Community Independent School District

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Community Independent School District in Collin County. Now, every good story starts with people putting down roots, and in the latter half of the nineteenth century, Collin County was pulling settlers in like a magnet. They came, they stayed, and the first thing a family does when it decides it's home for good is figure out where the children are going to school.

So schools got organized. And out of all that settling and organizing, six separate districts eventually took shape: Josephine, Lavon, Millwood, Mt. Pisgah, McMinn, and Nevada.

Six communities, six schools, each one doing its own thing. But here's where it gets interesting. Fast-forward to the spring of 1947.

The county school board of trustees of Collin County is looking at those six districts and thinking: what if we brought them all under one roof? On April 6, 1947, they made it official. Six districts, consolidated, with the goal of operating one rural high school for the whole area.

Now, I said six districts; but if you were paying close attention, you might have noticed something. When that consolidation happened on April 6th, Josephine wasn't in it. The town of Josephine wanted to keep its own school district, thank you very much.

And you can't blame them for the sentiment. But eventually, Josephine came around. On July 28, 1947, Josephine ISD was added to the new consolidated district.

The family was complete. The town of Nevada was chosen as the site for the high school. And the name they picked for it, Community Rural High School, that name wasn't an accident.

The marker tells us plainly: the name Community was chosen to foster unity among the schools and communities. Six proud little districts, now one. That takes some deliberate intention.

Things kept moving. In 1974, a new campus was built in a central location to house all grades. And that same year, it was decided that Community Rural High School District would become an independent school district and take on the name it carries to this day: Community Independent School District.

The population out in that corner of Collin County kept right on growin', and new schools kept gettin' built to accommodate more students. The district has been educating students for over seventy years; but many of the individual schools have been operating in their communities for over 150 years. That's generations upon generations of Collin County kids walking through those doors.

And today, Community ISD is still at it; still serving students throughout the Copeville, Lavon, Nevada, and Josephine area. Six districts that once stood apart, now one community. Turns out, that name was the right call all along.

What the marker says

In the latter half of the nineteenth century, Collin County attracted numerous settlers who organized several schools for their children. Eventually these schools consolidated into six separate districts: Josephine, Lavon, Millwood, Mt. Pisgah, McMinn and Nevada. On April 6, 1947, the county school board of trustees of Collin County decided to consolidate these six districts in order to operate one rural high school for the area. Initially, Josephine school district was not part of the newly consolidated district. The town of Josephine wanted to maintain its own school district, but eventually, on July 28, 1947, Josephine ISD was added to the new consolidated district. The town of Nevada was chosen as the site for the high school, which was named Community Rural High School. The name Community was chosen to foster unity among the schools and communities. In 1974, a new campus was built in a central location to house all grades. That same year, it was decided that Community Rural High School District would become an independent school district and adopt the name it has today, Community Independent School District. The population of this area of Collin County has continued to grow and various new schools have been built to accommodate more students. The district itself has been educating students for over seventy years but many of the schools have been operating in their communities for over 150 years. The district is still providing students throughout the Copeville, Lavon, Nevada and Josephine are with a high level of education. (2019)