SCHOOL NEWS
BISD begins debating budget concerns
By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonline.com
Despite the Texas Legislature providing funding for teacher salary raises, Bowie Independent School District is expecting another lean year as they ponder how to address other salaries not included in those raises and how to handle a drop in state funding based on falling student enrollment numbers.
Finance Director Paula Peterson offered the board projected funding calculations provided through the Equity Center based on student enrollment and projected state funding.
She was scheduled for a meeting with staff at the Region 9 Education Service Center Wednesday to start crunching numbers for the tax rate and other funding.
At this point the preliminary figures are $8,105,480 in state aid, $8,417,517 in collections for $16,522,997 in revenue.
Read the full story in your Thursday Bowie News.
CORRECTION – In Thursday’s story there was an error in the numbers for teacher raises. In the paper this week it said that teachers 0-2 years were going to get a $2000 raise. That is not correct. The legislature did not specify any increase for 0-2 years, only for 3-4 year and 5+ year teachers. The $2,000 in the powerpoint is what some of the surrounding districts are doing for their 0-2 year teachers. We apologize for this error and will provide additional clarification after the budget meeting.
By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonnline.com
Bowie Independent School District Trustees began plowing through the 2026-27 budget at its first workshop on Aug. 3.
The center of discussion was presentation of the salary study commissioned by the district through the Texas Association of School Boards. Laura Wurman of TASB explained how the data was gathered and developed into recommendations for the district.
Purpose of the study is to assess competitive pay levels for common jobs. Wurman said they analyses market data to determine where the district is at risk and identified priorities for pay system improvements.
Read the full story in the Thursday Bowie News.
Diana Calderon will join the Bowie High School staff as assistant principal in the new school year.
She comes to Bowie from Lake Dallas Elementary School where she served as assistant principal since 2024. Her prior positions include administrator at Decatur High School from 2022-2024, and English as a second language director at Ponder High School and Middle School from 2017 to 2022.
Calderon’s educational background began with a bachelor of business management in 2007 from the University of Phoenix. She earned her master degree in bilingual education from Southern Methodist University in 2018 and a master’s in educational leadership also in 2018.
The educator is working on her doctorate of educational leadership.
By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonline.com
New Bowie High School Principal Dean Johnson brings 15 years of experience as an educator to the campus and he is looking forward to settling down in his new town.
The 38-year-old comes to Bowie from Farmersville Independent School District where he was junior high principal since 2022 and prior to that he was assistant starting in 2019. In 2023 he was named Texas Association of Secondary School Personnel’s Region 10 Assistant Principal of the Year.
Born and raised in Sherman, Johnson always knew his career path was coaching/teaching. He followed in his mother’s footsteps as she worked 30-plus years as a high school math teacher. His sister is a middle school math teacher and her husband is a teacher/coach both at Bells ISD, along with a cousin who is elementary principal at Burkburnett.
And dad can’t be left out, Johnson said while his father did several jobs, for many years he drove a bus for Sherman ISD, including those athletic team trips.
“I would often go with him on those trips with the football team and at seven or eight years old you look up at the players. I also was a ball boy. My path was set early,” said the new principal.
Read the full feature in the Thursday Bowie News.
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