Changes in policies, security & facilities mark ECISD's 2007
By BRENDA SOMMER bsommer@leader-news.com

L-N File Photo Lunchtime Tradition El Campo teens, like some of these shown eating lunch at Emil's Cafe back in February, faced the loss of their dining tradition when the school board this spring almost instituted a "closed campus." Pictured (l-r) were Zach Lamberth, Taylor Vacek, Kyndal Priesmeyer and Danielle Zalman.

The year 2007 was a time of growth and change for the El Campo Independent School District.

An old school prepared for retirement while its brand-new replacement readied to open. A new school board came into service, and policies and staffing changed in many ways. The following is a look back at the major issues and stories during the year 2007 at El Campo ISD.

Board of Trustees

The makeup of the school board changed in May when two new members were sworn into office. In the Position 5 race, two former board members were separated by only six votes to take the seat now held by Adam Gusman, who decided not to run for re-election. Cecil Davis garnered 589 votes, squeaking past Victor Rocha, who received 583 votes.

In the race for Position 4, incumbent Lisa Hernandez lost to challenger Ralph Novosad by a significant margin. Hernandez had 336 votes, or 29 percent of the total, while Novosad drew 71 percent with 832 votes.

Board President Judy Waligura was re-elected unopposed by a 5-0 vote, with board member David Hodges voting against and Novosad abstaining from all officer elections because he was new to the board.

La Keta Jo Dennis was the only person seeking the board vice presidency, and was elected 6-0, replacing Gusman in that role. Trustee Melissa Erwin remained as board secretary by a 6-0 vote, also running unopposed.

Policies

Graduation requirements, school uniforms and even the date of the prom all occupied time and energy for the ECISD board, students, parents and staff during 2007.

After months of sometimes contentious and very emotional debate that spanned two different school boards, trustees updated rules to regulate just which seniors participate in El Campo High School's commencement ceremony.

For four board meetings in a row, trustees discussed a proposal championed by trustee David Hodges to allow students who'd completed all graduation requirements but failed state assessment tests (TAKS) to walk the stage with their peers during commencement.

But at the June 19 meeting, Hodges' original proposal found quick and unanimous approval once four amendments were made by trustee Ralph Novosad.

In March, trustees voted unanimously to implement a standardized dress code requiring all children in all grades to wear solid colored tops and bottoms beginning in the 2007- 2008 school year.

The standardized districtwide dress code was meant to improve both student behavior and academic performance, administrators said.

In the past each campus could decide for itself what clothing would be allowed, but last fall's controversial T-shirt issue helped to shape the new restrictions.

Protesters came out in droves after the high school limited printed tees to only those showing El Campo High School sanctioned activities or corporate logos.

The change was made just seven days before the start of school, further igniting the issue, as most families had already done their back-toschool shopping.

At that time, some parents also started to question the difficulty of enforcing such rules and suggested uniforms.

School leaders call the new dress code the district's "Standardized Dress Guideline" rather than uniforms, as it allows students freedom in the colors they choose and styles of pants they wear.

Controversy broke out, again in the spring, when a small group of parents petitioned to have the annual prom date moved to accommodate some athletes and students headed to a forum.

The date was changed after a partial vote by a few students, then petitions by parents, businesses and other students flew back and forth, the superintendent changed the date yet again, and at last the school board settled the matter and put the prom back to its original March 10 date. Trustees later permanently established the third Saturday in May as the date of all future proms.

Security

The school board voted 4-3 in March to keep the high school campus open for lunch, but chose to implement two student lunch periods. Restaurant owners were estimating $500,000 in lost revenue if the campus closed.

Trustees David Hodges, Melissa Erwin, Jo Dennis and Lisa Hernandez cast votes for keeping the campus open while Adam Gusman, Judy Waligura and Tommy Turner were for closing the campus.

Trustee Adam Gusman made the failed motion to close the campus for freshmen and sophomore students within the next two-to-three years if both scheduling and dining hall plans could have been determined.

Patrolling the still-open campuses are two El Campo Police officers, hired to provide security full-time for the district.

El Campo Police Officer Robert Holder started his duties at El Campo High School on Oct. 1, while ECPD officer Jennifer Mican took her assignment at the El Campo Middle School Oct. 15.

El Campo ISD will pay the full cost of the two officers as well as purchase equipment and vehicles for their use - the terms of the interlocal agreement approved by the district and the El Campo City Council in August.

The officers' duties include any issue at school that is an actual violation of the law, from profanity and fighting all the way to drugs and alcohol. More importantly the officers are present to be good examples and develop personal relationships with the students.

Facilities

Perhaps the biggest project under way for the district is its brand-new El Campo Middle School campus on FM 2765. Students are scheduled to move into that $17.6-million facility in February.

The new middle school and a practice gym at the high school - the result of a $19.9 million bond package approved in 2005 - both were built behind schedule. The gym was completed and accepted on Nov. 12, long past the original completion date of Aug. 6.

The middle school's completion date, originally Dec. 15, was pushed back due to a lawsuit claiming election fraud, unusually rainy weather in January and February and again in June and July, and also because of a shortage of brick masons.

ECISD trustees in December voted to dispose of the soon-tobe vacated El Campo Middle School on MLK Boulevard, deciding some buildings should be demolished, some gutted but saved, and that the entire property be listed for sale.

A group called the SOS Evolution Committee asked the board earlier in the year to save the 17.8-acre campus, which once was the all-black E.A. Greer High School until desegregation took effect during the 1968-69 school year. However, that organization never put together the financing and firm development plans the school board required.

Deciding what to do with the high school's dilapidated track and whether to install artificial turf in Ricebird Stadium took trustees months of back-andforth discussions.

A second round of bids to fix the track at Ricebird Stadium was rejected in September, as the board waits to have a look at a new, third set of bids, expected next month.

During September discussion, the board realized that if it installed artificial turf at the stadium the track project needed to include drainage and other modifications to ensure the turf could be properly installed. As well, having the track replaced and artificial turf installed at the same time could result in cost savings, so in part for those reasons, a decision on the bids was delayed.

El Campo ISD administration did some serious number crunching and came up with a way to pay not just for the turf/track upgrades, but also to expand and revamp the high school science building.

Coming up with the estimated $5,384,302 needed for the two projects means delaying other projects and dropping the district's savings to a lessthan optimum amount. The track/turf project and science building renovations are part of $15 million in improvements the district has identified and prioritized in recent months.