Full details have been released, and public comment begins Friday, April 16th.

From the TEA website, posted this morning:

The latest version of the social studies Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) are now available for review. The changes to Chapter 113 of the Texas Administrative Code reflect amendments made by the State Board of Education during its January and March meetings. The official public comment period begins Friday. A public hearing on the rules is scheduled for May 19 with a committee vote on the TEKS scheduled for May 20 and a final board vote expected May 21.

The social studies changes are located at the bottom of the TEA page, HERE.

Also available are color-coded documents, which clearly show the changes that have been made, and where the change originated. These are available for ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE SCHOOL, and HIGH SCHOOL curriculum.

A regular board meeting will be held tomorrow, Tuesday April 13th, at 7pm in the board room at 7200 Spring-Cypress Road.

Interesting items this month include a proposed change of meeting dates to the second Monday of the month, approval of construction documents for the $105 million summer phase of the Klein High renovation, and approval of free breakfasts for all students in the Klein Forest High School feeder pattern.

A summary of the Klein High construction proposal can be found HERE.

The full agenda packet, with supporting documentation for agenda items, can be found HERE.

It’s hard to have missed the fact that on Friday, the Texas State Board of Education voted 10-5 in favor of a series of amendments to social studies curriculum standards that look set to affect education not just in Klein ISD, but across the country, thanks to the way that publishers distribute Texas-edition textbooks nationwide.

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At the Klein ISD Board meeting of March 9th, during a presentation regarding the 2010-2011 district budget, the prospect of a tax election in the near future was looking less like speculation and more like necessity.

Tax increases over the next four years are a certainty following the 2008 bond, but what now looks likely is that in addition to these increases, Klein ISD will call an election in the 2011-2012 school year to approve collection of the remaining two “super pennies”. If approved, the 2-cent (per $100 appraised value) tax increase will be matched penny for penny by the government, effectively doubling district revenues from those two cents.

Full story, with more figures, after the jump.

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Prior to the March 2010 regular board meeting, Klein ISD released preliminary plans for the Klein High School rebuild. These plans took the form of a 5MB pdf presentation, which we have broken down chronologically here.

• Summer 2010: temporary buildings will be set up, and some students will be moved into the Annex building. (picture)
• Fall 2010: demolition of original classrooms, administration, and second gym. Students will be moved to remaining original buildings, Annex, and temporary buildings. (picture)
• Storm water detention area will be constructed. (picture)
• Over 18 months: two new buildings to be constructed, housing Athletics, CTE, Administration, Media Center and classrooms. (picture)
• Students will be moved into new buildings, allowing demolition of Annex, Career Center, Natatorium, Lifetime Sports and Pavilion. T-buildings removed. (picture)
• Over 18 months: remaining portion of new KHS will be built, housing Music/Fine Arts, CTE, Auditorium and Dining. New practice fields will be constructed on the site of the Annex. (picture)
• Students will occupy new KHS, allowing demolition of remaining original buildings. (picture)

For images of the plans, continue to the full post.

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Tonight’s board meeting saw the Klein ISD Board of Trustees vote on the future intermediate zoning plans following the opening of the new Ulrich Intermediate school.

The Board voted 5-2 in favor of the plan recommended by the Superintendent, which was Preferred Plan Draft Three. Details and a map of this plan are available at the Klein ISD website. (link)

We have a forum topic open for discussion on this subject here.

The agenda for tomorrow’s Klein ISD Board of Trustees meeting, which will include the decision on intermediate zoning following the construction of Ulrich Intermediate, is available for viewing on Klein ISD’s website.

The link is: http://www.boardbook.org/apps/bbv2/public/detail_wrapper.cfm?MeetingKey=MjAwNDQyMjA%3D

The public portion of the meeting commences at 7pm, and there will be an opportunity for community members to voice their opinions.

The Klein ISD Board of Trustees will meet on Tuesday, February 9th for this month’s regular board meeting. The public portion of the meeting will begin at 7pm, in the board room at the Klein ISD Administration Building, 7200 Spring-Cypress Road.

This meeting will feature the decision on rezoning of the district’s intermediate schools following completion of the new Ulrich Intermediate; three drafts of the preferred zoning plan have been made public on the Klein ISD website, and Dr. Cain will present the administration’s recommended action plan to the board. Klein ISD is still accepting public comment, and can be contacted at zoning@kleinisd.net .

Klein board meetings allow for up to twenty minutes of public comment with individual speakers limited to five minutes; persons wishing to speak can register with the board secretary prior to the start of the meeting.

This year’s Klein ISD Culture Fest will be held at Klein High School Commons on Friday, February 12th, 6.30pm to 8.30pm. Auditorium performances begin at 7.15pm.

The Culture Fest is a great opportunity to explore Klein’s cultural diversity, with food samples, exhibits and performances celebrating the richness of our district!

Link to Klein ISD Flyer