Howler Spring 2020

Spring 2020

DILLEY ISD

Lights of Hope Howler — Spring 2020 The Official Digital Magazine of the Dilley Independent School District

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District News

Letter from the Superintendent ........................... 3 School Board Thank You ...................................... 4 Meet Our Principals .............................................. 5

Graduation ............................................................ 6 E-Sports ................................................................ 8 Theatre Arts ....................................................... 10 Community Engagement .................................... 11 Sports & Activities ............................................. 13 Dilley FFA ............................................................ 31 Business Office News ........................................ 34

Campuses

Dilley High School ............................................... 23 Early College High School .................................. 29 Mary Harper Middle School ................................ 32

Dilley Elementary ................................................ 33 The Lights of Hope were taken of the football, baseball and softball fields. Lights were turned on March 27th to show the students, town and community of Dilley hope through difficult times.

Letters: Dilley ISD welcomes reader feedback, story suggestions and general comments.

Email: susan.quintero@dilleyisd.net or melody.carroll@dilleyisd.net

Editor: Susan Quintero

Production: Rally Ochoa Clint Harness

Advertising: Melody Carroll Susan Quintero

Graphic Design: Rally Ochoa Clint Harness Susan Quintero Cover Photo/Design Gabe Garza

Contact Us: Editorial and advertising inquiries call 830-965-1912 or email your photos, stories, student spotlights and suggestions to : susan.quintero@dilleyisd.net or melody.carroll@dilleyisd.net , for your chance to be featured. All submissions become the sole property of Dilley ISD. Howler — Spring 2020

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Superintendents Letter "The Spring Semester for Dilley ISD has not quite gone how any of us anticipated. When school let out on March 6, I believe that most everyone anticipated returning on the 16th.

How things have changed?

The State of Texas and TEA made the decision eventually to close all school campuses for the remainder of the year. Because of this, all UIL activities were stopped as well - athletics, academics, and fine arts. The high school One Act Play went to contest right before Spring Break, but the band members this year will not get to finish their Solo and Ensemble work in either middle or high school. The high school academic competitions for UIL for this year will not happen. Athletically, our baseball, softball, track, tennis, and golf programs all stopped without being able to complete their seasons’. This also includes our state qualifiers in powerlifting.

We are not going to dwell on negatives though. In the last athletic competition of the year, Dilley Lady Wolves softball defeated Pearsall on the Tuesday of Spring Break. The high school band program had 16 students that qualified and will always be able to call themselves State Solo and Ensemble Qualifiers. DISD had three students - Aaron Ramirez, Dustin Dominguez, and Kristal Rodriguez - qualify for the state powerlifting tournament, and their success deserves to be celebrated.

In fact, all of Dilley ISD deserves to be celebrated during Spring Semester. The staff members have done terrific work pulling together assignments and putting together a program to serve the students in a fair and just manner. The students have done their part logging in, turning in assignments, participating in zooms or Google Classrooms, and otherwise adjusting to remote learning. I want to commend the parents for the terrific work that you have done in supporting the students and helping them to achieve their work during this time to the extent possible.

Lastly, I want to commend our food service program and everyone else that has assisted in the passing out of the meals each day. The collaborative efforts in providing meals to students of the community has provided over 50,000 meals so far to children and students. This is phenomenal.

This spring semester will go into the history books. The semester winds up with the Kindergarten Promotion and with Graduation ceremonies. Here in Dilley ISD, we celebrate our students, our staff members, our parents, and our community. We will celebrate with Dilley Pride and will continue to be "A Family Working Together!"

Clint McLain, EdD Superintendent Dilley ISD "Above All, Students First!"

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School Board Page

Thank you for all you do for our community!

January was School Board appreciation month.

Dilley ISD students recognized the School Board members during the January 20th monthly school board meeting. Elementary and High School students made videos of students thanking the board. Board members received a variety of gifts from the students.

DISD Athletic department showing appreciation for our school board at a home basketball game.

