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Blanco Elementary School Principal Linda Romano will be leaving the district at the end of this year. The Blanco Elementary School District accepted her resignation in regular session at the high school library on Monday, Feb. 9.
Romano joined the school district in August of 2012.
“It is with reluctance that we accept Linda Romano’s wishes to return to retirement,” said Superintendent Dr. Buck Ford. “She came to us highly recommended, and she didn’t disappoint. She set the bar high for professionalism and responsibility at the elementary school. Her love, support, and advocacy for kids drove all her decisions. Students were number one with Ms. Romano, and she had the leadership skills and integrity to see that their best interests were advanced. We thank Ms. Romano for her three years here, and wish her the best in her future endeavors.”
BISD approved contract extensions for Dr. Dustin Barton, Thomas Cozzi, Kay Fraser, Danny Rogers, Kathryn Rutherford, and Keitha St. Clair.
Trustees received results from the 2014 Texas School Survey of Drug and Alcohol Use last week. The survey was administered to students in grades 6-12 last spring.
“Our administrative team has been reviewing the results,” Ford said. “The data are very broad and descriptive. They provide us with a foundation upon which to address future planning.”
The Texas School Survey is an annual collection of self-reported tobacco, alcohol, inhalant, and substance use data from students in individual public schools throughout the state of Texas. The survey is conducted by Texas A&M’s Public Policy Research Institute in conjunction with the Texas Department of State Health Services.
The survey has been conducted in school districts since 1988. The data collected is used to inform state-level policy making, as well as local-level policy making as appropriate.
“This is the most authoritative school survey of drug and alcohol use in the state,” said Ford. “Its findings are statistically reliable.”
The report is comprised of four documents and a state comparison report comparing Blanco to a representative sample of sixth through 12th graders.
“We care about our students,” said Ford. “We want to protect all our students from drug and alcohol abuse, and we want to keep drugs and alcohol out of our schools.”
BISD board president Matt Herndon said the school district would do all it could; however, the ultimate authority with a child’s behavior rests with parents.
“I appreciate what we are going to try to do, but it takes a community-wide effort,” Herndon said. “And mainly, it is the parents who have to be on the ground floor. If we get parents involved and can maintain discipline, we can maintain involvement. Everyone knows that is a hard thing to do.”
Some of the findings noted in the Executive Summary were:
- The general use of tobacco products among Blanco ISO students in 2014 was higher than that reported by their counterparts statewide;
- Blanco ISO students were drinking alcohol in 2014 at rates higher than those reported by their peers statewide;
- Overall, the use of inhalants, illicit drugs, and of marijuana in particular, among Blanco ISO students in 2014 was lower than that reported by their counterparts statewide.
“There were things we saw in the results that demonstrated we have been doing some things right,” said Ford. For example, he noted that Blanco students responded they learned about drug and use from school educational programs at higher rates than their comparative group in the state.
“We have a lot of good things currently in place,” said Ford. “We have a strong extracurricular program, with a diversity of offerings. These activities provide students with incentives to do well in school, and they provide supervised programs for students after school hours.”
“We have strong positive behavior support programs at each campus, and appropriate class sizes staffed by a faculty of dedicated and compassionate teachers.”
“Our district is also dynamic, with systems in place that allow it to adjust to change and improvement.”
Ford notes that the complete elimination of student drug and alcohol use is an idealistic, but daunting, goal. He acknowledges that to accomplish that goal, the school can’t do it alone.
“The elimination of student drug and alcohol abuse necessitates a holistic, community-wide approach,” said Ford. “The school represents only one sector in the life of a student. Other resources in the community that factor into a young person’s life and environment have roles in contributing to a drug-free student.”
Other sectors described by Ford include parents, law enforcement, religious and youth-serving organizations, and businesses. Other sectors include the media, civic/volunteer groups, healthcare professionals, organizations and agencies with expertise in the field of substance abuse, and the students themselves.
“We are planning to host a coalition summit meeting of the various sectors of the community to address the issues associated with youth drug and alcohol abuse,” said Ford. He mentioned the meeting would be held at a date in May, after STAAR and End of Course testing. A substance abuse education specialist from the Region 13 education center will facilitate the meeting.
“We’re looking to craft an on-going, adaptable, living model that will work for Blanco ISO and the community it serves,” said Ford. “Hopefully, through pooling together the resources of our community, we will see a significant reduction in the factors related to student drug and alcohol use.”
Trustees also approved:
A calendar for the 2015-16 year which was described as “very similar” to the one used this year; and
- An application for expedited waiver for staff development.
[Editor’s note: This article was compiled from a press release from BISD and reporting by Charles McClure.]
2 photos attached to this article.
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