A “Board Business Summary” is published on the district website following each regular school board meeting convened by the Duncanville ISD Board of Trustees. School board members hosted a regular board meeting on August 23, 2021. A video recording of the meeting will be available on the district website under Board of Trustees.
District Educators Can Earn Credentials Thanks to UNT Dallas Partnership
The Duncanville ISD Board of Trustees approved a partnership with the University of North Texas at Dallas aimed at developing our next generation of school leaders. Through this partnership, district educators have the opportunity to earn a master’s degree in educational leadership and a principal certification. The district will pay for 50% of the tuition and employees will commit to serving in the district for two years after they complete the program. The partnership aligns with the district’s commitment to growing leaders and retaining quality leadership candidates. Expect to learn more about the application process for this opportunity in the coming weeks.
District Provides Update on COVID-19 Protocols
Duncanville ISD continues to follows its health and safety protocols that were established last school year, which includes daily sanitizing of facilities, classrooms and school buses, routine temperature checks and monitoring COVID-19 symptoms. Rapid testing for COVID-19 is available for all staff members though campus clinics. For more details on our safety protocols, go here.
Superintendent’s Report
Duncanville ISD Superintendent Dr. Marc Smith began his report with a recap of the first two weeks of school. This school year, 11 additional instructional days were approved to provide more learning opportunities for students as they get acclimated to in-person instruction. The first day of school was on Monday, Aug. 2. Dr. Smith began his day by visiting the Transportation Department. Dr. Smith then stopped by several campuses to greet students, parents and staff.
Dr. Smith addressed issue of whether to require face masks and how the district will continue to focus on student and staff safety. Last Tuesday, the district launched a survey to gather feedback from families and staff regarding face masks. Based on the results of the survey, a majority of families and staff are in favor of a mask mandate. The next day, Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins issued an emergency order for public schools and businesses in Dallas County that would require masks to be worn indoors for everyone over the age of 2. On Sunday, the Texas Supreme Court sided with Governor Greg Abbott and ordered a halt to the mask mandate for Dallas County. Dr. Smith noted that the order could continue to change, and he is speaking with school, county and state leaders for updates.
While face masks continue to be disputed by state and local government, Duncanville ISD continues to follow safety protocols that were established last school year. School facilities are routinely cleaned using sanitizing solutions, and each classroom teacher and other departments have been provided with a handheld e-mist device and sanitizing spray for use in high traffic areas during the day. Go here for more information on the district’s health and safety procedures.
Dr. Smith concluded his report with the exciting news that the Duncanville ISD Board of Trustees is one of five Texas school boards selected as Honor Boards by the Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA). The school board was named Region 10 Outstanding School Board of the year this summer. The five school boards, which also include Aledo ISD, Hays CISD, Mission CISD and Tomball CISD, are now finalists for the program’s highest honor: 2021 Outstanding School Board. They will be interviewed at txEDCON, the TASA|TASB Convention in Dallas, where one board will be named Outstanding School Board on September 25.
Other Items
The board agenda items can be found here.
Approved minutes from the July 19 board meeting
Approved financial report for June 2021
Approved budget amendments for June 2021
Approved College Board School Day Assessments for 2021-2022
Approved 2021-2022 Interlocal Agreement with Dallas College, Duncanville ISD and Construction Concepts, Inc.
Approved 2021-2022 Interlocal Agreement with Dallas College, Duncanville ISD and Duncanville ISD Human Resources Department
Approved 2021-2022 Interlocal Agreement with Dallas College, Duncanville ISD and Texas Instruments relating to Duncanville T-STEM 6-12 Model
Approved July 2021 – July 2023 with Duncanville ISD, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and Texas A&M University
Approved set date for tax rate hearing and setting 2021-2022 tax rate
Approved property and casualty insurance for the 2021-2022 school year provided through the Property Casualty Alliance of Texas Interlocal Agreement
Approved Workers’ Compensation Insurance for the 2021-2022 school year provided through the Workers’ Compensation Solution Interlocal Agreement
Approved Education Leadership Development Partnership
Approved laptop purchase for Collegiate Academy scholars
Approved local policy update 116 and 117
Approved 2021-2022 Student Code of Conduct
Approved Proximity learning agreement as a distance learning technology to meet the instructional needs of students
Approved submitting an endorsement for TASB Board of Directors, Region 10, Position A
Discussion of COVID-19 protocols update