By Lorenzo Salinas

l.v.salinas@panews.com

 

Nederland Independent School District missed nine days due to Harvey; however, in all other aspects, the storm that deluged large parts of Southeast Texas had a minimal impact on the bulldog district.

Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum Stuart Kieschnick said the school district sustained “very minor damage” from Harvey and no flooding.

The student population has not been adversely affected either, as Kieschnick said their students “had come out in full.” In fact, student attendance numbers were up due in part to displaced families coming in from other areas ravaged by Harvey.

According to Kieschnick, there were 72 new students coming into NISD who had been displaced from their original homes. Kieschnick stressed that this number was current as of the time of this article, and implied that it could change as the school year progressed.

Kieschnick said the district could handle the 72 new arrivals readily, noting the number “was nothing outrageous.”

Attendance from faculty was noted as normal, too, as Kieschnick said some staff had suffered Harvey-related damages but that they were still showing up for work.

On Monday, the board of trustees had approved a Hurricane Harvey resolution to pay the district’s employees for the days missed from the storm.

Texas Education Agency approved a missed school days waiver applied for by Nederland ISD. Port Arthur ISD had applied for and been approved for a similar, albeit longer, one.

“We’re just trying to play catch-up now,” Kieschnick said. “We’re trying to get back to a good routine.”