Connect with Katie.02.16.2023.Issue26

Connect with Katie WEEKLY NEWS AND INFORMATION FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

y o j e v o L s d r a p o e L

CONTENTS 04 MESSAGE FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT 06 HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, LOVEJOY! 18 MAJESTICS AT CROWD PLEASERS 08 POWERSCHOOL EMAIL UPDATE 08 DENIM & DIAMONDS TICKETS ON SALE! SWIM & DIVE 09 REMINDER: STUDENT HOLIDAYS REGIONALS 09 STEM FESTIVAL FEBRUARY 24TH 10 CELEBRATING SCHOOL MARSHALS 11 LCDC REGISTRATION IS OPEN 11 ATTENDANCE UPDATE 13 DISTRICT CALENDAR

20

21 BASKETBALL SENIOR NIGHT 22 WSMS ORCHESTRA RECOGNIZED 22 TRANSITIONS PROGRAM 23 WSMS MATHCOUNTS HEADS

14

TO STATE

TMEA ALL-STATE RECOGNITIONS

17 WRESTLING STATE QUALIFIERS

24 3...2...1...BLAST OFF! 24 GIRLS SOCCER & FUTURE LEOPARDS 25 LEOPARD LIFE 31 CAMPUS NEWSLETTERS 31 COMMUNITY NEWS

MESSAGE from the Superintendent Lovejoy Community, Last night, our stakeholder-based Capital Planning Committee toured Hart Elementary School and Puster Elementary School. As part of their work, they completed a SWOT analysis to assist in identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Our Capital Planning Committee is studying District capital needs and will recommend priorities for our capital improvement plan. We appreciate the sacrifice of personal time each committee member has made to support strong stewardship of District captial resources resources and strategic visioning for our students’ learning environment.

We celebrated School Marshal Appreciation Day this week. Lovejoy ISD is deeply grateful for the way our School Marshals build relationships with students, protect our schools, and provide safety education. Please join me in extending appreciation to this dedicated and highly trained team.

Casey Littlefield - Director of Safety and Security and Lovejoy Child Development Chris Smith - Hart Elementary Steven Emory - Puster Elementary Shaun Tomlinson - Sloan Creek Intermediate Chris Murphy - Willow Springs Middle Regan Aguirre - Lovejoy High School Jorge Jacquez - Lovejoy High School Five Lovejoy High School Wrestlers placed at Regionals and earned their way to the State Tournament taking place today and tomorrow in Cypress, Texas.

Congratulations to Head Coach Dylan Dubuque, Assistant Coaches Ryan Ledford and Caleb Reynolds, and the Lovejoy High School Wrestling Team. Lovejoy ISD is proud of you!

Regional Results: Champion - Sam Reynolds Runner Up - Eli Silva, AJ Kotecki, Aro Ogle-Garza 5th Place - Elijah Strand Lovejoy students have been busy engaging in lots of exciting learning experiences.

Next week we look forward to sharing Bump-Up Day activities and Special Olympics participation. Reminder: Lovejoy's Annual Stem Festival takes place next Saturday, February 24th from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. This is an engaging, districtwide event designed to provide a hands-on learning experience for students grades K-6 in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.

Exhibits include robots, makerspace, drones, rockets, active floor, and MORE! We look forward to seeing you there!

I hope your weekend is filled with Love and Joy. There is only one LOVEJOY and we are all LEOPARDS! Lovejoy Proud,

Katie Kordel Superintendent

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, LOVEJOY! Valentine’s day celebrations were full of LOVE and JOY this year at our elementary campuses! Thank you to our room parents for organizing activities that made the day exceptionally special for all our students. Thank you PTO’s and parents for your generous gifts that made the day special for our teachers!

POWERSCHOOL EMAIL UPDATE Beginning February 19, parent communication emails regarding attendance and grades will be received from the sender rackspace.powerschool.com and displayed as “Lovejoy ISD Powerschool”. Powerschool email communications will no longer come from powerschool@lovejoyisd.net. There will be no change in emails from BrightArrow at this time.

This change has been put in place because the significant increase in stakeholder communication this year via powerschool platform could no longer be supported via our current mail platform. The district was experiencing intermittent outages in parent communication as a result. This adjustment will allow for uninterrupted communication and improved consistency.

DENIM & DIAMONDS TICKETS ON SALE! The Foundation for Lovejoy Schools invites you to attend their annual Denim & Diamonds Gala and Live Auction. This incredible community event includes dinner and drinks, dancing, live & silent auction, photo booth and more.

All proceeds from the gala champion Lovejoy ISD educational initiatives and programs, including: Safety Marshals Innovative Classroom Grants Holiday Bonuses Professional Development New Teacher Classroom Support We look foward to seeing you there!

REMINDER: STUDENT

HOLIDAYS NEXT WEEK

STEM FESTIVAL FEBRUARY 24TH!

CELEBRATING LISD SCHOOL MARSHALS Join us as we celebrate School Marshal Appreciation Day! Lovejoy's School Marshals build relationships with students, protect our school communities, provide safety education, continuously lead by example, and promote a positive image of peace officers to students and community stakeholders. We are grateful for their presence on campus each day.

