So, Govteach, Mr. Thomas, Kerry, Kerry Don.....Why Do You Only Talk About the Negative of Buna ISD?

 I had someone post a comment and several people agree as to " Why am I negative about the Buna ISD.....All the time?" 

" Why are you not positive?" 

You already have a website, Facebook page that does that. 

It is run by people who are hired by the district to do so.....

Even if something negative is posted it is often sugar-coated by whoever posts the story, you don't really know what is actually going on. 

Again, there are more people than you know who are not happy with the district and many times can't afford or are too afraid to say anything for fear of retribution....Or they feel the school district doesn't care about them or their child. 

Oh they say they do, but in many cases they are thrilled when their child leaves the school district for whatever reason. I know, I've seen it. 

You want positive about the district, it is out there. You want to hear why kids like Buna ISD, it too is out there. 

Again, this is a tax receiving entity.  They should be able to take criticism. 

I get nothing for this but a lot of grief. I keep saying at some point " I'm done." 

But there are people out there who have no voice, and I represent those folks..... And until that time, and that day is coming I will write only on economics, politics, the English Reformation, whatever.....

 

I Don't Know Buna ISD.....What is Going to Become of You?

 There is not a day goes by that I do not hear from a parent who has children in the Buna Independent School District. 

Many, are stuck in the school district. 

Can't get their kids into another district, either do not have the transportation, for whatever reason they cannot get their kid{s) into either Evadale. ( A favorite landing spot for a lot of parents/guardians to send their children.) It has even gotten to the point that to many people, longtime Buna people/families are either looking to send, or they're sending their kids to Kirbyville ISD. 

Kirbyville?????? 

I heard from a parent who wrote me the last 72 hours who said, " You know, we wound up in Silsbee ISD, and were very concerned that we bought a home there. " " We always though that Silsbee Schools 'sucked' and sucked badly." 

" We are so glad that we bought a house in Silsbee rather than Buna. "

Another parent wrote me and said, " When I was a kid we made fun of Vidor and the schools there. " " Compared to what is going on in Buna, I tell my sister still in Buna to send their kids to Vidor."  

I used to make fun of Vidor education, as I am an alumni,  until I got to college and E. Smith and J. Smith, the two Senior English teachers at Vidor back in the 1970s, actually got us ready.

Apparently, Vidor is still trying to do a good job. 

I can't say the same thing about Buna. 

A former student of mine wrote about their concerns and Buna Schools. 

" Oh, I am sure the kids are going to do good on the STAAR Tests. That's all they worry about...." " And the new math curriculum, the school is training parents how to teach it."

What?

Another parent is also concerned about just what the kids might be learning.   

"They don't know the American Capital, the Texas Capital. Don't know their multiplication times tables." ( I found that out with my seniors, and why we did BEP( Break Even Points, the point at which a business is neither losing money, nor making money....just breaking even in the business after paying labor, for materials, transportation, utilities, etc....) so you could actually do multiplication, and division without a calculator. 

And in economics, I could " get away with it." And there were even a couple of TEKS that covered the topic.  

I expect Buna Schools to have an increase in their STAAR Exam scores, it's either that, or Buna is in trouble. ( They might be, we will see when the new scores come out in Summer 2026. ) 

Trouble is, are the kids learning anything else?   

Next time I write on Buna ISD- I am going to get into trouble, and probably will get called words. ( That's okay,there patrons and many teachers are thinking the same thing......And if you agree, don't jump on the bandwagon trying to make yourself look good, and throw me under the bus.)  

This said, my next blog(s) will probably be on economics.....And finance/banking/economics mathematics just keeps looking worse.... 

 

Merry XMAS From Buna???? Story Time from Uncle Kerry.....My Nephews Love Storytime from Their Uncle.

 As many of you know, I went out of town last week. A combo of business and well, road trip. Our first real trip in " Ruby the Subie." 

Yes, I have a blue dog plastic 2 inch trinket named " Ralph" on the dashboard for luck. From the old days in which " Chester" Taucer and the rest of the UIL Current Events Team put " Good Luck trinkets on their desk during the contest. I figured, it worked for them, why not for me.  ( Ohhhhhhh Alien.......Chester had an Alien.....I found a 1 inch plastic "Jesus"  I may put with Ralph on the dash I found on Amazon....I may need to be careful, I also found one of Protestant Reformer Martin Luther....... He might need to go on the Toaster's dash. )

I digress......

