The Board President or his/her designee will call the roll of members.

The group will recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

The school is required by state laws and board policies CCG [Legal] and CE[Legal] to conduct a public hearing on the proposed budget.  Any taxpayer of the District may be present and participate in the meeting. 

Under board operating procedures the Board will decide at the beginning of the meeting whether or not the hearing will be to (1) gather input only or (2) dialog with the public.  Unless the Board takes action to declare the meeting a dialog with the public, all hearings will be gather input only meetings.

According to law, the public notice of the hearing must be published at least 10 days but no longer than 30 days before the date of the public meeting.  The public notice of this hearing was published in the Smithville Times on August 18, 2022,  which is 11 days before the hearing.  Notice of this hearing has also been posted on the District website.

Mrs. Burns and Mrs. McCarthy will make a short presentation of the 2022-2023 proposed budget.  The public will be invited to participate in the presentation and the Board will hear all comments provided by the public.
 

Citizens wishing to address the Board of Trustees have so indicated by listing their name on the Communications from the Public sign-in sheet located on the table at the entrance to the boardroom if the meeting is done in person, or at the link provided on the published board agenda if conducted remotely. Those signing have given a brief indication of the topics to be addressed.
Comments to the Board of Trustees under this provision will be limited to three minutes.
The members of the Board of Trustees will listen to citizen presentations during this portion of a regularly scheduled meeting, but they will not comment or participate in a discussion of the topic. 

Board members routinely approve items on the consent agenda as a group.  These are routine agenda items.  Board members have the option to ask questions regarding any of the items listed under "consent agenda".

State law requires that a record be kept in the form of official minutes on each meeting held by a governmental body and that these minutes be approved at the next regular meeting.

Monthly reporting of financial position in relation to the budget.  The Board is provided monthly financial statements.

Meet legal reporting requirements for investments.
In order the meet legal reporting requirements for investments, the Board receives quarterly reports on District investments.

The Board has requested a monthly status report of earned state aid in relation to the budget.

The Board has requested a monthly status report of earned state aid in relation to the budget.

Attached is the Tax Assessor-Collector's Report.

The Chief Financial Officer, Jean Ann McCarthy, will review the financial disbursements for the previous month with the Board of Trustees.  No action is required.

The Superintendent will update the Board on important issues pertaining to the District.

In order to inform the Board and the public of Smithville I.S.D.'s accountability ratings, Dr. Bethany Logan, Director of Curriculum, will review district and individual campus performance in comparison to the state.

The accountability system utilizes STAAR data to evaluate three areas: 1) Student Achievement, 2) Student Progress and 3) Closing Performance Gaps.  The accountability system is designed to insure that campuses and districts are evaluated annually on multiple criteria and performance levels.

a.  Financial Report
b.  Superintendent’s Report
c.  Review and Approve District and Campus Improvement Plans and                 Performance Objectives
d.  Personnel  

The Board is required to adopt an operational budget before the beginning of the fiscal year, which begins September 1^st.  Draft 1 and Draft 2 of the budget have been presented to the Board at previous meetings.
The Board is also required to conduct a public hearing on the budget before adopting the budget. The hearing was conducted at the beginning of this meeting.
 

The Board is required to set a tax rate within 60 days of receiving the certified tax roll but no later than September 30^th.  The Board is also required to conduct a public hearing on the budget and tax rate before setting the tax rate.

 The tax rate necessary to fund the proposed 2022-2023 budget is $1.1029 per hundred.  That includes an M&O rate of $0.9429 and an I&S rate of $0.16 representing a combined decreased rate of $0.0974 for M&O and I&S from the 2022-2023 budget year.  The M&O rate is the maximum rate approved by voters in the tax ratification election held May 14, 2011.  The I&S rate is the necessary rate to pay for bonded indebtedness.
The tax rate must be set by passing a resolution from the Board.

The purpose of this agenda item is to authorize the purchase of 1 school bus after September 1, 2022.

The 2022-2023 budget currently has $210,000 budgeted for the purchase of one new school bus, one maintenance truck and two school vans.  The District would like to proceed with this purchase as budgeted and approved, after September 1st.
 

The Federal Office of Management and Budget issued revised Uniform Grant Guidance updates that allow school districts to increase their micro-purchase threshold, for federal expenditures, from $10,000 to $49,999 if the LEA is a low-risk auditee for its most recent federal audit.  This item must be reviewed and approved on an annual basis.  This increase will allow Smithville ISD to make annual purchases up to $49,999 without soliciting competitive price or rate quotations if the District considers the price to be reasonably based.

By increasing the micro-purchase threshold, Smithville ISD will be able to continue to work in a more efficient environment when reasonably priced items are obtained. 

In accordance with the requirements of Senate Bill 1267, the Superintendent shall recommend the District’s professional development plan for all District employees. The Board shall annually review the professional development clearinghouse published by the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) and annually approve the District’s professional development plan. The District’s professional development plan must:

1. Be guided by the SBEC clearinghouse training recommendations;
2. Note any differences in the District’s plan from the clearinghouse recommendations; and

       3. Include a schedule of the required professional                             development for all district employees.

The Board of Trustees of the Smithville Independent School District has previously authorized and executed the Interlocal Agreement for the Colorado River Cooperative to operate certain aspects of their special education program for students with disabilities under the authority of Texas Education Code Sections 11.157 and 11.151(c)(4) and Section 791.002 et seq of the Texas Government Code.

This resolution grants approval by the Board of Trustees to delegate and authorize the Superintendent of Schools to:
a.  Serve and represent the District on the Colorado River Cooperative           Management Board, with delegated authority to take all necessary           program action with the exception of withdrawing the District from             membership and anticipated or potential litigation, which is reserved         for board action;
b.  Negotiate and approve revisions to the current Cooperative                       Agreement so that it is fully compliant with current law, policies, and         procedures;
c.  Negotiate and approve future revisions to the Cooperative Agreement       as needed;
d.  Execute the Cooperative Agreement and future amended                           Cooperative Agreements without need for action by the Board of               Trustees; and
e.  Provide future written consent to the law firm of Walsh Gallegos for           continued or future joint representation on revisions to the                         Cooperative Agreement;

Agrees and approves to retain the law firm Walsh Gallegos Treviño Kyle & Robinsono P.C. for joint representation of all Member Districts, except for Member Districts represented by other counsel, for legal counsel and service in current and future drafting an Interlocal Agreement.

There are no resignations to report.

According to Board Policy DC [Local], the Superintendent has the authority to make recommendations to the Board regarding the selection of all personnel.

The Superintendent approved employment of the following individual:

Charles Hamrick - Teacher
Degree - BS from Texas State University
Certification - pending alternative certification
Years of Service - 0 years
Campus - Smithville Junior High
To replace David Nowicki