Good News Magazine - Winter 2023

REFLECTIONS from the Head of School

Dr. Julie McLeod

Our New Normal is Amazing!

I always knew our Good Shepherd community was special, yet living through the past two and a half years and coming out the other side, I have experienced something truly remarkable. As we shift to our new normal where the pandemic does not monopolize all of our thoughts, we are emerging with a new energy!

As our community gathers in seemingly normal ways, it feels different somehow. We have always loved and celebrated each other, so where has this difference come from? We have two and a half years worth of pent up love and celebration and all appear to have been given implicit permission to let it loose on each other! The result has been amazing!

Our Good Shepherd Parents’ Organization (GSPO) is dreaming up new ways to show their appreciation for our faculty and staff. Our teachers are beautifully merging traditions with new post-pandemic knowledge, generating new energy and deeper learning. Meanwhile, our students are playing, laughing, learning, and thriving.

Perhaps the absence of togetherness makes this love and celebration feel different. Perhaps the pandemic changed us. It might even be a little of both. In any case, we will continue to bask in the beauty of being together as children of God, loved by a strong community of faith and learning.

Respectfully,

Cougar, Ranger, Longhorn:

THE BASKETBALL EVOLUTION OF GAVIN PERRYMAN ‘17

He may not openly admit it, but Gavin Perryman is living his childhood dream.

The Good Shepherd Episcopal School Class of 2017 alumnus, Perryman, is in his second year at the University of Texas at Austin where he is a member of the men’s basketball team. While he redshirted his first year on the team, he is on track to complete his undergraduate degree in three years and his master’s degree in two.

The 20-year-old signed his National Letter of Intent with UT in May 2021, roughly one week before he graduated from Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas. Besides having a lifelong affinity for Texas, as of early January, Perryman and the Longhorns posted a 12-2 record and were ranked No. 6 nationally in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.

FAMILY TIES

Interestingly, Perryman’s father, Brandy, played for the Longhorns from 1994-98. He never missed a game in his career, was part of three NCAA Tournament teams, and finished as the school’s all-time most accurate free throw shooter (89.7%). For the past 25 years, he’s owned and operated the Brandy Perryman Shooting Camp, a summer basketball camp for boys and girls 2nd through 10th grade, held in Austin.

“It has been going on since he left college,” Gavin said. “He really likes that and he really likes teaching basketball.”

Naturally, Gavin grew up a Texas fan and regularly attended Longhorn games. During middle school, he and Brandy would go to the gym together multiple times a week.

Courtesy University of Texas Athletics

Brandy also coached some of Gavin’s basketball teams during his childhood. As a kid, if Gavin sought advice, he would go to Brandy. Today, Gavin considers his dad his role model, still goes to him when needing guidance, and proudly wears his jersey No. 13.

“He’s been the perfect father and mentor figure for me,” Gavin said. “He has literally been in my exact same shoes; done everything I have. I think we have become closer as we have grown.”

GOOD SHEPHERD EXPERIENCE

For Gavin, each step of his journey has been part of the path forward. He was introduced to basketball around the age of three and still remembers seeing pictures of himself playing on Little Tikes hoops.

His first years of grade school were spent in Houston, but in 2012 his family moved to Dallas when Brandy accepted a position with YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas (Brandy still works there today as the organization’s Senior Vice President/Chief Operating Officer).

Entering a new city meant Gavin would also be entering a new school. Brandy, along with Gavin’s mother, Mandie, felt Good Shepherd was the best option for him and his younger brother, Luke, to continue their grade school education.

“We lived close to Good Shepherd,” Gavin said. “There were a few people we knew that really liked Good Shepherd as well. That connection, seeing the school, teachers, and being on campus was, I think, it for us.”

“I could barely walk. Basketball is definitely my first love.”

Courtesy University of Texas Athletics

Gavin would spend his next five years at GSES. A three-sport athlete, he made the most of the experience.

When he reminisces about the school, he most often thinks of his teachers, the 8th grade Road Rally, graduation, Classroom of the Earth (COE) trips, and participating in school athletics for the first time. When he began high school at Jesuit, he felt Good Shepherd had prepared him for the challenges ahead.

“Obviously, there is a big difference between middle school and high school,” Gavin said. “Just so many more people that you do not know. The preparation, and the teachers, yes, (Good Shepherd) definitely helped you. The Spanish program at Good Shepherd was always top of the line. I think having that dual language was a really big help.”

Perryman’s favorite GSES teacher was the late Ms. Taylor Jennings Irvin. He described the former 8th grade math instructor as someone who made a profound impact.

