BRENHAM SCHOOL BOARD APPROVES BOND SALE, SELECTS PROGRAM MANAGER & ARCHITECTS
instructional calendar, as adopted by
the Brenham School Board on Tuesday.
Brenham ISD trustees on Tuesday approved the bond sale for the school district’s $39 million bond project.
Steve Perry, Brenham ISD’s financial advisor, said there was a “great reception” and an “outstanding result” for the bond sale, with the district netting a 4.46 percent interest rate – below what was budgeted at 5 percent – and the ability to refinance after nine years. He said the district being able to put money back into its fund balance, combined with the community’s passage of the Voter Approval Tax Rate Election, gives greater reason for optimism and the potential for an improved bond rating in the future.
Brenham ISD is expected to receive bond proceeds by March 17th. Superintendent Clay Gillentine said the district has “aggressive timelines” and can begin jumping on deferred maintenance needs in late spring or early summer, once it has access to the funds.
After the bond sale was approved, trustees selected Rice & Gardner Consultants as the program manager to oversee and implement the bond project, and they also established a two-firm architectural pool with GLS Architects and Parkhill. The board gave Gillentine the authority to begin negotiating contracts with the chosen firms.
Gillentine said the district is utilizing a two-firm approach with the architects because it feels the two can offer more flexibility with the various capital improvement projects to tackle, which include HVAC, roofing, plumbing and flooring. He said they can also offer insight as the district prepares for further long-range planning conversations. Trustee Kyle Hafner said he was impressed by the body of work of the two firms and feels the district “hit the jackpot” with them.
The district received a total of 15 requests for qualifications (RFQs) for the architectural portion of the project and 8 RFQs for the program management side.
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, trustees adopted Brenham ISD’s instructional calendar for the 2026-27 school year.
Students will kick off the new year of classes on Wednesday, August 12th. Students will be out September 16-18 for the county fair and November 23-27 for Thanksgiving. December 18th is listed as a student holiday, with the winter break running after that until the start of the new semester on January 6, 2027.
Spring Break will run March 15-19, 2027. The last day of school and graduation will be on May 28, 2027.
Another item on Tuesday included a resolution regarding Senate Bill 11, which relates to setting a period of prayer and reading of religious text in schools.
After agreeing that creating the additional policy did not seem necessary, the board read a resolution reaffirming the district’s commitment to First Amendment rights of students and employees and outlining its decision to continue operating under existing law, rather than adopt an additional statutory resolution.
In other business, the board:
- Moved after an executive session to approve executive staff contracts for the 2026-27 school year.
- Accepted a donation from Ross Perry with Velocity Business Products, supporting the Brenham Elementary School campus with the contribution of chairs in the amount of $2,438.
- Held a public hearing and approved the purchase of library books. Head Librarian Charlotte Polk said no public comments were received regarding the 179 items on the book list. Board President Jared Krenek noted that the selection of books includes a memorial for the late Betty Hafner, the mother of Kyle Hafner and a fixture of the Washington County community. Betty, who passed away in September, operated Silver Wings Ballroom for decades with her husband, Jimbo.
- Received a presentation of the district’s 2024-25 Texas Academic Performance Report.
