As our community experiences remarkable growth, this district remains one of the fastest growing districts in the country. This year four elementary schools opened, and this time next year we will be opening two new middle schools. The district must continually make plans for the future to accommodate the projected increase in enrollment of 11,000 students in the next five years. During the 2000-2001 school year alone, enrollment is expected to increase by 2,700 students. It is difficult to imagine, but for every one student who occupied a desk and attended school in the 1960 s, today there are 11.2 students attending our schools.
Berry shares a moment in the library with a student on the first day of school.
One of the challenges with growth of this proportion is to continue to maintain the highest academic standards for each student. Cypress-Fairbanks ISD is the largest district to ever accomplish this two years in a row. TAAS scores are not the only measure of academic excellence. The district boasts of a strong national reputation for academics as well. Another indicator of the district meeting the challenges of unabated growth is the confidence the business community has in our fiscal management.