Rockwall Independent School District
Board of Trustees Meeting
May 18, 2015
Regular Session
The Board of Trustees of the Rockwall Independent School District met in regular session on Monday,
May 18, 2015 at 6:00 p.m. in Room 600 of the Administration/Education Center of the Rockwall
Independent School District located at 1050 Williams Street in Rockwall, Texas. In attendance were:
President
Vice President
Secretary
Mr. Chris Cuny
Mrs. Linda Duran
Mrs. Stephanie Adams
Mr. Jon Bailey
Mr. Russ Childers
Mrs. Leigh Plagens (Absent)
Mr. Jim White
Superintendent
Mr. Jeff Bailey
President Cuny called the meeting to order at approximately 6:00 p.m., declaring a quorum in attendance
and the meeting duly called with notice posted according to provisions of the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas
Government Code Chapter 551.
Mr. Jon Bailey moved to approve the May 9, 2015 trustee election returns as presented and declare
Chris Cuny duly elected to fill Place 1, Russ Childers duly elected to fill Place 2 and Linda Duran duly elected
to fill Place 3 on the Board of Trustees of the Rockwall Independent School District. Upon the second of
Mrs. Adams, the Board voted 6 to 0 to approve the election results. (Plagens Absent)
Rockwall ISD Trustee Election
Saturday, May 9, 2015
Name of Office
Name of Candidate
Total Votes Received
Place 1
Chris Cuny
1,684
Place 2
Marcel Clark
Russ Childers
572
1,317
Place 3
Linda Duran
1,669
The Honorable David Rakow administered the Oath of Office to re-elected member Chris Cuny,
Place 1, re-elected member Russ Childers, Place 2 and re-elected member Linda Duran, Place 3.
Upon a motion by Mr. Jon Bailey and a second from Mrs. Duran, the Board voted 6 to 0 to adjourn into
Executive Session. (Plagens Absent)
President Cuny adjourned the open meeting of the Board at approximately 6:30 p.m. to immediately
reconvene the Board in executive session under the authority of the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas
Government Code Chapter 551.071 and 551.074.
Pursuant to Texas Government Code Section 551.071:
Private consultation with the District’s attorney, in person or by phone, to seek the advice regarding
(1) pending or contemplated litigation, (2) a settlement offer, or (3) on a matter in which the duty of
the attorney to the District under Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct of the State
Bar of Texas clearly conflicts with Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code.
Pursuant to Texas Government Code Section 551.074:
Deliberate the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline of a public officer or
employee.
1.
Recommendation for termination of the identified probationary contract
teacher(s) at the end of the 2014-2015 school year.
At approximately 7:15 p.m., the President adjourned the executive session to reconvene the Board in open
session at approximately 7:30 p.m.
No action was taken following the executive session.
Mrs. Linda Duran offered the invocation and led the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United
States of America and the pledge to the flag of Texas.
Sara Bonser, Chief Academic Officer, introduced Katie Braden and Bryan Moss
who participated in the iTunes project with the Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA).
Dr. Donna Fisher, Chief Technology Officer, presented a report on the District’s Network Upgrades.
Mr. Childers moved to approve the following consent agenda items:
A.
Minutes of Regular Session held on April 20, 2015 and a Board Retreat held on April 11, 2015
and a Work Session held on May 4, 2015.
B.
April 2015 Financial and Investment Reports and to file it for audit.
C.
Personnel
the resignation of:
Jodie McAngus
Gena Johnson
Kathryn Jones
Kayla McDonald
Emily Moran
Candy Lee
Tonni Kimbrell
Jennifer Moreau
Janet Ball
Mark Demianovich
Shannon Boyd
Ashley Loftin
John Thomas
Patricia Flores
Dina Fuselier
Crystal Liechty
Debra Witherspoon
Aimee Hamsher
Jerry Fisher
Director, 504/Dyslexia
3rd Grade Teacher
Librarian
3rd Grade Teacher
Music Teacher
2nd Grade Teacher
2nd Grade Teacher
3rd Grade Teacher
1st Grade Teacher
6th Grade Teacher
Nurse
Science Teacher
Assistant Band Director
English Teacher/Coach
Spanish/ESL Teacher
Special Education Teacher
Math Teacher
Special Education Teacher
Speech Therapist
Administration
Amy Parks-Heath Elementary
Amy Parks-Heath Elementary
Hays Elementary
Hays Elementary
Hartman Elementary
Nebbie Williams Elementary
Springer Elementary
Shannon Elementary
Shannon Elementary
Reinhardt Elementary
Utley Middle School
Utley Middle School
Williams Middle School
Williams Middle School
Williams Middle School
Williams Middle School
Cain Middle School
Rockwall High School
Janna Heller
Dee Lord
Vickie Connally
Devin Gabbard
Jayn Hawk
Bruno Morlan Villafuerte
the Employment of:
Renae Murphy
Michael Clark
Cory Harvey
Andra Apaun
Lisa Marriott
Amanda Watson
Dana Dean
Elizabeth Pesek
Emilie Mason
Dani Leugers
Stefani Riker
Brennan Masters
Math Teacher/Coach
Science Teacher
Special Education Teacher
P.E./Health Teacher/Coach
Credit Recovery Teacher
Social Studies Teacher/Coach
Rockwall High School
Rockwall High School
Rockwall-Heath High School
Rockwall-Heath High School
Rockwall-Heath High School
Rockwall-Heath High School
Chief Communication Officer
Director of Special Education
Diagnostician
1st Grade Teacher
4th Grade Teacher
Language Science Teacher
1st Grade Teacher
3rd Grade Teacher
1st Grade Teacher
Biology Teacher
FA1 Teacher
Athletic Trainer
Administration
Administration
Administration
Hays Elementary
Hays Elementary
Pullen Elementary
Dobbs Elementary
Springer Elementary
Springer Elementary
Rockwall High School
Rockwall High School
Rockwall-Heath High School
D.
