A CHRONOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION OF
CONSTRUCTION FOR INCREASED
ENROLLMENT IN THE NORTH EAST
INDEPENDENT
1955 to 1974
Author: Jim LaGrone
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Over a period of approximately two decades the
District
has grown from a, system of widely scattered rural schools into one large
consolidated district of progressive community schools. Since 1955, it has grown
from a district with approximately 4,450 scholastics into a district with a
population of over thirty thousand scholastics. This study will be an attempt
to describe the tremendous growth that the NEISD has experienced and the manner
in which it met the challenge presented by this growth.
B. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROBLEM
The NEISD is one of the outstanding school districts in the
state of
C. ASSUMPTIONS AND LIMITATIONS
The writer was able to obtain written records going back
only as far as 1958. Much of the material and information used in this paper
comes from pamphlets and brochures published by the NEISD. The writer
interviewed teachers, principals, and administrators of the NEISD. Some of
these people's association with the NEISD goes back almost twenty years. Some
of the information used in this study relies on the memory of these people. This
paper takes into account the major aspects of the growth of the NEISD.
D. DEFINITIONS
The word year refers to the school year; that is, from
September of one year to September of the next year. The abbreviation NEISD
refers to the
CHAPTER II
THE NEISD BEFORE 1955
A. THE NORTH EAST RURAL
The NEISD
had its earliest beginnings in the reorganization of the Texas Education System
under the Gilmer-Aiken Laws. In the 1948-49 school census the seven common
school districts that now comprise the NEISD had a total enrollment of 756
scholastics. The districts and their enrollment were as follows:
with 17 scholastics
- Seay
with 57 Scholastics
with 140 scholastics
with 67 scholastics
with 93 scholastics
with 274 scholastics
- Coker Common School. District
#50
with 109 scholastics
On August 3, 1949, the above mentioned districts were
consolidated into the
B. PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE NEISD
The land area of the new NEISD is one hundred thirty-six
square miles. It is located in the northeast section of
(The)
The NEISD
is still only about one-fourth developed. The southern portion of the district
is heavily populated, but there is much room for expansion to the north. The
district has experienced its heaviest growth out the major highways IH 35 and
US 281 (San Pedro). New housing developments, apartments, condominiums,
businesses, and shopping centers are constructed in this district.
CHAPTER III
THE NEISD FROM 1955 to 1974
A. 1955 to 1958
At the time, that the
In the 1955 school year, the NEISD was critically
overcrowded, primarily at the elementary level. All grade levels in these three
schools were meeting on a half-day schedule. In the district, there were 4,467
students, of which 67.7 percent were in the elementary grades. The junior high
and high school, to which a new wing of classrooms and a girls' gymnasium had
just been added, were also experiencing this overcrowded situation, but to a lesser
degree. Construction was underway. In the next two years, five elementary
schools would be opened and two additions to the secondary school plant would
be completed.
In September of 1956, Olmos Elementary opened its doors,
taking its students from areas previously assigned to Castle Hills. An eight
room addition and teachers' lounge was completed at Serna Elementary in time
for the opening of school. Ridgeview Elementary was opened the first day after
the Thanksgiving Holidays, taking students from Castle Hills, Olmos, and Coker
areas.
Until Ridgeview opened, these schools had the entire first
grade and part of the second grade meeting on a half-day basis. In January of
1957, Wilshire Elementary opened in an area that had previously been part of
Serna's attendance area and relieved the half-day classes in that part of the
district. It was at this point in time that the NEISD was able to leave behind
the half-day scheduling of its students. The district was growing. Its
enrollment had risen by over twelve hundred from 4,467 to 5,693.
In September of 1957,
During
this school year, Castle Hills and Ridgeview had to make adjustments on the top
side of the elementary level. They held seventh grade classes for students who
would attend the new junior high.** Because of overcrowded conditions at Olmos
Elementary, Castle Hills also held sixth grade classes for both of these
schools.*** North East Junior High still held seventh grade classes and housed
all of the eighth grade students in the district. Dressing rooms were built and
cinders laid on the track at the
B. 1958 TO 1961
During the period from 1955-1958 the junior high and high
school received five additional structures (besides the ones mentioned earlier
the 200, 300, and 400 classroom wings had been added); however, these
facilities
*Contributed
by Emma Ruth LaGrone; the only first grade teacher at Castle Hills in 1957.
**Contributed
by Garland LaGrone; Ridgeview's Principal from 1956 to present.
***Contributed
by Vistor Miculka; Olmos's Principal from 1956 to present, whose son attended
fifth grade at Olmos and moved to Castle Hills for sixth.
Six were fast becoming inadequate. The junior high school
now contained 1,870 students whereas three years earlier it had only 980. The
high school had ballooned from an. enrollment of 470 to 1070 during the same
period. It was in 1958 that a new junior and senior high school facility was
completed on adjoining sites in the southwest part of the district. This was
the opening of a short-lived Robert E. Lee Junior High, and of the
Also in 1958, the Central Office moved into a frame house
while awaiting construction of its new facility. School Administrators for the
NEISD had offices in rooms that had previously been bedrooms, kitchens, and
bathrooms.* The building program had caught up with the district's growth, but
only for a short time. In 1958 another twelve hundred students were on the
roles of the NEISD's teachers.
