January is School Board Recognition Month and Birdville ISD is joining districts across the state to thank local leaders for their dedication and willingness to serve as advocates for our children and public schools.

Board members serving Birdville ISD are: Cary D. Hancock, president; Jack McCarty, vice president; Dolores Webb, secretary; Joe Tolbert, Brad Greene, C. Richard Davis, and Ralph Kunkel.

“Even though we are making a special effort in January to show appreciation to our board members, we realize their many contributions reflect a year-round commitment. Trustees generously give of themselves to ensure that decisions directly affecting our schools are made by representatives of this community, people who are close to our schools and know our teachers, parents, and students,” said Dr. Darrell Brown, BISD superintendent. “As elected officials, they are the voice of this community, serving first and foremost in the best interest of our students.

“Trustees shoulder critical responsibilities and often make difficult decisions. Their ultimate goal is always focused on the future success of the children in BISD,” Brown said. “It’s more important than ever before that our community supports public education so that today’s students are prepared to be productive citizens and the leaders of tomorrow. Our board members provide vision and leadership in their roles as advocates, and they will continue to stand up for public education and guard against anything that takes away from our children or undermines our public schools.”

[tweetthis url=”http://tinyurl.com/nbvpa7r”]“[Trustees] ultimate goal is always focused on the future success of BISD children,” Brown said.[/tweetthis]

Great additions for the 2014–15 school year are:

• Increased student access to online learning and remediation programs for middle and high school students;
• Provided graphing calculators for middle school STAAR Math testing;
• Provided math manipulatives in response to full implementation of new math TEKS in 2014–15;
• Added 13.25 new regular education teaching positions in response to enrollment growth and changing demographics; and,
• Added four new special education teaching positions to provide appropriate remediation and intervention for special needs students.

Highlights from 2013–14 include:

• BISD was recognized with the Texas Comptroller Leadership Circle Platinum Award for our financial transparency.
• BISD was recognized by Education Resource Group as one of the Top Ten Large school districts in Texas for achieving high academic performance while maintaining efficient operations.
• BISD test scores exceeded the state average in every area of the STAAR grades 3–8, with the exception of one area.
• Third-grade students exceeded the state average on the STAAR math test by seven percentage points and six percentage points on the reading test.
• Fourth-grade students exceeded the state average on the STAAR math and reading test by four percentage points and three percentage points on the writing test.
• Fifth-grade students scored four percentage points above the state average on the math test and seven percentage points above the state average on the reading and science tests.
• Sixth- and seventh-grade students exceeded or equaled the state in all areas, except in sixth-grade reading, where they were one percentage point below.
• Students taking the eighth-grade math test exceeded the state average on the STAAR math test by 10 percentage points.

BISD benefits from the tireless work and countless hours contributed by these dedicated individuals who volunteer and work without pay. Serving as a crucial link between the community and classroom, this Board is responsible for an annual budget of $229.95 million, 24,367 students, 3,512 employees, and 33 campuses. Birdville ISD students and staff appreciate the Board of Trustees for their efforts to make a difference and their unfailing commitment to the continued success of our students now and in the future.