“She was a teacher that was always uplifting, very energetic,” Gavin said. “As a kid, when that energy is matched with you, it is really, really cool. She also cared about us on a more personal level. She was younger, and I think that also helped because you relate to people that are younger.”

“I loved Good Shepherd. The teachers and the atmosphere are really built for you to have success. I really enjoyed my experience there. My teachers were awesome. I learned a lot and also grew as a person. It is a special place.”

When reflecting on COE, Perryman shared how each adventure gave him a different perspective.

“COE, those were the trips you really looked forward to,” Perryman said. “I think (8th Grade) Colorado (Rocky Mountain National Park) was probably one of the most fun experiences of my life. Being around some of my closest friends for 10 days. Going and backpacking with all of them. Being around them in a place where you are not really used to. You grow closer that way.”

As far as friendships Perryman developed at GSES, some continue to remain strong. A few of his close friends joined him in attending Jesuit, while three of his 2017 classmates, Liesl Small, Abby Ladewig, and Robert Giles also are attending the University of Texas.

“I see them every now and then,” Perryman said of Small and Ladewig. “You see them and you’re like, ‘Oh my god, I haven’t seen you in so long. Middle School was so fun!’ That’s just a bond I don’t think you really break.”

Although it has been more than five years since he left the school, Perryman’s hope is for current students to understand the importance of kindness and forgiveness as they progress forward.

“Don’t hold grudges,” Perryman said. “Just be a good person and enjoy. Enjoy high school, enjoy the games, enjoy some of the parties, enjoy prom, graduation. All those different things that come with high school. Just have a good time.”

“Be a good person and look to help others while you are doing it.”

COLLEGE LIFE

A firm believer in good things coming to those who work as hard as they can every day, Perryman views balance and organization as two of the most crucial components for any D1 student-athlete. At the same time, he has learned D1 student-athletes live completely different lifestyles, especially when their particular sport is in season.

“You see the schedules and you hear about the stuff, but until you are in it and experience it, you really have no idea,” Perryman said. “I work hard, I try to work hard, I feel like I work harder than a lot of people. There are definitely times when I get up at 6:45 in the morning for a lift and I am not home until 11 p.m. at night.”

The grind is real, nonetheless, and essential when every year the goal for Texas student-athletes is winning national championships.

“For a lot of us, it is our life,” Perryman said. “We put so much time and effort into it. We have a kind of responsibility and duty to represent the University of Texas as well as we can. When you see Texas, everyone wants to beat Texas. We realize that we are probably the biggest brand in college athletics.

“We realize that, but at the same time, we realize every single game we are going to have a target on our back. Attending Texas and seeing just how crazy it is, and the fan base and how much everyone wants to beat you, it definitely motivates you to be better.”

Courtesy University of Texas Athletics

THE FUTURE

Majoring in Sports Management and minoring in business, the 6’1” guard aspires to coach or work for an NBA team’s front office when his playing career concludes.

From GSES to Jesuit and now the University of Texas, Perryman is appreciative of the places he has been, as well as the people he has met that have supported him along the way. As he continues living his childhood dream, his story, along with its evolution, are both proof that dreams are possible and always have the power of transforming into realities.

“To play Division 1 basketball, obviously get a free education, help my parents out that way, that’s always been a dream of mine,” Perryman said.

By:

& Content Writer

John Holt Public Relations

“It’s been really fulfilling to work that hard and then get rewarded for it.”

Courtesy University of Texas Athletics

Let it Grow

Planting the seeds for a better tomorrow

The Early Childhood Community Garden is a new space where students in PreK, Kindergarten, and Primer are being taught a wide range of skills. They are learning life cycles, risk taking, problem solving, how to handle failure, to try new things, and more.

Good Shepherd Head of Early Childhood Liz Fleskes said. “They are trying new foods, putting their hands in the dirt, understanding where food comes from, what living things really need, how to provide care, and how to ensure plants stay alive. They are even practicing empathy skills when they see the fruits of their labor scattered around the ground after an area critter takes advantage of a growing watermelon!”

The Garden, which sits on artificial turf next to the Lower School playground, was generously funded by the 2021-22 Good Shepherd Parents’ Organization (GSPO) and opened in Spring 2022. It features five beds for Early Childhood, another five beds open to anyone, a lending library where students can pick out books, and a pergola. The pergola was previously donated by Justin and Allison McAfee and was recently moved to its new location on campus.

This year, students have had the opportunity to plant watermelons, black eyed peas, radishes, turnips, broccoli, lettuce, potatoes, garlic, milkweeds, Gregg's mistflower, marigolds, and more.

