HearneISD Board Meets To Honor Varsity Boys And Hear Expansion Reports

The Hearne ISD Board of Trustees met in both workshop and regular sessions to honor the Hearne athletes who made it all the way to the state basketball final. Appreciation to coaches and players was expressed verbally and with cookies and fruit salad. 
Also, ahead of regular session, Superintendent Dr. Adrian Johnson reported that 200 Chromebook laptops had arrived and were being made available to students, faculty, and administrators.  He outlined the next projects enabled by the bond passage last spring: the new field house and three parking lots at Wood Field–two concrete-paved lots A and B —  one with crushed concrete.  He stressed that no trees would be cut down and parking would still be available on the street. The crushed concrete option would allow the project to stay within budget. 
With the budget in mind, the press box will be partially expanded this year and partially the next.
The renovation of the Elementary School Gym and demolition of the Star building, the old nursing home building that the ISD purchased in 2024, projects are facing some challenges, he said.  Both buildings have asbestos and a professional had to be hired to oversee the abatement of each.  Both buildings will receive the abatement before proceeding
In a cost-cutting measure, the Hearne Junior High vestibule will be moved into the cafeteria, taking about 12× 16 feet that it currently does not need, in order to provide a space where guests can be screened and children kept safe. 
The regular session opened at 6:34 pm with Dr. Johnson repeating his gratitude for the basketball team and coaches. He announced that the board training was cancelled so that the Board could attend the state championship was re-scheduled for April 14.  
CFO Ronald Wilson had both good and bad news.  All campuses are struggling to improve their attendance, the measure on which the state bases its funding, he said.  “It’s a state-wide problem,” he added. The good news is HISD saw a record high tax collection in February (as it did in January) of 1.6 million. 
The most serious financial issue faced by the district is that the state is funding schools at the same rate it adopted in 2019.  “It’s like buying 2025 items on a 2019 budget” he said.  In the past, funds from the federal government made up the shortfall, but schools can’t count on these funds this year, he said. Wilson is forming a finance committee to tackle the issue 
Dr. Delick Loyde, Executive Director of HEF, explained the curriculum evaluation process recently concluded. She explained that the State requires an evaluation of educational materials each year, with the evaluation of materials in a particular discipline coming up about every 3 years. This year, K-12 math teachers and Hearne’s Math Curriculum Specialist evaluated all the state recommended materials and decided to stay with what they had for at least 3 reasons. One, some had already been purchased. Two, changing materials typically results in a “down-time” adjustment when students make no progress as well. Third, and most important, students have been making good progress–higher math scores–with the material currently being used.  Since materials make up the second-largest percentage of the District’s budget, being economical while still be effective is the goal.  Loyde did stress that the teachers and the specialist had reviewed the highly touted Bluebonnet materials but did not think 2025-26 was the year to adopt. 
In its final moments, the Board decided to submit Dr. Johnson’s name for Superintendent of the Year for Region 6.  After a closed session, it approved all teacher and staff contracts, gave Dr. Johnson a 2-year extension, and raised his salary by 3%.