During the 1959 school year, new school construction in the
district was relatively low. Additions to existing schools were being
completed. A Central Supply Warehouse was constructed at the site planned for
the construction of a new Central Office. The cafeteria at
An eight-room addition was made to Wilshire Elementary in
1959. Wilshire became the first elementary school to have a permanent library.
This was done by knocking out the wall between the two adjoining classrooms.
Seventeen portable buildings containing two classrooms each were constructed. These
were moved in and set up at Castle Hills, Dellview, Olmos, and Ridgeview Elementaries,
and at Lee and Garner Junior Highs. These buildings could be transported to
other schools in the district as the need dictated.
*
Contributed by Sara Harris; Director of Information
Seventeen hundred more students now lived in the NEISD. The
total enrollment in the district rose above ten thousand for the first time.
On July 1, 1959, Dr. Virgil T. Blossom, the new
superintendent, took office. He would lead the district through its years of
greatest growth. In 1960, the district was still experiencing problems with
overcrowding. An additional fifty-three portable buildings were constructed. Many
of the elementary schools were using them. Both of the junior highs, Garner and
Lee, were making extensive use of them., The entire eighth grade classes at Lee
Junior High were conducted in these portable buildings; however, study hall was
held in the cafeteria and physical education classes were held in the newly
enlarged facility at the senior high next door.* MacArthur moved into the AAAA
ranks, while Lee remained behind in AAA competition. The
One new elementary school, Walzem, held classes for the
first time in 1960. It took students from Serna and Wilshire. It was the first
elementary school in the district to have a library included in the original
design (as opposed to a temporary one put in an existing classroom). Each new school
after this would have a library included in the blueprints when it was built.
Again the total enrollment figures ballooned. Another
seventeen hundred students had moved into North East schools. The NEISD now had
11,752 students on its rolls.
C. 1961 TO 1967
In the period from 1961 to 1967, the district was growing
and building profusely. To take care of this it had to vote a new bond issue in
1960. Fourteen new school buildings were completed during this period. These
included two AAAA senior high schools, four junior high schools, and eight
elementary schools. Additions to the existing high schools and also to four
existing elementary schools were made. A centralized athletic complex was built
on a fifty-six acre site paid for from the 1960 bond issue. The facilities were built with money
made available through the sale of revenue bonds that were repaid by athletic
receipts and community contributions.
It was in 1961 that
Two elementary schools opened in 1961. One was Colonial
Hills, taking students from Dellview and Castle Hills. The other was Oak Grove,
taking students out of Serna. Each elementary school built prior to 1960 had
permanent library facilities constructed during this school year. This was done
by either remodeling or combining several existing classrooms or by
constructing a new library building.
The yearly increase in the NEISD's total enrollment was down
a little from the previous year with only fifteen hundred new faces appearing
in the schools. In 1962 the first football game was played in the new, 10,000
seat North East Stadium. An underdog Robert E. Lee team that had just joined MacArthur
in the AAAA ranks defeated Fort Worth Pascal by a score of twenty-one to fourteen.
A cinder track was also built around the football field. Nimitz and Garner
Junior Highs were split after only one year in their new buildings. It was in
this year that the newly constructed Dwight D. Eisenhower took half of Nimitz's
student body and Walter Krueger Junior High received half of Garner's students.
The NEISD now had two senior and four junior high schools. This made necessary
the change to a 6-3-3 school plan from the 6-2-4 grade plan that had been in
effect since 1955. In other words the ninth grade, which had previously been
part of the senior high school, now moved down to the junior high school. The
NEISD would not need a new senior high school for another four years because of
this move.
East Terrell Hills and Jackson-Keller were the two new elementary
schools opened that year. Jackson-Keller's new student body came approximately
half from Castle Hills and half from Olmos. Walzem and Wilshire contributed to
that of East Terrell Hills.
Another fifteen hundred new students had crowded into North
East Schools. Almost fifteen thousand students now lived in North East
attendance areas. Two new elementary schools were opened in September, 1963. These
were Harmony Hills, located in the southwest part of the district, and
Windcrest in the southeast corner. At the same time Colonial Hills,
Jackson-Keller, and
At
Larkspur and
As in 1963, 1964 saw an additional sixteen hundred students
taking their places on the district's roles.
In 1965, an Area Vocational Facility was opened on the campus
of
No new elementary schools were opened in 1965, but extensive
additions were made to several existing schools. Six classrooms were added to
Coker, Colonial Hills, and Oak Grove. Twelve classrooms were built onto Harmony
Hills and Windcrest. Lastly, a smaller addition of four classrooms could now be
found on the campus of East Terrell Hills Elementary.
