San Angelo ISD School Board Learns Big Ideas at Annual Conference

SAN ANGELO, TX — San Angelo students and their families were well represented at the Texas Association of School Boards’ Annual Conference. The event was held Oct. 6 – Oct. 9 at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Center in Dallas. Each member of the San Angelo ISD School Board was able to attend. The Conference provides continuing education hours that each board member must complete for the year. Workshops included training on topics such as Social Media, Finance, and an update on legislation relative to public schools in the Texas.

The Districts of Innovation concept, passed by the 84th Legislative Session, received a fair amount of interest as it provides districts more flexibility in determining school start dates, attendance rules, class-size ratios, and teacher appraisal requirements, and others. Before becoming a District of Innovation certain requirements must be met, such as an academic performance rating of at least Acceptable.

San Angelo ISD has an overall rating of “Met Standard" under the two-grade 2017 Texas Education Agency Accountability Rating system. A school district is “Acceptable” when its overall rating is “Met Standard.”

In December 2016, the school board passed a resolution to initiate the process of designation as a District of Innovation.

But according to School Board member Gerard Gallegos, the best part of the Conference comes from having the opportunity to network and exchange ideas with other school district boards. “You leave there feeling re-energized and excited about providing the best learning experience for the students in our district,” Gallegos said. “We learn from what others are doing in their districts, and we pass along great ideas from our district to others.”