SAN MARCOS CISD
The San Marcos CISD Board of Trustees held their regularly scheduled meeting in the new board room at the Felipe Reyna District Offices located at 1331 Hwy 123. The quarterly academic reports were presented for Quarter 2, comparing progress and regressions in reference to Quarter 1. There was a 1% uniform decline in attendance across all school levels, as well as notable successes in several academic areas such as Biology that showed a 13% improvement rate. The Texas Academic Performance Report for the 2023-2024 school year was reviewed and CTE teachers were celebrated for receiving a CTAT award.
There was a presentation on the quarterly academic update and the TAPR district annual report. Attendance across all schools have experienced a uniform 1% decline across all school levels. Attendance for elementary schools went from 95.7% in quarter one down to 94.7%. Attendance in middle schools went from 95.5% to 94.7% and in high schools from 93.3% to 92.8%. In the District Common Assessments, there were increases in third to fifth grade RLA, English 1 and Biology, with decreases in third to fifth grade math, eighth grade RLA and US History.
There was a brief summary of the Texas Academic Performance Report for the 2023-2024 school year, which provides insight about the student performance across all campuses. The report covers Campus Performance Objectives, which accounts for each campus’ plan to make specific performance objectives and outlines the data and the measurements of each campus’ goals. The TAPR includes the Report on Violent or Criminal Incidents, which outlines incidents at San Marcos High School and Miller Middle School. The report outlined that there were less than five incidents of each type, which speaks to the safety of the schools. The Student Performance in Postsecondary Institutions section highlighted the progress of class of 2023, outlining that of the 509 graduates, there were 160 enrolled in either a four year or two year public college. The final section of the report focuses on progress towards the district’s House Bill 3 (HB3) goals, which were adopted in 2020. The third grade reading and language arts STAAR performance reached 39% for 2024, falling 5% less than the original goal of 44%. The third grade math level goal was 46% with the final percentage coming under the goal at 34%. The College, Career and Military Readiness was represented at 55% for 2023, which was a big leap compared to 20% in 2022. The district’s full report is available to the public on their website smcisd.net/accountability.
During the public comments, Jason Roberts of Upward Communities introduced himself and his central Texas based company that provided housing options at an affordable rate, focused on critical workers such as teachers. Upward Communities is set to build a community in the Hays CISD district with the goal of attracting and retaining teachers and school staff. Susan Seaton, a 25-year educator, showed her support for Upward Communities and encouraged the board to consider partnering with the company to build affordable housing opportunities for their staff. Blanca Tristan, a San Marcos High School alumni and mother, urged the board to prioritize Special Education programs. She stated there are nine SPED vacancies in SMCISD and that her son’s class has had to share a teacher and that they limited his choice of electives due to staffing issues. Nicole Yonker, a second grade teacher at Mendez Elementary urged the district to put protocols in place to prepare teachers, students and parents for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Board members read a proclamation declaring February as Human Trafficking Prevention Month along with a proclamation honoring the life and service of Rafael “Ralph” Gonzales Jr.
Clayton Odam, SMCISD CTE and Federal Programs director, honored career and technology teachers from across SMCISD for receiving a CTAT award, which is presented by the Career & Technical Association of Texas that celebrates CTE programs that showcase best practices and demonstrate exemplary leadership. Out of state wide program reviews, only 38 schools or districts were selected and SMCISD was proud to be one of them.
