February 23, 2026 at 7:00 PM - Regular Meeting

Description:  Announcement by the Board President whether a quorum is present and that notice of the meeting has been posted in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code Chapter 551 as required by law.

Description:  "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Description:   "Honor the Texas flag; I pledge allegiance to thee, Texas, one state under God, one and indivisible." 

Description:  FISD Teacher of the Month is Destiny Noles from Florence Elementary School.
From her nomination:
"Ms. Noles is recognized for her incredible dedication, strong work ethic, and unwavering commitment to our students. She shows up every single day ready to give her best, embraces change with a positive and growth-minded attitude, and continuously goes above and beyond to support student learning. Her flexibility, professionalism, and willingness to step in wherever needed make her an invaluable part of our campus. We are so grateful for her hard work, consistency, and heart for kids — she truly embodies what it means to be a team player and an outstanding educator."

Description:  The Board encourages comments about the district from members of the public.  Anyone who has signed up to speak in advance of the meeting in accordance with the Board procedures may do so at this time.  The Board asks that each participant's comments pertain to district business and be no longer than 5 minutes.  For any member of the public who is accompanied by a translator, your time will be doubled as required by law.  Remember that the Board may not discuss or act upon any issues that are not posted on our agenda.  In addition, the Board has adopted policies to provide prompt and equitable resolution of complaints and concerns for employees, students or their parents, and the general public.  Copies of our district policies and procedures on public comments and filing complaints are available on the district website. 

Description:  In accordance with Transportation Code §547.701, the following must be presented in a public meeting:
1) the number of buses operated by the school system that are not equipped with seat belts, the number that are equipped with two-point seat belts, and the number that are equipped with three-point seat belts;
2) The estimated cost to equip each bus operated by the school system with three-point seat belts.
This information will be read aloud during the board meeting per the attached report. Also attached is the To the Administrator Addressed (TAA) letter from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) outlining the reporting requirements. According to the TAA, school systems will be able to participate in a grant opportunity related to seat belt installation.

Description:  Using remaining bond funds, FISD proposes to replace and upgrade our security cameras at Florence High School and Florence Middle School. The existing cameras are a mixture of analog and out-of-date digital cameras that will be replaced with Avigilon cameras as well as associated servers. Also included in the cost is the removal of the old cabling with upgrades to CAT 6 cabling. 

Description:  The stage lighting at FHS does not work and cannot be repaired due to age and the inability to procure replacement parts. The replacement project includes a new control panel and LED lights. The District will use remaining bond funds and/or interest earnings for the purchase and installation of the stage lighting.

Description:  The District proposes Telepro Communications to install a new Audio/Visual system in the Florence High School Cafeteria. This project will include the installation of a new sound system that can be heard in all areas of the cafeteria with the control board, a new projector for displaying information during events, new microphones, and a new screen for projections. 

Description:  Texas Education Code §25.0823 was added by Senate Bill 11 in the 89th Regular Session of the 2025 Texas Legislature. The new statute allows a school board to adopt, by record vote on a prescribed resolution, a policy requiring every campus of the district to provide students and employees with an opportunity to participate in a period of prayer and reading of the Bible or other religious text on each school day. Districts are not required by the new law to adopt this resolution, but they are required to have a record vote on the resolution. The deadline for a school board to take action on this item is March 1, 2026. Should the board approve the resolution, the District will update policy DGA(LOCAL) and FNA(LOCAL) to reflect the change. The attached TASB developed Frequently Asked Questions outlines the new law and the requirement for a board to take action prior to March 1. Current policy and state law already affirm that students have an absolute right to individually, voluntarily, and silently pray or meditate in school in a manner that does not disrupt the instructional or other activities of the school. 

Description:  The ice storm that impacted Florence ISD and surrounding areas in January necessitated the closure of all FISD facilities on January 26, 27, and 28, 2026. This resolution authorizes the superintendent to pay employees for these days as allowed by policy DEA(LOCAL) which states, "During an emergency closure, all employees shall continue to be paid for their regular duty day schedule unless otherwise provided by Board action. Following an emergency closure, the Board shall adopt a resolution or take other Board action establishing the purpose and parameters of such payments."

