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Weslaco Independent School District board meeting, date not confirmed yet

3 h 28 min

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 3 h 28 min.

  1. Who spoke · first speaks at
What happened

What happened at this meeting

Weslaco ISD trustees hear tax rate options using disaster pennies 45:48

  • A consultant told the board a disaster declaration allowed the district to bring in about $2.2 million for one year with no tax rate increase, or about $5 million with a 3-cent increase. 47:56
  • Trustees also heard a presentation on a direct primary care clinic model that a staff member said would cost about $2.6 million per year, and several trustees asked for a staff survey before any decision. 1:04:43
  • The board approved the consent agenda except for items 10K2B and 10K3A. 2:08:16
  • The board approved design-build as the procurement method of construction, with a revised scoring rubric to come back to the board for approval. 2:38:47

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Item by item (13)
  1. Opening and roll call 4:04
    • Isidoro Nieto called the meeting to order at 5:35 and said a quorum was present. 4:04
    • The meeting opened with an invocation and the U.S. and Texas pledges. ~4:49
  2. Recognitions and proclamation 6:24
    • Staff recognized students who attended Boys State and Bluebonnet Girls State, AP Scholar Award students, the high school band, the athletic program and A-rated and B-rated campuses. 6:29
    • Board members, including Jaclyn Sustaita and Benjamin Castillo, congratulated campus staff on the accountability ratings and the start of the school year. 19:01
    • A staff member read a proclamation that included September 2026 National Security Appreciation Week, September 1st through the 25th. 26:12
  3. Public comment 26:49
    • No public comments were offered. ~26:49
  4. Superintendent's enrollment report 26:54
    • The superintendent reported total enrollment was down 276 compared with last year and cited 150 vouchers, 36 students who did not return mostly because of immigration enforcement, and 50 homeschooled students. 26:59
    • The superintendent said the district had not closed schools and no staff member lost a job. 26:59
    • Jaclyn Sustaita asked how long the district would wait to open new pre-K classrooms, and a staff member said principals could open a classroom or add classroom support. 34:03
  5. Disaster pennies tax rate options 45:48
    • A consultant said the board could bring in about $2.2 million for one year with no tax rate increase, or about $5 million with 5.3 cents, 3 of which would be a tax rate increase. 47:56
    • One board member said that, in their opinion, the 2 cents would be the best bet, and a staff member said the average residence would see a decrease of $188 at the same tax rate. 51:16
    • Marcos De Los Santos asked that options be presented on a graph at the next meeting, and Isidoro Nieto said the board would vote on the resolution then. 58:42
  6. Direct primary care clinic presentation 1:04:26
    • A staff member said the clinic model would cost $70 membership per month for covered members, about $2.6 million per year, with no copays or deductibles for employees. 1:06:09
    • Marcos De Los Santos asked whether staff had been surveyed, and a staff member said the plan had not yet gone to the Employee Benefit Committee. 1:08:49
    • One board member said they wanted to see other options and how employees felt about the plan. 1:28:12
  7. Delinquent tax collection report 1:33:04
    • The district's delinquent tax attorney reported collecting $1,474,000 during the fiscal year and filing 186 petitions and interventions. 1:33:20
    • The attorney said the firm's appeal and audit division recovered over $1.8 million in additional state aid. 1:38:04
  8. State accountability ratings 1:39:20
    • A staff member reported the district rating rose from 85 to 87 and the district earned the post-secondary readiness distinction. 1:40:45
    • The staff member said Margo Elementary, Raul Gonzalez Elementary and Sam Houston Elementary earned all 6 out of 6 distinctions. 1:47:12
    • Marcos De Los Santos asked for a breakdown of enrollment and staffing structure by campus. 1:59:14
  9. Progress measures and monitoring calendar 2:02:39
    • A staff member said 2028 targets were brought down from 70 to 60 to align with the overall board goal. 2:03:45
    • The board considered approval of the Lone Star Governance monitoring calendar for August 2026. 2:06:27
    • Isidoro Nieto announced the motion on the monitoring calendar carried. 2:06:42
  10. Consent agenda and financial update 2:06:50
    • Marcos De Los Santos pulled item 10K2B from the consent agenda, and an item to purchase classroom instructional technology equipment for 9th grade students was tabled to next month. 2:07:04
    • Marcos De Los Santos asked about a projected $15 million deficit, and a staff member said the stipend approved in July was not included and would come from fund balance. 2:10:22
    • The consent agenda was approved except for items 10K2B and 10K3A. 2:08:16
  11. Future agenda requests 2:21:27
    • A staff member said the meeting on Monday would include approval of the tax rate. 2:21:40
    • Jaclyn Sustaita asked that an item the board member had requested on the POs be added and asked for class counts of schools over 20. 2:21:48
  12. HVAC bond project procurement method 2:22:22
    • A staff member said there were 6 procurement options and that about $1.2 million was budgeted for the projects. 2:23:12
    • One board member asked for a more detailed scoring rubric and raised concerns about substituting committee members. 2:33:47
    • Jaclyn Sustaita moved to approve design-build, with the criteria to be approved after revision, and Benjamin Castillo seconded. 2:38:47
    • Isidoro Nieto announced the motion carried. 2:41:13
  13. Closed session and personnel actions 2:41:13
    • The board went into closed session at 8:13 and reconvened at 8:56. 2:41:13
    • Isidoro Nieto said they would meet with the superintendent to go over the evaluation. 3:26:36
    • Motions on personnel contracts and on resignations and retirements carried. 3:26:08

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

What was said

What board members said, in order

Our most critical area is really in the classroom. And, and it's true, that's just automatic, you know, it's out there, there's research and everything, but everybody knows lower class numbers, more effective, more time for, uh, intentional instruction, differentiation instruction, time for the teacher to plan even appropriately because they're not overwhelmed with just the size of that classroom.Marcos De Los Santos · Trustee43:09
You know, it's very great results, but then we're— but then we start for this year, right? Now we're working towards next year. So what are we doing to provide the support to our campuses that are not doing as well and to the campuses that are just on the cusp of being that A?Benjamin Castillo · Trustee1:49:43
Because, because savings would be— say, it's pretty much like this, and I had to break it down to people because they didn't understand. If I tell my wife we're going to spend $5,000 next month and we only spend $3,000, but I only make $2,000, I didn't save any money, right? I only bring home $2,000.Marcos De Los Santos · Trustee2:13:00
I see that we're spending funds all these different areas, all these different positions. You know, you see, it's like you always say, see people say, well, we're top-heavy, right? But then you still have maintenance, nutrition, and transportation that are understaffed, right? And have levels that they meet, levels that are kind of critical.Marcos De Los Santos · Trustee2:18:56
Other meetings

Other meetings of this board

Video: posted by the district as “Weslaco ISD Regular Board Meeting (August 17, 2026)”