Weslaco Independent School District public hearing, date not confirmed yet
3 h 15 min · 0 public speakers
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What happened
What happened at this meeting
Board authorizes administration to negotiate with Trinity for HVAC engineering services 2:38:29
- A district staff member reported that the district received a superior achievement rating of 98 points under the state's school financial rating system, and Marcos De Los Santos asked how the district could receive a 98 while operating with a multi-million-dollar deficit. 20:01
- A staff member presented a general fund interim report that showed a budget deficit of $18.3 million and a preliminary $6.9 million payroll reduction from last year. 47:54
- Trustees also discussed survey results on Frontier Direct Primary Care, which a staff member said would cost roughly $200,000 per month, and staff said the item was not on the agenda for approval. 1:13:28
- The board approved consent items 1 through 11 except for item 10, which it tabled. 2:30:34
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Item by item (10)
- Financial rating public hearing 18:52
- A district staff member said the district received a superior achievement rating of 98 points and missed full points on only one indicator, related to debt and property values because of the bond the district issued. 20:01
- One board member asked what was wrong with the rating tool if a district could acquire a 98 while operating with a multi-million-dollar deficit, and asked what safeguards could prevent year-end transfers from fund balance. 31:39
- The staff member said the district passed one indicator because it had 106 days of cash on hand, more than the 60 days required, and said the staff member would get back to the board on internal controls. 33:32
- Regular meeting opening 39:23
- Isidoro Nieto called the regular meeting to order at 5:54 and conducted roll call, followed by an invocation and the pledges. 39:23
- Recognitions, proclamations and public comment 42:20
- A staff member recognized the high school boys water polo team for winning the 31-6A district championship with a 10-0 record in district play and 19-5 overall, and recognized the Westlake East and Westlake High School JROTC programs, which each received the Honor Unit with Distinction designation. 43:09
- A proclamation named November 2026 as National Family Literacy Month, College Application Month and National Scholarship Month, along with Parental Involvement Day on November 19th and Bullying Prevention Week. 46:31
- A staff member said there were no public comments. ~47:33
- General fund interim financial report 47:46
- A staff member reported the district had received $32.4 million of $195,248,000 in budgeted revenues, that the budget deficit stood at $18.3 million, and that a budget amendment of $1.7 million would reduce it. 47:54
- The staff member reported a preliminary $6.9 million payroll reduction and a drop from 1,876 to 1,760 monthly payroll employees; one board member said without a $3.6 million insurance increase the savings would have topped $10 million and said the board had to solve the insurance issue. 52:42
- Marcos De Los Santos asked staff to bring the positions and salaries of the departed employees with a total to the next meeting, and said the district was at 81 days of fund balance with the projected deficit, after Jaclyn Sustaita cited 106 days. 1:10:15
- Direct primary care survey results 1:13:15
- A staff member said the service would cost $70 per month for each covered employee and dependent, roughly $200,000 per month regardless of use, and that of 695 employees who responded, 71% said they were very likely to use it. 1:13:28
- One board member said it was a great thing for employees and said, "I'm all for it, but said it made them nervous about the risk; another board member said they were very hesitant because of the upfront risk and suggested exploring a voluntary, subsidized option." 1:25:32
- Marcos De Los Santos asked what cancellation clauses would be available, and Isidoro Nieto asked staff to send another email to employees who did not respond to the survey. 1:35:16
- Bilingual and ESL program evaluation 1:40:49
- A staff member reported about 3,400 bilingual students out of 15,600 enrolled, and said the district had 13 ESL waivers and 40 elementary exceptions. 1:41:07
- One board member asked whether the district would look into a full dual language program, and another board member suggested possibly piloting one at a campus. 1:44:43
- A staff member said exceeding the number of waivers could affect bilingual funding and said the district had reached that threshold. 1:47:01
- Item 1:48:59
- A staff member reported that kindergartners were at 39% at meets performance or above in reading language arts at the beginning of the year, against an end-of-year target of 59%. 1:50:19
- One board member suggested exploring local providers as an alternative to an upfront $200,000 monthly cost, and another board member said they were still concerned about classroom sizes. 2:06:43
- The board approved the report on a motion by Benjamin Castillo. 2:16:47
- Consent agenda 2:16:55
- Construction contract consent items 2:19:03
- Marcos De Los Santos asked why contracts, including final completion of vestibule bond projects, were being extended retroactively, and a staff member said extensions could stem from added scope, weather or district events. 2:19:03
- On item 9H10, one board member said there was no backup documentation for authorizing the superintendent to pay an engineer, and another board member said they agreed the final payment should come to the board with backup. 2:22:54
- The board approved consent items 1 through 11 except for item 10, which was tabled, on a motion by Benjamin Castillo. 2:30:34
- HVAC independent engineer selection 2:33:30
- Benjamin Castillo moved to select Trinity as the third-party mechanical engineer, saying the firm designed the project and would be the most cost effective. 2:33:51
- One board member asked what services were in the original contract and urged holding off until the board had numbers. 2:34:52
- Benjamin Castillo amended the motion to authorize the administration to negotiate with Trinity for third-party engineering services in conjunction with transitioning out of the current contract. 2:38:29
Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.
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Video: posted by the district as “Weslaco ISD Public Hearing and Regular Board Meeting (October 19, 2026)”