In This Edition Features
Texas Lone Star • Volume 29, Number 7
Texas Association of School Boards
P.O. Box 400 • Austin, Texas • 78767-0400
512.467.0222 or 800.580.8272 (toll-free)
Roger White • Managing Editor
Melissa Locke Roberts • Assistant Editor
Denise Schulz • Advertising Coordinator
Kristie Robles • Graphic Designer
Texas Lone Star (ISSN 0749-9310) is published 10 times a
year by the Texas Association of School Boards. Copyright
2011 by the Texas Association of School Boards.
All rights reserved.
Copies of Texas Lone Star are mailed to trustees of TASB
member school boards and their superintendents as part
of their membership. Subscriptions are available to
nonmembers for $36 (1 year), $69 ( 2 years), and $99 (3 years).
Single copies are $5.
Address changes should be sent to Anisa Pope, TASB,
P.O. Box 400, Austin, Texas 78767-0400.
Articles in Texas Lone Star are expressions of the author
or interviewee and do not represent the views or policies
of TASB. Permission to reprint should be addressed to the
Managing Editor, P.O. Box 400, Austin, Texas 78767-0400.
Texas Lone Star does not guarantee publication
of unsolicited manuscripts.
Postmaster: Send address changes to TASB,
P.O. Box 400, Austin, Texas 78767-0400.
2010-11 TASB Officers
Sylvester E. Vasquez Jr., Southwest ISD, President
Gary W. Inmon, Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD,
President-Elect
Viola M. Garcia, Aldine ISD, Vice-President
Faye Beaulieu, Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD, Vice-President
Andra Self, Lufkin ISD, Secretary- Treasurer
Sarah Winkler, Alief ISD, Immediate Past President
2010-11 TASB Board of Directors
Joe Adams, Katy ISD, Region 4A
Bret Begert, Fort Elliott CISD, Region 16
Marilyn Bettes, Navasota ISD, Region 6
Sonal Bhuchar, Fort Bend ISD, Region 4G
Robert Blount Jr., Northside ISD, Region 20B
Gloria S. Casas, La Feria ISD, Region 1A
Joshua Cerna, Harlandale ISD, Region 20D
Richard Chambers, Snyder ISD, Region 14
Fred Contreras, Grape Creek ISD, Region 15
Desiree Cornelius-Fisher, Manor ISD, Region 13B
James de Garavilla, Silsbee ISD, Region 5
Keith Foisey, Kemp ISD, Region 10D
James Goode, Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD, Region 10B
Linda L. Griffin, Garland ISD, Region 10E
Manuel Guajardo Jr., Texas City ISD, Region 4B
Patricia Hughes, El Paso ISD, Region 19A
Sandy Hughey, North East ISD, Region 20E
Maria G. Leal, South Texas ISD, Region 1B
Lee Lentz-Edwards, Kermit ISD, Region 18
Benny May, Barbers Hill ISD, Region 4C
Vernagene Mott, Pflugerville ISD, Region 13C
Lori Moya, Austin ISD, Region 13A
Wes Naron, Plainview ISD, Region 17
Judy G. Needham, Fort Worth ISD, Region 11B
Bob Payton, Wichita Falls ISD, Region 9
Gloria Peña, Arlington ISD, Region 11C
Joe Pirtle, ESC 12, ESC Representative
Carla Ranger, Dallas ISD, Region 10C
Pamela Remmers, Nordheim ISD, Region 3
Marty Reyes, Ysleta ISD, Region 19B
Manuel Rodriguez Jr., Houston ISD, Region 4D
Robert Sheppard, Pleasant Grove ISD, Region 8
Charles R. Stafford, Denton ISD, Region 11A
Susan Thames, Connally ISD, Region 12
Carlos Villarreal, San Antonio ISD, Region 20C
Lida C. Woodul, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, Region 4F
2011 TASA/TASB Convention ..................... 8
This year, the TASA/TASB Convention comes back to where
it all began in 1960—Austin. This year’s gathering of edu-
cation leaders from across the state promises to be full of
learning, inspiration, and networking opportunities
Introduction ............................................................. 8
Agenda .................................................................. 10
General Sessions .................................................... 12
Distinguished Lectures ............................................ 13
Exhibit Hall ............................................................. 14
Housing, Registration, and Transportation .............. 15
Downtown Austin Map .......................................... 16
Convention Sponsors ............................................. 17
No Longer a ‘Throwaway School’............ 18
Despite the odds, faced with a student body whose parents
by and large lack a high school education and who live in
an area where the average family income ranks among
the lowest in the state, Principal Bertie Simmons and the
faculty and staff at Houston ISD’s Furr High School turned
around a campus once riddled with gangs and crime.
Departments
Calendar...................................................................................................................... 6
Legal News ................................................................................................................ 24
Capital Watch ............................................................................................................ 28
HR Files...................................................................................................................... 32
News & Events ........................................................................................................... 36
Columns
Editor’s Footnote.......................................................................................................... 5
From the Top ............................................................................................................... 7
Leadership TASB ........................................................................................................ 36
Superintendent Vacancies .......................................................................................... 37