As we came home Friday after dark, I noticed in Kirbyville that on their " High Street" that's downtown in British speak, they had their Christmas lights up on their telephone poles.  And because we were hungry and were looking for someplace in Buna not too busy to grab a mouthful to eat....Fausto's, they were hanging out the door, and well, we didn't want Mexican, or nasty Sonic( They're all nasty IMO), We are not really paying attention on 96,  we turn down South Hwy 62 hoping for something in M-Ville, and THERE THEY WERE! 

BUNA'S XMAS DECORATIONS, LIT UP IN ALL THEIR GLORY ON THE TELEPHONE POLES! 

This photo was waiting for me when I get home from a former student.....And the thing is, she's an absolute sweetheart. And if she sees it.....

 

 As many of you know, my wife was nicknamed by the Class of 2006 AP Gov/Eco class....St. Debbie....Debbie the Good. 

If you meet her you will wonder if the "sweetness" that she acts, like is just that....An Act......It is not....In another time period such as the 1800s, she would have been a spinster, an old maid missionary to China. Like Lottie Moon for you Southern Baptists....

Instead in the late 1900s, she wound up with....The ole Govteach. And yes, " I am what I am...." Who else would be crazy enough to write a blog in which it pretty much him against well, a lot of stuff. Primarily a school district that is presently a damn mess....And many mornings I am sure she gets up wondering, " What lunacy is going to occur today at the Compound?" 

Quick story I have never told. 

My wife never had a boyfriend....Before me. She had dates, but never a serious boyfriend. She literally asked me out after a Lamar football game( We were both in the marching band).....She was a Freshman, I was a Senior. My parents, before they met her, worried I was dating some " little girl" until they met her and she is one of those people who was " born old." In many ways, she is more mature than me...In many ways, I am still 12 years old. ( Pay attention to the 12 year old part, it will come into play.) 

That said, in certain ways, she is somewhat naive. 

I worried about that when we married.......

Until on our honeymoon, I step out one morning, I can't remember if it was for  a newspaper, or doughnuts, or just what, and when I went back to the hotel room, I walked and she was sitting on the bed in a button down shirt looking like she was waiting for 007 James Bond....or even someone cooler, Steve McQueen..... All I could think was..."Wow, look at the babe I married,  she's looking like a  Bond girl"......It was at the point I realized, I got nothing to worry about....

So, Govteach, Kerry, Kerry Don, Mr. Thomas.....Where we going here?  

As we turn down 62, I point out the gift box not telling her what most people think it looks like........And in typical St. Debbie fashion, she says....Nothing.....

" She knows." 

I've never really talked with her about the gift box and that it looks like Mama got a " special gift" this year,  a gift in which she may have slipped away from the rest of the family , locked the door to the master-bedroom, and is not seen for the next hour. Only to emerge when the kids wonder out loud..." Where's Mom?"

And she doesn't read the blog....On purpose, afraid someone will ask her about some lunacy I may have written..... It wasn't until after we married she didn't know how scary I can get, and did onetime with a person I perceived as a threat.( I did grow up in 1970s Vidor)  

There are only what, 4-5-6 of the " Cock in the Box" gift boxes in town. I know the first year I was teaching in Buna I noticed them and said nothing, I thought it was just 12 year old Kerry coming out. It was the second year I was there and I overheard a couple of senior boys laughing about it.  And I asked a male longtime Bunaite faculty member if I was seeing something, to which they replied, " No, every male over the age of 10 sees it too." 

And now, I get to use it for material every holiday season.... 

For years I have talked up Buna. ( Not so much in recent years) About how great the school district was, we were turning out kids as good,just as smart, just as prepared, if not better than the rest of the area.  

And many of these people come from Mid-County, The Groves, Bridge City, up Hwy 62 towards the lakes. 

You know good and well that these people think, why does Buna continue to hang a pecker in a box, complete with a nut-sack on their telephone poles?  

I'll get ugly messages about costs, and " You should buy new ones." and the " work involved in hanging them up." 

And the majority of the decorations are Christmasy. 

But those 4-5-6 .......Well, keep giving me material Buna......Keep giving me material..... 

