BRENHAM SCHOOL BOARD HOLDS BUSY MEETING MONDAY
The Brenham School Board approved issuing 4 million dollars in Qualified Zone Academy Bonds (QZAB) at their meeting Monday night. The bond money will be used for the remodeling of Krause Elementary School, which was built 30 years ago. Assistant Superintendent of Operations Paul Aschenbeck said that most of the funds will be used in updating the electrical and mechanical infrastructure at the school. The QZAB notes provide the district with a zero interest source of funds and provide the bond purchasers with a tax credit.
Trustees approved several purchases Monday. The Brenham Cub band will be purchasing new uniforms. Their current uniforms are 8 years old. Band Director Eric Rettig showed how the new uniforms are made from cooler, lightweight materials and can be configured into several styles. The Brenham Band Parents organization will be covering 40% of the new uniform costs. The board also approved leasing 5 new school busses from Durham School Services at a cost of $55,000 per year. The new busses will allow the district to update its fleet.
In other action, the board accepted a fifteen thousand dollar donation from the BISD Educational Foundation. The majority of the donation is from the foundation’s annual Arts and Appetizer fundraiser event each spring.
The board also approved the district’s legislative agenda, which will be sent to the state legislature. School board president Natalie Lange and Superintendent Dr. Walter Jackson collaborated in producing the document. A copy of the agenda is available here: bisd-legislative-agenda
Washington County Chief Tax Appaiser Willy Dilworth received approval from the trustees to procced with the reappraisal of properties damaged in the May flooding. Dilworth said that 170 properties applied for the reappraisals and that the process would likely last into early next year. He stated that he did not expect the reappraisals would make a significant change in the property tax income to the district.
The board also took time to recognize several groups. The “You Make a Difference” award was presented to the cafeteria managers from the Brenham campuses. During the month of September they served over 61 thousand lunches and 28 thousand breakfasts. The students from Krause Elementary where recognized for their donation to Adam’s Angeles Ministries. Krause students won the campus challenge this year by raising the most donations for Adam’s Angeles.