Marble Falls news

Special to The Highlander

Texas Tech University is pleased to announce the hiring of Dr. Celia Merrill as the regional site director for Texas Tech at Highland Lakes in Marble Falls and Texas Tech at Fredericksburg.

Merrill brings to the position a combination of higher education teaching experience and consulting work that focuses on community collaboration among public and private sector stakeholders to address education, workforce, and economic development needs. She has taught technical communications for Texas Tech University and English for Central Texas College.

UPDATE: Organizers released a schedule of events as follows: Statement of Purpose ( 9 a.m.); Community Speakers (9:10 a.m.); Unity March Begins in Johnson Park (10 a.m.); "I Can't Breathe" Nine Minutes of Silence (11:15 a.m.); Community Speaker (11:30 a.m.); Prayer of Unit (12:05 p.m.); Breaking of Bread/Lunch (12:15 p.m.); and Event officially ends (1 p.m.).

By Connie Swinney
Staff Writer

Marble Falls police have readied resources and contacted several area agencies to stage at key points around the city in preparation of a Black Lives Matters (BLM) protest planned for Saturday, June 13 in Johnson Park, officials said.

Editor's Note: The following letter addressed to the MFISD board and administration was shared with The Highlander by the parents of a student.

File photo

Cottonwood Shores Splash Pad (pictured here), 4111 Cottonwood Dr., is scheduled to open Saturday, June 6, at noon until 8 p.m. The venue will be open everyday from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. until Labor Day, Sept. 7, city officials said. In Marble Falls, the municipal pool opened on June 1. Going forward the hours at the Marble Falls venue will be 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; Friday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. The facility will be closed to the general public on Mondays and Saturdays. …

By Nathan Hendrix
Staff Writer

Marble Falls Independent School District officials offered clarification into the reasoning for not applying the fourth nine-week grading period towards the majority of high school students' GPA and class rank after receiving community feedback.

MFISD Superintendent Chris Allen said he has fielded several calls on the topic from parents, and he stressed that the recommendation from administration was made with careful consideration. …

Special to The Highlander

Baylor Scott & White Health announced Thursday, June 4, they will cease providing labor and delivery services at the medical center in Marble Falls by the end of July.

Contributed/Alamy Stock Photo

The Marble Falls/Lake LBJ Chamber of Commerce is hosting a free Drive-In showing of Back to the Future with the gates opening at 8:30 p.m. tonight Friday, June 5 in the Marble Falls High School parking lot. Attendees can also help support the chamber by purchasing available concessions. Pre-order free tickets. Donations at the event are welcome. Space is limited to 144 cars. Go to marblefalls.org for more information.

By Connie Swinney
Staff Writer

A series of heated social media exchanges prompted Marble Falls police June 2 to coordinate with organizers of a planned Black Lives Matter (BLM)  protest event in the community, officials said, in an effort to preempt any potential public safety issues.

National BLM organizers have promoted protests aimed at calling attention to the in-custody death of a black man on May 25 in Minnesota.

By Nathan Hendrix
Staff Writer

After months of uncertainty surrounding the fate of graduation, Marble Falls Independent School District seniors heard their names called and walked the stage to receive their diplomas.

In-person graduation ceremonies were held for Falls Career High School and Marble Falls High School seniors at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., respectively, on Friday, May 29. …

By Lew K. Cohn
Managing Editor

Baylor Scott & White Health announced last week it will lay off approximately 3 percent of its total workforce — about 1,200 employees, including some in the Hill Country Region — due to financial hardship caused by COVID-19.

The largest not-for-profit hospital system in the state also said it plans temporarily to cut the pay of more than 250 executives, modify its physician compensation models and to flex and furlough an undisclosed amount of workers while leaving open positions unfilled to achieve cuts through attrition. …