactions and behavior in unique ways and whereas individuals on the autism spectrum have diverse strengths talents and perspectives that enrich our schools and communities and it is essential to promote understanding inclusion and Equitable opportunities for them to thrive and whereas the month of April is recognized as autism awareness and acceptance month serving as an opportunity to educate Advocate and Foster meaningful inclusion of a of autistic individuals in
005all aspects of life and where sapata County independent school district is dedicated to ensuring Equitable access to education programs and services that Empower autistic students support self-determination and celebrate neurodiversity and whereas true inclusion extends Beyond awareness to activate acceptance representation and support ensuring that all individuals regardless of ability are valued heard and given opportunities to succeed and now therefore it' be resolved that sapata County Independent School District Board of Trustees does hereby proclaim the month of April as autism awareness and acceptance month and encourages students staff families and community members to join in fostering a culture of understanding inclusion and advocacy done and proclaimed this 18th day of March 2025 in sapata Texas we uh we would like to kindly request a motion to approve the resolution and thank you for your ongoing support and
006commitment to our students like motion to approve resolution to Proclaim [Music] [Applause] aess yes we ask him for a picture do we have more students and parents in the audience Hi how are [Music] you there we go everybody over here one one two three one more one one two three one more over here puppy cheese awesome [Applause] very [Music] it thank you and good evening board president our is distinguished members of our board Dr thino students and of course our guests each month Administration invites students who exemplify District's beliefs to be presented to our board and Community we'll begin this evening's presentation with by recognizing students from sabata high school I invite coach Chris viad to please come forward and introduce our sabata High School boys basketball varsity team good evening guys good evening everyone
007uh first first and foremost want to thank the parents thank you guys it's been an honor and privilege uh this is not the whole Squad but the ones that did show up we have Derek Garcia senior we haveo Gera Junior Landon Martinez senior Phil Benz senior and J Arondo senior uh these boys C overcame a lot of adversity during the season um we're able to make the playoffs but unfortunately we weren't able to get the job done that is on me not on them of course uh but but El let me show you give you guys a couple words that I chose to kind of leave you guys with uh so dear Hawks I want to take a moment to acknowledge dedication hard work and teamwork you have all demonstrated throughout the season each of
008you has contributed something special to Our Success whether it was through consistent effort Le leadership on the court or supporting one another off the court your commitment to Improvement and your resilience in the face of challenges has has been truly inspiring you've shown what it means to be a team and for that I am incly proud of each and every one of you keep pushing forward and know that your efforts are appreciated and recognized and here's to continue your growth and success and above all else always remember always handle hard better all right guys with gratitude and pride your coach love you guys to death [Music] where are we starting one two three perfec congratulations [Applause] thank you coach V uh next I'd like to ask uh coach Gabby Montes and Coach elain Lopez to
009recognize our girls basketball uh Team if they can please come forward [Applause] l um so good evening uh I'm Gabby Mones Elaine Lopez uh and um we're missing our head coach uh coach Hector Garcia who is presently at softball um I didn't prepare anything to say cuz I didn't know coach Garcia didn't pass it on but um just real quick um the girls it transitioning into a new group of coaches uh is often difficult task and these girls rose up to every expectation and every obstacle that came into their um into their season we grew together and we truly became a family and I think that is one of the things that made us Excel as a program is that close bond that was created within not just the girls within each other but us
010coaches and these kids as well um and girl I just want to say thank you for an excellent season uh with that the girls after 10 years of not having been done a decade later um we uh went on to win a b District championship and so for that congratulations ladies I'm going to go ahead and introduce all of our girls here in front of us we we have Andrea Turi janeli Gara Emily Garcia jelal yanel OA Erica Gonzalez rosin quentes salaar Abby Benavides and jayen Flores I also wanted to recognize our all district selections uh we had our newcomer of the Year sophomore abigel Benavides uh First Team all district we had senior janelli Gara and sophomore jayen Flores second Team all district senior yanel seeda and Junior Andrea Turi honorable mention we had
011Juniors jelle vial Erica Gonzalez and Emily Garcia also all of our girls all 11 were missing Mia Garcia but all 11 of our girls got uh academic all district so girls thank you all for an awesome season I think we had a lot of ups and downs a lot of bumps in the road a lot of good moments and I think it brought us all together and we're very excited and our seniors janelli and yanelli we already talked to Y I'm not going to do it again I cried I'm not GNA do it know there you ready one two three congratulations two one more one two three [Applause] congratulations thank you coach monz thank you coach Lopez and congratulations also to our coaches uh and head coach P seor Who's In Absentia next I'd like
012to ask Mr Oscar Martinez our director of Mari Alon to please come forward he's a he's joined by his assistant Jacob Ramirez and our uh assistant instructor carlosz [Applause] I can't talk very well right now so I'm going to let Mr afternoon afternoon parents um well we said it last year that we were going to do it again and we did it again another year of outs siging performer students this group's so far as not to this was our previous years but probably one of our best years so far we've got first division on UIL first division on UIL State first time ever full group outsanding performers and new second place at Rec competition that we just went to Festiva that was held over in Edinburgh first time ever going we got second place very
