DISTRICT ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT
This chapter examines the organization and management of the Wall Independent School District (WISD) in four sections
- A. Board Governance
- B. District and School Management
- C. Personnel Management
- D. Community Involvement
D. COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Community involvement is essential to both the success of a school district and the quality of life within a school district's community. Community involvement includes those activities that enable parents, business leaders and others with a stake in public education to become involved in the district.
Effective community involvement programs address the unique characteristics of the school district and the community. Critical to community involvement programs are strategies for communicating both with the community (external communications) and within the school district (internal communications). Other essential program components include methods for recruiting volunteers and soliciting business support for campus functions and outreach activities designed to encourage community participation in the district.
The superintendent maintains consistent, direct contact with individual community members and civic group organizations. The business manager and the principals are responsible for managing community involvement programs for the district. WISD also has a Web site that provides information on the district and its activities. The district publishes a monthly newsletter, and each of the schools provide its own internal newsletters to parents regularly, including weekly letters to parents, newsletters from the counselors and information on other activities.
The community provides ongoing support, resources and volunteers to the district.
FINDING
All WISD schools have one or more parent organizations that promote parental involvement. The elementary school has an active Parent Teacher Organization (PTO), which has a monthly program that includes a music recital with 75 to 100 parents attending the program each month. The PTO also sponsors a Halloween carnival each year to raise funds for the elementary school and the funds have provided the school computers, teacher training aides and other equipment and supplies.
Parents attend open houses, which are held at each campus once a year, with almost 100 percent of the parents attending. Parents also volunteer for projects they initiate, such as providing "cookouts" for staff and students before field trips. Parents also donated their time to install a needed sprinkler system for the ball field, saving the district the labor cost for installation.
The middle school and high school have band booster clubs that involve high school parents in student's band activities, including raising funds for uniforms and help with University Interscholastic League (UIL) activities.
Many parents are involved in Project Graduation activities, which are recreational activities held at the end of senior students' last year of high school. Parents also participate actively with Future Farmers of America, which involves 50 to 100 WISD students each year.
There is an annual Thanksgiving banquet that is attended by many of the parents and community.
COMMENDATION
Many WISD parents are active in organizations and activities that support WISD's education mission.