 

 

 

  

 

 

So, I've Been Asked This About Buna Schools.....It is Concerning......

 I had 3 different people come up with basically the same idea. 

And one of the people really understands politics and I've had serious political discussions with that person......And the thing is, the exact same philosophical thought came from two other people, actually a third, but they were a little more reserve in expressing their feelings concerning Buna ISD. 

You MUST remember Buna ISD is a political entity. It raising taxes. Has the ability to tax.  Is run by elected officials. 

Again, let me say this, the Board of Trustees( School Board) are elected officials.  

There are some of you out there who just do not understand that train of thought.  

Yes, they do not receive a salary. 

But often great expense is made to run for these elected positions.  

They often are in charge of a larger taxing, and spend more money, hire more people than the sheriff's office, the precinct road and bridge employees, county clerk's office, the DA's Office, ( Little known fact, the District Attorney himself is paid by the state, not the county.) judges, emergency services,( Here in Orange County, a port authority) etc. 

And we often overlook how much power and influence local school boards have. 

In the last school board election, there were so many people who ran as one issue candidates. And I was reminded by one of the people yesterday that they remember me talking about " One Issue" candidates in Government class, years ago. 

One issue candidates run to solve one problem that the government entity is having. ( I have often threatened to run as a one issue candidate, to do something in the Texas Legislature about "Day-Light Savings." Of course, I am never going to run. I'd be afraid I'd get elected and then, I'd try and do something about schools, like get rid of tests. And there is too much money involved and they'd throw me out on my ear.  )

There was no secret why so many people were running////It was to get rid of the former Supt. of Schools. A lot of people were saying it was because she was black, and yes, there are people that way. I get a lot of blow-back from people because my son is married to a Chinese girl  than I speak about. I have had people, mostly females who have told me, " He couldn't find a white girl?" ( Yeah Chinese girl and she fits the satirical mold that Saturday Night Live had in a skit during the election in which the late US Senator Bob Dole was running for President. Sen Dole was looking for his Vice-Presidential running mate in which he he said, " Yeah, I need a Chinese.....Hard working, smart, good at math..." And April fits all of those characteristics.....even though SNL meant it as satire.) ( I need to talk one day about the cute innocent girl, a relative of someone I know from Buna set my son up with for a few dates.....Innocent according to her parents...."She's seen more penises than a urinal at an Interstate 10 truck stop." As I was informed later. And as I was told..." Man, and they told me she was a "Good church girl.")

I am convinced it was because she was a Supt of Schools for a city or rich suburban school, not a small rural school. Sometimes people just are not one size fits all. 

And people were running to replace her. 

Well, she " Got the Hell outta Dodge" even before the election and wound up in a school district even larger than Beaumont ISD.   

Good for her, she was trained more for being Supt of Schools in Waco ISD than 3A Buna ISD. The culture is just different in rural East Texas, especially those of us in the Southeast Texas region.. We have a Cajun influx culture that even areas like Northeast Texas, while rural and really is farming area , well it's different than we are down here. 

But....I digress.....

The former Supt of Schools left long before the new board member took office and their one issue was solved....

And as one person wrote me.....They had nothing to fall back on. "And they've acted like they have not had a clue  what they are supposed to do."

Their words. 

And several who wrote me felt that way. 

I am sure I will hear from people saying the board has done, this or that or this.....But many of the patrons certainly don't see it that way. They feel like as one person put it..." They've lost control." 

If 3-4 ( The fourth did not come out and say, it, they just suggested)  feel that way, how many others feel that way, and have not said anything....I'll get messages from those in the next 24-96 hours. )

One of the biggest concerns should be ' How many teachers are in the district without teacher's certificates.' I know they are were bragging on Facebook about some of the faculty getting certified a couple a weeks ago, and my question is this...."Why were they hired in the first place?"  I know there were people with the correct certificate passed over for positions for people who did not have the correct certificate. I talked to the those certified people. And they even had experience in that teaching field. They were not even interviewed. And these were longtime Buna residents and graduates.

One of the things parent of kids in special education programs especially need to check and make sure their child's teacher is correctly certified. 

Heck, check all the teachers. 

And that can be done by clicking on the link to this site.......TEA Certificate Look-up.    

