Walking the Halls
by Superintendent Bill "Butch" Dean

When this school year began, the very last thing I expected to be doing was writing the last "Walking the Halls" article as Jasper ISD's new superintendent.

I find myself somewhat at a loss for words knowing that you as a community, the Jasper ISD Board of Trustees and the Jasper ISD faculty and staff have entrusted me with this position.

In short, I am honored and humbled. I know there is much to be accomplished in the next few years. Working together, we will make great strides towards student success.

This summer will be a very busy time for our district. Registration for summer school begins May 29. Classes are offered for credit recovery, TAKS remediation and enrichment classes for students. Most classes will end by June 29.

Much of the summer of 2006 was spent on repairs to buildings or property in the district in the aftermath of Hurricane Rita. This summer, several maintenance projects are scheduled that could not be accomplished last year because of having to deal with damage from the storm.

One of the projects will involve the STARS (Southeast Texas Academic Recovery School) Campus. The second phase of the project will be to renovate the middle section of the building.

We are expecting to house 30 or more students next school year. Five more students graduated May 21 bringing the total number of graduates to 14 in 15 months of operation.

Staff development training for teachers will be offered this summer and during teacher work days prior to school beginning.

Teachers at Few Primary will be trained in a new curriculum. Science teachers will conclude their training this summer with the University of Texas DANA Center while math teachers in grades 6-12 will attend workshops during the school year. Math teachers in grades 2-5 will continue with the Sharon Wells Math Curriculum training during the year.

Another area of focus will be on advanced curriculum training for teachers to help them prepare for preadvanced placement courses at Jasper Junior High and at Jasper High School. The training will also include advanced placement courses at Jasper High School.

Staff development training for teachers to conduct parent training workshops are being planned to focus more on specific subjects. For the third year, parent liaisons will be available on each campus in the district to assist parents with training and district activities.

School safety has become a greater focus of public schools and colleges nationwide. Jasper ISD installed a new phone system this year that allowed us to place a phone in each teacher's classroom. We also use it to broadcast across the district any emergency that is encountered.

When students return in August, a new feature will be implemented called "School Messenger." This system is designed to enable us to contact up to three phone numbers per household. A message will be sent to parents/ guardians in an attempt to notify them in case of a school closing or an emergency within a 15-minute period.

This year Jasper ISD began doing safety audits in partnership with other Region V school districts. This allows us to grade ourselves on how secure our campuses are.

Early last fall, the district, in cooperation with the Jasper Police Department conducted a lockdown drill for the entire district with an "armed assailant" entering a campus classroom. We were pleased with our response time along with the response time of the Jasper Police Department.

As the 2006-2007 school year is brought to a close, we are preparing to begin the 2007-2008 school year. At Jasper ISD, we feel our "team" can face any challenge that we encounter. We invite the community to get even more involved with the district in the future and help us prepare our future citizens.

I hope everyone enjoys their summer. Make it a safe one. See you in August.