During the 1965 school year another enrollment milestone was
reached. Over twenty thousand students now lived in the NEISD. In ten years, the district had grown
from 4,467 to 20,751 scholastics.
A time of sadness was experienced throughout the district
during this year because Dr. Blossom, the superintendent, passed away. Joe P.
Woods, the assistant superintendent, finished the year and. was elected
superintendent for the next year.
Two new AAAA senior high schools were opened in 1966.
Winston Churchill was built in the west side of the district. It took its students from an
attendance area that had previously belonged to Lee. Theodore Roosevelt opened
on the opposite side of the district, just east of IH 35. Students who had
previously attended MacArthur now attended
Basketball season opened in a new field house in 1966. Next
to the Astrodome in
Larkspur, Ridgeview, and Serna Elementary Schools each
received a six-classroom addition in 1966. West Avenue Elementary opened school
with a twelve-classroom addition.
The enrollment in 1967 was 22,396. Approximately sixteen
hundred more students had found their way into NEISD classrooms.
D. 1967 TO 1974
Nineteen sixty-seven was a year of planning and beginning
construction on more facilities for the NEISD. Almost two thousand additional
students were now living in the district. In July of that year, Billy R. Reagan
became the fifth superintendent in the NEISD's short history.
The fruits of the 1967 labors were enjoyed by the NEISD
employees during the 1968 school year. Three
new elementary schools opened to relieve congestion in schools adjoining their
areas. The growth of the district had shifted from the southwest area to the
southeast area as
At Krueger Junior High, a basement classroom addition was
completed. A library and second floor classrooms could now be found at Nimitz
Junior High. A total of ten new classrooms were available at each school
because of these additions.
In 1968, Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) was the new
thing on the high school level. This program opened first in
Enrollment figures increased by sixteen hundred. Over
twenty-five thousand students were now attending North East schools.
A new "multi-purpose" building could be found on
the campus of each elementary school in 1969. These structures provided an
indoor physical education facility.
Participating in a pilot program in 1969, the sixth grade
students from Harmony Hills attended classes at Eisenhower Junior High. This
led the way for the movement of all sixth graders into the new middle schools
the following year.
Air-conditioning was installed in the four high schools, the
four junior highs, and several elementary schools for the 1969 school year. All
other schools in the district would have this luxury before the end of the next
school year. All new schools in the district would be built with
air-conditioning.
A Central Service Facility Warehouse was constructed at the
Central Office site. A baseball stadium was completed adjacent to the football
stadium as BAC. In July, 1970, a driver's
education range was set up on the parking lot next to the Field House at BAC.
Enrollment growth in the NEISD was beginning to taper off
somewhat. Only eleven hundred newcomers were living in the district.
In 1970, the NEISD began a kindergarten program, with Castle
Hills and Northwood Elementary offering pre-school classes on a tuition basis.
It would be another three years before the rest of the elementary schools would
offer kindergarten classes; but when they did, it would be universal in the
district and on a non-tuition basis.
Also in 1970, Edward H. White and
A
The writer was able to find little happening in the area of
new construction during the 1971 and 1972 school years. The enrollment went up
five hundred during 1971. During 1972, growth figures started to move back to
normal with more than eleven hundred students in the NEISD who had not attended
schools there before.
Also in 1972,
the ROTC armories at the four high schools were air-conditioned. Tennis courts
at all of the high schools were reconditioned and covered with "lay-cold
surfacing." An additional six hundred eighty-nine seats were added at the
top of the existing stands at the BAC football stadium and a new press box was
added to the east stands. (The old press box at the top of the west stands remained
in use.)
In 1973, things were more normal in the district with many
new facilities being opened. As mentioned earlier this was the year that
kindergarten opened on a half-day basis. For attendance purposes, each
kindergarten student (one membership) was equivalent to one-half student who
was enrolled in any other grade.
Serna, Walzem,
and
In 1973, two classrooms and an industrial arts addition
opened at
A second gymnasium was built on each campus at Lee,
At the end of the 1973 school year, eight new tennis courts
were opened at the BAC.
The NEISD enrollment went over the thirty thousand mark for
the first time. Over two thousand new students were in North East schools. The
enrollment went up so much more than usual because the kindergarten students were
included in enrollment figures for the first time.
* Contributed
by Tom Jungman; assistant principal,
CHAPTER IV
THE NEISD TODAY
The
Today, four class AAAA high schools, six middle schools, and
twenty-two elementary schools can be found scattered throughout the densely
populated southern areas of the district. The Central Office Buildings house
administrative and consultory personnel for the district. The old house that
was the Central Office in 1958 is still in use and has been moved to the site
of the new middle school under construction on a site that is farther north
than any existing school. The district can boast a modern and impressive
athletic facility that is home for some of the outstanding athletic teams in
the state of
The northern region of the district is still much the same
as it was in 1955 when the NEISD was born. There still exist large rural areas
in the district in which future growth will occur. The leaders of this district
will constantly be working to attempt to forecast the needs that this growth
will dictate and will have educational facilities available as they are needed.