Trustees approve 3 new principals, new lead for special services

The Ector County ISD Board of Trustees held its May Board Meeting on the 19th. A recap of the agenda is below.

1.      Roll Call.

2.      Verification of compliance with open meetings requirements.

3.      Adelaida Melendez and Roxi Lowry from Burleson Early Education Center led the pledges of allegiance.

4.      Youth Pastor Branden Leal from Hope Alive Church gave the invocation.

5.      The special presentations featured the recognition of the valedictorians and salutatorians from each of our six high schools, and the announcement of the recipients of this year’s Memorial Scholarships and Spirit Scholarships. Note: photos from these presentations can be found on the Ector County ISD Facebook page.     

 

6.      In opening comments, Superintendent Dr. Keeley Boyer announced the numbers from Big Check Day – that’s what we call the day our district announces Teacher Incentive Allotment awards. This spring, 532 ECISD teachers are designated by the state, and they earned $6.387 million in TIA incentives. Dr. Boyer then introduced this video from last Thursday’s press event at Sam Houston Elementary.  

 

7.      In public comment, LaToya and Ed Mayberry who own Toya’s Precious Jewels Academy childcare center, introduced themselves and their organization’s core values to Trustees. Later in this agenda, Trustees approved a childcare partnership with TPJA.

 

8.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve an update to DEC(Local) – Compensation and Benefits: Leaves and Absences.  This change amends the policy on payment for accumulated State Leave to allow a retiring employee with at least 30 years of consecutive service to ECISD (starting on or before September 1, 1996) to be paid for said State Leave at one-half the employee’s daily rate, up to a maximum of 90 days. This impacts 115 employees. Once the employee specified in this policy has received payment for accumulated State Leave the employee shall not be eligible for full-time reemployment in a position that would be eligible to accrue state of local leave.  

 

9.      Bond 2023

 A.     Bond Update:

The ATLAS CTE Center is starting to take shape. Structural steel is going up, with some masonry begun. Sewer, electrical, and plumbing are all ongoing.

Vasquez Middle Schools is quickly nearing completion for its August opening. Interior finishes are ongoing in the education wing, kitchen, and library. Athletics fields are going in.

At the Permian High School auditorium the stage lights are hung, the stage extension is about 90% complete, as is the installation of sound clouds, and wall paneling in the concourse is about 95% complete. Seats are being installed.

 The concrete has been poured for the new Transition Learning Center and the steel beams have been delivered to the site.

Permian’s JROTC has about 98% of the metal panel work installed, electrical work is about 90% complete, and the fire wall is awaiting final inspection.

At the Ag Farm, excavation work continues for network communication lines, septic and electric work are in progress, and plans for the north and south animal pens are being reviewed.

Work on the slab grade at the Transportation facility is ongoing as additional tests have been requested.

Taking a look at Priority 1 and Priority 2 (P1 & P2) projects: Cameron, Sam Houston, Reagan, Ross, and Gonzales are currently being abated (asbestos); then Bonham, Burnet, Goliad, New Tech Odessa, and Wilson & Young are scheduled for the summer.

In the finance update, the 2025-26 Actual Expenses increased by about 3% reflecting the payment of purchase orders for work complete. The purchase of school buses is done and the middle school choir risers have been received and put into place meaning two more Bond 2023 projects are done.

Be sure to keep up with the progress at www.ecisdbond.com.

  B.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve bond purchases over $100,000. The items on the list this month are $16 million for roofing construction manager at risk services for five schools, and $420,000 for asbestos abatement prior to construction at five additional schools.  

  

10.  Action Items

A.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve purchases over $100,000. There are a number of items on the list this month including food, supplies, a generator, and kitchen security cameras for the School Nutrition Department; dropout prevention/recovery through Acceleration Academies; student behavioral intervention curriculum; and college and career online platform.

B.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve the 2026-27 Gifted and Talented Plan. The Texas Education Agency’s goals for students in GT is to demonstrate skills in self-directed learning, thinking, research and communication through innovative products and performances…of professional quality. This year, 3,337 or 10.6% of students are in G/T. The program aims for the GT student population to closely reflect the demographics of the District’s overall enrollment. Through the use of universal screeners (in kindergarten, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, and 5th grade), and the fact that information about and access to GT testing for all students in ECISD is available, the number of referrals of students to G/T is improving. GT students in kindergarten through 2nd grade are served through clustered inclusion; in 3rd grade through 6th grade, students are served through a pull-out (120 minutes weekly) and in clustered classes; in middle school students participate in Honors classes or the Choice program International Baccalaureate (IB); and in high school they receive services through International Honors, Honors, and Advanced Placement classes or the Choice programs of Career & Technical Education and IB. A few of the other services offered by ECISD’s G/T program are Camp SIP, chess tournaments, and Super Saturday conference.

