Extra Credit

Fort Worth mayor looking forward to working with new superintendent

Mayor Betsy Price and interim superintendent Walter Dansby met up last week to discuss various ways the two can increase partnerships between the city and Fort Worth school district, such as joint efforts for parks and recreational needs or training programs for students. 

Price told the Star-Telegram that she's excited Dansby was named the sole finalist to be the next schools superintendent. "He is great, and we have a lot in common," she said. "We were both born in Fort Worth and are products of the Fort Worth ISD, and we both have a great love for the city and school district." 

Here is picture of Price (second from the left) and Dansby (to her right) from an anti-bullying workshop on Friday. The school district held the event to talk with city officials and community agencies about stepped up efforts to combat bullying through the district's It's Not Okay program.

-Eva-Marie Ayala

Video: How Keller ISD spends $1

Keller school district officials have a new video that breaks down how much of each dollar goes towards different categories of expenses. Over half of each dollar pays for classroom teachers. Click here to see the video.

- Sandra Engelland

Fort Worth school trustees file campaign reports

School board members filed the required campaign finance reports this month, which can be found here.

Board vice president Juan Rangel reported no contributions or expenditures, and T.A. Sims did not file a report. Carlos Vasquez, who is running for state representative, reported having $32,000 in outstanding campaign loans.

Ann Sutherland reported $25,900 in outstanding loans and $5,640 in contributions, including donations from Larry Shaw, who runs the United Educators Association, ($1,500) and Linebarger Goggan Blair and Sampson ($1,000). That firm was to get the district's delinquent tax collection contract, but then trustees narrowly voted to rebid the contract yet again after concerns arose about how it was awarded. (That firm and the former delinquent tax collection firm of Perdue, Brackett, Flores, Utt and Burns Joint Venture have both contributed to other trustees previously.) Among her expenditures were $500 to the Texas Ethics Commission for a fine levied against her last year for not reporting in-kind contributions from UEA. In September, Sutherland said the commission assumed incorrectly that she had been made aware of UEA funds spent to support her campaign, but she decided to not to appeal the fine to put the situation behind her. UEA officials had said then that their own reports showing she swore to some expenditures was a mistake and has since been corrected.

Judy Needham spent $1,100 including an $100 donation in October for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, $250 for State Rep. Mark Shelton, R-Fort Worth and $500 toward the campaign for state comptroller Susan Combs.

Tobi Jackson reported loaning herself $4,045, and Christene Moss reported having $583 in an outstanding campaign loan. Norm Robbins' expenditures included a $250 donation to the campaign for state Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth. Former trustee Camillle Rodriguez reported having $92 remaining from her 2008 campaign when she was defeated by Vasquez for the District 1 seat. 

-Eva-Marie Ayala

Northwest teacher dies

   Extra counselors were sent to Northwest High School today to meet with students and staff grieving the sudden death of a 50-year-old social studies teacher in the school's Science, Technology, Engineering and Math academy.

 District spokeswoman Lesley Weaver said Joseph Palermo, who had been with the district sincee 1997, had attended a program last night during which STEM students revealed their project, building a 21st century society, to the community.

  Shortly after returning home, Palermo became ill and was taken to a hospital where he died, Weaver said. The cause of death has not been released, she said.

  Weaver said extra counselors were sent to Northwest where they first informed Palermo's students and other staff in the STEM academy and then the entire student body. She said a memorial service is being planned but won't be finalized until Palermo's out-of-state relatives arrive.

-Martha Deller  

 

No change in pay from last year for most Texas teachers

The paychecks for most Texas teachers remain "virtually unchanged" from 2010-2011, according to a survey report released on Friday.

The average teacher salary is $48,666 for 2011-2012. Last year, that figure was $48,639, according to the survey by the Texas Association of School Boards and Texas Association of School Administrators.

Locally, the average salary is $50,344 for teachers in the state Education Service Center's Region 11 in Fort Worth. Teachers in Houston's Region 4 reported a slightly higher average salary of $50,742.

