At the meeting on Dec. 9, the Friendswood board of trustees approved the purchase of 0.985 acres of property at 1102 Mustang Drive, Friendswood, for future use in the district. The purchase price was $935,000.

While the board has not made any decisions regarding a use for the land, a district official said that the Citizens Advisory Committee has discussed potentially moving the tennis courts to the newly purchased area.

This is the second month in a row of the district purchasing property, as it acquired 1014 Mustang Drive at the beginning of November for a sale price of $700,000.

The board also heard a presentation on the potential adjustment of the junior high world language curriculum at the meeting.

Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Diane Myers updated the board on the upcoming proposal which suggests that the world language level taught at the junior high schools, now taught over two years, be condensed into a one-year program.

“We’re really focused on giving our students as many elective opportunities as we can,” Myers said. “This would also put the world language program at the same pace as at the high school.”

During the section for public comment, Kimberly Hall, the student council advisor at Friendswood Junior High, spoke on behalf of the world language teachers at the junior high schools.

“We have a great program, and people forget that learning a language is a skill that shouldn’t be rushed,” Hall said.

Executive Director of Operations Erich Kreiter gave an update to the board on safety measures that have been taken at campuses throughout the district. He said that outdoor aspects like fencing have been put in place but that indoor safety needs updating.

“Our PA system needs to be replaced,” Kreiter said. “We’ve had ongoing issues because we’re behind on the tech side of that, but I’ve also been looking for a visual lockdown system so that people can communicate visually instead of just over the announcements.