C.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve a lease agreement with Toya’s Precious Jewels Academy of the Permian Basin to operate a child care center at the new ECISD Welcome Center at Travis Elementary. The initial agreement is for a five-year period, giving TPJA access to the north wing of the building with its own secure entrance. Trustees voted in June 2024 to allow the campus to be used for a purpose other than a district purpose specifically to seek such a partnership with a Texas Rising Star 3-or-4-Star Designated center that would benefit ECISD and our community. Statistically, several zip codes in Ector County are considered Childcare Deserts due to the lack of high-quality centers for the number of children ages 0-5 in that area.

D.     Trustees voted 7-0 to approve an updated agreement with the University of Texas Permian Basin to extend the partnership for the STEM Academy for another five years.

E.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve a donation of real property east of Clendenen Avenue to Ector County. This is 6.28 acres of land southwest of Buddy West Elementary that County officials want to use to establish a public park. This land donation will not affect the school as the land is outside the campus fence line.   

11.  Trustees voted 7-0 to approve the Consent Agenda. The consent agenda is a group of routine, or previously discussed items presented together for a single approval vote. This month’s Consent Agenda included minutes of meetings; bills for payment; donations over $10,000*; the quarterly investment report; recommendations of library materials; a memorandums of understanding with the Holdsworth Center; Texas Tech University; UTPB for teacher development; and Odessa College for teacher development; out of state travel for the Permian High School band, PHS choir, and PHS theatre programs; a partnership with Educentric; a low attendance waiver; and a staff development waiver.

  

12.  Report/Discussion

A.      Trustees heard a report on Phase II of Texas Tech University’s Attendance study. Texas Tech and ECISD are partnering on a research project focused on reducing chronic student absenteeism. The first phase, completed last year, dug into to identify the root causes of chronic absenteeism which is defined as missing 10% or more of school days in a year. Those initial findings have led to work that has proven effective, increasing attendance to a current rate of 93.1% which is almost equal to pre-COVID (2017-18, 93.5%). From Phase II, a key data point revealed is the district’s Mean Absence Rate if 7.1% and the Median Absence Rate is 4.8% indicating a smaller group of students has a very high absence rate, pulling the average up significantly. The research also discovered a “TIA Effect,” meaning those who earn a Teacher Incentive Allotment designation seem to reduce overall absenteeism by 6.1% and chronic absenteeism by 9.5% with the positive impact being the largest in high school, which is also where we see the highest numbers of chronically absent students. The study recommended leveraging TIA teachers to support disengaged students, invest in existing classroom management and school attendance systems already in place for all teachers, and use TIA teachers as models, coaches, and mentors.    

 

13.  Trustees moved to closed session to discuss contract hirings.

A.     Trustees voted 7-0 to approve Melisa Valenzuela as the executive director of special services. For the past three years Valenzuela has worked as the director of compliance for special services and a special education supervisor. She was ECISD’s Secondary Teacher of the Year in 2021-22 when she was the special education department chair at Wilson & Young Medal of Honor Middle School, and has experience as a resource and inclusion teacher at elementary, middle school, and high school.

 B.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve Jana Norman as the principal for San Jacinto Elementary. Norman is currently the associate principal at Odessa High School, a position she’s held for four years. She has 12 years of experience as a middle school assistant principal, and 11 years of teaching experience at middle school and elementary school, including Milam Elementary.

 C.      Trustees voted 7-0 to approve Megan Watts as the principal for Permian High School. Watts, who just received the district’s Secondary Principal of the Year award, is finishing her third year as the principal at Wilson & Young Medal of Honor Middle School. She served as an assistant principal at Permian HS for nine years and as an assistant principal at Bonham Middle School for one year.    

 D.     Trustees voted 7-0 to approve Sydney Garcia as the principal for Buice Elementary. Garcia has been the principal at Milam Elementary for the past two years. Prior to that, she was the assistant principal at Pease Elementary for two years and served as a Multi-Classroom Leader at Pease for one year. She spent four years at Hays STEAM Academy teaching first grade, fourth grade and fifth grade.

 

14.  Information items can be found at this link - https://meetings.boardbook.org/Public/Agenda/1406?meeting=740687     

 

15.  For closing remarks, Dr. Boyer turned the microphone over to Dawn Miller who let the other school board members know she has built a house and it moving to another part of town and will no longer be able to represent her single-member district (Position 1). The June board meetings will be her final ones as a Trustee.

 

16.  The meeting adjourned at 9:13 p.m.  

 

*$125,419.24 from the Education Foundation of Odessa for new books for the renovated library at Fly Elementary.

  $30,784.50 from the Education Foundation of Odessa for Inspiration Station staff salaries.

  $29,500 from Permian HS Class of 2026 for fieldhouse digital sign

  $15,615.44 from Carla McGinley for Bonham MS counselors resources/furniture as a memoriam for Helen Cooper.

  $13,3350 from Permian HS football booster club for athletic trainers campus vehicle.