September Parent Newsletter 2024

This year, we continue to strive towards our Mission: to empower, support, and inspire our students to achieve academic success and pursue excellence in all aspects of learning so they may live purposeful and productive lives. Your dedication, passion, and unwavering commitment to this mission are the driving forces behind our success. I am confident that together, we will continue to create an environment where every student can thrive.

Recently, our department and campus leaders presented intentional plans to improve the student experience and student outcomes academically and socially to the board. They presented areas of “grows” and “glows” that you all identified and experienced this past year, with your plans to improve each point. We see you are ready to do the work and have identified it.

Our convocation speaker, Paige Bostwick, spoke about “The Power of One” and reminded us of the five rules of service. 1. Leading by example; 2. Seeing the struggle around you and finding ways to help; 3. Choosing to be authentic over right; 4. Always being encouraging; 5. Do your best and trust the process. She also communicated how important it is to have a plan, work it, and remember that it gets messy in the middle, where our persistence and grit must kick in to stay the course and achieve the goal.

Building solid relationships (community) with our students and each other is at the heart of what we do. Through these connections, we foster a sense of belonging, trust, and respect within our school community. As we work to support our students, let us also support one another, recognizing the strength of collaboration and mutual respect shown in doing so.

Our Core Values—Integrity, Accountability, Pursuit of Excellence, and Courage—will continue to guide us in everything we do. These values are not just words; they are the principles that shape our actions and decisions, ensuring that we provide the best possible education for our students.

I am excited about the year ahead and all the plans you have committed to with your administrative teams. We will accomplish them together. Thank you for your daily intentionality, hard work, dedication, and positive impact. Let’s make this school year one of our best yet!

Don’t forget - We are choosing “Corner Four.” - Real Connection with students, colleagues, staff, parents, and community members.

The athletic students have been out and about this season, not only playing but helping in the community. Several volunteered at the Tarkington Library moving shelving and books; then on the first day of school helped with the car rider line.

Athletics Update:

Football:

On Friday Aug. 30, 2024 the Longhorn football team travelled to Corrigan Camden for the 1st Football game of the season. The longhorns came up short losing 27-24. Trace Edwards threw for 187 yards and 1 TD. Michael Galvan led the team with 102 yards rushing with 2 Td's. Jackson Stovall had 4 receptions for 89 yards and 1 td. Collin Pearson had 3 receptions for 111 yards also had 14 tackles. The defense was led by Colton Heard (9 tackles 1 fumble recovery) and Wade Wright (7 Tackles). Ladon Leblanc (1 int)

Volleyball:

The Ladyhorns travelled to Lufkin Hudson and dominated both days of competition

in that tournament. They came back undefeated and brought back the Championship trophy. Victories over Coldspring, Normagee and in the championship over Splendora. Keep it going Ladies and Go Horns!!!

Cross County:

This past weekend the Boys and Girls Cross Country team travelled to Bridge City to run against some big competition. The Ladyhorns came back with a 4th place medal and Raylee Millard placed 2nd overall. Both the Boys and girls will run this week in Huffman on Sept. 7th. Good Luck Horns

The business office rolled out Ascender the online requisitioning program and we are currently training district staff on how to use the new program. The start of the game season is a busy time with cash collections and deposits. Most important, Mr. Lasater has been balancing and preparing the district's annual budget and adoption by the board.

We executed a comprehensive orientation for new teachers, introducing them to our district's curriculum, instruction, and assessment framework, which fostered a sense of belonging and set the stage for collaborative growth. Additionally, we conducted campaign visits to each campus to share and discuss our vision, build relationships, and address questions. These visits helped align campus practices with our district vision and reinforced a unified approach to achieving educational goals. Through these initiatives, we promoted collaboration and partnership, ensuring our vision for educational excellence is embraced across the district.

