Students have noticed a new face around the school this year and some remember this face from their days at Taylor Creek Elementary. Kyle Black is the attendance officer replacing Dick Parker, who retired after last school year. He is also an addition to the administration as an AP.
“When I was at Taylor Creek was when I went and I got my Masters and all that,” Black said. “And the reason I wanted to be in administration was, I think the culture of the school matters.”
Black said his new position as AP and attendance officer is a good opportunity to help set the culture of the school.
“I would rather influence the culture of the school and influence it in a positive way,” Black said.
Last school year, Black was an assistant principal at Copperas Cove High School and before that, he was the P.E. coach at Taylor Creek, but when the position opened up here, he returned to Lampasas.
“I think one thing I’m excited about is being back at the high school,” Black said. “It’s been ten years since I was a teacher and a coach here, so it’s fun to be back in high school.”
As attendance officer, Black’s goal is to have 95% attendance as a campus.
“Last year, we averaged about 92%,” Black said. “The law says we have to be at least 90%, but that’s still missing a lot, so 95% is kind of the goal I want to set, and so that’s what I’ll always be talking about.”
Another one of his goals is to have better communication between the district, the students, and their families.
“Attendance laws and rules are really hard to understand because they’re very specific at times,” Black said. “So we have to communicate well and I want to do that. Communicate all the time and connect with people, just so the right information is out there.”
Black said he likes engaging with the students and being able to talk to them.
“I think that’s it and just letting people know that attendance matters just because when you’re here, you actually get to experience and learn and experience and grow but also that for the rest of your life, there’s some kind of attendance thing,” Black said.
