Lockney ISD Administration Building (Alex Driggars/Floyd County Record)
LOCKNEY — Redistricting and budget adjustments were points of action when the Lockney Independent School District Board of Trustees met on Tuesday night. The board also got an update from the superintendent on a few important happenings across the district.
The board approved amendments to the school’s budget that would create a line item for faculty and staff retention stipends, which will allow the district to roll out the incentive to employees next month. The board unanimously approved the payments of $4,000 for full-time employees and $2,000 to part-time employees at their last meeting. Trustees also created a line item in the budget for bus test and licensing. Both of these adjustments are administrative and will not affect the bottom line, trustees said.
The school board also approved a legal services agreement with the Underwood Law Firm for redistricting after the 2020 Census. The firm will determine if the district needs to be redistricted for the next 10-year period; trustees tabled action on appointing a redistricting advisory committee pending the firm’s findings.
Superintendent Jim Baum then updated the board on a number of projects across the district, including possible future updates to the LISD Vocational Center.
Baum said that administrators plan to send a survey to students at some point in the near future to gauge interest in vocational education programs to guide the district as they move forward with planning. The district will also evaluate vocational needs in the region and consider creating a collaborative program with other area school districts.
Baum and several other LISD administrators will travel to Dubiski Career High School in Grand Prairie next month to gain additional hands-on experience with vocational learning, and school officials will also meet with BGR Architects to discuss possible updates to the Vocational Center.
Additionally, Baum updated the board on the district’s academic objectives and detailed recent COVID-19 numbers.
Baum said that the district has seen a slight uptick in COVID cases, with six student cases and one adult case reported within the district in the past week.
