HOUSTON – Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District is gearing up to head back to school on Monday.
With the upcoming school year coming up fast, here are four things for Cypress parents and students to know:
1. 13 schools named to Honor Roll
Thirteen CFISD schools have been named to the 2018-2019 Texas Honor Roll.
The award recognizes public elementary, middle and high schools that demonstrate high levels of student academic achievement, improvement in achievement over time, and reduction in achievement gaps. For high schools, Honor Roll recognition includes measures of college readiness in students.
The following CFISD schools are among the 855 public schools in Texas to be recognized:
- Copeland Elementary School;
- Moore Elementary School;
- Pope Elementary School;
- Sampson Elementary School;
- Anthony Middle School;
- Aragon Middle School;
- Arnold Middle School;
- Bridgeland High School;
- Cy-Fair High School;
- Cypress Park High School;
- Cypress Ranch High School;
- Cypress Woods High School; and
- Jersey Village High School.
2. Raises for teachers
CFISD's 2019-2020 budget proposal includes provisions for teacher salary increases that exceed the state's requirement, amounting to an average salary increase of 5 percent for all teachers.
CFISD plans to provide raises for all staff for the eighth consecutive year. The district's 2019-2020 budget proposal calls for the following salary increases:
- A starting teacher salary of $55,500 (an increase of $1,500 from the previous year);
- A 3-percent-of-base-salary increase and a $1,000 one-time payment for teachers, counselors, librarians and nurses with 1-5 years of experience ($500 paid in December 2019 and $500 paid at the end of contract/fiscal year 2020);
- A 3.5-percent-of-base-salary increase and a $1,000 one-time payment for teachers, counselors, librarians and nurses with 6 or more years of experience ($500 paid in December 2019 and $500 paid at the end of contract/fiscal year 2020); and
- A 3-percent-of-midpoint or base salary increase, whichever is greater, and a $500 one-time payment for all other staff ($250 paid in December 2019 and $250 paid at the end of contract/fiscal year 2020).
3. Another 5-star rating in Texas Smart Schools Initiative
Cypress-Fairbanks ISD earned its ninth consecutive five-star rating in the Texas Smart Schools Initiative, an online resource that aims to improve education by identifying Smart Schools that are both effective and efficient.
Gathering data on both academic progress and spending, each school district and campus is assigned a Smart Score of one to five stars. A five-star rating indicates the strongest level of relative academic progress combined with the lowest relative spending.
4. The back to school guide
Use the back to school guide here to get helpful athletic, bus, before- and after-school care, community engagement, immunization, nutrition services and special education information and advice.