Want to see if it is working? Type in the appropriate slots......Thomas....Kerry......Don ( Mine should come up)

I wonder why this often isn't made available on all school district's website? 

It wasn't that long ago that teachers with certificates were a must before they were even considered.  

People, don't be afraid to hold the board members accountable. Got questions, go to a board meeting and ask questions. 

Vote in school board elections.

And if you really want to get involved, run for the board.  You never know. You may get elected. 

 

 

Ain't Nobody Going to Teach in Buna ISD.....And I'd Tell Them " Go to H@ll Too...."

 So, I leave town for a few days and all sorts of things happen.......At Buna Schools

Allegedly, a teacher was hit at one of the schools. 

 Yes. struck.   

The story goes that when the teacher returns to class the next day, the kid who hit them is there, sitting in the class. Apparently, little, if anything, has been done to this kid, and there is the kid.  In the same classroom. 

There are not too many jobs in which you expect to get assaulted, and more and more, it is happening to teachers....The only other one is law enforcement and when that happens, every policeman, policewoman in the county is showing up to help you out and the person is going to jail. That's after you probably have gotten the crap beat out of you for hitting a cop.....Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. 

Purportedly, when the teacher asked what consequences were involved with the teacher, leadership chastised the teachers, at which time they became distraught, and was suggested by others( not administration) that they " Go home for the day." And administrators, learning that the teacher was leaving allegedly confronted the instructor and told them that they " Couldn't leave for the day."     

Then, I hear of this "jewel" 

Teachers at Buna are also supposedly being told that they can't tell kids to stop bad behavior. That instead they are supposed to tell the kids, " I see you are having a bad day...."" How can I help." 

I can see me " helping you." 

Helping you to the " cuss porch" to learn you some new " adjectives, adverbs, nouns and verbs..."  

Yeah, I'd tell the kid I was having a bad day too...."Your ass showed up.  "

And hit me? I may have to figure a way how, and I may go to Huntsville, but you're not hitting another teacher.  

Why in this world, would anyone stay at Buna ISD as a teacher? 

Is this school today? 

And of course, teachers are distraught.  

It sounds to me administration doesn't want to do their jobs. 

That happened my last couple of years at Buna High and I literally had to take over senior discipline. I got exceptionally rough on the seniors because, well, no one else was doing it. 

Another male teacher had to handle the sophomores and juniors but the seniors fell into my lap.  

It is another reason I retired and left. Another duty, another job I got nothing extra for..  

At one time I told teachers to apply for position in Buna ISD. No longer. I tell them, why get underpaid, micromanaged, have the threat of violence, be treated as second class citizens. I certainly told my nephew not to apply there. 

It makes you wonder if the politicians on the board know what is really going on, or care?  

Morale at the school is awful.  They may not be telling you because they are afraid of repercussions, but they are telling others, including the writer of this publication. 

NEXT BUNA ISD BLOG: Words from the parents and patrons of the district... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I'm Getting the H&ll Outta Buna!"

 I hear from people all the time who....." Just want to vent." 

Many times when I write something concerning people having troubles with the Buna ISD, I hear from people well, for weeks.  

And I am here for that. I may not have any answers, but I know it is good to tell someone else what the heck is going on with either your child, or what the school district is doing to the faculty and staff at the school.  Just "get it off your chest" as the old saying goes.....

It is not even Christmas break, and there are people looking to get their kids into another area school district.....Even looking hard at homeschooling.

People looking for homes to rent, property to purchase to set up a trailer on and establish residence within that district. 

Evadale is often the first choice and I am surprised at the number of people looking to move there. "I got to get my kids out of the Buna Schools by any means possible."  And to many people, Evadale is the obvious choice. 

I am asked more than you know " Mr. Thomas, what area school district would you send your kid to right now in the 2025-2026 school year?" 

And I am somewhat surprised at the numbers of people asking me this question, and it is growing expeditiously at an unbelievable rate. 

I'm asked that more than you know.....And I have serious opinions on the subject.

And still say.....LCM....Bridge City.....Orangefield. ( Sorry, I tell folks NOT to attend Buna anymore, and at one time I recommended it as one of my first choices for parents to send their children, but alas, no more.)

Yes, Orangefield. Still small, still gives a pretty darn good education. I just hate them for competition reasons.  