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Meet The Principals Roger Solis is excited to be the new Principal of Dilley High School (DHS). He is honored to have been selected to join a District known for its dedication toward academic and athletic success. He has over 13 years in education, working for Pearsall, Pleasanton and Charlotte school districts. His goal is to ensure the students of Dilley High School are in a positive, engaging, challenging, supportive and safe learning environment. He will work to improve student learning, promote participation in the many programs and activities, and share with the community the great accomplishments of the students at DHS. Mr. Solis is thankful for the opportunity to serve as Principal of DHS and is looking forward to working with the families and students of Dilley ISD. Roger A. Solis, Principal DHS

Mrs. Delma A. Carrion is honored and excited to be the Principal for Dilley Elementary (DES). Her passion and dedication to education has been her drive for over 18 years, from Special Education to her last 15 years, which she has spent as a Counselor and Assistant Principal. In each role she sought to ensure academic and social success for students, staff and the school as a whole. Her objective will be to provide a nurturing and accepting atmosphere and continue to seek out opportunities for her students and staff to grow socially, emotionally and academically. Her educational goal is not possible without parental and community support. She encourages everyone to help by becoming a part of their child’s learning and school.

Delma Carrion, Principal DES

Mrs. Jennifer Torres has been in education since 1995. She spent 13 years in teaching elementary students around South Texas. She began her administrative career in 2009 and had the great opportunity to work with students and teachers at all levels. She enjoys working in Dilley and being part of a proud community and district. She will strive to provide the best for the students, parents and community at Mary Harper Middle School.

Jennifer Torres, Principal Mary Harper Middle School

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Congratulations Senior Class of 2020!

May 22nd was scheduled to be Dilley ISD graduations. This school year graduation has changed for all graduates. Due to the pandemic and school cancellations, many opportunities for Seniors to be together as a Senior Class did not happen. Dilley ISD is proud of all their graduating Seniors. The district made sure all Seniors were adopted by teachers, staff or community members. All Seniors received a variety of gifts from their sponsor(s). Many students were accepted to various colleges. Seniors, your hard work and dedication has paid off. Your success is an example that hard work pays off. Seniors were also honored with a Senior recognition parade. Seniors who participated, decorated their vehicles with graduation décor or accepted college décor. The community turned out in numbers, and the parade post on Face Book went viral!

Dilley ISD would like to congratulate all their Seniors on their hard work. Keep working hard, even though you have completed your high school journey. Remember “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You’re on your own, and you know what you know. You are the one who’ll decide where to go… - Dr. Suess, Oh the Places You’ll Go!

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Class of 2020 Pilar Garfield -

Janel Aguilar -

Valedictorian

Salutorian

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E-Sports

Game ON! Jayceus Sosa is an athlete at Dilley HS. Jayceus is not the traditional athlete you may think of when you hear the words high school athlete. He is part of the growing high school athletes that compete in the competitive realm of Esports.

What is Esports? Esports is an online multiplayer competition. It is a growing sport where pro players make big bucks. How big is Esports? Well, at a recent League of Legend competition there were more online viewers watching the tournament than there were viewers watching the Superbowl! Jayceus is a 15-year-old Esports athlete,who plays for the DHS Wolves Dilley ISD Esport League.

Jayceus competes in the battle royale game of Fortnite under his gamer tag “ThI3vesJayc”. In his first competitive season Jayceus had a winning record of 15 wins and 3 losses. Jayceus was ranked 10th in the Fortnite High School Esports League out of 400 competitors. His winning record allowed him to compete in the Semi Finals where he was able to make it through two rounds of high level competition.

Jayceus is currently in his second season of competitive Esports and is working hard to reach the finals this season. Dilley ISD is cheering for you Jayceus. Game on!!

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Theatre Arts

Tableau Vivant are still images that tell a story. A tableau vivant is French for “Living Picture”, is a static scene containing one or more actors or models. Actors or models are stationary and silent, and are usually in costume. The actors are carefully posed and sometimes props are included. Scenery may be added. The aspects of theatre and visual arts are combined in tableau vivant. Tableau vivant continues today. We see it in the form of living statues. Tableau presented on a theatre stage, one following another, usually tell a story. Students in Denisse Ibarra’s theatre arts class went through the process to create still images. Students were instructed to create still images to represent issues they felt strongly about. Students learned how to combine aspects of theatre and visual arts to create tableau vivant about pollution, animal abuse and school shootings.

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COMMUNITY SUPPORT Just like family, one of the ways we engage with families is building community relationships and making sure students and their families have access to basic needs like warm clothing, good food, and health information. This was our main focus over the past few weeks: ● DISD had two clothing drives. One was at the middle school and high school to collect winter clothing to keep on hand for our students. The other was organized by the DES student council and DES Counselor at the elementary school and gave students and parents the opportunity to pick out some clothes for themselves. Both were successful thanks to generous donations from the community and extra clothing was donated to local shelters and care facilities.

