Marble Falls Independent School District

By Richard Zowie

The Highlander

The Texas Education Agency recently released State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) for public schools state wide, and Marble Falls Independent School District (MFISD) Superintendent Chris Allen, PhD, believes the results are misleading if taken out of context.

“In some ways we exceeded the state averages, some ways exceeded and some ways finished below,” Allen said. “I don’t let STAAR shape my opinion overall, since I don’t believe it’s accurate.”

Results released for Spring 2017 are for grades three through eight. Reading and mathematics were assessed for grades three through eight, writing for grades four and seven, science for five and eight, then social studies for grade eight.

Free meals for children and students are being served in school cafeterias and from food and book busses again this summer by the Child Nutrition Services of the Marble Falls Independent School District.

“Cafeterias at Marble Falls High School (MFHS) and Marble Falls Elementary School (MFES) are open to the public for meals that are free for ages one-18,” said Elizabeth Almazan of Child Nutrition Services. “Adults can eat a breakfast for $2 and lunch for $3.50.”

The MFHS cafeteria, 2101 Mustang Drive, will be open through June 30, with breakfast from 7:15-7:45 a.m. and lunch from 11:30 a.m.-noon.

The MFES cafeteria, 1909 Broadway Street, will be open, except for July 4, through July 28, with breakfast from 7:15-7:45 a.m. and lunch from 11:15 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Busses with free food and books to enjoy this summer will stop at two locations for lunch (no breakfast) through July 29, except for July 4.

By Lew K. Cohn

Managing Editor

The Highlander

Marble Falls Independent School District may be canceling its May 6 called election tonight, March 21, during their regular school board meeting, but they still will likely have a vacancy to fill on the Board of Trustees.

The board is also expected to hear the details regarding a contract with H-E-B to provide parking for store employees on 75,000 square feet of property at corner of Pony Drive and Bluebonnet Drive at Marble Falls Middle School and another contract with the City of Marble Falls regarding use of school facilities.

One item on the agenda for tonight's meeting is to accept the resignation submitted by a board member. The board is then slated to go into executive session to discuss what to do about filling the new vacancy as well as the selection of new board officers.

By Lew K. Cohn

Managing Editor

The Highlander

Area residents took part in a discussion about what and how they want the Marble Falls Independent School District to do to better educate students during a Shape Our Schools meeting Saturday morning at the central district office.

The event, which was the second of four planned meetings, was also live streamed on the district's Facebook page. Acting as moderator, Superintendent Dr. Chris Allen said the object of the meeting was to make sure that “we, as a school district, are responsive to the needs of the community.”

Marble Falls Independent School District (MFISD) announced the process and timeline for the selection of the new principal for Marble Falls High School (MFHS) during the regular board of trustees meeting Monday, Jan. 16.

That process includes opportunities for community input.

The district will post the MFHS principal position officially on Jan. 23, and Superintendent Dr. Chris Allen expects to make a recommendation of the high school’s new instructional leader for board approval April 17.

To give the Principal Selection Committee time to access top candidates to recommend to Allen this spring, MFHS is being led currently by interim principal Emmett Aubry. Aubry is an experienced educator who served as a superintendent, high school principal, and as an interim secondary principal since his retirement from full time education. Aubry replaced former MFHS Principal Manny Lunoff resigned effective Friday, Oct. 21.

By Lew K. Cohn
Managing Editor
The Highlander
Depending on the value of their property, Marble Falls Independent School District taxpayers may see their individual taxes increase for the 2016-2017 school year, but they will be paying the same tax rate they have for the past several years.
MFISD trustees voted 5-0 on Monday, Aug. 29, to set a maintenance and operations tax rate of $1.0533 per $100 valuation and an interest and sinking tax rate of 22.67 cents per $100 valuation for a total tax rate of $1.28. It is the fifth year in a row the district has set its tax rate at $1.28 per $100 valuation.
School board members also approved an additional $1,123,595 in revenue and expenditures for the fiscal 2017 budget after learning that property values for the district had come in higher than expected. This now creates a total budget of $41,373,742 — up from the budget of $40,223,217 adopted by trustees earlier this year.

The Marble Falls Independent School District (MFISD) Board of Trustees have appointed Kevin Virdell to fill the vacancy in Place 7 created when Kelly Fox, PhD, resigned in July.

The appointment was made after a lengthy executive session during the board meeting on Monday night, Aug. 29.

Children in need from all over the lakes area will be welcomed Saturday morning, Aug. 6, to the Back to School Blast (B2SB), sponsored by Highland Lakes Health Partnership (HLHP).

The event will be held 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at Marble Falls Middle School, 1511 Pony Drive, behind the H-E-B store and a health fair has been added to this 6th annual event.

Inside the school gymnasium will be more than 1,500 back packs full of school supplies, along with shoes and socks and services for students in PreK – 12th grade, all sponsored by area churches and the Highland Lakes Health Partnership.

“This is not limited to children in the Marble Falls Independent School District,” said Cathy Lemlyn, community outreach coordinator for Bluebonnet Trails Community Services, an HLHP member. “Twenty percent of about 2,000 people who came last year were from outside town.”

Marble Falls Middle School Principal, Roger Barr, Marble Falls High School Principal, Manny Lunoff, and the District Technology staff, are looking forward to meeting with the parents and guardians of students going in to 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th grades to provide information about the distribution of new student laptops.