“There are so many academic and social-emotional skills developing as they work in the garden,”

Each grade level undertakes three harvests per year, and having the opportunity to eat what the plants produce seems to be the students’ favorite part of gardening.

“This idea that you can have an impact on the environment, which is a living thing, they love it,” Fleskes said. Sixth grade parent Angie Epker has been instrumental in both the planning and the execution of the garden, volunteering countless hours throughout the year to fine-tune our beautiful space. In October, she and her daughter, Abigail, taught our Kindergarten students about Monarch Butterfly migration and tagging. Our garden is now certified as an official Monarch Waystation, thanks to Epker.

“She’s been both the facilitator and a cheerleader,” Fleskes said. “She’s not just talking about the work, she’s actually doing the work. Not just during the school year, but even during the summer. I’ll be here watering (plants) and she’ll appear, because that’s who she is.”

“Being able to walk up to a plant, pick something off of it and eat it, just seems delightful to them.”

School gardening continues to be a popular national movement and has been for roughly 20 years. With nearly 5,000 school gardens across the United States alone, lasting success requires not only an initial commitment from the school, but also a long-term promise of regular garden maintenance.

“You can bring in somebody to build you an amazing garden,” Fleskes said, “but if nobody’s going to care for it, it’s not going to last. We have enough teachers and parents in our division and across our school community who want this, and are interested in how important it is for our little ones to get in there.”

“Thanks to the help and support from our amazing Facilities and Advancement teams and our incredible GSPO, ideas such as musical instrument installations, national gardening competitions, garden expansion to include Disaster Relief & Recovery efforts, as well as common learning spaces, all seem possible,” Fleskes said. She would even love to see a garage door in the back of the early childhood center’s classroom to provide students direct access to the outdoors.

Eventually, Fleskes hopes the garden will become an area as familiar and beloved as the school’s courtyard, a place where all students, staff, and families can happily connect and make everlasting memories. For now, it’s a space where daily learning happens and life skills are being developed in our youngest students.

“I am really appreciative of how the school has supported everybody and come together,” Fleskes said.

If you have ideas and/or are interested in volunteering at the community garden, please email Good Shepherd Head of Early Childhood Liz Fleskes at lfleskes@gsesdallas.org

By: John Holt Public Relations & Content Writer

“There have been good questions. School gardening is a big movement. There are so many ways to make it bigger.”

GSPO BUILDING COMMUNITY

As members of the Good Shepherd Parent’s Organization (GSPO) executive team, we are passionate about engaging our school community. Centered around our children, the community includes parents, teachers, administrators, staff members, and beyond. We work hand in hand with school administration to build our community through a variety of activities. From hosting social events to raising funds to celebrating our dedicated faculty and staff - our goal is to involve everyone in the Good Shepherd community.

Bringing parents together both on and off campus gives parents and families the opportunity to get to know one another. We hope you enjoyed some of the events during the first part of the year - we have hosted the Back to School Fiesta, Back to School grade-level parties, Super Dad’s Cornhole Tournament, Carnival, Halloween classroom parties, a Parent Education Event, and Holiday parties. Spring will bring the Super Dads skeet shoot, “I Want My MTV” school auction, Valentine’s classroom parties, and end of year grade-level gatherings along with Graduation for our 8th graders.

Raising funds allows us to support the school with long-lasting improvements falling outside the school’s budget. Unlike many of our peer institutions, Good Shepherd does not operate on a gap budget, so your tuition dollars cover the entire cost of educating our students. Because of the school’s fiscal astuteness, the extra funds raised have a direct impact on designated areas of need, like increasing endowment, infrastructure, and programming. Fundraising activities range from large events like Fall Carnival and Spring Auction to additional efforts like Social FUNdraisers, Super Dads Cornhole Tournament, Valentine’s Candy Grams, Super Dads Skeet Shoot, Used Uniform and Spirit Shop Sales throughout the year. Corporate Sponsors have been invaluable to our fundraising efforts and we are so appreciative to family-owned and local businesses who contribute to GSPO. Celebrating teachers and staff members is one of our favorite aspects of serving on the GSPO. Their dedication to teaching and supporting our children is remarkable, so it seems fitting to show our appreciation throughout the year. We kicked off the school year with a new event during in-service week with a charcuterie spread and beverages. Other activities include Trimester Treats, monthly birthday table (new this year), Faculty/Staff Appreciation luncheons in fall and spring, the Christmas Collection and, of course, Teacher Appreciation Week in May.