Thank you School Marshals!

Casey Littlefield - Director of Safety and Security & Lovejoy Child Development Center Chris Smith - Hart Elementary Steven Emory - Puster Elementary Shaun Tomlinson - Sloan Creek Intermediate Chris Murphy - Willow Springs Middle Regan Aguirre - Lovejoy High School Jorge Jacquez - Lovejoy High School

LCDC REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!

ATTENDANCE UPDATE Strong school attendance is correlated with higher academic performance.

Additionally, average Daily Attendance (ADA) is a metric that the State of Texas uses to determine funding for public schools. Each week, this attendance data will be updated so our community is aware of our most recent ADA.

CONNECTING LOCAL BUSINESSES AND THE LOVEJOY COMMUNITY WHILE SUPPORTING LOVEJOY ISD THROUGH REVENUE GENERATION The Lovejoy ISD Community Partner program is a new way for local businesses to support Lovejoy ISD and connect with the Lovejoy Community! Community Partner advertisements are featured in our weekly District newsletter, Connect with Katie, Living Lovejoy videos, and District Social Media.

Interested in becoming a Community Partner?

Click HERE to learn more!

DISTRICT CALENDAR

CALENDAR EVENT LINKS

STUDENT CALENDAR

DISTRICT CALENDAR

CAMPUS CALENDARS

ATHLETICS CALENDAR

FINE ARTS CALENDAR

Campus, District, and Athletics Calendars are linked above for the convenience of our community. *Please note event dates, times and locations are subject to change and should be verified by participants.

TMEA ALL-STATE RECOGNITIONS The TMEA All State Conference was last week and our All Staters made us Lovejoy Proud! Our students had an amazing week of rehearsals, making new friends, networking with new directors, and having fun! The event concluded on Saturday, Feb 10th with fantastic concert performances for all.

Max Rattleff was the first to perform Saturday with the 5A Percussion Ensemble under the direction of director Scott Herring from the University of South Carolina. The concert was outstanding with intriguing new pieces Nalu by Francisco Perez--who was also a guest performer, Doors by Dave Hall, and The Pocket-Sized Funk Machine by Matthew Kilby who also attended the performance! We were blown away! Way to go, Max! Megan Lyons performed with the 5A Symphonic Band under the direction of Nicholas Williams. Mr. Williams was the Director of Bands at UNT, the Melbourne Conservatory of Music and now is the Director of Bands at the University of Georgia. The band performed March Militaire Francaise by SaintSaens, Splinter by Holly Harrison, Elytra by Paul Dooley, Havana by Kevin Day and Steampunk Suite, mvt IV by Erika Svanoe. This was an incredibly exciting performance! Congratulations, Megan!

Reagan Wagner was our next performer in the 5A Sinfonietta Orchestra under the direction of David Eccles. Maestro Eccles is the Director of Orchestras in the Lovett School in Atlanta, Georgia. Their program included Lift Off by Roger Zane, Soul Force by Jessie Montgomery and Symphonic Metamorphosis by Paul Hindemith. We loved this program! Fantastic trumpets, Reagan!

Romi Kahana performed with the TMEA All State Mixed Choir under the direction of University of Pretoria (TUKS). Their program included Indodana, arranged by Michael Barret and Raif Schmitt, Himne by Roelof Temmingh, Cum Sancto Spiritu, Mvt. 3 from Gloria by Hyo-won Woo, Richte mich, Gott (Psalm 23

by Felix Medelssohn, Neiseik, Saulala by Vytautas Miskinis, Only in Sleep by Eriks Esenvalds, Khutso by Mokale Koapeng and Rodercik Williams, and Tshela Moya/Ke nna yo Morena, arranged by Michael Barrett. What a beautiful program, Romi! Congratulations!

Davis Miller brought down the house with the Jazz 1 Ensemble performance under the direction of Ellen Rowe from the University of Michigan. Their program was Love for Sale by Cole Porter, Con Alma by Dizzy Gillespie, State Line Strut by Ellen Rowe, Two As One by Thad Jones, Caveat Emptor (The Attack of the Pink Dolphins) by Ellen Rowe, Step Right Up by Oliver Neilson, and Michaelangelo by Fred Sturm. Davis has a fantastic bari solo and the saxophone section shined throughout the performance. Congratulations, Davis!

We are so proud of all our student performers who shown both on stage and off! Congratulations on your outstanding achievement!

WRESTLING STATE QUALIFIERS Congratulations to our LHS Wrestling State Qualifiers!!

Sam Reynolds - Regional Champion Aro Ogle-Garza - 2nd Place Eli Silva - 2nd Place AJ Kotecki - 2nd Place Elijah Strand - 5th Place State Wrestling Tournament 2/16 - 2/17 Berry Center, Cypress TX

MAJESTICS AT CROWD PLEASERS This past Saturday the Majestics Dance Team attended the Crowd Pleasers CP Showcase dance competition hosted at Lebanon Trail High School. 5 team routines, 9 solos, 1 duet, 1 trio, and 13 hours later...the girls won many top awards, representing Lovejoy with high honors!!!

