DISTRICT ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT
This chapter reviews the Water Valley Independent School District's (WVISD) district organization and management and includes the following sections:
The effectiveness of a district's organization and management may be evaluated against several critical success factors; a vision that is clearly communicated to staff and community members through a planning document; an efficient and logical organizational structure supporting site-based decision-making; a planning, budgeting and improvement process that ensures resources are used efficiently and support district goals; a thorough and objective performance evaluation system; sound and consistently applied policies that comply with applicable laws; and board actions that demonstrate an understanding of members' roles as planners, policy-makers and performance monitors.
BACKGROUND
WVISD is on U.S.Highway 87, 22 miles northwest of San Angelo in northwestern Tom Green County. The first school in the Water Valley area was started by a group of men and women with school age children, calling themselves the "Eagle Hunt Club." They each pledged as much as they could pay toward hiring a teacher. They then selected a site on the North Concho River close to Yandel, which was about 4 miles from present day Water Valley.
The Simpson School District and Powell School District consolidated with the WVISD in 1931. In 1949 Walnut Grove (Tom Green County) and the Walnut District (Coke County) consolidated with Water Valley. Carlsbad School district consolidated with WVISD in 1971.
According to the 2000-01 Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS), WVISD had 315 students for the 2000-01 school year. Of those students, approximately 45 percent are economically disadvantaged, four percent less than the state average of nearly 49 percent.
For this review, WVISD selected peer districts for comparisons based upon similarities in size, location, enrollment and property value. The districts chosen were Bronte, Eden, North Zulch and Veribest ISDs. Their enrollment, accreditation status, ethnicity and percentage of economically disadvantaged students are presented in Exhibit 1-1.
Exhibit 1-1 Source: Texas Education Agency (TEA), Academic Excellence Indicator System (AEIS) 1999-2000.
WVISD and Peer District
1999-2000
District Enrollment Accreditation Status Ethnicity Percentage
Economically
DisadvantagedBronte 515 Academically
AcceptableAnglo: 62.1%
Hispanic: 24.9%
African American: 12.8%
Asian/Pacific Islander: 0.2%
Native American: 0.0%64.5% Eden 346 Recognized Anglo: 54.0%
Hispanic: 45.4%
African American: 0.6%
Asian/Pacific Islander: 0.0%
Native American: 0.0%55.2% Water Valley 347* Recognized Anglo: 82.4%
Hispanic: 14.7%
African American: 0.6%
Asian/Pacific Islander: 0.6%
Native American: 1.7%45.0% North Zulch 354 Academically Acceptable Anglo: 95.8%
Hispanic: 3.1%
African American: 0.6%
Asian/Pacific Islander: 0.0%
Native American: 0.6%43.5% Veribest 231 Recognized Anglo: 67.1%
Hispanic: 29.4%
African American: 1.3%
Asian/Pacific Islander: 1.3%
Native American: 0.9%40.7%
*Enrollment numbers include students at Carlsbad State School figured into WVISD by AEIS.WVISD had budgeted revenues of $2.9 million in 2000-01. Compared to its peer group, Water Valley has the third-highest budgeted revenue and the highest revenue per student (Exhibit 1-2).
Exhibit 1-2 Source: TEA, PEIMS 2000-01.
WVISD Budgeted Revenues Compared to Peer Districts
2000-01
District Total Revenue
(millions)Revenue
/ StudentWater Valley $2.9 $9,138 Eden $3.0 $8,873 Bronte $4.3 $8,344 Veribest $2.2 $8,103 North Zulch $2.5 $7,168 WVISD's total operating expenditures for 2000-01 were $2.8 million. Compared to its peer group, WVISD has the third-highest operating expenditures andthe second-highest operating expenditures per student (Exhibit 1-3).
Exhibit 1-3 Source: TEA, PEIMS 2000-01.
WVISD Budgeted Operating Expenditures
Compared to Peer Districts
2000-01
District Total
Operating
Expenditures
(millions)Total
Operating
Expenditures
Per StudentBronte $4.6 $8,973 Water Valley $2.8 $8,952 Eden $3.0 $8,853 Veribest $2.0 $7,226 North Zulch $2.4 $6,922 In 2000-01, Texas school districts received an average of 53.1 percent of their revenue from local sources, 43.6 percent from the state and 3.3 percent from federal sources. WVISD and its peer districts all had a lower percentage of local revenue and a higher percentage of state revenue than the state average. WVISD also had a lower percentage of federal revenue than the state or its peers (Exhibit 1-4).
Exhibit 1-4 Source: TEA, PEIMS 2000-01.
WVISD, State and Peer District Revenue Sources
as a Percentage of Total Revenues
2000-01
District Local/Other
RevenueState
RevenueFederal
RevenueBronte 21.9% 73.4% 4.7% Eden 48.2% 48.8% 3.0% Veribest 34.4% 63.1% 2.5% North Zulch 31.7% 66.1% 2.2% Water Valley 30.7% 67.2% 2.1% State 53.1% 43.6% 3.3% WVISD spends 56.0 percent of its expenditures on instruction, which is the third-highest compared with its peers. The state average exceeds the district average by nearly 2 percent (Exhibit 1-5).
Exhibit 1-5 Source: TEA, PEIMS 2000-01.
WVISD and Peer District Expenditures for Instruction
as a Percentage of Total Expenditures
2000-01
District Total
Operating
ExpendituresExpenditures
for InstructionInstruction
as Percentage of
Total ExpendituresVeribest $1,885,339 $1,185,805 62.9% North Zulch $2,347,150 $1,365,865 58.2% Water Valley $2,552,912 $1,430,301 56.0% Eden $2,850,571 $1,583,703 55.6% Bronte $4,504,361 $2,484,170 55.2% State $23,994,222,366 $13,871,475,883 57.8%