GROVETON — With a new school year just days away, the Groveton ISD Board of Trustees is looking to start the season with a new name for the stadium.
Superintendent Jim Dillard said that he is proud to announce that the stadium will now be named Rodney Thomas Memorial Field.
At the July 27 meeting, the trustees approved a policy regarding naming district facilities, which opened the door for the football stadium to be renamed.
“Bigger districts name every building and field; there is an individual I would like to honor so we made sure that it was done correctly,” Dillard said.
Thomas was a 1990 graduate of Groveton High School, and as a running back, helped the team win back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990. Following that, he played for Texas A&M, and in 1995, was drafted by the Houston Oilers.
Thomas died in 2014.
In a separate matter, the board determined the compressed tax rate stayed the same at .6619, or 66 cents per $100 of property valuation, giving the district $2,461,958 based on a 95 percent collection rate.
Dillard said that will be less than last year’s tax revenue by 8.54 percent. He also said the state’s contribution to the district’s operating capital will be $7,337,697.
It will be business as usual within the budget framework; Dillard said that they are shaving off as much as we can, but do have to have money to operate.
A public hearing on the rate and other budget matters will be held Aug. 24.
In other business, the board:
