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Board hears plan to expand specialty-school recruitment, dual-enrollment outreach and proposed rules for three-year graduates
Summary
Laredo ISD staff outlined a specialty-school recruitment timeline, an ApplyTexas application waiver week, expansion ideas for CTE programs including cosmetology/barbering, and a draft policy approach for allowing three-year graduates to qualify as valedictorian or salutatorian.
District guidance and counseling leaders presented trustees with multiple proposals and implementation items on Oct. 6: the specialty-school recruitment timeline, an ApplyTexas application-fee waiver week, CTE pathway capacity questions (notably barbering/cosmetology), and proposed procedures for allowing some three-year graduates to be eligible for valedictorian or salutatorian honors.
Specialty-school recruitment: Director of guidance Cindy Dominguez laid out the district's October recruitment calendar for specialty schools and CTE expos, including virtual presentations to middle schools Oct. 14'22, an in-person CTE Expo Oct. 22'23 for elementary fifth-graders, and specialty-school recruitment night on Oct. 23. The application window opens Oct. 27 and closes Dec. 17; students accepted in the spring would commit by Feb. 20.
ApplyTexas and college-access outreach: Dominguez and other staff noted that ApplyTexas will waive undergraduate application fees statewide Oct. 13'19; staff will hold ApplyTexas drives and encourage students to use the fee-waiver week to submit applications. Dominguez and interim administrators emphasized coordinating with Laredo College and TAMIU on transferability and advising so high-school dual-enrollment hours align with college requirements.
CTE capacity and cosmetology/barbering questions: Several trustees and staff discussed barbering and cosmetology capacity and whether those programs should remain centralized at a single campus (Nixon or Martin) or be expanded. Staff said barbering capacity and licensure requirements (including hands-on contact hours) limit cohort size; cosmetology typically supports more career options and greater seat capacity. Trustees urged staff to produce cost-benefit and scheduling analyses, and administrators said they will study centralization, travel logistics, and staffing models.
Three-year graduates, valedictorian and policy changes: Dominguez presented a draft framework to allow students who graduate in three years to compete for valedictorian/salutatorian honors under a clearly defined course set. The proposal would use a narrowed set of core courses (English 1' 3, specified math and science courses and required social studies) to create an objective denominator for comparison. Staff emphasized the measure should be used only when a student has declared early and met other conditions (minimum semesters on campus, passing STAAR/STAAR-equivalent measures, and CCMR requirements).
Trustee concerns and next steps: Board members raised several concerns: NCAA eligibility (some cited a 4-by-4 requirement for Division I/II initial eligibility), fairness to students who completed four years, ties and tiebreaker procedures, the effect of dual-enrollment and remote/virtual courses, how eighth-grade high-school credits are counted, and the timing of public notice. Multiple trustees suggested delaying any effective date to allow a more detailed board workshop and community communication; staff agreed to return with policy language, data, and implementation alternatives. "Let's smooth out the road before we hit that bump," a trustee said, urging a workshop and additional study.
Ending: Staff said they will provide further analyses (capacity, cost, course-equivalency and transferability information, and a recommended timeline for implementation) and recommended a board workshop before final policy changes.