Moreover, 47 percent of Texas school districts had salary freezes for this year, the report says.

"The largest Texas districts, those with more than 10,000 students, were most likely to freeze salaries (83 percent), affecting well over 70 percent of all teachers in the state," according to a report of survey highlights.

Jessamy Brown

Keller ISD officials plan to tap savings for 12-13 budget

Last night, the Keller school district officials held the first budget workshop for the 2012-13 plan. Officials discussed taking $14.7 million from district savings to cover a deficit. Read this Star-Telegram story for more details.

-- Sandra Engelland

Students star in video thanking school board for work to run district

Gift bags, children's artwork and heartfelt speeches from administrators are all part of the annual School Board Recognition Month festivities underway.

This year, some Texas schools are turning to technology to help say thank you to the elected officials who volunteer their time to oversee the running of local school districts.

At last night's Birdville school board meeting, for example, trustees saw a video starring the Green Valley Elementary School student body.

Led by campus music specialist Michele McIntire, the children serendaded the board with a special rendition of "We Love You School Board."

It's sung to the tune of "We Love You Conrad" from "Bye Bye Birdie" (which Birdville High School tied for best musical at the 2010 Betty Lynn Buckley Awards).

First verse:
We love you school board, oh yes we do
We love you school board, and we’ll be true
For all you do for us, thank you
Oh school board, we love you

 

--Jessamy Brown

 

Texas Highway 26 shuts off Grapevine-Colleyville school offices, stadium

A word of advice to those venturing to Grapevine-Colleyville school district's administration building, Mustang-Panther Stadium or its fieldhouse: Think "Mustang Drive" instead of Texas 26

Ongoing road construction on Texas 26 has closed the main entrance to those facilities, so anyone with business in the district offices, the school boardroom or the stadium will have to proceed along Texas 26 to the entrance nearest the fieldhouse.

This left a lot of folks dodging traffic cones and traversing the stadium parking lot to get to this week's school board meeting.

School officials have advised students, parents and the public that the best policy might be to forget about Texas 26 entirely for awhile and choose the Mustang Drive entrances, which are all open and unobstructed.

__Shirley Jinkins 

Classes to continue at Paschal despite power outage, parents can pick up students

UPDATE 10:35 a.m.: School officials said they will release students to parents, who must physically arrive at the school to do so as phones and internet connections are down. Parents must do so even for students who drive so that the release may be signed, officials said. However, officials said they "strongly advise" parents not to do so to allow the instructional day to continue.

Oncor officials said crews are working to replace wires damaged when a car hit a power pole this morning. Such a repair could take about three hours, they said.

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Power outage at Paschal High School

So far, officials said classes will not be canceled for the rest of the day.

Emergency power is being used for some areas and natural light from windows is being used when they can in classrooms, Fort Worth school district spokesman Clint Bond said.

"Lunch will be brought in that was prepared elsewhere, and the temperatures are supposed to be warm today," Bond said. "It's inconvenient, but we're trying to make the best of a challenging situation."

Officials said a car hit a power pole in the neighborhood, causing the power to to go out at the school about 7:40 this morning. District officials did not have an estimate as to when the power would be restored.

Meteorologist Jason Dunn, with the National Weather Service, said today's temperatures should be in the 60s with a high of 68.

-Eva-Marie Ayala

Dallas ISD votes to close 11 schools amid budget struggles

Last night Dallas trustees voted to close 9 elementaries and two middle schools in hopes of saving about about $11.5 million to help make up for cuts in state funding.

For years, consultants have recommended that the Fort Worth school district close schools as well to better maximize its resources, but no immediate steps have been made to do so. But Fort Worth officials may want to take note as to how our neighbors to the east handled it. As the Dallas Observer reports, "it got ugly."

In 2009, former Fort Worth superintendent Melody Johnson discussed various criteria to consider for closing schools here besides enrollment -- such as academic performance, access to alternative schools, cost of operation, program offerings, building conditions and location. The issue comes up from time to time during budget discussions, but no set plan has yet to be brought forward.

--Eva-Marie Ayala