The Public Hearing was opened by Superintendent Fred McNiel at 6:30 p.m. Don Ferguson, Business Manager, gave the Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST) report. He reported that Leakey ISD had received a Superior Achievement rating for the 2007-2008 school year. This rating consists of twenty-four indicators that ensure the school district is held accountable for the quality of their financial management practices. This is the seventh year in a row that Leakey ISD has achieved the Superior Achievement rating. Mr. Ferguson asked for comments from the public. There was no one present who wanted to speak regarding this issue. The Public Hearing meeting was closed at 6:42 p.m. Leakey Independent School District Board of Trustees October 12, 2009 Regular Meeting Members Present: Jerry W. Bates, Jr., Shawn Gray, Shane Hohman, Ruben Navarro, Charlie Reagor, Pablo Beatsie Rubio Members Absent: Neville Triplett Visitors: Administration, Media, Leakey 4-H members with their sponsor Joel Pigg, and various community members. Called to Order: 1. The meeting was called to order by President Jerry Bates at 8:00 p.m. He announced that a quorum was present, that the meeting had been duly called and that a notice of the meeting was posted according to law. Regular Session: 2. The Pledge of allegiance was led by the Leakey 4H members. 3. The Opening Prayer was led by Ruben Navarro Open Forum: 4. President Bates welcomed the visitors and gave anyone that was present an opportunity to speak to the Board. Joel Pigg asked to speak. He informed the Board that there were over 140 4-H members from three clubs in this area. He introduced the 2009-2010 officers. They are: Leah Carrillo, President and Sarah Rubio, Vice President. 5. Students of the Month were recognized by the School Board. Students of the Month for October are Sarah Rubio, Amanda Ramos and David Hocker. Superintendent Fred R. McNiel presented Sarah Rubio and Amanda Ramos with framed certificates and also a $25.00 gift certificate to one of three restaurants; Mama Chole s, Frio
Canyon Lodge Restaurant or Vinny s Italian Restaurant. David Hocker was unable to attend. Superintendent McNiel will present his certificates to him during class tomorrow. 6. The Board read and reviewed the minutes from the September 15, 2009 Board meeting. a. A motion was made by Charlie Reagor to approve the September 15, 2009 regular Board Meeting minutes. 7. The Board reviewed payment of bills and invoices in the amount of $111,849.03 for the month of October, 2009. a. A motion was made by Pablo Beatsie Rubio to approve the bills and invoices in the amount of $111,849.03 for the month of October 2009. This motion was seconded by Shane Hohman. Motion carried 6-0 8. The Board discussed passing a resolution nominating three (3) candidates for the Real County Appraisal District for a two year term beginning January 1, 2010. a. Shawn Gray made a motion to nominate Charlie Reagor. b. Shane Hohman made a motion to nominate Caroline Breshears c. Pablo Rubio made a motion to nominate Randall Brice These motions were seconded by Shawn Gray. Motion carried 5-0-1 Charlie Reagor abstained from voting. 9. The Board discussed passing a resolution nominating Kenneth White for a two year term as a director of the Uvalde County Appraisal District beginning January 1, 2010. a. A motion was made by Shawn Gray to nominate Kenneth White to be a director for the Uvalde County Appraisal District beginning January 1, 2010. This motion was seconded by Charlie Reagor. Motion carried 6-0 10. Superintendent Fred R. McNiel introduced Mrs. Jan Strauss, an independent grant writer, to the Board. Mrs. Strauss addressed the Board expressing her desire to help Leakey ISD investigate grant opportunities and to write, prepare, and submit grant applications. a. A motion was made by Charlie Reagor to approve Mrs. Jan Strauss to conduct grant writing for Leakey ISD.
11. The report on tax collections by Kelly Shults, Tax Assessor/Collector for Leakey ISD was postponed until the November Board Meeting due to Mrs. Shults being out of town. 12. Superintendent McNiel presented the application of Amy Carrillo for approval to be added to the 2009-2010 Substitute List. a. A motion was made by Pablo Beatsie Rubio to add Amy Carrillo to the 2009-2010 substitute list. This motion was seconded by Ruben Navarro. Motion carried 6-0 13. Shawn Gray, Charlie Reagor, Pablo Beatsie Rubio, Ruben Navarro and Superintendent Fred R. McNiel attended the TASA/TASB Convention in Houston on October 2-4. Shawn Gray attended many sessions regarding new board members and the Texas Open Meeting Act. Charlie Reagor attended sessions regarding the future of schools and new construction methods for schools. Pablo Rubio served as a delegate to the TASB Delegate Assembly. Ruben Navarro attended sessions regarding the future of schools. He also attended sessions on presenting to the community what the needs of the school are and working with the community for the benefit of the students. 14. The Cheerleader Policy for 2009-2010 was presented for approval. There was much discussion among the Board members. Charlie Reagor requested to see last year s policy so they could compare and see the changes that were made. a. A motion was made by Shawn Gray to table this agenda item until the next Board meeting. 15. Don Ferguson, Business Manager, in the absence of Kelly Shults, presented to the Board two tax refund request from the Real County Appraisal District. The first refund request was for Robert and Janice Greer in the amount of $1,293.92. Due to a key punch error they have been paying full market value on two pieces of property dating back to 2005. The second request was for Jerry and Melissa Bates in the amount of $2,238.06, who qualified for an inventory tax on unsold property in the Stanford Hollow Subdivision for the 2008 tax year. a. A motion was made by Pablo Beatsie Rubio to approve the tax refunds for Robert and Janice Greer in the amount of $1,293.92 and Jerry and Melissa Bates in the amount of $2,238.06. This motion was seconded by Charlie Reagor. Motion carried 5-0-1 Jerry Bates abstained.
