Trustees vote on appraisal district board candidates
HUTTO — Trustees filled three director roles, cast votes for the Williamson Central Appraisal District board and approved an application for an Optional Flexible School Day Program at the Nov. 21 Hutto Independent School District board meeting.
In December, James Gazzale, Olivia Rodriguez and Joseph Rush will start their new positions as the executive director of communications and community relations, director of child nutrition and director of fine arts, respectively.
The school district began its search for these leaders last month, according to the Hutto ISD LinkedIn page, but the effort to find new administrators isn’t over. Applications for the director of finance role opened Nov. 18, according to the school district.
Gazzale comes from the Legal Sports Report in New York, where he worked as a lead writer for the online publication.
Noelle Newton, who was the previous spokesperson for the district, left Hutto ISD and became vice president of marketing and communications for the Central Texas Food Bank in October, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Meanwhile, an online post by Hutto ISD notes Rodriguez brings over two decades of experience in culinary arts and school nutrition.
Charles Rodriguez, who formerly held the spot, left Hutto ISD and became a director of student discipline at the Houston Independent School District in September, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Regarding the third appointment, officials said this marks a return to the district for Rush. He served as Hutto High School’s band director from 2015 to 2022 before moving to Del Valle Independent School District as the district fine arts administrator, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Former Director of Fine Arts Amber Kingsley exited Hutto at the end of October and became the director of performing and visual arts at Lamar Independent School District Nov. 4, her Facebook profile noted.
After approving the three new leaders, trustees also chose which Williamson Central Appraisal District board candidates they wanted to cast the school district’s 225 votes for.
In addition to choosing which candidates to support, trustees also had to decide if their candidates should be elected for a one- or three-year term.
According to the WCAD website, its board hires the county’s chief appraiser, approves the budget and contracts and sets general policies, and does not appraise property, hear protests or make decisions affecting appraisal records.
The board split the votes among four candidates — Jon Lux received 57 nods for a three-year term, Lisa Birkman and Lora Weber each received 56 votes for a three-year term and Michael Wei received 56 affirmations for a singleyear term.
All are incumbents. Birkman stood out to trustees as a former educator, teaching in Granbury, Austin and Round Rock elementary schools, according to her biography on the WCAD website.
“(She’s) the only teacher who understands what we do,” trustee Felix Chavez said.
Trustees also unanimously approved the school district’s application for the Texas Education Agency’s Optional Flexible School Program, which would provide about 10 to 15 students at Hutto High School and the Ninth Grade Center at risk of not graduating flexible attendance due to unique circumstances.
For example, a student may be eligible for this program if he or she needs medical treatment but doesn’t qualify for a homebound program in which a teacher goes to a pupil’s residence to provide instruction, officials said.
Another situation that may qualify students for the program is if they have circumstances requiring them to leave school to work.
However, officials said pregnant learners are not eligible as the school district provides a separate motherhood services program.
Hutto ISD counselors and administrators will work together to determine which students qualify and will benefit from the program.
Pupils approved for the flex option will still have to come to campus at least 45 minutes every school day to complete coursework, as TEA requires. Per its application, Hutto ISD will request students to be at school for at least two hours.
The school district will receive a response from TEA 30 days after submission of the application, which should be turned in soon in hopes of starting by the spring semester, officials said.
“We don’t want to lose attendance. We don’t want to put their family in a bind because they’re worried about truancy,” Associate Superintendent of Instruction and Innovation Brittany Swanson told trustees. “We want them to be able to take care of themselves.”
