Tomball Independent School District is a K-12 education school district serving Tomball, Texas, United States as well as the surrounding area.
Tomball ISD encompasses 83 square miles in northwest Harris County and southwest Montgomery County, and is located approximately 30 miles from downtown Houston. As of 2022, the district has over 20,000 students at 22 campuses.
Tomball ISD serves students in northern Harris County and southwestern Montgomery County, Texas, including the City of Tomball, Lakewood Grove, Northepointe, Village Creek, Creekside Park Village (a section of The Woodlands), and the communities of Hufsmith, Decker Prairie, Pinehurst, and Rose Hill. Tomball ISD is approximately 20 miles northwest of Houston's central business district and 15 miles southwest of the Woodlands. Tomball ISD is bounded by Waller ISD to the west, Magnolia ISD to the north, Conroe ISD to the east, Klein ISD to the southeast, and Cypress-Fairbanks ISD to the southwest. As the principal crossroads of Tomball, FM 2920 (Tomball's Main Street) generally runs east-west through the center of the district, and SH 249 generally runs north-south through the center of the district. The Grand Parkway (SH 99) also runs east-west through the southern half of the district.
Tomball Independent School District is accredited by the Texas Education Agency, which rated it "A - Superior" in 2017–2018.
Tomball ISD is part of the taxation base for Lone Star College (formerly North Harris Montgomery Community College District).
History
Public school was first taught in Tomball in 1908. Tomball Independent School District was established in 1937 after a new school house was built on Cherry Street in downtown Tomball in 1936. A dedicated high school was built on Main Street in downtown Tomball shortly after. This school was rebuilt in 1961 after a fire and is now Tomball Intermediate School. In 1974, a new high school was built on Quinn Road (then called Sandy Lane) at Zion Road on the north side of Tomball.
In 1981, voters overwhelmingly approved an $18.8 million bond to build three new elementary schools and double the size of the new Tomball High School campus.
Tomball Junior High School opened in 1993 across Quinn Road from Tomball High School.
In 2000, voters approved a $98 million bond to renovate Tomball High School and several other campuses and build Willow Wood Junior High, Northpointe Intermediate, and Rosehill Elementary schools and a natatorium across the street from Tomball Junior High School.
In 2007, voters approved a $198 million bond, which included funding for Tomball Memorial High School (the district's second high school) and Canyon Pointe, Creekside Forest, and Timber Creek elementary schools, as well as expansions and renovations at other schools and new district-level facilities, including a new district administrative building on the site of the district's 1936 school building on Cherry Street in downtown Tomball.
In May 2013, voters approved a $160 million bond to build four new schools (an intermediate and an elementary school in the Northpointe area and a junior high and an elementary school in the Creekside area), renovate all other schools, and upgrade the district stadium track and field next to Tomball HS and the field at Tomball Memorial HS. Approximately 1,900 voters approved the bond by a 2-to-1 margin. At the time, the district had 11,700 students.
In November 2017, voters approved Bond 2017 - a $275 million bond program that funded two new schools (Grand Oaks Elementary and Grand Lakes Jr High), an agricultural barn, a natatorium at Tomball Memorial HS, the Tomball ISD Stadium and Community Event Center complex at Cypress-Rosehill and the Grand Parkway, an expansion to Tomball Memorial High School, and renovations to Tomball Intermediate School. The funds were also utilized for instructional technology, school buses, and land purchases as well as the installation of utilities. Approximately 3,600 voters voted on Bond 2017, which passed by roughly 1700 votes.
In 2018, Tomball ISD was named as a finalist in the 17th Annual H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards program in the large school district division. The award recognizes outstanding school districts demonstrating a commitment to student achievement through innovative programs, parent and community involvement, and professional development opportunities for teachers and administrators.
In November 2021, voters approved Propositions A and B of Bond 2021 - a $494.5 million bond program that will fund four new schools (two elementary, one intermediate, and a third high school) and facilities, including the purchase of the former BJ Services Headquarters building now called the Eastside Complex (which will become the Tomball Innovation Center and, as of January 2023, is the new home for Tomball Star Academy) and a pre-K center, infrastructure, renovations, transportation, technology for staff and students as well as security updates. Voters did not approve Propositions C, D, and E of Bond 2021, which would have provided an additional $73.1 million for athletic facility upgrades, a natatorium at the third high school, and a new fine arts/athletics multi-use facility at each of the three high schools. Propositions A and B received roughly 57% approval, and Propositions C, D, and E received roughly 47% approval. Approximately 8,600 voters voted on Bond 2021, with Propositions A and B each passing by roughly 1200 votes and Propositions C, D, and E each failing to pass by roughly 500 votes.
On October 10, 2022, the district broke ground on the Jeurgen Road complex, between Mueschke Rd and Cypress-Rosehill Rd on the western edge of the district that will include the new high school, the intermediate school, and one of the elementary schools approved in Bond 2021. The other elementary school was to be built at the Eastside Complex. In May 2023, the district announced that the elementary school planned for the Eastside Complex would instead be an intermediate school to relieve Creekside Park Junior High and the elementary schools in its feeder pattern. This Intermediate School #5 would have made all the elementary schools in the district serve grades K-4 and all the junior highs serve grades 7-8. In December 2023, in response to parent protests, TISD decided to expand Creekside Park Junior High to include grades 5-8 instead of building a new intermediate school outside of the Creekside Park Village area.