16. Don Ferguson, Business Manager, requested the opening of a new Scholarship activity account at First State Bank of Uvalde. He explained at the present time the money for scholarships is being deposited to the general operating account and then distributed to students. A recommendation has been made by the auditors to open a separate account so the funds would not be co-mingled with the general operating account. a. A motion was made by Ruben Navarro to approve opening a new Scholarship activity account. This motion was seconded by Charlie Reagor. Motion carried 6-0 17. The Board discussed the letter received from Uvalde County Appraisal District requesting that the appraisal district be allowed to keep the excess funds of $40,302.00 which was the surplus left over from the 2008 budget. These funds would be used to settle pending legal fees and to use for the District s building maintenance and repairs. Leakey ISD s portion of this budget surplus is.0059% which calculates to $238.00. a. A motion was made by Charlie Reagor to approve Uvalde County Appraisal Districts request to keep the 2008 budget surplus. This motion was seconded by Pablo Beatsie Rubio Motion carried 6-0 18. Business Manager s Report - Don Ferguson a. Mr. Ferguson presented the Board with a comparison of revenue to budget as of September 30, 2009 for the General Fund and National School Breakfast and Lunch program. b. The financial summary and investment report showed a beginning balance of $664,892.00. Total revenue for the month of September was $355,254.00 and the total disbursements were $253,783.00. The net cash position as of September 30, 2009 was $766,363.00. The current interest rate for First State Bank of Uvalde and the Lone Star Pool is.34%. Current year to date interest earned was $179.00. 19. Principal s Report - Rusty Baldwin a. Principal Baldwin reported to the Board on a discipline issue that occurred on September 25, 2009 when a student had in his possession an illegal drug. He informed the Board the student was expelled for three days and on his return to school was placed in DAEP for twenty-five days. b. Principal Baldwin informed the Board the attendance has been lower than usual due to flu-like symptons. There were fifteen students absent today and it has been as high as twenty-three student this past week. He informed the Board there has been no official case of H1N1 (Swine) flu reported to the school. c. Principal Baldwin informed the Board that the 6 th, 7 th & 8 th graders will be participating in the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Analisa Glass has agreed to be a sponsor for these students.
20. Superintendent s Report - Fred R. McNiel a. Superintendent McNiel informed the Board that he was contacted by Mr. Joe de Ochoa, a representative with the USDA Rural Development. Mr. Ochoa wanted to know if Leakey ISD would like to reactivate the grant application that LISD submitted a couple of years ago. At that time the District was asking for $3.5 million to build a new high school building, also a running track and field house. He said that the USDA is going to receive $29 billion in stimulus money. Superintendent McNiel will bring to the next Board meeting a copy of the grant application for the trustees to review and prioritize and possibly submit a new grant application to the USDA Rural Development. b. Superintendent McNiel reported that he had attended the city of Leakey workshop on the wastewater system. He gave each Board member a drawing (draft) of the proposed site that includes enough acreage for a sports complex. If approved by the Texas Water Development Board of Directors (TWDB) the land acquisition would be a 100% grant. Superintendent McNiel explained once this acquisition is completed then there would be a lot of opportunities for grant funding to construct a sports complex. c. Superintendent McNiel requested from the Board members a few dates that would be agreeable with their schedules to have Region 20 come to Leakey to conduct a training workshop on the Texas Education Code. They decided that November 9 th, 10 th, or 12 th would be fine. Superintendent McNiel will call Region 20 to confirm a date and then notify the Board members. Executive Session There was no executive session at this meeting. Adjourned: A motion was made by Ruben Navarro to adjourn the meeting at 9:45 p.m. Jerry W. Bates Jr., President Shawn Gray, Secretary Approved 11-17-09/jf