Wylie Independent School District (Taylor County, Texas)

Wylie ISD serves southern Abilene, the communities of Caps, Potosi, and View, as well as unincorporated areas in east central Taylor County.

The district is bordered by the following school districts: Abilene ISD (north), Eula ISD (east, northeast), Clyde Consolidated ISD (southeast), Jim Ned Consolidated ISD (south), and Merkel ISD (west, northwest).

There are a total of seven schools in the Wylie Independent School District. All campuses are located within the city limits of Abilene

• Abilene Wylie ISD Campuses
  • Wylie West Early Childhood (PK-K)
  • Wylie West Elementary (1st-2nd)
  • Wylie West Intermediate (3rd-4th)
  • Wylie East Elementary (PK-4th)
  • Wylie East Junior High (5th-8th)
  • Wylie West Junior High (5th-8th)
  • Wylie High School (9th-12th)

The history of Wylie ISD dates back to the early 20th century. While records show that a Wylie school district was designated as early as 1888, it wasn't until 1902 that a school was organized.[3] Mary V. Wiley, widow of pioneer J.J. Wylie, donated two acres of land for the construction of a new school. Three prominent citizens each contributed $120 for the purchase of materials and residents pooled their talents to erect a twenty-by-thirty foot building for use as both a school and a church.[3]

In its first year (1902), the campus was a private school with an enrollment of 13 students.[4] The school, then called District No. 11, became a public school in 1903. A post office opened in the community a year later under the name Sambo. The school's name was changed from District No. 11 to Sambo School. Due to an increasing student population, a new school was built in 1915 on land donated by Mrs. Wylie.[4] She requested that the school's name be changed to Wylie in honor of her late husband, which was done.[5] A series of bond elections were held during the 1920s. The first, in 1924, funded the construction of a new brick school that opened in 1925. The second bond election was held in 1927 that approved the construction of two additional classrooms and a dining room for the home economics department.[4]

The 1930s saw a number of smaller school districts consolidate with Wylie. The Neill school district did so in 1931, followed by Iberis in 1933. That year, the district expanded from ten to eleven grades. In 1935, Buffalo Gap began sending its tenth and eleventh graders to Wylie, which continued until 1978 when Buffalo Gap consolidated with Jim Ned. Potosi began sending its eleventh grade students to Wylie in 1937 and Cedar Creek closed and began sending its students to Wylie as well.[4] The Bulldog mascot and the colors purple and gold were officially adopted in 1942. Potosi, which had been sending its secondary school students to Wylie since the late 1930s, fully consolidated with the district in 1949.

A bond election passed in 1962 that called for the addition of two buildings and other improvements. By 1964, a total of 466 students were enrolled in the district. As Abilene grew and annexed land from Wylie into its school district, Wylie residents voted to become an independent school district in 1968.[4] Butterfield School, located between the communities of Caps and View, consolidated with Wylie ISD in 1978.[6] A bond election held that same year passed, which funded the construction of a new high school campus on Farm Road 707 (Beltway South).[4]

The district continued to grow and a new middle school (presently Wylie Intermediate School) opened in 1984. A year later, enrollment stood at 1,550. In 1986, an intermediate campus opened on Hardwick Road (present-day Wylie Elementary School). A larger high school campus on Antilley Road opened in 1994 and the previous high school was converted into the district's junior high school.[4]

Wylie schools celebrated the district's 100th anniversary in 2002. At the end of the 2005-2006 school year, Butterfield School closed, reducing the number of schools from six to five.[6] At the beginning of the 2013-2014 school year 5th and 6th grade classes were moved, from the Intermediate and Junior High respectively, to the newly constructed Middle School on Beltway South adjacent to the Junior High. Now, Wylie is expanding rapidly and building more campuses.

Wylie Independent School District (Abilene) is a highly rated, public school district located in Abilene, TX. It has 4,253 students in grades PK, K-12 with a student-teacher ratio of 16 to 1. According to state test scores, 95% of students are at least proficient in math and 90% in reading. Growth in the Wylie Independent School District is consistent. It has become a 5A school in 2019. District enrollment is approaching 4600 students, and they have more than 530 staff members as of 2019.[7]

Wylie opened Phase one of Wylie East Elementary School, which includes grades Pre-K through 1st grade. Wylie has completed Phase two of Wylie East Elementary which will then house all Pre-K through 4th grade students. Another project that has been completed and open for the 2019-2020 school year is the new Wylie East Junior High that will include grades 5-8. All Pre-K through 8th grade students who live East of Highway 83/84 will attend the East campuses.

The Wylie High school added an ACT/SAT Preparation Course. They are also adding a Medlife organization brought to Wylie by Ava DePrang, which impacts the local community by participating in local volunteering events, social organization initiatives, and spreading awareness about global poverty, public health, and global development issues. MedLife members then attend one-week Service-Learning Trips in where they will have the opportunity to shadow local doctors at our mobile medical clinics as well as work hand-in-hand with communities on a development project.[8] Wylie also built the Performing Arts Center (PAC) at the high school to host plays and Wylie band concerts among other things. The school occasionally leases it out on weekends to host local conventions.

Total Expenses

$31,643,000

Expenses Per Student:

$6,723/ student

Education Expenses:

• Instruction 67%
• Support Services 27%
• Other 6% [7]

[9]

[9]

[9]

• Wylie ISD School District, which is ranked within the top 5% of all 1203 school districts in Texas (based off of combined Math and Reading proficiency testing data) for the 2015-2016 school year.
• The school district's graduation rate of 99% has increased from 98% over five school years.[9]

• Wylie Independent School District