● We have also worked with community members and organizations on two food bank mobile pantry distributions. In November, students from the middle and high school volunteered with a distribution sponsored by Frio County Clerk’s Office and in December the school district hosted a distribution through the support of the Najim Charitable Foundation. We are hoping to work with local churches and groups to host another in the Spring. ● Finally, we organized the annual Health & Wellness Day which took place this year on March 5th. About 15 organizations and demonstrated first aid and safety responses and promote healthy habits. Families were welcome to join us to learn about local health providers and connect with health services.

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HOME VISITS Starting this year, teachers will be doing Home Visits with students’ parents and families. Whether it’s taking place at a house, meeting up at a restaurant, or visiting at a workplace, this is a chance for teachers to meet families off campus to learn more about their students. It’s a great way for teachers and parents to share questions, concerns, and hopes for students and to build relationships that support education inside and outside the classroom.

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Band Going Strong!!!!

By: Terri Robertson The Dilley Might Grey Wolf Band has been quite busy this Spring semester. On January 11th, six students auditioned for a seat in the All State Band while attending the ATSSB Area Band in Orange Grove. Sean Kelly, Raylee McLain, Victoria Rodriguez, Alexis Valdez and Ashley Zepeda all auditioned. Everyone did well and Sean earned 4th Chair Percussion.

This means he is the 4th best percussionist in our Area, which ranges from Houston to McAllen and from Laredo to Luling.

On February 7th, some of the band members traveled to Eagle Pass to perform in the UIL Solo and Ensemble Competition. The band returned with 40 First Division Medals and 16 students advancing to the State Solo and Ensemble Contest in Pflugerville in May. The state qualifiers are: Pilar Garfield – 2 events, Amaris Gonzales, Annanayeli Garcia, Jazmine Martinez, Klaudya Garcia, Leeloo Marquez, Alexis Valdez – 2 events, Ashley Zepeda, Ciarra Cervantez, Diego Cordova, Victoria Rodriguez – 2 events, Melody Del Real – 2 events, Rena Ochoa, Raylee McLain – 2 events, Daniel Kelley and Sean Kelly.

On February 8th, the middle school band members traveled to Pearsall to compete for a chair in the ATSSB Jr. High All Region Band. Earning 1st Chair Symphonic Band Tenor Trombone and 1st Chair Symphonic Band Bass Trombone was Daniel Kelley. He will perform as 1st Chair Tenor Trombonist in the concert. Danica Aguirre earned 6th Chair Symphonic Band Flute. Vince Valdez earned 1st Chair Band concert.

Klaudya Garcia earned 7th Chair Concert Band Flute, and Lillibeth Mullins earned Alternate Flute. Free concerts will be performed in February in Carrizo Springs. In March the High School Band will travel to Pleasanton for the UIL Concert and Sight Reading Competition. Middle School band members will perform solos and ensembles in Hondo in April. Dilley ISD is extremely proud of their hard work, dedication and perseverance towards achieving excellence.

Wolf Pride!

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Middle School Girls Basketball By: Coach Kathryn Rubio

Basketball this season was a great season. As a new coach you’re never quite sure how things will go and how the athletes will receive you. Fortunately, I coached volleyball so I knew most of the girls and already had the opportunity to bond with them. Basketball is a passion of mine, always has been and my focus has always been on fundamentals and basics. Often times practice was just that. A series of drills and conditioning to help the girls get faster and handle the ball more efficiently.

Before beginning the season, my expectation of the girls was that they would show up to practices consistently, work hard, put forth effort, practice with a purpose and ultimately progress as a team. They surpassed those expectations.

The girls, both 7th and 8th grade, grew immensely in their skill set and conditioning. Many started off barely being able to breathe at the end of practice and with limited abilities when it came to dribbling and shooting. By the end of the season, all of them were dribbling the ball without traveling or double-dribbling, and shooting the ball with much more confidence than when they began. They were finishing practice without losing a step and without needing many breaks.

My aspirations for the end of the season were to see them grow as a team, begin to work together and as I’ve said before make progress. I’m not the type of coach who focuses solely on the win/loss record but more on the growth aspect of things. The girls made me proud and their growth was exciting to watch. They became more conditioned and disciplined as the season went on and that was a great thing.

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Middle School Girls Basketball Inspirational words are best when given in the moment, my favorite quote/poem is from Marianne Williamson: Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness That most frightens us.

We ask ourselves Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God. You’re playing small Does not serve the world.

There's nothing enlightened about shrinking So that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, As children do.

