After nearly six years of service on the Georgetown ISD board of trustees, Place 4 member Stephanie Blanck resigned at a Jan. 12 board workshop.

Following the acceptance of Blanck's resignation, the board unanimously voted to appoint GISD alumna and registered nurse Laura Kincheloe to fill the Place 4 seat until the May 2 election.

Some context: Blanck was first elected to the board in 2020 and was reelected for a second term in 2023. With 30 years of education experience, Blanck worked for GISD for 23 years as a director of special education, a licensed specialist in school psychology and a campus administrator.

A closer look: Kincheloe is a registered nurse with a doctoral degree in Education and Leadership in Nursing from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. She has participated in various district initiatives, including serving on the Citizens Advisory Committee, and is a board member for the Georgetown Family YMCA.

What's next: Candidates may apply for a place on May 2 ballot during the filing period, which runs from Jan. 14-Feb. 13.

There are several upcoming and ongoing road projects in Georgetown, including plans to build medians on Williams Drive, and construct two pedestrian and bicycle bridges crossing the San Gabriel River.

Williams Drive
Project: Construct medians with turn lanes on Williams Drive from I-35 to Serenada Drive, including a shared-use path on the north side of Williams Drive, a new waterline, and street lighting from DB Wood Road to Jim Hogg Road to and Serenada Drive to I-35
Update: In the design phase, with the first phase of the project—street lighting from DB Wood to Jim Hogg—anticipated to begin in the spring

• Timeline: 2023-27
• Cost: $18.6 million

• Timeline: 2023-TBD
• Cost: $21 million

A new Cookie Cutters Haircuts for Kids location is now open near the Liberty Hill and Georgetown border.

The business officially opened to clients on Dec. 20, bringing haircuts to children, teens and adults, according to Neal Courtney, CEO of Cookie Cutters Haircuts for Kids.

What they offer: Services at the salon include the signature kids cut, bang trim, hairstyling, teen cut and braiding. The business also offers haircuts for parents as well as a baby’s first haircut package with a certificate of completion, photo and lock of hair. 

Cookie Cutters Haircuts for Kids provides entertainment for clients getting their hair done, including TV shows, video games, a playground, fantasy chairs, bubbles, balloons and lollipops. 

Learn more: The children’s hair salon has over 100 locations in the U.S. and Canada, with locations in Round Rock, Austin and San Antonio. 

The Southwest Williamson County Regional Park in Leander will receive artificial turf upgrades for four fields through a sponsorship with Lonestar Soccer Club. Williamson County commissioners approved the turf project and sponsorship agreement at a Jan. 6 meeting.

About the project: The soccer fields will be converted from natural grass to artificial turf to help reduce impacts from drought and wear, and allow for longer playing time, Precinct 3 Commissioner Valerie Covey said at the meeting.

Utilizing artificial turf will eliminate maintenance costs associated with natural grass, Williamson County Parks and Recreation Director TW Dieckmann said at the meeting.

For the $8.9 million project, Lonestar Soccer Club will fund $6.5 million, and the county will pay for the remaining $2.4 million.

Diving deeper: Lonestar Soccer Club’s sponsorship will allow the club to receive priority scheduling, discounted usage rates and naming rights for the four fields. The club will also take ownership of maintenance and replacement of the turf in the future.

Hundreds of Texas private schools have been approved to participate in the state’s new education savings account program, per a map released by the state comptroller in early January.

The overview: As of press time, 775 private schools and prekindergarten providers had been approved to accept education savings accounts, or ESAs. There are over 1,300 accredited private schools in the state, according to the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission. 

Of the approved schools, there are:

• 233 schools in the Houston area
• 195 schools in the Dallas-Fort Worth area
• 94 schools in the San Antonio area
• 70 schools in the Austin area