013very very good [Music] [Applause] [Music] Ed and Ed s switch Yeah Yeah you say any a and [Music] any one more one more now you fit Dr T we can't see you we a little bit this way there you go and on the end there you go now we fit okay beautiful one two three parents great job t [Music] um let's move on to items no public comments item D [Music] communications1 on of the board and the school district want to congratulate the um Mari the basketball boys basketball girls team on their successful year and U you know having won the by district for the and being a academic all district was a great accomplishment we're very proud of of each and every one of you representing saata in that way on the Mari group
014for them I think it's the first year that they've ever accomplished a um division one where every one of the members of the group gets recognized as an outstanding performer that's why they each have a gold medal because when the when the group wins they give them a plaque that they were carrying around around but when they each individually get called as outstanding performers they each get a state gold medal so it's like the one first in state so congratulations on that that's a great accomplishment know that our our students and our directors make it seem easy because they go pretty much every year and they perform at a very high level but when you go to the competitions which I go every year and I see them and I see who they compete against
015and and uh I see us perform at a level that we do it's it's a tough task that they put forward and it's a lot of pressure on them to perform at that level and to continue to succeed and and uh we we look forward for you guys continuing that Trend that you've already started and uh very proud of you each and every one of you I know that also uh not with the varsity yet butali won the Las Vegas competition as well very very proud of her for that I know that there other groups within the district that are competing The Voice baseball and the softball we had some some of the students that showed up in softball uniforms because they compete in everything so all our all our extracurricular activities share the same
016kids and we have to be as parents and and teachers and coaches patient with them being able to you know sometimes they go to practice sometimes they don't because they're in another practice or they're competing at another event and um that that is uh it is you know a testament to their hard work and their dedication to be able to ex Excel so thank you for for representing saata at a high level very proud of you thank you and congratulations um next item U superintendent report thank you um good evening uh board members administrators teachers and students thank you all for staying behind since most of this message is for you anyway uh as we enter the heart of spring I want to commend our students and staff for all of their hard work and
017their dedication this is a critical time of the year as we're preparing for start testing and important events like our spring Athletics fine arts competitions graduation and the quest of our one night play team in their pursuit of another State title to give our students the best chances at success we need everyone to be present every day on time and ready to learn and ready to teach attendance matters everyday Miss is a missed opportunity for growth and achievement let's finish our Year Strong by showing up staying focused and supporting one another I also want to highlight our special education department and their students who have been preparing for hosting this year's Special Olympics we are so proud of them and are looking forward to watching them compete next week before closing I want to wish
018all of our seniors the best of luck as they prepare for college applications scholarships interviews uh and getting ready to fly the nest uh we wish you all the best of luck thank you to our administrators teachers and Community for your wavering commitment to our Student Success together we are going to empower tomorrow's leaders so thank [Applause] you I know you all want to stay for the rest of the meeting but I'll give you an opportunity to if you all it's up to you thank you all have a good evening [Music] okay um let let's move on item uh E1 [Music] consent good evening uh Mr Ramirez drino members of the board Administration recommends the Board of Trustees approve the minutes for the board Workshop held on February 4th and the regular school board meeting
019held on February 18 2025 all those in favor cares next item is item thank you the uh Child Nutrition fund uh at month end February 28th reflects revenues of 1, 99,5 se1 and actual expenditures of 1,588 74 for an excess of revenues of $42,988 78,000 $487 actual expenditures of6 m716 486 with an excess of revenues over expenditures of $2,962 one year-to dat comparative by function uh where were we last year as compared to this year uh we've spent uh 5% more than last year uh for an amount of $859,900 um as the board can see the the majority of that change comes from Function 11 um our instructional services and function 52 security and monitoring services does the board have any questions Debt Service fund reflects uh realized revenues of 2,551 53 8 and actual
020expenditures of interest only payments on our bonds for $61,900 61,7 right now up to this point we have an excess of revenues of 2 milon $489,500 does the board have any questions okay bills claims and accounts for February 2025 um the district paid out uh bills for this uh February 2025 of 1, 50,2 440 as compared to last year uh the district spent 372,000 less uh in bills for a 26 uh% um difference does the board have any questions goe the tax collection report the district received a dispersement um after uh attorney uh fees of $ 45,1 32.99 what does this look like um as compared to our budget for this fiscal year we budgeted 9,157 128 um we are at 8,486 336 for 92% of budget okay how does that reflect from last year
