The State of our Schools

May 27, 2015July 23, 2017 Guest Author Exemplary Schools, grayson county, Gunter GIFT, Gunter ISD, Gunter scholarships, Gunter Tigers

Gunter ISD is a 3A school district located 25 miles north of Frisco and 20 miles southwest of Sherman. We have 3 campuses encompassing 800 students, PK-12. We are passionate about working with our students to see them be successful in their learning! I’ve included some information below about our academic, financial and extracurricular performance. If there is ever any question or issue I can help you with, please don’t hesitate to contact me at jsiler@gunterisd.org or 903.433.4750.

Academic Performance

Gunter ISD has continued its exemplary academic performance this past year. The results from 2014 were just incredible as GISD was among one of the highest performing districts in the state!

*Grayson County includes all other schools in Grayson County

*Scores in 4th Gr were actually 90%+; lower due to refusal to test

Our performance data is as high as it is not because we focus on a test, but because we have incredible teachers in every classroom who know every child and ensure that each student is successful!

The entire staff at Gunter ISD are CHAMPIONS for our students and inspire them to become the best they can possibly be! And THAT is what makes Gunter ISD high-performing!

Extracurricular Performance

The greatest thing about Gunter ISD is that excellence knows no boundaries. Our students and staff excel at everything they do – because of the hard work, determination and character that are the bedrocks of our programs. Here are just a few things our Gunter Tigers have accomplished this year…

Football: State Quarterfinalists; Regional Champs; Area Champs; Bi-District Champs; District Champs; All-Texoma Defensive Player of the Year; 2 Individuals Signed to Play College Football
Band: 4 Individuals to All-State; 26 to State Solo & Ensemble; 1st in State – Outstanding Performance Series
Volleyball: Area Qualifiers; Bi-District Champs; District Champs; 2 Individuals Named All-State; All-Texoma Player of the Year
Cross Country: Boys Team 4th in District; Girls Team 5th in District
Choir: 2 Individuals to All-State; 46 to State Solo & Ensemble; Earned Sweepstakes at UIL Concert & Sightreading
Swimming: Regional Qualifier; District Top 6 Finisher
Robotics: 1st for Website; 9th Overall at Area
Basketball: Girls Team Playoff Qualifier; 3rd in District
One Act Play: 2 Individuals Named to All-Star Cast
Tennis: Multiple Top-3 Finishes at Area Tournaments
Powerlifting: 1 Individual Qualified for Regionals
Academic UIL: 7 Regional Qualifiers; Math Team District Champion; Silver Medalist at Regionals
FFA: Multiple Reserve Champions and Junior Reserve Champions; 2 Lone Star Degrees Awarded
Golf: Boys Team Qualified for Regionals; 4th Place Individual Finish at Regionals; 1 College Signing
Softball: 5th Place Finish in District; Awaiting All-District & All-Texoma Honors
Track: 20 Individuals Qualified for Area; 2 Area Champions; 17 Qualified for Regionals
Baseball: Currently Ranked 6th in the State; 1 Senior Signed to Play College Baseball

Student Organizations: Students also participate in National Honor Society, National English Honor Society, Cheerleading, Student Council, FCCLA and More!

Financial Update

Gunter ISD has made tremendous financial improvement over the past three years! Here are a few markers of that progress:

Fund Balance

One of the strongest markers of financial progress is our fund balance. In the past three years it has increased from $475,000 to nearly $1.2 million, reaching the state-required minimum for the first time since 2008.

Enrollment

As we’ve talked about in the past, student enrollment is the #1 factor in school finance. We closed the 2012 school year with 840 students. The following year we lost 65 students and we were slated to lose another 50 in the following two years due to smaller enrollments in kindergarten as well as the loss of the Tioga students when they opened their High School. We have bounced back in 2015 but this is primarily due to transfer students. 18% of GISD’s total population consists of transfer students. Those students bring in over $1 million in additional funding for the district. Transfer students have to meet specific criteria to be accepted as a new transfer student including standards in discipline, attendance, and academic achievement. Our transfer students travel from 18 surrounding districts just to have the opportunity to be a Gunter Tiger and the #1 reason families state they are transferring to GISD is ACADEMICS!

Property Values

Property values are another factor in school funding and our adjusted taxable values have declined $34 million over the past 5 years. This is most critical for passing and selling bonds which pay for buildings, technology, buses and the like. We still have $6 million remaining from our 2005 Bond that we are unable to access due to lower property values. There has been significant building in our area and we are hoping to see increased values in 2015.

Expenditures

While each of the factors above impacted our overall revenue, we have also been extremely diligent in our expenditures, decreasing our overall expenditures by $1.2 million in the past 5 years. Due to increased enrollment, we are currently running a $200,000 surplus for this fiscal year.

GREAT Things in GISD!

I want to close by sharing some of the GREAT things going on in GISD! Our Early Childhood Program is in full swing with our Head Start, Preschool and Pre-K programs offering half-day and full-day programs for 3 and 4 year olds. In addition, our After School Care Program offers afterschool care through 6pm including homework assistance and structured games and activities for students through 6th grade.

We are also in the midst of working with our high school students on their new Graduation Plans which will allow them to choose an area of study and pursue it in-depth through an endorsement. One of the endorsements that is growing fast is in the area of STEM and we are adding a second Engineering Class and a Computer Programming course to our offerings next year. We have published an updated High School Course Catalog and have had individual meetings with almost every current 8th grade student to plan out their high school career! Part of those options now include over 83 hours of College Credit through AP courses, Dual Credit courses and Tech Prep courses! That is a savings of up to $4500 at the Community College level to over $40,000 at a private university. It also allows students to be well on their way to an Associate’s Degree before they finish high school.

And to help them achieve the rest of their degree, each student at Gunter can earn up to $7,000 of scholarships through the Kerfoot Trust just by maintaining a quality GPA and full-time enrollment. The Gunter ISD Education Foundation (GIFT) also awards nearly $30,000 annually in student scholarships and campus grants as well as scholarships provided by our Booster Clubs and Gunter Tiger Fan Club. Last year alone our 64 seniors earned over $750,000 in scholarships!

It is a GREAT day to be a Gunter Tiger! We encourage you to partner with us in helping to share the good news of our students and staff as well as being a part of the action – from volunteering on a campus to serving on a board for our boosters, PTO or foundations. Most of all, we want to earnestly thank you for all of your support for our students, our staff and for our schools.