Child Nutrition is serving up some delicious food this year! We have a new addition to the menu at the high school; a shredded beef/cheese and bean burrito with chili sauce! It has become a student favorite! To access or view the meal menus please visit the website: https://www.tarkingtonisd.net/families/menus. Looking for meal pricing, nutritional information, reduced meal applications? Then go to: https://www.tarkingtonisd.net/departments/child-nutrition

TISD staff started the year off with an awesome Convocation and Vendor Fair! This was our first year to include a vendor fair as part of convocation and it was a hit, not only to staff but to our local businesses and organizations as well. A big thanks goes out to all of the TISD Leadership for all their hard work in helping to make the start of the school year such a success! Going forward, there are several major tasks at hand for the communications department: revising and updating the website, communicating with parents and the community about the November Bond, managing facility requests/facility calendar, and attending events and providing plenty of pictures for social media. In the upcoming weeks, a team will be created to help with the website update, we will hold Future Forward meetings for the bond, and begin some initiatives for student/staff appreciation.

The HR/Payroll departments completed training and implemented a new absence management system (Frontline) with a rollout on August 1st. This task was difficult while also performing onboarding of new staff and completing exit interviews for those leaving the district. Amanda Duncan was the MVP in the Frontline absence management implementation. She coordinated all the training dates and created all the file uploads in the background. Without the extra effort from Amanda this transition could not have happened so smoothly.

The PEIMS clerks are busy verifying student addresses and parent contact information. This year, notices to parents were sent through social media and email along with countless hours corresponding with parents through phone calls to complete student registration information. Around 85% of parents have completed enrollment and registration documents. Staff are confident that we will be at 100% completion by the end of the first month of school.

We are excited to have some new members on board! Aimie Patrick is our new High School Counselor, Shelley Rena is our new Director for our Stronger Connections Grant, and Jennifer Kelly is our Clerk for our Stronger Connections Grant. Amazing things are happening because of them! The High School Counseling Department has been busy balancing classes, changing schedules, reviewing transcripts, enrolling Dual Credit, and placing students in Credit Recovery. At the beginning of the year, it takes a village. Special thanks to all the extra people in different departments who have helped complete this major task!

"What is the Stronger Connections Grant?" you may ask. The Stronger Connections Grant was awarded to 98 school districts and charter schools across Texas as a result of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA). The BSCA was signed into law by President Biden in 2022. This legislation expands vital mental health services and provides additional support for States and districts to design and enhance initiatives that will promote safer, more inclusive, and positive school environments for all students, educators, and school staff.

At the start of school, our office were available and helped out THS counselors by meeting and talking with students whenever needed! Shout Out to Jennifer who has gone way above and beyond in assisting with any and all tasks asked of her by all staff! She has been an outstanding addition to the TISD team!

The TISD Student Code of Conduct and TISD Handbook have been updated for the school year. The district's Emergency Operations Plan and Annexes have been updated and approved. Thank you to Constable Hunter, our campus School Resource Officers, and the rest of the Liberty County Pct 5 Constable's Office for the extra help with traffic during the first few days of school.

Fencing Update:

TECS: All fencing is up, and most gates are installed. A few larger gates are still being fabricated, with safety hardware currently being powder-coated in Houston. Posts will be cut and adjusted to ensure they're level.

TES: Posts and panels are up. Gates are being fabricated and will start being hung.

Next Steps: Auto-closing hardware, safety features, and locks will be installed at both TECS and TES. Punch lists are being developed to ensure everything is completed at each location.

TMS: After TECS and TES, work will move to TMS, focusing on fencing north and southeast of the building.

THS: Once TMS is complete, the team will fence the area between the main building and the AG building, the area around the AG building, and the northern grass area between the drainage ditch and the two buildings.