We were born to make manifest The glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us; It's in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine, We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we're liberated from our own fear, Our presence automatically liberates others.

To summarize, don’t be okay with just being okay. Don’t stifle your capacity for greatness because it’s not what others would deem “cool” or “Acceptable”. Shine bright without worrying about what others think. Stand out, be different, be GREAT! It’s in EVERYONE!

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High School Girls Basketball Gabriel Garza – Head girls basketball coach The Lady Wolves Basketball team finished their season with a record of 12-20, and 4-7 in district.

The Lady Wolves also finished as Bi-District Finalist for the 3rd year in a row. The Lady Wolves started the season as an above .500 win percentage team through tournament season, and gained momentum heading into the holiday break.

As the season progressed the Lady Wolves were hit by the injury bug, and lost 6 starting players.

They would battle through district by picking up wins against Natalia and Laredo Harmony.

Through the final game of the district the Lady Wolves found themselves in a tie for 4th place with the Natalia Lady Mustangs. In the 4th place game to make the playoffs the Lady Wolves found a way to beat the Lady Mustangs in Natalia by the score of 57-52 to advance to the state playoffs for the third year in a row.

In the playoffs the Lady Wolves met up with #7 state ranked Odem Lady Owls for the third year in a row, they fell short and ended the season as Bi-District Finalist.

Leading the Lady Wolves throughout the season was: Senior, Point Guard, (District 30-3A 1st Team All District Selection) Janel Aguilar, Senior, Post/Wing, (District 30-3A 2nd Team All District Selection) Jaden Aranda, Sophomore, Wing, (District 30-3A 1st Team All District Selection) Jeralyn Gonzales, and Sophomore, Post, (District 30-3A 2nd Team All District Selection) Desirae Gonzales.

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Tennis

By Khloe Torres—Tennis Coach

On February 19th, the Dilley Tennis team attended the annual JV tournament.

Elyiah Vinton and Cierra Cervantez took on the tournament and ended up placing 6th in girls doubles. Rena Ochoa and Ja’sellie Castillo fought hard for 5th place.

In the boys doubles, Ashton Flynn and Jonathon Quiroga placed 11th. Demetri Torres played in singles and ended up in 4th place. Jose Rodriguez played in singles and fought for 1st. He ended up Placing 2nd in boys singles.

Awesome job Dilley Tennis Team!

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High School Boys Basketball Terrance Wadley – Head coach boys’ basketball Coach Wadley’s expectations for his team is to make the playoffs this season. His aspirations for the team is to continue to get better as the season progresses, limit their turnovers per game and improve on defense. His words of inspiration for the team are to keep working hard and take care of the little things both on and off the court.

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Middle School Boys Basketball

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High School softball Coach Saenz, Girls Softball Coach: Christopher Saenz is the new girls’ softball coach at Dilley ISD. Coach Saenz feels it will be a struggle, with some mistakes at first. He expects to see progression. Right now they do have some girls playing other sports (basketball). Coach Saenz is confident they can be successful. He has some quality players with previous experience that will give them the upper hand at their upcoming first scrimmage.

He wants the girls to be successful young women on and off the field. By the end of the season he wants to be the coach that inspires. He wants to be able to win district and have that trophy for the district at the end of the season. This is the ultimate goal of every coach, to be state champions. His words of inspiration for the team: He wants them to be successful.

He wants to show these girls he is going to fight for them, and is going to do everything he can to make them be a successful program and bring out the best in them.

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High School Golf Jose Alfaro – boys and girls golf coach Coach Alfaro’s expectations for his boys’ season is to be a rebuilding year, and still compete at a high level. He has 2 returning qualifiers from last year. They look to be in good form, and with a little work they can bring it all together. The goal for the boys’ team is to compete in all tournaments and hopefully be ready to compete for a district title, or at least qualify for regionals as runner ups. Coach Alfaro’s expectations for his girls’ team is about the same, however here he has 3 returners and should be a bit more competitive than the boys. The girls have already competed in 2 tournaments and have shown great improvement. Coach Alfaro says all they need is just fine tuning their finish and they should start seeing results shortly.

His dream for both teams is to win a district title, but qualifying for regionals is a very close second. With the boys he sees that as a good dream, but with 2 rookies making up half the team, it just means more work for all. With the right mind set it can and will be possible. His girls team has the skills to give some teams a run for their money for the district crown. It will take dedication and hard work like in all other sports. He hopes for the best for both his teams this year and hopes they can grow as a golf family together.