021uh we're up about a percent from last year um and um as far as our Levy is concerned um our Levy for this year is 9,773 21 what we've received in collections from October to February is 7,8 49,679 for an 80% collection rate does the board have any questions thank you um so let's move on to item G2 approval a resolution to Proclaim April 2025 thank you again Mr ridz um as of 1997 over 14,000 children between the ages of 2 through 17 have been reportedly victimized and at times revictimized by unimaginable sexual physical or emotional abuse last year approximately 340 CH child victims were received by the Child Advocacy Center in Ledo 9.7 were the ages of 0- 5 43% were the ages of 6- 12 46 of the ages of 13 through 17
022and 3% were the ages of 18 and over with disabilities web County and sapata County are included in these statistics we also know that for every one child that outcries to abuse there are 10 still silent the approval of this item reminds us that Child Abuse Prevention is a community responsibility and finding solution depends on the involvement of all people communities must take every effort to promote and support programs that benefit children and their families effective Child Abuse Prevention programs Thrive through collaborative efforts among various individuals including our school counselors our principes teachers administrators and of course our police officers as well as organizations like the children's ADV Center so we are here to thank these partners and reiterate that everyone in our community should become more aware of Child Abuse Prevention and consider helping
023parents raise their children in a safe nurturing environment as well as supporting local professionals dedicated to meeting the needs of our children our child uh abuse victims I would also like to take this opportunity to introduce Mr Edwin Rodriguez who is a representative from the CAC and ask him to share a few words Mr R uh so I wanted to start off by saying that um as a therapist uh I am the one that comes to sapata every week to do therapy services for the clients here if you all weren't aware we do have a satellite office here in sapata uh so since 2019 I've been coming Tuesday sometimes also Wednesdays to go ahead and give therapy services so I've seen firsthand the challenges that many children face but I've also seen um their Incredible
024strength resilience and their ability to heal and give them the right support not just with therapy but through their Educators at school uh through their family members through law enforcement uh so April is child abuse PR vention and awareness month it's a time to stand together as a community to protect our children one way that we raise awareness is by wearing blue so blue is a color that represents the bruises that too many children have to endure but also a commitment to ensuring that no child has to suffer in silence another powerful symbol of this month is the pin wheel uh the pin wheel represents the Innocence The Hope and the bright future that every child deserves it reminds us that every child should grow up in a safe loving environment free from abuse at
025the CAC we work closely with ZD and local law enforcement to provide safety healing and justice for children but this is a shared responsibility if you supect abuse it has to be reported everyone in Texas is a mandatory reporter not just Educators neighbors family members if you suspect abuse you it's your responsibility as a Texan to report it um if a child confides in you believe in them together we can make a difference and as part of our as part of our efforts to educate and Empower our community we invite you to our 25th Annual conference um on Child Abuse Prevention that's going to be held this coming uh upcoming Thursday April 3rd um at TAMU um and actually we're really um excited to share that uh this year the sapata high school mariachi band
026is going to be performi yes they're going to be performing The National Anthem as well as a few other um songs uh as everyone's kind of settling in in the beginning of the conference so we're very excited um so um thank you for your continued support in protecting the children of sapata let's stand together we're blue in April and be the voice for those who need us the most I'd like to also uh give me one second Mr I'd like to also invite um our student council representatives to join me introducing a new initiative can you guys please come forward I thought they wanted to stay for fun no it's a community hours uh so they're they're joining me up here because we're going to um introduce a new student Le initiative to support this
027important cause and I wanted to introduce it in front of Mr Rodriguez so throughout April these student leaders will collaborate with uh student councils from each of our schools to organize the change hurt into hope toy drive in efforts the effort is to support the Children's Advocacy Center in providing Comfort to Children during their visit forensic interviews and counseling sess sessions so these toys will be used to comfort those children that go into those sessions um it's because of this that Administration recommends the Board of Trustees approved this resolution to Proclaim April 202 2 as child abuse awareness month thank you I have a motion by to Proclaim April as 2025 child abuse awareness month and a second by all those in favor motion carries thank you thank you for much thank you for the
028work I'd like to invite the board to to take a picture uh with Mr Rodriguez and our students yes [Applause] former board m okay board members one step yes one two three perfect thank you thank thank you very much for the the GI item G3 approval update tocy thank you sir uh Administration is recommending the board's approval to update board policy CH local regarding purchasing Authority as discussed at our board Workshop held on March 3rd uh the update is in on your screen and of course in your packet uh and if there are any questions or suggestions please uh let me know i' like to make a motion to take this to Executive s for discussion understood a motion by discuss favor motion car we'll bring it back after yes sir item let's move on
