Bastrop ISD seeks to offset social worker staff reduction with additional interns
An affiliation agreement between Bastrop ISD and Angelo State University will allow master’s of social work students to gain clinical experience at schools within the district as interns.
The details
Due to the expiration of federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds, the district will reduce the number of social workers in BISD schools for fiscal year 2024-25.
“We are seeking to continue supporting our students by bringing additional social worker interns to our campuses,” BISD Director of Student Services Janel Morris said.
Read the full story here.
Day of solar eclipse among Bastrop ISD’s low attendance waiver request dates
The Bastrop ISD school board approved low attendance waiver requests for three days, including the solar eclipse on April 8. If approved, the days of low attendance will not count against the district’s daily average attendance—which is used to determine state funding allocated to Texas districts.
Diving in deeper
Low attendance waivers allow schools to exclude days due to weather-, safety- or health-related issues. Days such as "senior skip day" do not qualify for the waiver, officials said.
Learn more about attendance waivers here.
Bastrop ISD predicts balanced budget, tax rate cut for FY 2024-25
Dina Edgar, Bastrop ISD's chief financial officer, offered a balanced budget proposal for fiscal year 2024-25, including a tax rate of $1.06 per $100 valuation, at the school board meeting May 21. The new rate would be a decrease from the previous year’s tax rate of $1.07 per $100 valuation.
The backstory
Following the 88th Legislature's failure to pass a funding increase bill as well as the expiration of federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds, the district faced an anticipated $7.8 million budget shortfall for FY 2024-25 when it was first presented in April.
Projected increased property values and student attendance as well as a 15% reduction in spending across departments in the district helped balance the proposed budget. The budget reductions will not affect the district’s classrooms, Edgar said.
Learn more about the FY 2024-25 budget here.