Coach Alfaro’s mantra he lives by at practice is “breathe and take it one shot at a time”. He also tells them to learn their clubs and to do less thinking on the course and just react to the moment. A happy golfer is a great golfer and a golfer who can fire low scores, will always be happy. All he wants from his kids is to learn to love the game of golf like he does, and play until they are 100 if possible.

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High School Powerliftng By: Paul Jason Quinters – Head Powerlifting Coach Coach Quinters expects this season to go fairly well. His teams are going to every meet with a mindset to compete at their highest levels. By the end of this season the hope is to get as many athletes as possible to show at both the girls and boys regional meet, as well as getting to the State Meet.

Coach Quinters has a great group of young women and men who are coming to work out every day, and really push their totals! Coach tells his athletes, “It doesn't matter where you start, but it does matter how hard you work and how consistent you are. Keep chasing the bumps, and become the best you that you can be!”

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By: Reynaldo Rodriguez, High School Math Teacher & Arlene Rodriguez, Art Teacher

DESMOS is an online graphing calculator that allows students to learn while having fun. With DESMOS students spend less time worrying about technology and more time thinking about math and all the interesting things that are created using math.

Mr. Rodriguez started using DESMOS in his Algebra I classes to teach students linear & quadratic equations, domain & range. To make linear equations & quadratic equations more interesting, students were asked to draw little houses. Teacher noticed the students were 100% engaged in their projects, so other functions were added, along with more challenging drawings. Today students are using DESMOS with Geometry, Calculus, and Pre-calculus. To make DESMOS more challenging, ART is included in the equation to start STEAM Projects. This is the second year Reynaldo Rodriguez (math teacher) and Arleen Rodriguez (Art teacher) are using equations to draw. Drawings are graded by Art teacher. The idea is to STEAM the school district. This year they are starting to use DESMOS with middle school art students, and hopefully the other schools will follow.

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DHS Interdisciplinary lesson Art and math!

High school students are helping middle school students create art with math formulas using the DESMOS program on their Chrome-books.

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Mrs. Rodriguez’s Art Class Learning is always fun and hands on in Mrs. Rodriguez’s art classes. Students are taught various art techniques and use them to create a variety of art projects. Student’s art projects can be seen throughout the school. Students learn to work together and take pride in their work. Mrs. Rodriguez teaches both high school and middle school students. Middle school students are also integrating art with math equations. High school students are showing them how to use the DESMOS program to create art. STEAM - integrating ART into STEM.

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Health, Wellness, and Safety Day Dilley High School The Health, Wellness, and Safety Day featured 24 participating groups from local health and safety services, emergency responders, and social service providers. Both Mary Harper Middle School (MHMS) and Dilley High School (DHS) students visited various booths. Booths included The Texas Department of State Health Services and Texas A&M Agriculture Life booth.

Students were able to make smoothies using a stationary bike and at the same time learn healthy everyday habits like getting plenty of exercise and eating healthy snacks. Outside, students were able to check out emergency response vehicles and speak with local first responders about their work. Students were able to try out the sirens, and try on some of the equipment.

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TACS Academic Challenge Contest Every school year Texas Association of Community Schools (TACS) sponsors an Academic Challenge. Any high school whose district is an Institutional Member of TACS can participate.

Schools’ can enter up to three teams. Academic abilities vary on each team. Students are placed on a level based on their grade average. Level I (90-100 average), Level 2 (8089 average), and Level 3 (70-79 average). Questions for the academic challenge are TEKS based and include courses in English, Math, Science and Social Studies. The competitions are held at a regional level and state level.

This school year, Dilley High School was a host for the area contest. Dilley High School’s three teams qualified to go to State. The State contest is held in Temple, Texas at the Cultural Activities Center. The team of Pilar Garfield, Kodiak Guajardo and Chelsea Lanphar advanced to the State finals. TACS awards cash scholarships to teams that advance. The total amount of scholarships per contest is based on the amount of entry fees plus scholarships less expenses. The money is held in escrow until the time the student has enrolled in an accredited college, university, or trade school.

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Dilley High School Southwest Texas Junior College (SWTJC) Early College Graduation Application ceremony .

Congratulations to our senior ECHS students and parents on applying for graduation from SWTJC. Howler — Spring 2020

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Early College Students answer some questions: Why did you decide to enroll in the Early College Program? 

To get ahead of my education and save money.

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It was a great opportunity to jump start my future.