In May 2025, Tomball ISD voters approved a $429 million bond referendum, composed of four propositions, all of which were approved by 55-63% of the voters. The bond included funding for the construction of a second Pre-K center and a replacement campus for Tomball Intermediate School at the Eastside Complex, as well as the purchase of property for a future 13th elementary school. Funding was also included for campus and infrastructure upgrades, new buses, expansion of the district transportation center, new CTE programs, conversion of the current Tomball Intermediate campus into a Special Services center, new turf athletic fields, updates to the Tomball High School "Cougar Country" stadium (which serves as the District track stadium), and new indoor Multi-Program Activity Centers at each high school, in part to allow for athletic activities under new state heat safety restrictions.
In September 2023, Tomball ISD's superintendent, Martha Salazar-Zamora, was named Superintendent of the Year (SOTY) by the Texas Association of School Boards.
Community Events
Between 1964 and 1974, Tomball ISD presented a "Spring Festival" at the high school auditorium on Main Street that involved all grades and included a Coronation Ceremony, talent show, and musical and theatrical performances.
Since 1981, the district has presented a "Patriotic Show" during a football game each season to honor military members and veterans in the Tomball community with a combined band and drill team performance, a veterans dinner and on-field salute, and fireworks. Since the opening of Tomball Memorial High School in 2011, the Patriotic Show has been presented at the Tomball-Tomball Memorial rivalry game. 2022 marked the 42nd presentation of the Patriotic Show.
Since 2007, Tomball High School conducts a homecoming parade down Main Street in downtown Tomball during Homecoming Week. Tomball Memorial High School also conducts a homecoming parade around the Memorial High School campus each year.
Population Growth Tomball ISD largely served just the City of Tomball and its surrounding rural area until the early 2000s, when expansion of the northwest Houston suburbs and The Woodlands reached the district boundaries, bringing suburban developments into the district. The two suburban population centers in the district, Northpointe/Oakcrest in the south and The Woodlands' Village of Creekside Park in the east, have accelerated the district's growth, making it a "Fast Growth" district since around 2010. Starting in 2020, suburban real estate demand driven by the COVID pandemic increased development activity throughout the district with thousands of new homes expected to be built in the district by 2030.
Year Students Tomball City Pop. District Pop. Harris County Pop. 1908 15 115,693 1916 62 150 186,667 1940 249 660 528,961 1960 1,713 1,243,160 1970 1,246 2,734 1,741,910 1990 4,500 6,370 2,818,200 2000 7,002 3,414,000 2010 10,669 10,753 55,838 4,092,495 2013 11,700 11,200 59,119 4,284,066 2015 14,092 11,500 61,825 4,411,805 2017 18,500 11,900 63,711 4,539,542 2021 20,262 12,341 88,548 4,795,014 2023 22,274 14,392 96,474 4,903,000 2025 23,283 15,858 5,115,154
Board of trustees Position Official Title Elected Board of Trustees, Position 1 Tina Salem Trustee November 2022 Board of Trustees, Position 2 Michael Pratt Trustee November 2022 Board of Trustees, Position 3 John E. McStravick Vice President November 2022 Board of Trustees, Position 4 Mark Lewandowski Assistant Secretary November 2022 Board of Trustees, Position 5 Matt Schiel Trustee November 2020 Board of Trustees, Position 6 Justin Unser Secretary November 2020 Board of Trustees, Position 7 Lee L. McLeod President November 2020
Administration
Position Official Title Superintendent of Schools Martha Salazar-Zamora Chief Financial Officer Zach Boles Chief of Staff and Head of Schools Amy Schindewolf Chief Academic Officer Michael Webb Chief Operations Officer Steven Gutierrez Assistant Superintendent Mindy Munoz Secondary Schools Assistant Superintendent George Flores Elementary Schools Assistant Superintendent Lee Wright Strategic Innovation Assistant Superintendent Mark White Accountability and Governmental Relations Assistant Superintendent Alicia Reeves Human Talent General Counsel Holly Sherman
Campuses
High Schools Principal 2021-2022 Enrollment Grades Opened Tomball High School Kimberley McKinney 2,567 9-12 1974 Tomball Memorial High School Jennifer Collier 2,763 9-12 2011 Tomball Star Academy Victoria Brinkman 350 9-12 2017 Tomball West High School Kevin Williams N/A 9-10 2026 Junior High Schools Principal 2021-2022 Enrollment Grades Opened Creekside Park Junior High Tara Bailey 752 6-8 (Adding 5th in 2026) 2016 Tomball Junior High Charlie Gerszewski 798 7-8 1993 Willow Wood Junior High Kelly Marchiando 831 7-8 2003 Grand Lakes Junior High Jackie Santos 939 7-8 2021 Intermediate Schools Principal 2021-2022 Enrollment Grades Opened Northpointe Intermediate Holly Searcy 737 5-6 2003 Oakcrest Intermediate Sara Rush 760 5-6 2015 Tomball Intermediate Tylene Hicks 894 5-6 1993* West Intermediate Caitlin Cain N/A 5-6 2025