FORT STOCKTON, Texas — Fort Stockton ISD held a school board meeting Monday night, and one of the biggest areas of concern wasn’t even on the agenda.
There has been a lot of frustration stemming from how money is being spent in FSISD, but any discussion regarding a bond was left for public forum.
It is not surprising to see school safety was a topic of discussion during that session. The school board understands that a lot goes into that, and they believe improvements can be made.
“And that’s what we need to do," said Billy Espino, Fort Stockton ISD School Board President. "There’s a lot of things involving the right security and safety for our kids and our people have thought things through and they’re willing to do what needs to be done.”
When it comes to the citizens in Fort Stockton, they are worried about irresponsible spending in terms of the bond proposal. Some are simply wanting to prioritize what must be done before committing a large amount of money.
"I am for, number 1, let’s do school security," said concerned citizen Paul Henderson. "Number 2, let’s find what we need next, the worst, let’s get that done. They be responsible with the money, show us that they can handle it, then we’ll pass another bond and we’ll go on down the line, but I am not for turning them loose with 100 million dollars on their track record.”
It seems a lack of trust has caused this rift between taxpayers and the school board, although Espino says they don’t want to raise taxes for the school district. However, inflation continues to make everything more expensive, and with election day November 8th, things are heating up.