Budget Amendment.
E.
Acceptance of Donations to the District.
F.
Approved the Extension of “As Needed” contracts for the 2015-2016 School Year
to Responding Vendors.
G.
Approved the One-Year Extension of RFP 14.7.11-153 – Athletic/Event Broadcast Services
H.
Approved Participation Between Rockwall Independent School District and Purchasing
Association of Cooperative Entities (PACE).
I.
Approved the License Fee of $60,221 for Skyward’s School Management System Software.
With a second from Mr. White, the Board voted 6 to 0 to approve the consent items. (Plagens Absent)
During the public forum for public participation, no one from the audience addressed the Board.
Upon a motion from Mrs. Duran and a second from Mr. Jon Bailey , the Board voted 6 to 0 to approve
E Smith Realty Partners as Brokers for Rockwall ISD and authorize the Superintendent or Designee to
execute an engagement letter necessary to implement that relationship. (Plagens Absent)
Mr. Mike Ball, Chief Financial Officer, reviewed the last draft of the proposed budget for 2015-2016 fiscal
Year.
With a motion from Mr. Jon Bailey and a second from Mr. Childers, the Board voted 6 to 0 to terminate the
probationary contract of Blanca Benjamin at the end of the 2014-2015 school year. (Plagens Absent)
Mr. Childers made a motion to approve and adopt Texas Association of School Board Policy DEA(Local)
Compensation and Benefits Wage and Hour Laws on the second and final reading. Mrs. Duran seconded the
motion and the Board voted 6 to 0 to approve and adopt policy DEA(Local) Compensation and Benefits
Wage and Hour Laws. (Plagens Absent)
Upon a motion from Mrs. Adams and a second from Mr. Childers, the Board voted 6 to 0 to
approve Texas Association of School Board Policy Manual Update 102 on the first reading and refer to the
second and final reading. (Plagens Absent)
Mr. Mike Ball, Chief Financial Officer, reported to the Board information regarding instructional materials. Mr. Ball
stated the instructional materials need to be ordered in June for them to be available for the beginning of the
2015-2016 school year. Mr. Ball stated the Rockwall ISD would need to spend some of the allocation before we
know the amount of our allocation. Mr. Ball reported on the agenda for the June 15, 2015 Board of Trustees meeting,
we are anticipating placing a recommendation to authorize purchase of instructional materials for the 2015-2016
school year and approve any needed budget amendments.
Mr. White moved to schedule Monday, June 15, 2015 at 5:30 p.m. in Room 600 of the Administration/
Education Center of the Rockwall Independent School District for the public hearing to discuss the
2015-2016 budget and proposed tax rate. With a second from Mrs. Adams, the Board voted 6 to 0
to meet on Monday, June 15, 2015 at 5:30 p.m. to have the public hearing on the 2015-2016 budget and
proposed tax rate. (Plagens)
During the Superintendent’s Report, Mr. Bailey discussed and updated the Board on the following
Bond Committee Meeting on May 13th
Prepared for Board Presentation on June 15, 2015
District Update
Rockwall ISD held its 9th annual Digital Media Fair on Thursday, April 30th at Rockwall High School.
The event was an exciting opportunity for our District to showcase the digital talent of our students
from grades K-12.
Teacher of the Year
Rockwall ISD honored the 2015 Teachers of the Year from each of the 19 campuses on Friday, May 8 th.
Edna Solis from Springer Elementary took honor of being the elementary teacher of the year.
Candy Holland from Rockwall-Heath High School was selected secondary teacher of the year.
Athletics
Rockwall High School Baseball Advancing to Regional Playoffs
Rockwall High School (Boys) and Rockwall-Heath High School (Girl’s) Gymnastics Teams
placed 4th in State.
Fine Arts
Williams Middle School Orchestra won Lonestar Showcase of Music
Piper Fisk won First runner up in National Congressional Art Competition
Legislative Update
 14 Days remaining in the 84th Session
 Bills related to Public Education
 SB149
Students who fail one to two End Of Course(EOC) exams but meet all other
graduation requirements will be referred to a local graduation committee who
may allow them to graduate.
Status: Signed into Law

HB 2804
Public school campuses will receive letter grades A-F based on state testing
and other measures. Status: Passed House, Sent to Senate (Similar bill
passed senate)
Memorial Day Ceremony
Tuesday, May 19th at 7:00 p.m.
Rockwall High School Performing Arts Center at Utley Middle School
Board Work Session
June 1st at 6:30 p.m.
With a motion from Mr. Jon Bailey and a second from Mrs. Duran, the Board voted 6 to 0 to adjourn the
meeting at 8:13 p.m. (Plagens Absent)
Chris Cuny
PRESIDENT, Board of Trustees
Stephanie Adams
SECRETARY, Board of Trustees