AISD Trustees Reorganize During Dec. 13 Board Meeting

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The Aldine ISD Board of Trustees reorganized during its December 13 meeting. Randy Bates will serve as president, Dr. Kimberley Booker will service as vice president, Steve Mead will serve as secretary, and Rose Avalos will serve as assistant secretary.

The Aldine ISD Board of Trustees approved a new slate of officers during its December 13 Board meeting. The Board’s Nominating Committee, consisting of Rose Avalos, Dr. Kimberley Booker, and Steve Mead, recommended that Mr. Bates serve as president, Dr. Kimberley Booker serve as vice president, and Mr. Mead serve as secretary. And Ms. Avalos serves as Assistant Secretary. Dr. Viola M. Garcia, Connie Esparza, and Paul Shanklin will serve as members.

Aldine ISD earns the state’s highest fiscal accountability rating for the 19th straight year

For the 19^th consecutive year, Aldine ISD received a rating of “Superior” under Texas’ School FIRST (Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas) accountability rating system. The “Superior” rating is the state’s highest rating, demonstrating Aldine ISD’s quality of financial management and reporting system. Aldine ISD received a score of 986 out of a possible 100 points.

The primary goal of the School FIRST system is to ensure that Texas public schools are held accountable for the quality of their financial management practices. The School FIRST system is designed to encourage Texas public schools to manage their financial resources better and provide a maximum allocation for direct instructional purposes.

The School FIRST system has 15 indicators that are evaluated. The first five indicators are critical and must be met to avoid failure. The other 10 indicators evaluate financial solvency and financial competency.

According to Chief Financial Officer Stan Osborne,  Aldine met the five critical indicators’ requirements. Those indicators are: filing of the district’s annual financial report within a month, the district’s annual financial report was free of any instances of material weaknesses, the district complied with the payment terms of all debt agreements at the end of the district’s fiscal year, the district made timely payments to the Teachers Retirement System (TRS), Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), the IRS and other governmental agencies, and the district’s total unrestricted net asset balance in the Statement of Net Position/Assets was greater than zero.

Indicators 6-10 evaluated the financial solvency of the district. Those indicators analyzed the amount of cash on hand needed to cover operating expenditures, the ratio of current assets to current liabilities, the ratio of long-term liabilities to total assets, total revenue compared to expenditures, and whether the district had sufficient funds to cover its debt. Aldine met the requirements for each of those indicators.

Indicators 11-15 evaluated the district’s financial competency. Those indicators assessed the district’s administrative costs ratio, student enrollment compared to the number of staff, the accuracy of its PEIMS reporting, compliance with guidelines, and revenue forecasting. Aldine met the requirements for those five indicators as well.

Hearing held to announce Targeted Improvement Plans

During the December 13 Board meeting, Dawn Rodriguez, chief of accountability, assessment and analytics, presented a public hearing to notify the public of the district’s 2022-23 Targeted Improvement Plan for identified campuses. Those campuses that will implement TIPs are Hall Success Academy, Lewis Middle School, Mead Middle School, and Teague Middle School. Those campuses are rated Comprehensive Support and must submit an Effective Schools Framework (ESF) Aligned TIPs that will address areas of low performance identified through the three state accountability domains. Rodriguez said that targeted elements in these plans would be implemented and monitored throughout the year as campuses engage in the continuous improvement plan. 

FACE recognizes community partners

Dr. Martha Escalante, Executive Director of FACE (Family And Community Engagement Department), recognized two community partners, Equality Health Foundation and Greater Houston Church and HOPE Worldwide North Houston.

Equality Health Foundation traveled from Phoenix to distribute 1,000 turkeys to Aldine families in November. The event garnered media attention from FOX News and Telemundo. Equality Health Foundation President Tomas Leon traveled from Phoenix to Houston to attend the December 13 Board meeting.

Dr. Escalante also recognized Greater Houston Church and HOPE Worldwide Houston for their assistance in FACE’s Share the Joy event. Greater Houston Church and HOPE worldwide provided all of the meals for the event. The group also offered canned goods and groceries for Aldine families to assist them during the holidays. On hand at the December 13 Board meeting were ministry leaders Derek Wooten and Misha Wooten, Church members and HOPE worldwide North Houston representatives Jill Charney and Cathleen Alexander and HOPE Chapter Directors Gordon Blasius and Fiona Blasius and church member and Caraway Elementary teacher Sarah Prather.

Staff assignments announced

During the December 13 Board of Trustees meeting, Aldine ISD Superintendent Dr. LaTonya M. Goffney announced several staff assignments.

• Dr. Patricia Rodríguez was named Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning after serving as School Assistant Superintendent of ACE/Primary Schools.
• Dr. Marcie Strahan was named Executive Director of Social and Emotional Learning and School Culture after serving as Director of Social and Emotional Learning and Student Support.
• Adrian Torres was named Director of Student Services after serving as an Assistant Principal at Stehlik Elementary School.
• Firmino Mariano was named Director of Budget after serving as an Accountant with Cy-Fair ISD.
• Andrea Soliz was named Director of Digital Learning after serving as Program Coordinator for the Office of Transformation.
• Judarrah Hawkins was named Program Director of Elementary Language Arts after serving as the Lead District Literacy Coach.
• Kashara Payne was named Licensed Mental Health Professional for the Social and Emotional Learning and Culture Department after serving as an English Teacher at Nimitz High School.
• Jacqueline Kortz was named Family Liaison Advocate of Head Start after serving as a Counselor at Garciz-Leza Primary School.
• Jeremy Johnson was named an Assistant Principal at MacArthur High School after serving as a U.S. History teacher at that same school.
• Kristin Ray was named an Assistant Principal at Drew Academy after serving as an Associate Principal at Discovery Middle School at Nehemiah in the Southwest Schools System.
• Dr. April Moody was named Program Director of Career and Technical Education after serving as a Health Science Technology Instructor at Davis High School.

Operations Employees Recognized

During the December 13 Board meeting, Chief of Operations Fred Washington recognized several employees from his department for their leadership, connecting with fellow employees, and impacting student success. The employees who were recognized were: Ileana González, Michelle Hernández, Alfonso Gonzales, Tony Bryant, Gina Binford, and José Ramírez.

Grants announced

Stacey Smith, director of special programs, announced three grants the district has received at the December 13 Board of Trustees meeting.

• Diaka Melendez, assistant superintendent of student support, and Dr. Efrain Uribe secured three grants from the Texas Education Agency to meet the needs of homeless students in Aldine ISD. The TECHY grant is for $53,590, the American Relief Program Supplemental Grant is for $103,850, and the American Relief Program Grant is for $655,035.

The grants announced at the December 13 Board meeting totaled $812,475.

Trustees approve action items

During the December 13 Board meeting, Aldine ISD Trustees approved the following action items:

• Approved Head Start Continuation Funding Application from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023
• Approved the Early Head Start Childcare Partnership and/or Grant Continuation Funding Application from March 1, 2023, to February 29, 2024
• Approved an Adoption of Resolution for Staff Pay during district closure Nov. 28-29
• Approved an Interlocal Agreement between Aldine ISD and Region 4 Education Service Center to provide a teacher alternative certification program and/or test preparation support effective Dec. 2022 to Dec. 2025.
• Approved single a contract and purchases of more than $50,000
• Approved the monthly Tax Office refunds

The Hambrick LOTC Color Guard presented the colors at the December 13 Board meeting. Students from Oleson Elementary School lead the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance and Pledge to the Texas Flag. The January Board meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 24, in the Board Room of the Donaldson Administration Building.