Dear Vega ISD Community,
Memorial Day traditionally marks the beginning of summer. As we enjoy the summertime, it is also important to take the time to remember the men and women who have served and who are currently serving in our armed forces to protect our freedoms - including the freedom of providing public education for all children. We are especially grateful for those servicemen and servicewomen who gave their lives protecting these freedoms for us as we take a moment to remember on Memorial Day.
We are so grateful to our faculty and staff for their investment in our students this past school year. When you see any of our Vega ISD teachers around town be sure to wish them a happy summer and thank them for another successful school year.
This past weekend, we had several band students travel to Austin to compete at the UIL State Solo and Ensemble Band contest. Congratulations to Abi Vincent who earned another Division 1 Rating at the UIL Band State Solo and Ensemble contest! Congratulations to Maggie Argote, Miles Marshall, and Luke Rando who also competed at the UIL Band State Solo and Ensemble contest and did well this past weekend. Be sure to visit the district’s website and social media posts for pictures and more information.
There have been statewide conversations about school finance and school budgets as districts across the state face deficit budgets. Businesses and school districts are not immune to the strains of fixed funding. This is one of the reasons many school districts across Texas are experiencing deficit budgets and are having to make tough budget decisions while balancing ways to maintain quality educational programs for students. School districts are doing this while at the same time finding ways to provide support to recruit and retain outstanding teachers and staff. All of these factors are on top of increasing expectations and new state mandates placed on school districts while state funding has remained stagnant. The fact of the matter is that the basic allotment provided for public school funding has remained the same since 2019 while the cost of almost everything has increased.
Since 2019 we have seen rampant increases in the cost of everything that affects our households. For example: According to the US Department of Energy, the average retail fuel prices in the United States the cost of gas in April 2019 was $2.76. In April 2024 the cost was $3.65. While the price of fuel in Oldham County may vary from the average price across the nation, the reality is that the cost of fuel has increased over 30% since 2019. In addition, in 2019 at McDonald’s, the menu price of a Medium French Fries was $1.79 and in 2024 the cost of a Medium French Fries is $4.19 - this is a 134% increase. The cost of a McDonald’s Big Mac in 2019 was $3.99 and in 2024 the cost of a Big Mac is $7.49 - this is an 87% increase. At Taco Bell the cost of a Nachos Bellgrande has increased from $3.29 in 2019 to $5.89 in 2024 - this is a 79% increase. And at Chick-fil-A the cost of a Deluxe Chicken Sandwich has increased from $3.65 in 2019 to $6.55 in 2024 - this is a 79% increase.
We keep mentioning this, but this is so important that we need to continue promoting it. As you know, our district has kicked off a transfer campaign on our website and social media in order to increase our student enrollment. An increase of 25 students throughout the district (that’s about two students per grade level or about eight families of three school-age children each) would go a long way in reducing our deficit budget. Please note that to be eligible to be accepted as a transfer student to Vega ISD, all students must be in good standing with their current school district, have good attendance, and have no discipline issues. Check out our transfer landing page on the district’s website that talks about our school and how to apply for a transfer. If you feel comfortable doing so, please “like” the social media posts and share them on your own social media pages. If you need any help in doing this, please reach out to our office. We would be glad to help.
More students means more funding from the state. An increase in student enrollment is one of the ways the state allows school districts to gain revenue since there was no increased funding provided for public schools in this past legislative session.
As always, if you have any questions or if we can help in any way, please reach out to your campus principal or to my office.
Thank you,
Jerry Adams
Superintendent
Vega ISD