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It seemed like a fantastic opportunity to test myself, and also get a grasp for college with earning of college hours.

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To get ahead in college with an associates degree.

What was your greatest challenge in the program? 

Juggling college work with other high school classes. Especially tough Junior year since we were taking 5 college classes, and had 8 class periods.

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It was difficult to manage college work and still participate in high school activities.

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Junior year was the hardest with the amount of work that felt insurmountable. With appropriate time management it was possible.

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The work flow and trying to get used to the course material.

What advice would you give to students entering the program? 

Do your work. Do not leave for last minute cause it will be a pain to get it done.

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Find your mix of college work and relaxation, because it will be one hectic semester.

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Keep pushing through even when it seems hard. Don’t procrastinate because it will only cause more stress. It will be worth it in the end.

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Do not second guess yourself and what you are capable of. No matter how difficult it gets, it will pay off in the end.

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Study, do flash cards, do study sessions with friends.

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Push yourself and always ask questions. Take a chance, but never quit.

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Don’t give up, it will be worth it in the end and do not settle for less that what you deserve.

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The Family That Shows Together, Grows Together Dilley ISD FFA The Dilley FFA had a successful 2020 stock show season. Students put in a lot of work prior to showing their animals. It all begins in the Fall semester with the purchase of the animal projects. The students then have to make sure the animal’s pens were ready for their animals to live in. From there on, students worked with their animals on a daily basis. Basic routines involve making sure their animals have fresh feed and water, exercising their animals, and practicing how to show their animals.

The student’s hard work throughout their time raising their animals definitely did not go unnoticed!

This year, the Dilley FFA had the grand champion swine raised by Anamarie Rodriguez, DHS Junior, and the reserve grand champion swine raised by Roman Martel, MHMS 8th grade. Swine breed champions from the Dilley FFA included: Anamarie Rodriguez, DHS Junior, with the champion Duroc; Roman Martel, MHMS 8th grade, with the champion Hampshire; Deuce Cano, DHS Sophomore, with the champion Spot and Janae Galindo, DHS Freshman, with the champion Yorkshire. The Dilley FFA also had the grand champion rabbits raised by Ashlyn Keck, MHMS 7th grade. Dilley FFA showmanship winners included: Landon Keck, DHS Sophomore, showing poultry; Saylene Torres, DHS Sophomore, showing her rabbits and Hailey Young, DHS Sophomore, showing her goat.

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Dilley Elementary Supper Program Adam Martinez, DES The Dilley Elementary Supper Program was implemented the Fall of 2019. Implementation was initially a big task. The campus needed to get a sense and feel of what the program would look like. Initially, all hands were on deck. Everyone was helping. As the program progressed, staff came to realize adjustments had to be made. Food carts had to be added to transport the food from the cafeteria to the students. Currently the custodians are the facilitators for the food delivery. High school students assist with serving the meals. Meals are served daily at 3:30 pm. Students are paid for the time they spend serving meals. Students who serve meals, must have a class schedule that permits them to be done with all classes by serving time. Overall there has been good response to the program. Students look forward to the meals.

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Business Office News Savings on Dilley ISD Bonds Dilley ISD had the opportunity to refund bonds to save the taxpayers of the district a substantial amount of money over the life of the bonds. During the regular board meeting that took place on January 20, 2020, the Dilley ISD Board of Trustees approved refunding the bonds with an estimated savings of 11.99% or $6.1 million including the additional district contribution of $2 million.

The Administrative staff worked with the districts’ financial advisor to coordinate with the different professionals needed to have a successful pricing of the bonds. The bonds were priced on February 5th and closed on March 4th. The final terms resulted in 15.23% savings of the refunded bonds or about $6.9 million, including the additional amount contributed by the district. The interest rate was reduced from 4.77% on the original bonds to 2.73% on the new bonds, resulting in net present value savings of about $5.2 million. The administrative staff worked very hard and with great diligence from board approval to the closing of the bonds to achieve such great savings for our district.

School Supplies for the 2020-2021 School Year The school district purchased all the student instructional supplies needed for the 2019-2020 school year. For the 2020-2021 school year, the DISD Board of Trustees have once again approved to purchase all the instructional supplies for the students.

Parents will not need to purchase any school supplies for their children. The supplies will be in each classroom on the first day of instruction. The cost of all the supplies will be less than $30,000.00. The Board of Trustee’s is grateful the district is in the position to be able to help our families and community, especially with the recent downturn in the economy both locally, but across the country.

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