There’s room to grow at White Oak ISD, and district leadership is looking to invest in expanding the student body – and, consequently, the budget – one spot at a time.
During their Jan. 18 board meeting, trustees heard a presentation on Town Square Media’s digital marketing opportunities, specifically how radio advertising and geo-fencing / social media could help the school reach new families and, ultimately, increase enrollment.
“We’re hoping to boost our transfer numbers,” said WOISD Superintendent Dr. William Paul. The total package under consideration comes in at about $55,000, he noted: “We’re trying to figure out if we’re going to do month-to-month or in three-month chunks.”
It’s a working idea right now.
“We’ve never done this before,” Paul said, aiming to first cover the cost of the marketing then realize gains the school can put toward improvements: “For each enrollee, money from the state is generation. Of course, there’s some federal monies that come with that.”
Funds generated by the addition of four or five new students (over typical growth) would likely cover the cost to Town Square, he noted.
“Anything you got over that would allow you to enhance your budget to provide better opportunities for our students, maybe upgrade some facilities and things of that nature,” Paul added.
Postponed two days from Jan. 16 due to the freeze, the Jan. 18 meeting began with a celebration of School Board Recognition Month. Trustees reviewed the ‘24/25 district calendar and heard campus updates along with a utilities expenditure report before hiring Nikki Baudat as a high school Life Skills teacher.
Taking no action after a closed session, the board pushed their discussion of superintendent goals to their next meeting.
“It’s a good opportunity for the board to give me some feedback about what they’ve seen and if they think I’ve done well,” Paul said, “plus areas they see for growth.”
The trustees scheduled a special meeting for Feb. 5 to consider the district’s audit report ahead of their next monthly meeting Feb. 12.
As far as the recent frigid weather, the district shut down Jan. 16-17 (in addition to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day) then resumed classes without any significant issues from the winter storm.
“Tell you what, I hope it doesn’t do it again, because if it does we’ll have to use our weather days.”
– By James Draper