Transportation: The final project will be installing 8-foot fencing around the transportation area

Tech Department Update: Enhancing Our Educational Environment Over the past few weeks, our Technology Department has been diligently collaborating with Curriculum and Instruction, PEIMS, Human Resources, and the Director of Student Services and Security. Our joint efforts have focused on onboarding new curriculum platforms, updating camera and security systems, and streamlining network services. We’re committed to enhancing both student tech access and classroom resources, and we’re seeing improvements every day. This is just the beginning. In the coming weeks, we will continue to refine these systems and implement a new technology work order process. Our goal is to better capture tech needs and provide comprehensive training for staff on utilizing current technology effectively and following best practices. We’re excited about these advancements and appreciate your support as we work to further enrich our educational environment. Stay tuned for more updates!

Transportation was very blessed with many amazing TISD employees who worked with the Transportation department in various ways to ensure students' first day of dismissal ran smooth and arrived home safely. Their willingness to "do whatever it takes" reinforced the importance of teamwork. THANK YOU for pitching in and making our first day of school a success! Transportation is continuing the implementation process of integrating routing software with students ID badges that will enable students to scan on/off the bus. Along with Here Comes the Bus app that enables parents to track the location of their school bus and get up-to-the-second updates. Henry Ford once said "coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success."

What a wonderful start to the year! TECS and TES had excellent parent participation for Meet the Teacher and staff were excited to see all those bright and smiling faces. #Strive

Teachers are working hard to help students be successful academically. We are proud that we had 95% of our teachers attend Tarkington Growth Academy on Tuesday August 21st. Tarkington Growth Academy is a time where our teachers come together after the school day to collaborate and sharpen their lessons. #Thrive

TMS has had a great start to the year. Many students and parents came out for Meet the Teacher/Parent Orientation. Students were able to pick up their schedules and parents were able to learn about procedures and programs at TMS. #Strive

The Week of August 26th; Assistant Principal Shauna Evans coordinated TMS Safety Week. Each day, staff and students learned about and participated in different safety drills. #Thrive The week culminated in a game of Jeopardy with questions about what had been learned during the week. Mrs. Burton's class wanted to square off boys against girls. Despite the boys being totally outnumbered, the boys came out victorious! Ms. Evans was so impressed with the class' enthusiasm, she treated the entire class to ice cream! #Achieve

THS has had a great start to the 2024-02025 school year. It began with parent orientation, Senior Sunrise, Meet the Longhorns, and THS Curriculum Night. During our most recent event, Curriculum night, parents and students were treated to a night learning about their curriculum and the accountability system. #Strive

Students and staff are working hard to get accustomed to and complying with the no cellphone policy. Administrators, teachers and students have been having valuable conversations to understand the importance of the appropriate time and place to use phones; as well as understanding the value of social interactions. #Thrive

THS Counselor's Corner: Announcing the Longhorn Launchpad at THS. It's our new CCMR room where students will be able to take interest surveys to guide future decision making. We have Chromebooks for students to research trade schools, Junior Colleges, and Universities. Mrs. Hudman and Mrs. Patrick are here to assist and help your student "launch" into the next chapter of life.

The Tarkington Independent School District (TISD) Board of Trustees has voted to call for a bond election totaling $80 million, scheduled for Tuesday, November 5, 2024. The bond aims to fund critical infrastructure improvements across the district, including the construction of a new elementary school and various renovations and expansions at other campuses.

To fund these projects, the District is projecting a tax rate increase of 10 cents, resulting in a total TISD tax rate of $1.0325. The District plans to complete the proposed projects in phases, which allows for a smaller tax rate increase. For example, a homestead assessed at $250,000 (with a taxable value of $150,000 after exemption) is projected to see a tax difference of $12.50 per month, or $150.00 per year, in 2025 compared to 2024.

Importantly, there will be no increase over the taxpayer’s frozen dollar amount on the homesteads of taxpayers aged 65 years and older who have applied for and received the "Age 65 or Older Exemption." Additionally, due to the recently increased homestead exemption, homesteads with an appraised value of $100,000 or less will not pay any school taxes to Tarkington ISD.