029to item G4 approval of reg Education Service CER director ement for Place three and place yes sir uh as as you're aware we provided uh our ballots to our members uh and we're recommending the approval of the region one uh ESC board director's endorsement for the place three as mentioned and place six and those ballots will be mailed to region one as soon as it's approved thank you item appr award 25 thank you Administration recommends the Board of Trustees to award RFP number 25-1 sapata Middle School serving line to tari Inc DBA jeans restaurant supply the source of funds will be coming from our Child Nutrition fund um the total amount that I'm requesting for approval uh at this point is 20 60,000 however the awarded uh amount is 28,9 70 and 86 c um
030and um we're hoping uh that we should have the contract uh as soon as the board uh approves this recommendation do you have any questions question motion by second all those in favor motion Carri thank you item G6 approval of 2025 2026 District good evening board members um as you can see up on the your screen the process began back in January meeting with cabinet to define the parameters of our options for the 2526 uh District calendar we developed the options based on principal feedback and a new um ad hoc committee that we added to this year's decision-making process composed of just teachers separately uh to provide their feedback on developing the options from then we went on to finalize the six options down to the three options that were going to go out for
031voting um and this was finalized by the principales and cabinet uh elt committee um our dpmc unfortunately we had a power outage that day we had a virtual meeting to to review those calendar options so we had limited uh feedback there but it did go out um for staff selection from right before spring break on 35 up till today they had opportunity to review and submit their selection um some considerations in the development was the state required 75,6 minutes which is approximately 161 days as a district on the direction of of Dr th we have committed to 175 instructional days for our students to maximize instruction and prepare them uh for our assessments um another consideration we took uh into uh deep consideration was the number of early release days and the effect it has
032on our attendance uh students coming in uh on half days and also uh lay in with our out of town considerations for those games that are far and taken to the needs of our bus fleet and our drivers um we ended up narrowing down to three options option one was our traditional option that we usually have from year to year one we get Thanksgiving two weeks at Christmas and our regular spring break option two um consisted of a your traditional holidays plus a extended Christmas break for a few extra days at the Christmas holidays and option three was a long weekends every six weeks so having a Friday and a Monday off on every six weeks in addition to your traditional holiday so it's just reshuffling where those 175 day uh instructional days lay uh
033as of 5:00 we had 349 responses overwhelmingly 80% selected option three um you can see on the bottom P graph that 53.9% of those that responded were teachers followed by instructional assistants and then campus administrators um as you can see the packet uh we have passed out to you a hard copy A draft copy um the only additions that were made were the addition of the new teacher orientation which traditionally is the week right before our regular professional development week you'll see that in red and the other Edition was our shutdown days where we shut down the district around the July 4th holiday and you'll see that in Gray from July 1st through 4th and of of course the addition of the green days which are the days that we block off from the state
034for either end of course testing in December or star or end of course testing in April and the retesting in June okay does the board have any questions on your start and end to the school year yes sir was that was that impacted or was that was that change uh no it actually falls give or take around the same time uh this year we start starting around I can't see August the 13th the different is the staff will have three days at the end of the year so they do not end till June 3 so we'll have professional development starting on August the 4th and it goes to the 12th and then school starts and then we will end the year with some professional development and they were good with that Aug yes August 4th
0354th August four for the staff yes that's uh the district recommends approval of option three for 2526 calendar you have any other question motion carries thank you thank you okay we will now to close session pursuant to section 551 2071 517 okay e e e we are back from executive session it is 7:43 p.m. for the record no action was taken um we do need to go back to item G3 sir G3 approval of update to CH local board policy um go ahead any changes that are Rec yes I'd like to make a motion to change the 30,000 limit to 25,000 okay a motion by Lise to Second approve I guess approve the U update to local C with that change second byz all those in favor hand motion carry then District Communications uh we
036have Special Olympics uh next week uh on the 26th that's not on here but uh we we will be yes it's the Wednesday we would like to there's a card here to invite all the board members uh the opening ceremony is at 9:00 we would like to have everybody there um it's a big event as uh we're hosting for the the South Region um event and so it'll be a big deal uh on April the 8th we do have a board Workshop budget workshop at 9:30 um start testing starts April the 8th through the 30th what the board shop board bug and then uh we do have a bad weather day holiday on the 21st and in celebration of Easter Monday Easter Monday Monday uh and then we'll have a regular school board meeting uh
037on the 22nd we'll also be celebrating my birthday roie's birthday and uh Lisa's birthday this month so happy birthday to us Dr also uh the uh there's going to be a a Special Olympics parade tomorrow the board's invited 11:30 here in central office if uh if you all would like to the athletes are going to be parading tomor through the different campuses and they'll be here at central office around 11:30 11:30 yes you want catch up they'll be on the different cuses thees [Music] froms all in favor we are adjourned it is 7:46 p.m.