Photo Texas Photography to open HQ in River Place this week, Founder and former teacher Gallien plans for TX expansion
By VAL OLIVAS, Four Points News
Photo Texas Photography is officially moving headquarters to River Place this week as founder Cindy Gallien has her eye toward expanding into more Texas markets.
River Place resident Gallien will have a much shorter commute to work in the days ahead when Photo Texas offices move from Anderson Mill to 6500 River Place Blvd. on Dec. 11.
“We will have an (indoor) studio and have outdoor access to beautiful spots. Our building sits on the edge of the preserve so we have incredible views and scenery,” Gallien said.
Cindy Gallien, of River Place, has built Photo Texas Photography from the ground up since 1999. Today she has 35 employees, many shown in this photo.
Photo by Photo Texas Photography
With 35 employees—and additional contractors–Photo Texas covers the Austin, Houston, Beaumont, College Station and San Angelo areas. It offers photography services for school portraits, senior portraits, school sports and activities, and youth league action. Photo Texas also provides event photography and photo booth rental.
Vandegrift tops US, TX, LISD in college prep SAT and ACT test scores
By SARAH DOOLITTLE, Four Points News
For the second year in a row, students from Vandegrift High School have produced average SAT scores that are higher than average scores in the United States, Texas or other Leander ISD schools.
Furthermore, a greater percentage of VHS students took the SAT, with 82 percent of the Class of 2013 participating versus 67 percent of LISD students. The average VHS student’s SAT score was a total of 1656 out of 2400. The national average is 1484 and LISD students post an average of 1579.
District-wide, scores on the SAT increased by 30 points from the class of 2012 to 2013 even though nationally, average scores dropped by three points.
Four Points now has City Council representation in District 6
By RICH KEITH, Four Points News
Four Points now has representation on the Austin City Council in District 6 with last week’s approval of new redistricting maps.
Last November, Austinites voted for geographic representation. The successful campaign achieved what had eluded citizens and planners for over 30 years: a city charter amendment which changed the make-up of the City Council members from six at-large members and a mayor to 10 members, each representing one district, plus a mayor.
Made official on Nov. 25, Four Points will lie in District 6. The new district encompasses all of River Place and Four Points areas to the north of RM-2222 and only portions of Comanche Trail. The Steiner Ranch peninsula is not in the district except for the River Ridge neighborhood and those bordering areas close to Lake Austin which lie in Austin’s Extraterritorial Jurisdiction or ETJ.
“It’s going to be a whole new ballgame at City Council,” said River Place resident Jay Wiley, the first candidate to announce to run for District 6 next November. “Our neighborhoods will finally have a seat at the table, and that will make a big difference in how the Council discusses everything from infrastructure to traffic to parks.”
New UIL enrollment brackets affect sports classifications in LISD
By SCOTT W. COLEMAN, Hill Country News
The University Interscholastic League, the governing body of Texas high school sports, on Monday released the new enrollment brackets that will be used to determine the all-important classifications for football and basketball for the 2014-16 seasons.
One of the most talked-about changes is the implementation of a Class 6A. However, the new classification isn’t exactly what many were expecting. Instead of separating the largest schools in the state, the changes primarily shift the majority of schools in the current Class 5A into the new 6A, while what has been a separate classification for the smallest schools playing six-man football will now become the new 1A.