Description:  At the January Board of Trustees meeting, the Board authorized the District to issue a Competitive Sealed Proposal for the FISD 2026 HVAC Replacement Project. On Thursday, February 12, three (3) proposals were received for the project. A committee scored the proposals based on the published criteria and the rankings are presented tonight. While the formal agenda title is very long, essentially I am asking the Board to allow me to negotiate a contract with the highest ranked proposer and execute the contract if a satisfactory one can be achieved. If I am unable to negotiate a contract with the highest ranked proposer, I will move down the order of rankings until I am able to negotiate a satisfactory contract. All this action does tonight is approve the rankings so that we may begin to negotiate and finally execute a contract. I am recommending that we do not accept alternates 2, 3, and 4. The base cost is above what was expected and by not doing these three alternates, we get closer to the expected cost. Alternate #2 was to replace units on the old elementary campus near the old front office. Alternate #3 was to replace the electrical panels that serve our office and the gym. Alternate #4 was to replace the fabric duct in the gym at FHS. I do recommend that we accept Alternate #1 as it replaces the HVAC units in the gym at the old elementary school that we are using to store surplus materials. These materials will last longer if the space is conditioned. It will also help us identify where the moisture is coming from that has caused the gym floor to buckle.

Description:  The attached list includes all Professional Contracts proposed for renewal for the 2026-2027 school year.

Description:  The attached list includes all Administrative Contracts proposed for renewal for the 2026-2027 school year.

Description:  Dr. Porterfield was invited to join Central Texas College as their guest participant at the National Center for Inquiry and Improvement Rural Guided Pathway Institute to be held March 11-13 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This institute is designed to deepen partnerships between community colleges and K-12 partners. The goal is to work together on shared strategies that expand dual credit access, increase CTE dual credit offerings, improve career alignment, and support smoother student transitions to work or college after graduation. CTC will cover travel, lodging, and registration costs. FISD would provide a meal per diem to Dr. Porterfield.

Description:  As we discussed at the January Board Meeting, in order to incentivize teachers who are planning to retire or depart the district at the end of the school year, the District proposes a $1,000.00 Early Resignation Notice Incentive if the employee submits their retirement/resignation letter no later than March 10, 2026. The employee must fulfill their contract for this school year in order to be eligible for payment and their resignation is irrevocable. The incentive will allow us to post jobs prior to Spring Break when many are actively looking for positions for the following school year, instead of waiting for resignations later in the year when the candidate pool is much shallower.

Description:  Florence ISD Board of Trustees Places 1, 2, and 3 were up for election on May 2, 2026. The filing deadline was February 13, 2026, at 5 pm. Pete Burson is the only candidate to file for Place 1. Timothy Marfell is the only candidate to file for Place 2. Anthony DeAugustineo is the only candidate to file for Place 3. Doree Robinson serves as the election official for Florence ISD, and she has certified that no other applications were filed. As a result, the Board of Trustees may receive and accept the Certification of Unopposed Candidates for the Florence ISD Board of Trustees.

Description:  As previously stated, all three places for the FISD Board of Trustees election are unopposed. As a result, this Order of Cancellation certifies that Places 1, 2, and 3 are unopposed and Mr. Pete Burson, Place 1, Timothy Marfell, Place 2, and Anthony DeAugustineo, Place 3, are hereby elected.

Description:  Amend the budget for additional state aid for Debt Service related to the additional Homestead Exemptions for 2025-26.

Description:  Bluebonnet Learning is the state-developed curriculum for K-5 Reading/Language Arts curriculum. It has been approved through the Instructional Materials Review and Approval (IMRA) process, and SBOE approved it as a High-Quality Instructional Material. Utilizing funds from the LASO IV grant received by FISD, the purchase of the materials will not impact the FISD budget.

Description:  FISD was awarded the LASO 3 grant focused on Instructional Leadership for $109,150.00. The focus of the grant is to build capacity and support campus leadership in effective instructional leadership. FISD partnered with a third-party approved provider, Engage2 Learn, to provide ongoing coaching support to campus leadership teams at our two Title 1 campuses: Florence Elementary and Florence Middle  School. Of note is that both campuses have new principals since applying for the grant. FISD received a B rating and is no longer in Targeted Improvement. Development of this document is required for grant compliance.

Description:  There were no resignations or new hires this month.