At their regular meeting on October 17, the Westhoff ISD school board heard from a Region III specialist about the state grants available to improve instruction. They also heard about preparation for an upcoming safety audit and the special Veteran’s Day Program.
Kimberly Schaefer, the Region III Senior Director of School Improvement and Support, told the board about the Strong Foundation Planning and Integration grants. Schaefer, a former reading teacher and principal, said that research is showing the importance of teaching math concepts as well as skills.
When “the why” is explained, Schaefer said, test scores go way up. Also, in regard to various reading programs, Schaeffer said the curriculum has gone back to the tried and true phonics method.
She said of the $200,000 Strong Foundation Planning Grant, the district receives 50% and Region III receives 50% for the specialists to work each week with teachers. In the second year, specialists work bi-weekly with teachers.
Board President Andrew Weikel questioned whether teachers would have autonomy in their classroom, especially in math.
“We’ve got an incredible 8th grade math teacher, and we like where our scores are,” he said.
Schaefer said teachers would still have freedom within the curriculum, that it was not like C-SCOPE that was used more than a decade ago, and that resulted in plummeting scores.
She said that teacher buy-in is crucial and encouraged the district to let teachers visit schools already using the curriculum and training assistance.
Other grants reviewed by Schaefer included a Technology Lending Grant, a Texas Institute of Leadership Grant, and a Blended Learning Grant.
After Schaeffer’s presentation, Weikel helped board members learn to navigate the new meeting software called Board Book Premeir. There was a learning curve in coordinating common opening and closing of documents. They practiced during the discussion of the financial report.
On the Safety Audit item, Superintendent James Stansberry credited Dustin Kenne with doing the legwork to make improvements. Kenne reported on technology coming online for early warning from social media and lockdown communication.
He also outlined the upcoming Veterans Day Ceremony saying that instead of a speaker this year the students are contributing projects and performances, “with a little surprise from the older kids.” The ceremony is at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11 and veterans are invited.
