Caldwell Brownsboro Independent School District trustees defended terminating Superintendent Elton Caldwell, more than weeks after the vote was cast not to extend his two-year contract.

“We did not intend for the vote to indicate we were unhappy with Mr. Caldwell, but rather that we were ready for a change in the district,” Ricky Wyatt said. “We are united as a board and will continue to work together for the betterment of our district.”

Wyatt and three other trustees — Becky Grantham, Jeffrey Fulgham and Donny Wilson — voted on Jan. 18 against retaining Caldwell for another two years. Board President Bobby Teague and Vice President Dusty Wise voted against the move. Joel Irwin did not attend the meeting.

Also on Jan. 18, trustees voted to increase Caldwell’s salary from $108,050 to $115,000 for the 2010-2011 school year.

“Mr. Caldwell has done a wonderful job for our district and has helped us to become financially stable and stronger academically,” Fulgham said. “We are performing well against districts our size, and we continue to improve each year.”

But Teague, in a frontpage story in the Statesman’s Feb. 4 edition, criticized officials for the handling and timing of the vote. And Wise said he believed other board members had received “flack” over Caldwell’s job performance.

Caldwell, 70, has about 18 months remaining on his current deal. Although he’s sugg ested he’d consider retiring before the end of the contract he told the Statesman on Friday he was looking forward to working through the district’s tax election in November.

“This is an optimal time, over the next year, for Mr. Caldwell to use his expertise to help us through the bond issue and to help us find someone who can continue to lead us on the path of growth and excellence he has laid forth,” Grantham said. “We are appreciative of him and the many years he has given us.”

If Caldwell retires before the end of his two-year contract, the district would be forced to begin a premature search for a new superintendent. Teague has said if Caldwell leaves before the November election, it would spell trouble for district officials, calling it “a mess.”

Regardless, the superintendent said trustees could have handled his termination differently.

“And I don’t have a problem telling you that,” he said. “But I have recommended that the Board of Trustees agree to disagree on this matter, put it behind them as I plan to do, and get on with the business of the Brownsboro Independent School District.

“We need to work together with the community in an effort to arrive at a decision that reflects needed facilities in a priority order for construction.”

Caldwell took over the district in 1989. During his tenure, three schools — Chandler Intermediate, Brownsboro Intermediate and Brownsboro High — have been built and numerous improvements made to Chandler Elementary School, Brownsboro Elementary School and Brownsboro Junior High School.

An advisory committee of more than 60 members is scheduled to meet Monday as Dr. Arnold Oates of Texas School Planning provides a list of scenarios for how the district could use a bond proposal to finance new construction across the district.

The oldest of the district’s six campuses — Brownsboro Elementary, Chandler Elementary, Brownsboro High, and Brownsboro Junior High School — need extensive renovations or expansions.

The elementary schools, though, are in the worst condition of the four and expanding them again does not appear to be feasible.

Chandler Elementary was built in 1969 and expanded five times between 1977 and 1995. Brownsboro Elementary was built in 1968, and it was expanded four times between 1972 and 1995.

While the Chandler campus could expand again if it removes its playground area, Brownsboro Elementary cannot even do that. The school is situated between the district administration building and other facilities to the east, Brownsboro Junior High to the south, and Brownsboro High School to the west.

Brownsboro High School is the youngest campus of the group. Built in 1987, it has been expanded just once and appears to be in the best condition. Brownsboro Junior High was built in 1981 and has never been expanded.

All four schools are at capacity.

At Chandler Elementary, limited parking areas for buses and other vehicles is always a concern, with traffi c usually stalling on FM 315 during drop-off and pick-up times.

Like the other schools, it has run out of classroom space and its cafeteria is too small. Multiple access points to the building also pose safety risks.

At Brownsboro Elementary, the campus has simply outgrown itself. It has no room to expand a fifth time, and district and school offi- cials have acknowledged a new campus is needed.

Students at Brownsboro Junior High have their own issues. They must cross Ingram Street to attend classes at buildings that share the same property with the district administration building, and band students have to cross a field and a loading and unloading zone to reach the band hall at Brownsboro High.

At the high school, its athletic facilities and instruction space for studentathletes are inadequate and outdated.

A number of options would be available to the district, including building two new elementary schools and a high school, and increasing the number of students who attend its two intermediate schools.

Texas School Planning was hired last October to consult the district on its capital-improvements plan.