RICHARDSON ISD! SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

! PAGE 1

About RISD’s Board BriefBoard Brief is an

RISD electronic communication

typically available the day after

Regular RISD Board meetings or

Study Sessions. Board Brief includes

highlights of selected action and

information agenda items.

Additionally, the RISD Board

approves some items under the

consent agenda. The full Sept. 18,

2012 agenda may be viewed by

visiting risd.org/board and selecting Board Agenda.

Interlocal Agreement with City of Richardson (Action Item) The Board voted to

approve an interlocal agreement

with the City of Richardson related

to construction of Central Trail. The

agreement allows the City to

improve RISD property and

connect a recreational trail roughly

adjacent to Central Expressway

behind the RISD Administration

Building, Greenville Avenue Field

and Administrative Annex.

To view the interlocal agreement, please follow this link.

BOARD BRIEFThe board heard a presentation from the

Instructional Technology (IT) Department

regarding the current use of technology in the

district and upcoming initiatives. 

The wireless infrastructure upgrades are proceeding at each campus and are

expected to be completed districtwide by the end of the first semester. This

major initiative was a technology centerpiece of the 2011 Bond program and

allows significantly more students and staff members simultaneous access to

district networks and the Internet. This effort was critical to allow RISD’s

college & career readiness and student engagement efforts to move forward.

This effort will also allow separate staff, student and guest access to RISD

networks in schools and facilities.

The IT department will host both an Instructional Technology Integration

Conference for educators on November 1 and a Technology Exposition for

RISD parents on November 15.

The department is also supporting instructional initiatives in “flipping” (the

strategy of having students preview lessons via video before it is covered

more in depth in the classroom) and this year’s “Bring Your Own Device”

initiative that encourages students to bring and use their personal computer,

tablet or smartphone to support classroom instruction, research and

assignments.

A new technology lending program is being piloted at each high school and

will allow qualifying students to check out devices and mobile hotspots in

order to complete projects and assignments.

To view the entire Technology Update presentation, please follow this link.

Technology Update (Information Item)

RICHARDSON ISD! SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

! PAGE 2

Campus Improvement Plans (Action Item)

The board heard a presentation regarding campus improvement plans (CIPs) and

voted to approve their adoption for the 2012-13 school year. Campus improvement

plans are required by the Texas Education Code and are updated annually via a

specific process involving collaboration between school staff, administrators and

parents/community members. Plans incorporate measurable goals and objectives to

improve student performance for all student populations, consistent with the

district’s strategic vision (Vision 2020). Each campus improvement plan provides the blueprint for that campus’s goals

and operations for the year.

To view the entire CIP presentation, please follow this link.

Graduation Task Force (Information Item)

The Board heard an update and recommendations from the Graduation Task Force.

The goal of the task force is to study and recommend ways of ensuring RISD

graduates are prepared for success in college or workforce via specific areas,

including graduation requirements, Rank/GPA calculations and period requirements

as juniors and seniors. The task force updated some prior recommendations and

returned to the Board with information requested at a previous meeting.

Specific recommendations include implementing a project-based learning requirement for 2012-13 graduates;

implementing a service learning graduation requirement of 60 hours (over four high school years) beginning with the

2012-13 8th grade class; and implementing a college & career transition course offering at high schools beginning in

2012-13. Discussions continued on the possible recommendations of utilizing a weighted 5.0 GPA scale beginning with

2012-13 8th grade class; resolution of quality point questions related to Rank/GPA; and requiring juniors and seniors to

take seven credit-bearing classes per day, starting with 2012-13 8th graders. 

For more information, please follow this link to the entire presentation.