LIBERTY HILL ISD

Superintendent Steven Snell • Kat Yanez, a VASE (Visual Arts Scholastic Event) medal winner, Liberty Hill Middle School • School Board President Megan Parsons • School Board member Kathy Major • School Board member Kristi Hargrove • School Board member Michael Ferguson • Liberty Hill Elementary Assistant Principal Aaron Russo • Kaleb Wells, Rancho Sienna Elementary • Thor Spalding, Liberty Hill Elementary • Ella Glidewell, Liberty Hill Elementary • Logan Anguiano, Liberty Hill High School • Dalton Svatek, Liberty Hill Middle School • Paula Kaderka, administrative assistant at Santa Rita Middle School • Valerie Baca, fourth grade math teacher at Bill Burden Elementary • William Barfield, Santa Rita Middle School • School Board member Anthony Buck • Brayden Rivera, Louine Noble Elementary • School Board member Kendall Carter • School Board member Terry Smith • Not pictured: Jackson Weidright, Bill Burden Elementary School, and Justice Bokelmann at Santa Rita Elementary School

Liberty Hill's May Champions Recognizing Panther Pride

When it comes to educating the next generation of Panthers, Liberty Hill ISD is committed to building champions inside and outside the classroom. Every month, the school board celebrates champions who demonstrate everything from integrity to academic excellence to community involvement. Superintendent Steven Snell says, “Part of our mission is to make our students become the best versions of themselves and make sure they get everything they need to maximize their potential. We want to cultivate the ideals of hard work, perseverance, and grit. Part of life is learning to overcome difficulties.”

PLANNING FOR GROWTH

When he came to the district three-and-a-half years ago, Superintendent Snell engaged more than 100 community members to help him and his staff plan for growth. His objective was and continues to be prescient—one in four students was new to the district this year. The result of his strategic planning was the passing of a $491 million bond, passed last year, that will fund four school expansion and renovation projects: two new elementaries, one new middle school, and one new high school. “Three years ago we had an enrollment of 4,000 students. Today we’re at 7,100 and growing. By the end of the decade we’re projected to have more than 20,000 students. Part of Liberty Hill’s growing pains is trying to plan building schedules and attendance boundaries so schools don't become overcrowded,” Superintendent Snell says.

PLANNED DISTRICT BUILDS

Elementary #6 in the Bar W subdivision scheduled to open August 2023 Elementary school #7 in the Santa Rita subdivision (across from SRMS) scheduled to open 2024 Middle school #3; Seward Junction area in fall 2024 High school #2 in the Seward Junction area coming in fall 2025

POTENTIAL & PROJECTED BUILDS

Eight elementary schools before 2030 High school #3 in the SH183 & 3405 area

SCHOLASTIC SUCCESS AGAINST THE ODDS

Managing thousands of student absences and hundreds of missed teacher and staff days during the pandemic period made 2021-22 a difficult school year for LHISD. “It’s tough when you’re on a skeleton crew,” Superintendent Snell says. “Talk about a championship effort. For instance, in January, we had as much

Liberty Hill Elementary's Thor Spalding (left) was recognized as a life-saver. He applied the Heimlich maneuver to rescue a teacher who was choking.

as 20 percent of our teachers and staff out at one time or other. Of course, our culture is all about teachers and staff stepping up so we did whatever it took to keep the schools running.” Teachers covered each other’s classes, staff filled in as subs when there were none to be found, and the community categorically responded when the district asked for help with lunch duty and arrival and dismissal duty. Parents “showed up in full force,” Superintendent Snell says. “It was all hands on deck.”

Despite COVID-19’s effects, “the kids have still been extremely successful. They’ve achieved great things.” Here are a few of those achievements, as well as other scholastic successes:

20 FFA students made it to the state competition Varsity football, boys and girls basketball, and fall tennis teams made the playoffs in their respective sports. Varsity football played in the UIL state championship. The robotics team competed in to two state competitions and several art students made it to state level competition as well. Dhanush Kondapalli, a junior at Liberty Hill High

School, earned a perfect 36 on the ACT. Less than half of 1 percent of students who take the ACT earn a top score. In the U.S. high school graduating class of 2021, only 4,055 out of 1.29 million students who took the ACT earned a top score of 36.  $8 million in the 2021 bond was allocated for new technology, including iPads, Chromebooks, and laptops for students and teachers.

 The district hired Scott Stansbury to be the new technology director.

 Teachers were given an 8.3 percent raise amounting to a $4,500 increase. “We’re a small district so our salaries were lagging behind—we had some catching up to do. We were able to level the playing field financially,” Superintendent Snell says. With 1,500 new students this year and as many as 2,200 expected next year, the district plans to hire 100 teachers to keep up with enrollment growth. He adds, "We believe we are the best district to attend and to work for. This raise was a reflection of our beliefs and goals.”

ON THE FUTURE OF LHISD

With strong conservative leadership from the board of trustees and great relationships with county and city officials, Superintendent Snell believes the future is bright for LHISD. He says, “Academically, we will continue to hire the very best teachers whose primary focus is always the students. Financially, we are in a great place to thrive via responsible spending—our CFO has already saved the taxpayers nearly $31 million in future debt payments. Our biggest challenge in the post COVID world is the rising cost of construction due to massive inflation. I am confident we will be able to save on those costs with diligence and smart planning with our architect and construction teams.”