To access and share information regarding the November 2024 Bond; please click the link bond web page. This site provides comprehensive details on bond survey results, voting times and locations, proposed projects, and taxable values and school taxes. It also explains how taxable values and school taxes work. There’s also information specifically for those over 65, the financial impact of the bond, answers to frequently asked questions, and a button to submit a question.

If you would like to receive future updates about the bond, please click the link https://forms.gle/Y5wEc82cE2wmoTWb8 to join our mailing list.

• Baby Belles Camp: Sept 2-5, THS Gym

• TMS Volleyball vs. Livingston (away) 4:30pm
• JV Football vs Hardin Jefferson (away) 5:30pm
• TECS Curriculum Night 5:30 pm

Sept 6

• THS Volleyball vs. Dayton (away) 4:30pm

Sept 7

• Cross Country Meet @ Huffman HS 8am
• FCA Faith & Family Day @ Minute Maid Park

Sept 9

• TECS Game Night w/Grandparents, TECS Cafeteria 5-7pm, PK-5th
• TMS volleyball vs Hardin Jefferson (home) 4:30pm

Sept 10

• THS Volleyball game, THS gym, 4:30pm
• TMS Curriculum Night 6-7:30pm

Sept 12

• THS Volleyball Tournament (F and JV) @ West Fork HS
• TMS Football @ Anderson-Shiro, 5:30pm
• JV Football game @ THS, 5:30pm

Sept 13

• THS VS Football @ Anderson-Shiro, 5:30pm

Sept 14

• THS Volleyball Tournament (F and JV) @ West Fork HS, 8am
• THS & TMS Cross Country @ Bronco Invitational in Dayton, 8am

Sept 16

• HOCO dress up: Biker vs Surfer
• Senior Meeting @ THS Commons, 6pm
• TMS VB vs Shepherd @ TMS, 4:30pm

Sept 17

• HOCO dress up: Soccer mom vs BBQ dad
• THS volleyball @ THS gym, 4:30pm
• Jr. FFA meeting @ THS commons, 6:30pm

Sept 18

• HOCO dress up: Preppy vs Country

Sept 19 (End of 1st Six Weeks)

• HOCO dress up: Longhorn Spirit Gear, Overalls, and Mums
• TMS Pep Rally @TMS Gym 3:25pm (end of the day)
• THS Pep Rally @ THS Gym 3:25pm (end of the day)
• THS Volleyball Tournament (F and JV) @ THS gym, 8am
• JV Football vs Hardin, (away) 5:30pm
• TES Curriculum Night, 5:30-7:30pm

Sept 20

• THS Cross Country @Anahuac, 8am
• TMS Homecoming Dance, TMS Commons 5-7pm
• HOCO Game, 7:30pm @ AL Nelson Stadium
• THS Volleyball @ Livingston HS, 4:30pm

Sept 21

• THS Volleyball (F and JV), THS gym, 8am
• THS Homecoming Dance, THS Commons 7-10pm

Sept 24

• TMS Junior Beta Induction Ceremony @ TMS auditorium
• THS Volleyball game @ Hamshire-Fannett HS, 4:30pm

Sept 25

• TMS Cross Country Tony Munson Invitational @ Liberty, all day
• See You at the Pole-7:10am @TMS Flag Pole
• See You at the Pole-7:15 @THS Flag Pole

Sept 26

• TMS Second Cup of Coffee, TMS Commons, 9am
• THS Juniors & Seniors: Balfour Ring, Cap/Gown Presentation, THS Commons 8:50 & 9:10am
• TMS Football @ Crockett (away), 5:30pm
• JV Football vs Crockett (home), 5:30pm

Sept 27

• THS Cross Country Tony Munson Invitational @ Liberty, all day
• Varsity Football vs Crockett (away), 7:30pm

Sept 28

• HS Band, ATSSB Region Jazz Auditions, Band Hall 1-4pm

Sept 30

• TMS Volleyball vs Hamshire Fanett (away), 4:30pm