On Saturday, May 5, 2018, along with GISD Board President, Dr. Matthew Hay, I paced the 3^rd floor of the Galveston County Justice Center waiting to hear the election results.  It’s been fifteen years since the last successful bond election and a resounding win this night would allow us to continue our efforts in addressing the needs of our students.  At 8:05 pm, Galveston ISD received notice that the results were in and that the bond had passed with a 75% voter approval.  To say we were elated is an understatement.  We appreciate the confidence from our voters giving us the opportunity to make our vision a reality.

This bond addresses items that were determined by the Citizens’ Advisory Committee – CAC.  This committee started with 49 community members that came together to identify, discuss, and prioritize the needs for the district. 

At the first meeting , we brought a $92 million price tag to the CAC but later presented and settled on $31 million making the comment that was shared multiple times and eventually became our rally cry, “We cannot go BIG until we go RIGHT”!  From there was born what we now call the Galveston “2 Step” – 2 bonds in 1 comprehensive package.  We know that to go BIG we must first go RIGHT.

Step 1 is an opportunity to provide for all GISD facilities so that they can safely serve students and staff over the next 5 years.  This is our opportunity to go RIGHT.

Going BIG is Step 2.  We want our GISD facilities to be reflective of the exceptional kids and programs that we offer here in GISD, but we know it is going to take a real effort to identify where or efficiencies and our effectiveness lie, so we need time to align our resources.  We need a demographic study, we need to look at a comprehensive facilities study, we need to continue to utilize our Strategic Plan Facilities Subcommittee and our Citizens’ Advisory Committee to be fully prepared to engage the community in a second bond election.

Now that the community has authorized this bond, our intention is to allow the community to come along for the ride.  We will keep www.gisdbond.org active and create new sections to display project timeline, updates and progress photos.  We hold the trust of our voters to the utmost importance and want to provide transparent, meaningful information as we embark on this journey.

It has been said that “it takes a village” and I firmly believe that together we are better, we are stronger for our children and their future.  Thank you to Galveston RISE and to all the voters who decided that now is the time to take a stand for the for the future of Galveston ISD.

Thank you,
Dr. Kelli Moulton
Superintendent of Schools
Galveston Independent School District