GALVESTON, Texas-Thousands of Galveston children were displaced after Hurricane Ike, and to this day about 2,000 of those students still call other parts of the state home. But that has not stopped school administrators and staff from jumpstarting the 2009-2010 school year with a positive attitude, especially after the turbulent school year didn't stop the district from excelling academically.
Three schools received exemplary rating during the 2008-2009 school year: Parker Elementary School, Austin Middle School, and Oppe Elementary School.
One school, Morgan Elementary, received a recognized rating.
The district's superintendent says that Galveston has never seen a better academic school year.
"The students missed about a month of instruction," said the district's superintendent, Lynne Cleveland. "But after that you walked in our schools and you couldn't tell that there had been a hurricane. It was, 'Let's get down and busy about what we have to do. What we need to do to make sure that our kids are where we need to be.'"
Hurricane Ike put four schools out of commission: Crenshaw Elementary/Middle School, Central Middle School, Scott Elementary and Burnett Elementary.
The District also lost three libraries worth of library books and many textbooks during the hurricane, but donations have helped replenish supply.
"We had a huge outpouring of donations from school districts from around the State of Texas, from the Houston area and nationally," saidCleveland. "We also got a donation from the Laura Bush Foundation to help replenish our library books."< /p>
The district received $17,000 from the Laura Bush Foundation.
Of the schools that were out of commission, Crenshaw Elementary/Middle School is the only one that has reopened. The campus opened last year in the middle of the school year.
Students from the schools that remain closed are attending other schools in the district, and schools in other districts as well. The students from Burnett Elementary School were enrolled at Parker Elementary School, one of schools rated as exemplary.
"We ended up the year pretty strong," said Parker Elementary School principal Melvin Bouldin, Jr. "And hopefully this year we are going to end up beginning the year with about 630 kids as well."
Before the Hurricane, Galveston ISD served 8,000 students. The district will start this school year with 6,000 students. The 25-percent decrease in enrollment led to a 22-percent decrease in staff. People in the area lost jobs at all levels, from administrators to bus drivers.
Classes start August 24, and students might see a new bus around the curb to pick them up. The district lost 45 of the district's 50 school buses after the hurricane. Since then, the district has purchased new and used buses. Fifty-five buses now sit in the Galveston ISD bus barn and are ready for the kids.