We look forward to many fun events this spring and hope to see you there! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to any of us on the executive team! gses.gspo@gmail.com

Desiree Rogers | VP Fundraising

Cecelia Hodges | VP Communications

Kim Cocotos | President

Michelle Woods | VP Finance

Celeste McClatchy | VP Activities

Pictured from left to right:

Exploration Academics in Action

7th Grade Podcast Power

At the beginning of the 202122 school year, Good Shepherd Episcopal School implemented a new program into its middle school curriculum, exploration classes.

“The classes are something I had planned to do for a while,” Head of Middle School Lori Rolke said. “We were doing a great job with our core content areas, but we wanted to see the students transfer their skills into what I commonly refer to as ‘academics in action.’”

When Rolke told the middle school faculty they would have the opportunity to be more creative in the classroom and take risks in ways they typically could not, they were eager to participate. As teachers began to collaborate and formulate ideas, Rolke presented them with two simple questions to answer: What is the goal of each class and what skills will students walk away with?

“I ask my faculty to use our mission statement in creating their classes,” Rolke said. “This meant using the key words of LEARN, SERVE, and LEAD as a guidepost for their design.

The exploration classes begin when students enter middle school, with a total of 13 classes spread out across grades 5-8. Students benefit from the vast knowledge of our faculty in a wide variety of specialized subjects, and also from the relationships they build with their teachers throughout their time in middle school.

“Take Kim Campbell, for example,” Rolke said. “She teaches 6th grade Language Arts, and also teaches 7th grade Podcast Power. Many of the lessons taught in her language arts class are then applied when writing their scripts for podcasts. Students continue to have a connection and learn with their teachers year after year.”

Exploration classes also allow students to interact with other members of the Good Shepherd community. The staff in the Modern Learning department has been instrumental in teaching our students about technology and media arts. They show how skills learned in the classroom translate to real world jobs. Their knowledge and expertise are what help make this curriculum so special.

Innovation Through the Ages - Don Jung

“I enjoy being able to learn extra skills that may pop up on standardized tests... Taking this class has taught me new things that I enjoy very much.”

- Sara Sakamoto, 8th Grade on Math Bootcamp

While all of last year’s exploration classes were chosen by staff, some of this year’s were chosen by students. “We know through research ‘voice and choice’ are the most important things to this age group,” Rolke said. “The students want their input to be valued. When we listen to their ideas and provide them with what they need, they drive their own learning and their own responsibility.”

Literature, Speech & Rhetoric - Tony Peters

Counting for Kindness - Kira Helm

“My favorite exploration class was Kindness Class. I really enjoyed helping people in need.

I also really enjoyed the field trip my class went on.

I think every school should have a kindness class because serving is a must.”

- Holden Higginbotham, 8th Grade on Counting for Kindness

- Stella Thompson, 6th Grade on Ukulele Class

“Students are acquiring new skills and interests from these classes,” Rolke said. “We are really trying to allow students to step out of their comfort zones, all while feeling safe and supported by faculty and peers.”

Now in year two, some of the most popular exploration classes amongst students are: STEM in the Real World (5th Grade), Innovation Through the Ages (6th Grade), Podcast Power (7th Grade), and SPARQ Arts (8th Grade). From the parent’s perspective, 7th Grade Financial Literacy class is the class they wish they had in middle school.

In the future, Rolke expects the exploration classes will evolve to fit current needs. She hopes the middle school will offer additional exploration classes such as nutrition, coding, and photography. For now though, it is clear that academics are in action and important skills are being obtained.

By: John Holt & Toni Luciano

SPARQ Arts - Catherine Scott

Media Arts - Amy Melle

“I love exploration ukulele because it gives you a little bit of freedom while still learning. I love how it incorporates other instruments too, like tambourines and drums.”

A Look Back

Fall @ Good Shepherd

Save the Date!

Grandparents’ Day

March 31, 2023

Saturday, April 1, 2023

Did you know you can use the new GSES Parent Portal to update your household contact information?

Ensure your child’s grandparents receive an invitation to our Grandparent’s Day celebration by confirming their addresses. Use the QR code below!

Good Shepherd Episcopal School

11110 Midway Road

Dallas, Texas 75229-4118

ON TIME

FEB. 17-20

FEB. 27

MAR. 13-17

MAR. 31

Winter Break

3rd Trimester Begins

Spring Break

Grandparents’ Day

GSPO Auction

Easter Break

8th Grade Graduation

Last Day of School (PreK-7th) - Early Dismissal

MAY 30

Memorial Day Summer Program Begins