Fund Members Recognized for Innovation 

For Immediate Release: April 27, 2010
Contact: Stacy Hobbs, 800.482.7276, ext. 7233

(Austin) – Winners of the annual Texas Association of School Boards’ (TASB) Risk Management Fund Innovation Award recently received $1,000 each to be used toward their risk management efforts. Fund members recognized include the following independent school districts (ISDs): Abbott, Aldine, Center Point, Corpus Christi, Eanes, Elgin, Garland, Klein, Northwest, and San Marcos Consolidated ISD. Representatives were presented with their awards and checks at the Fund Members’ Conference April 26 in Austin.

 “Established by the TASB Risk Management Fund Board in 2004, this award is a special way of recognizing Fund members who have demonstrated innovation and success in risk management initiatives, products, or programs. Applications are rated on cost effectiveness, originality, transferability for use by other Fund members, and ability to address current needs at the overall member level. Recipients of the Innovation Award set an excellent example of timely, creative, and effective approaches to risk management that we hope other Fund members will emulate,” said Dubravka Romano, TASB associate executive director.

Among winning entries were Abbott’s staff training in CPR and basic first aid; Aldine’s district-produced training video, Back Intact, addressing proper care of the human back; and Center Point’s “Wellness is the Weigh” program promoting a healthy lifestyle for employees and the community.

Other innovative ideas included Corpus Christi’s awareness campaign to increase participation in benefit and wellness opportunities; Eanes’ campaign to increase elementary students’ safety at bus stops; Elgin’s emergency kits to help reunite parents with their children in the event of a campuswide evacuation; and Garland ISD’s “Reach for the Stars, but Watch Your Step” safety campaign to avoid slips, trips, and falls.

Also honored were Klein’s improvements to the district emergency operations plan;
Northwest’s Human Resource Ambassador Program dedicated to paraprofessional staff; and

San Marcos’s safety checklists to maintain employee productivity, prevent injuries, and provide ongoing safety training.

The TASB Risk Management Fund is a self-insurance risk pool serving Texas school districts, community colleges, education service centers, and county appraisal districts. The Fund has been in existence since 1974 and provides workers’ compensation, property and liability, and unemployment compensation coverage to more than 1,100 members. Services range from loss prevention and free member training events to online resources, grant programs, and claim forms.

TASB is a voluntary nonprofit association established in 1949 to serve local public school districts. School board members are the largest group of publicly elected officials in the state. The districts they represent serve more than 4.7 million public school students.