The Arlington ISD’s Board of Trustees meeting on Sept. 4, 2025, is in the books, and here are a few of the highlights.
Adams Elementary fifth grader Sahani Moran kicked off the meeting by leading everyone in the pledges of allegiance. Sahani did a great job!
Then the The Martin High School Quartet, led by director Jaimie Ovalle, performed Brandenburg No. 3 by J. S. Bach. It was the first student performance at a board meeting this year and was outstanding.
Following the music, the students who will serve on the Student Leadership Advisory Board this school year were introduced. This group of students include the junior class presidents from each of the six traditional high schools, plus a member each from Arlington Collegiate High School, Arlington College and Career High School, and Venture High School. They represent students’ opinions and provide their voice to the Board of Trustees.
The trustees then honored the first student of the month for this year. It’s Coleman Cravens from Arlington High School. Coleman is Arlington to the core and the definition of well-rounded. He’s a fourth-generation Colt – his great grandfather, Carlise Cravens, from the class of 1924, is the namesake of Cravens Field at Lamar. Coleman is third in his class. 
He’s the quarterback on the football team, is on the bass fishing team, plays viola in orchestra, and serves on the Mayor’s Youth Council, to name a few of his activities. Congrats, Coleman!
Then the board honored Arlington ISD’s risk management team for winning the “Our Driving Concern Texas Employer Traffic Safety Award” at the 2025 Traffic Safety Conference in Austin. Led by Curt Fernandez, this team has worked tirelessly to improve safety in the district and eliminate preventable vehicle accidents. In just one year, collisions dropped from 105 in 2022–2023 to 63 in 2023–2024.
Later, Scott Kahl, the district’s chief talent officer, gave the board a staffing update. The district is in better shape this year than last year at this time, and notably, 98% of all teaching positions were filled on day one of the school year.
Then Kelly Horn, Arlington ISD’s assistant superintendent of facility services, gave an update on the 2019 Bond program. Among recent bond highlights are the opening of Rodriguez Junior High and the soon-to-open Glaspie Field at Martin High School.
On the topic of bonds, the board adopted a resolution approving methods to save the district money by reducing the district’s debt and achieving savings on interest. It allows the district to pay back bonds early and thus limit the amount of interest the district will owe.
Finally, the board adopted the school district tax rate. The tax rate is what provides the revenue for the general operating fund and debt service fund budgets. The rate is based on property values and the Maximum Compressed Rate set by the Texas Education Agency. For the sixth straight year, the board approved a total tax rate that is less than the previous year’s. The new rate is $1.0929 per $100 valuation. This decrease, combined with the proposed increase in homestead exemptions which will be on this November’s ballot and is widely expected to pass, is estimated to decrease taxes owed on the average home in Arlington ISD by about $438.
Those are just a few of the highlights from a very full agenda. If you would like more details on any of these, or any of the items not covered in this Board Brief, please click here to watch the entire meeting.