LGISD Lifts Mask Mandate May 27; 150 in District had COVID
The La Grange Independent School District’s board of trustees met Monday, May 17. The meeting began with a comment from the public on agenda items. Mr. Derrick Edson addressed the board about his concerns of requiring the students at LGISD to wear a mask in the classroom.
Administrative Reports
Superintendent Bill Wagner gave an enrollment update. There are currently 1,829 students in the district. He reminded the board of graduation ceremonies which will be taking place on May 27 at 8 p.m.
He gave a COVID update which included: There have been 8 students test positive since last month’s board meeting. There have been a total of 117 students and 33 adults for the year. There are currently 41 students participating in online learning: 26 at La Grange Elementary, 8 at La Grange Middle School, and 7 at La Grange High School. The mask mandate for the district will end beginning May 27 at 1 p.m. after that time, masks will be optional.
Assistant Superintendent Stacy reported that summer school will begin on June 1 with various start dates of different programs. All summer school programs will be completed by June 30.
Director of Operations Sharon Muzny reported that high school renovations will begin as soon as school is out in May and is due to be completed by the beginning of summer school. There is going to be a big push to get more bus operators.
There are new updated 9-1-1 addresses for many locations around the school. The roads around Leopard Stadium which are private roads maintained by the district now have names. The road next to the tennis courts will now be named Leopard Lane, the road north of the stadium will now be called Purple Lane and the road south of the stadium will be Gold Lane.
Personnel
New professional staff to the district for the 2021-22 school year will be Katie Gross-Licensed Professional Counselor (Colorado River Cooperative), Taylor Goerig-La Grange Elementary teacher, Katie Christen-La Grange Elementary teacher, Codi Kadlecek-La Grange Elementary teacher, Kacy Divjak-La Grange Elementary teacher, Rebecca Stewart-La Grange Middle School teacher. There were several in-house transfers within the district for teachers moving to a different campus or teaching a new grade level.
Submitting resignations were Christopher Billings, Myra
Dippel, Marion Fenix, and John Hunger.
Annette Neal was hired as a new bus operator.
Board Members Sworn In
Two board members were sworn in at Monday night’s meeting. Calvin Mersiovsky, who was elected to Place 6 and Dr. Karen Roberts, who ran unopposed in Place 7. After the swearing in ceremony, the officers were elected for the next term. Gary Drab will served as president, Dr. Marc Fitzpatrick will serve as vice-president, and Dr. Don Mayer will serve as Secretary.
Special Recognition
Middle School Assistant Principal Regina Walker has received her PhD in Educational Leadership from Lamar University. She was recognized at Monday night’s meeting by her father, Superintendent Bill Wagner and the school board. She is now officially Dr. Regina Walker. (see photo)
Renovation of Leopard Stadium
Tony Nielsen of Claycomb Architects gave the board and update on the renovation of Leopard Stadium. He told the board that the project will begin the day after the 2021 graduation ceremony. August 20 is the target for substantial completion, with September 1 for completion of the remainder of the project.
New Bus Purchase
The recent bus accident, in which the bus was totaled, resulted in the need for the district to purchase a replacement bus. The district’s insurance provider has settled the claim in the amount of $88,014 which includes the $1,000 deductible. The board approved the request to replace the bus with a new 77-passenger bus. The cost the new bus will be $110,128. The cost to the district will be $22,114 after the insurance settlement.