BRENHAM ISD REFLECTS ON 150TH SCHOOL YEAR
pictured speaking at a State of the Community
Forum on July 23, 2025 at the Blinn College Student
Center Banquet Room.
As Brenham ISD students get ready to enjoy summer break, the school district is reflecting on this past year and looking ahead to the future.
In a sit-down interview, Brenham ISD Superintendent Clay Gillentine talked through the school year’s defining moments and previewed some of the work happening over the next few months.
Gillentine described the past year as “exhausting”, but in the sense that the district, its students and its staff enjoyed a great number of accomplishments, to the point that it was difficult to slow down.
A signature moment for the district this school year was November’s passage of a bond for capital improvement projects and a Voter Approval Tax Rate Election for staff pay raises. The district is coordinating with its program manager and architect to begin construction of the bond improvements, and members of the strategic planning committee are in the process of determining what other facility needs are and how to address them.
Gillentine also talked about the adoption of major curriculum changes and the Teacher Incentive Allotment to give educators opportunities to increase their compensation. In addition, he referenced the wealth of student extracurricular achievements, with athletes and organizations taking home numerous accolades and hardware.
This year was made particularly special in that Brenham ISD celebrated its 150th anniversary. Gillentine called the homecoming parade a “Hallmark moment” in seeing the community come together as one in support of its schools.
Gillentine encouraged teachers and staff to take time to kick back and be proud of the work they have done.
Administrators will be spending the next few months finalizing budgets, hiring new employees and making any other needed preparations for the 2026-27 school year. Gillentine remarked that one matter facing school districts around the state, pertaining to school bus fleets and the legislative requirement for new seat belt systems, should not greatly affect Brenham ISD. He said because of the district’s decision in recent years to create its own transportation department, most of its buses are already properly retrofitted, with only a few older buses that will be able to roll off of the fleet, so this legislation will not have to be a major financial consideration.