BCISD to start superintendent search at Nov. 6 special meeting
Bertram Elementary School Principal Christine Hoffmann (left), students Laramie Pape, Emerson Floyd, Luke Milliorn, and Ava Fucik, and Burnet CISD Superintendent Keith McBurnett at the Oct. 16 school board meeting. Students led the meeting in the pledges to the U.S. and Texas flags. Courtesy photo
The search for a new superintendent for the Burnet Consolidated Independent School District gets underway during a special board meeting at 6 p.m. Nov. 6. Board trustees approved Walsh Gallegos, the district’s law firm, to lead the process of replacing retiring Superintendent Keith McBurnett, who is leaving at the end of the 2023-24 academic year.
A new superintendent should be named by mid- to late spring 2024, trustees said at their regular meeting on Monday, Oct. 16, which was held at Bertram Elementary School as per a longtime tradition in October.
At the Nov. 6 meeting, which will be in the Administration Building, 208 E. Brier St. in Burnet, trustees will talk about the superintendent search timeline, applicant profile, background checks, and community input.
Also on Oct. 16, the board approved the process for appointing someone to the Place 5 seat left vacant following the death of longtime Trustee Andy Feild.
IN OTHER BUSINESS
Trustees decided to establish a BCISD Education Foundation, a nonprofit organization that will support the district’s educational causes. Texas has 2,607 education foundations, including the Marble Falls Education Foundation for Marble Falls ISD.
Objectives would include raising money to augment district resources to improve instruction and enhance learning.
“Foundations bridge the gap between available funds and educational needs,” McBurnett said.
Assistant Superintendent Dr. Rachel Jones gave an overview of State Academic Accountability changes established by the Texas Education Agency. The TEA was to release A-F ratings in September, but the new system was recalled temporarily due to a multi-district lawsuit claiming the changes are unfair.
The TEA is set to release a final draft soon.
“If the draft proceeds forward, the lowered ratings may be released as early as the end of October,” McBurnett said. “We anticipate that this will be the final methodology used, which will still likely result in lower ratings (for BCISD), but we also do not know what further actions will be associated with the lawsuit.”
BCISD is not a plaintiff in the suit.