If Mike Gentry had offered me the Orangefield High School Government /Economics job. I would have went down to interview.....

But take the OFISD position?....I would have been tempted, very tempted, but I still would have said         " No."  

My second year at Buna High I became somewhat attached to the kids in the Buna Community, call me an old fashion Victorian/Edwardian Romantic . Theological,  if you will, in ideology.  I always felt like I was supposed to be there. That old Calvinistic ideology of " foreordination" I grew up being beat into my head by my serious Presbyterian grandfather, even though I fight the belief tooth and nail to deny, yet, still influences my life....  ( Romantic is often defined accord to Webster's as  "marked by the imaginative or emotional appeal of what is heroic, adventurous, remote, mysterious, or idealized.")

 Adventurous, remote, mysterious? Yeah, believe it or not, Buna ISD seemed that way in my " different" pensive brain. 

Why not Evadale?

Nothing against Evadale, People who send their kids there seem to be thrilled, however,  I often wonder if the high school has enough to prepare their students for the next step in life?  Smaller schools, while great when attending, often lack enough facilities, the faculty to prepare their future graduates for college, the workplace, etc.....I'll now receive mail from people expressing their delight with the school district. 

I say this, and my child graduated from a fancy 5A high school , took three years of French, from two different teachers, and his French language skills amount to him being able say...."Voici les nazis" which translates to mean, " Here come the Nazis!" He speaks Mandarin Chinese, Korean but he lived in "The People's Republic" and South Korea for years. Got to learn the language to order orange duck, pork dumplings and noodles.( However, when RRT applied to Texas to work on his baroque Master's program, the combo of him taking 3 years of French in high school, plus his speaking ability in Mandarin sealed his acceptance.)

But, there are so many desperate people within the Buna ISD that, well, Evadale seems to be the only way out. And sometimes " Chances need to be taken."....It's got to be better than what my kids are going through right now...And Evadale ISD offers something that Buna ISD no longer holds for many..... 

Hope. 

And I can't blame them. I'd do the same thing if it were my child.  

( Still working on an upcoming blog on Buna Schools, got a message last night changed my entire blog I was writing. I had 1100 words written, and just put it into a file. May need to go even more dark than first planned. Really Tenebrous...I may not blog again until this weekend. I have to be an adult for the next several days.)

 

 

 

 

"Have You Given Up on Buna ISD?"

 I've received a number of messages with this or other statements that are very similar. 

There gets to a point that I have to take a break from writing on the school district. I probably could write 1-3 blogs a day on Buna Schools, but it gets to the point that it is too much. It gets oversaturated.  

Then there are my die-hard folks who can't get enough information on Buna. They are my meat and potatoes readers, and if you know me, I love me some meat and potatoes. ( Not that my Coonass ancestry doesn't come out from time to time and well, I love me some rice too.) Quick story, when we were in Ireland, we got to talking to man from Virginia who had brought his daughter to study at the University of Limerick, and for some reason, they decided they wanted pizza for dinner. ( Pizza is worldwide, there were pizza parlors in China) And with the pizza, they were brought a giant side order of chips( French Fries).....Welcome to Ireland, they love their potatoes. 

But, I digress/ 

Without my core of readers, well, I try often to write for them, and either get news out, or remind them they are not alone......And many times the ole Govteach puts his 2¢ into the mix.  

Then, there is a core of people who hate when I point out the shortcomings of the school district. It's like the school district does no wrong. And it gets to the point that enough is enough and I have to step away. Let the fire go down, and often this is after I have been pouring 99 octane on the flame for a while.  

And sometimes, it gets so negative, well, I  go into a economics/finance composing mode.....Just step totally away from writing on the Buna ISD.  Let myself rest and recharge. 

I get a lot of messages and in truth, I do welcome them. Many are just questions and I try and answer them the best I can.  

And sometimes, it takes a while to answer. I get bogged down. Sometimes, I let you know I've read the message simply by writing a blog on the subject.  

Yes, I am working on a couple of Buna ISD blogs. I am not sure when they will be published. It might be as soon as Monday if all my information pans out.  It may be longer, and next week, blogs will be few. I have to adult. 

As always, all information I receive is anonymous. For the blog to work, it has to be that way. 

Again, thank you for reading. .