On Monday night, the Coppell ISD Board of Trustees discussed budget, campus improvements, and also bond progress.
When the board discussed the budget, it went over two proposed two possible tax increase options. The board eventually passed a tax rate of $1.0343 for operations and maintenance to be decided for by a voter approval tax election, an 8.28 percent increase from the previous year. If brought into effect, this would bring CISD an additional $11,166,995, of which $5.28 million would be due to property tax increase, thus it will be recaptured by the Texas Education Agency.
Of the remaining $5.88 million, CISD would only receive $2.4 million as the rest will also be recaptured by the TEA. The revenue loss via state recapture was a major concern of the board, however, which would happen with either option, as well as the likelihood of the tax rate being voted for.
“It feels like the cards are just stacked against us,” trustee Jobby Mathew said, “But this is a time where, as a board, all we can do is say, ‘look, we want to restore it to where we used to be’ and turn our hand to the community and say it is up to them.”
Later, the board discussed proposed campus improvement plans which included the expansion of Career Technical Education programs.
Among other principals, Coppell High School Principal Laura Springer expressed her gratitude for the CTE programs present in CHS, and cited students’ achievements in DECA, TSA and participation in practicum courses as evidence for the effectiveness of CTE, the expansion of which was one of the primary goals of the campus improvements.
“Our outperforming kids get into state and nationals every year,” Springer said, “It [CTE] is huge and we are excited about having more space to one day expand our CTE program.”
This testimony, with the district’s current goals of establishing even higher levels of college, career, and military (CCMR) readiness, as well as a desire to support students beyond raw test scores, led to the board to pass the motion of continuing campus improvements targeted at expanding CTE programs. This will include the introduction of career exploration and preparation as soon as the elementary level.
In addition to these plans, CHS’s proposed fine arts building and expanded tennis facility have yet to obtain approval from the Coppell City Council. If approved, CHS can expect to begin bond projects for these two buildings and a new CTE facility.
The board was also briefed with an update on elementary campus renovations, with Valley Ranch Elementary School’s library and office area set to be reconstructed by winter break, and the majority of campus refurbishments being completed.
Throughout the process, trustee Leigh Walker expressed her appreciation for the district staff involved that helped these processes run without issue.
“This is massive, different projects going on at different times with different variables,” Walker said, “I am so impressed with how smoothly this is going.”
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