The NBISD Board of Trustees met on August 14, 2023 for a regular meeting. The agenda for this meeting featured the following:

Meeting Agenda
Meeting Recording

Board Approves Standards for Safety and Security to Support HB3

The NBISD Board of Trustees approved safety and security standards for district campuses which will include the addition of nine School Resource Officers (SRO) at their August 14th Board meeting. 

In the Spring of 2023, the Texas Legislature passed House Bill 3 (HB3) which requires that campuses have an armed security officer at every campus. NBISD is committed to complying with HB3 and will provide an armed law enforcement officer at every campus. The district will partner with local law enforcement agencies to fill nine SRO positions as staffing becomes available. NBISD SRO’s work to establish healthy relationships and be a positive presence within the school setting by working as a team with students, parents, and school staff.

“It is our utmost priority to protect the safety and well-being of our students and staff,” said NBISD Board President, Eric Bergquist. “With this goal in mind, The NBISD Board of Trustees and Administration have taken careful consideration in developing and approving a school safety plan that adheres to new legislation put forth by House Bill 3.”

During the 22-23 school year, NBISD staffed six SRO’s provided by the New Braunfels Police Department. For the 23-24 school year, NBISD has committed over one million dollars in funds to allow for one armed law enforcement officer to be posted at each of our 15 campuses. These positions will be filled with law enforcement officers from the New Braunfels Police Department and the Guadalupe County Sheriff’s Office.

“We are safer today than we have ever been in the past,” said Director of Safety and Security, Stephen Brown. “NBISD has rigorous safety standards in place now, and our safety and security team continues to improve protocols within our district and on every campus.”

Dr. Laurelyn Arterbury offered praise for local law enforcement agencies by stating, “NBISD SRO’s are more than just a law enforcement presence, they are a part of our NBISD school family. We are grateful for the partnership and support of our local law enforcement agencies.” 

Board Approves the New Braunfels ISD Student Code of Conduct

The board voted in favor of the updated New Braunfels ISD Student Code of Conduct. The most noteworthy difference in the 2023-24 NBISD Student Code of Conduct are the additional guidelines regarding vaping.

One important new law passed by the Texas Legislature during the 88th Legislative session during the Spring of 2023, requires that any student who possesses, uses, or distributes an e-cigarette, commonly known as a vape, must be assigned to the district’s Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP).

This new legislation will be reflected in 2023-24 New Braunfels ISD Student Code of Conduct.

For more information on the harmful effects of vaping, visit our Heath Services website.

Board Approves Designs for the Construction of Elementary School #11

In March of 2023 New Braunfels Independent School District in collaboration with Huckabee architects, undertook an effort to engage stakeholders which included staff, teachers, parents and community members in the development of the vision and goals that would inform the design NBISD’s newest elementary campus, #11. This campus will be the second campus built in the Veramendi community. 

The NBISD educational vision process consisted of several meetings to address the mission, vision, needs and wants of the district and the community for elementary education and the new campus. Each meeting had a specific focus and explored opportunities for growth and innovations in teaching and learning with the overall goal of creating a “Foundational Vision for Education.” This vision would then guide the entire design process of elementary #11.

Throughout these meetings and the development of their vision, stakeholders identified cultural elements of the community and education that should in some way be infused into elementary school #11. 

The Foundational Vision for Education was agreed to be defined as such:

“Our School will be a welcoming, engaging, safe, fun, supportive, encouraging, empowering, and cozy campus, built on trust and partnership.

It will engage nature inside and outdoors, with natural light, ample space and intentional colors, to create learning environments that are interactive, and inspire learning, discovery, and excellence.

Our campus will grow a community within, and value its people, with cutting edge and innovative spaces that will be adaptable to grow with the times.”

Each of these aspects can be seen in the designs that were developed by Huckabee’s team.

Discussion and update on the opening of Long Creek High School and the transition of Ninth Grade to New Braunfels High School

Dr. Jennifer Garcia-Edwardsen, Chief Officer of Schools, reported on the timeline of opening Long Creek High School (LCHS) and transitioning ninth grade to New Braunfels High School (NBHS). 

Dr. Garcia shared a timeline which explains when and how pertinent information will be shared with the community. The plan on the process for opening LCHS and transition ninth grade to NBHS will be shared with parents and the community in September. The plan will be shared through in-person meetings, an informational video and our district website and other communication channels.

Dr. Garcia-Edwardsen also discussed when parents will have the opportunity for comments and questions regarding the process to open LCHS and transition ninth grade to NBHS. A survey will be available for parents to submit questions and comments to the district.

Stay tuned for more information regarding the opening of LCHS and transition ninth grade to NBHS. We will be sharing this information in early September of 2023.

Discussion of the Purchase of Band Instruments for Long Creek High School

The NBISD Fine Arts Department is beginning to plan for the needs of our newest high school, Long Creek High School, that will be opening for the 24-25 school year.

Director of Fine Arts, Dr. Marty Lenard, is looking into purchasing instruments for Long Creek High School. He believes that some instruments may be able to be moved to Long Creek High School from New Braunfels High School to get the new band started while others may need to be purchased.

“Stewardship of funds while ensuring both campuses have the instruments they need to support their band members are our top priorities when deciding whether to move instruments from NBHS to LCHS or buy new instruments for LCHS,” said Dr. Lenard.

Scorecard Update Regarding Efficient Operations

Priority four of the district scorecard outline guidelines for efficient operations. The three main goals of this priority are to ensure financial stewardship and transparency, to develop and deploy facility management processes to address district’s fast growth, and to ensure efficient and effective operations.

NBISD and its contractors are continuously working to meet the objectives of Priority 4 on the District Scorecard. The 2018 and 2021 bonds provide the funding to meet these goals.

The 2018 bond supported the funding of several campus improvements. The improvements were made in phases. Phase 1 was completed in the summer of 2022,  phase 2 wrapped up in December of 2022 and we are finalizing the last projects of Phase 3 now.

Reference the table for more details of what was completed in each phase of the campus upgrades. Noteworthy improvements include new flooring, paint, lighting and whiteboards for many of our older campuses.

The 2018 bond also supported the construction of our 10th elementary school – Legend Point Elementary. Construction is currently underway at the new elementary site located in the Legend Point subdivision. Below is a rendering of what Legend Point will look like upon completion.

The 2021 bond supported the funding for new playground equipment and covered shades for the playgrounds. These new playgrounds will be ready for use for the 2023-24 school year. The NBISD Board of Trustees expressed gratitude for the completion of the project as they are excited for the shade that this project will provide for students while they are playing outdoors in the Texas heat.

The 2021 bond also supported the funding of many other facilities projects that are currently underway. The largest project is the construction of Long Creek High that will be open for the 2024-25 school year. 

Other smaller projects included the addition of classrooms to Klein Road and Voss Farms Elementary schools and renovations to Seele Elementary. These projects are currently in the permitting phase and are expected to be complete by the 2024-25 school year.

The final project supported by the 2021 bond is the construction of elementary #11, which will be the second elementary in the Veramendi subdivision. This project is expected to break ground in mid-spring of 2024 and expected to be completed and open by the 2025-26 school year.

Upcoming School Board Meetings

The next regular board meeting will be held on September 11th at 6:00 pm. If you would like to make a public comment at an upcoming board meeting please fill out the request form.

Learn more about the New Braunfels ISD Board of Trustees on our website where you can find recordings and agendas from past board meetings.

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