Officer Awards High Platinum - 1st place - Officer Jazz High Platinum - 1st runner up - Officer Lyrical High Platinum - 1st runner up - Officer Open Outstanding Choreography Award in Jazz, Lyrical, and Open Outstanding Technique Award in Jazz, Lyrical, and Open Outstanding Performance Quality in Jazz, and Open Outstanding Execution in Open Judges Award for Outstanding Artistry in Officer Open (1 of 5 teams to be recognized out of the whole competition!)

1st runner up for Grand Champion Officer Group (select medium team) Majestics Dance Officers placed 3rd runner up OVERALL ranking us in the top 4 officer lines out of the whole competition!!!

Elite Awards High Platinum - 1st runner up - Imperials (Elite Contemporary) High Platinum - 1st runner up - Elite Hip Hop Both routines received Outstanding Choreography, Technique, and Performance Quality, and Outstanding Academic Achievement High Platinum - 1st place Trio - performed by: Robin Crigger, Maddie Maxwell, and Alisa Semenova Solos All Soloists received a Platinum rating or higher Junior, Alisa Semenova received a DIAMOND rating and placed 2nd (out of 58) overall in the public high school 11th grade solo division.

Senior and Team Captain, Avery Hammett received a High Platinum rating and placed 2nd (out of 48) overall in the public high school 12th grade solo division.

Please help us congratulate these outstanding girls on a successful first contest!

The Majestics next contest is Saturday, February 24th at Independence High School in Frisco.

SWIM & DIVE REGIONALS Last weekend Lovejoy Swim and Dive competed at the Regional Championship.

Both girls and boys teams placed 2nd overall! New school records were placed in both the men's 200 Medley Relay, 100 Breaststroke and Women's 100 Freestyle. Men were 24 points away from gold this year! Just one out of the 12 events in Swim & Dive could net a team upwards of 50 points so it's safe to say it was a very close competition! The lineups were tight and our kids rose up to the occasion!

Lovejoy had 6 girls and 8 boys qualify to compete at State in a total of 13 events!

Violet Almazan - 200 medley relay, 200 free relay Cora Craver - 200 free relay Ava Easley - 200 medley relay, 200 free relay, 100 free, 100 backstroke Maria Faoro - Diving Sarah Gable - 200 medley relay, 100 breaststroke Grace Hu - 200 medley relay, 200 free relay Pablo Duran De La Vega - 400 free relay Sean Easley - 500 free, 200 free, 400 free relay Hunter Hedges - 200 medley relay, 200 free relay Grant Hu - 200 medley relay, 200 free relay, 100 breaststroke Jack Keller - 400 free relay Beau Rice - 400 free relay Austin Stone - 200 medley relay, 200 free relay, 100 backstroke Chris Wang - 200 medley relay, 200 free relay

BASKETBALL SENIOR NIGHT This past Tuesday night, the Boys Basketball team hosted Greenville for the Regular Season Finale as well as our Senior Night. The Leopards got out to a fast start and never looked back, winning 54-31. With the win, the boys are now officially in the State Playoffs. The Leopards will face Lancaster next Tuesday, Feb. 20th, at 7:00pm at Richardson Berkner High School. Be sure to come out and support your Leopards in a big Playoff Matchup!

SeniorNight Our JV and Freshman teams both won handedly in their season finale, making both teams officially undefeated District Champions! We are proud of our sub varsity athlete’s accomplishments this season and excited for what the future holds!

WSMS ORCHESTRA RECOGNIZED AT TMEA The Willow Springs Full Symphony Orchestra of the 2022-2023 school year was recognized for their outstanding achievement in placing second runner up in the State at the TMEA Honor Full Orchestra Concert in the Lila Cockrell Theater in the San Antonio Convention Center. Ms. Dickens, Ms. Ball and Mr. Whitling accepted this recognition on behalf of our 22-23 Full Orchestra students. We are so proud of you all!

TRANSITIONS PROGRAM Lovejoy ISD transition program students are gaining valuable on the job skills as they work onsite at Dairy Queen with their special education transitions teacher.

We are very proud of their growth and enthusiam for new experiences!

WSMS MATHCOUNTS HEADS TO STATE! Every year students at Willow Springs are entered into 2 national mathematics competitions, MathCounts and the AMC 8.

The AMC 8 is a 25 question test that is a middle school level competition designed to promote problem solving skills. Nationally about 300,000 students from 4000 schools participate.

Will C. finished in 1st place with a score of 23 out of 25 in our school competition for the AMC 8. This will likely rank him both nationally and internationally among all competitors. We are extremely proud of his efforts and we are looking forward to receiving the competition rankings to see how he measures up to his national and international peers.

Mathcounts is a national competition that consists of 3 separate tests, 2 individual tests called the sprint and the target rounds, and a team test. Willow Springs competes in a North Texas region that includes schools from Dallas, Richardson, Frisco and Plano, among others. Competitors may advance to state in 2 ways-as individuals or as a team. Since 1984 MathCounts has held a national competition at George Washington University. Top competitors from each state competition advance to nationals.

On February 11th our MathCounts team, consisting of Will C., Christian F., Joel D., and Thomas W. competed in the Preston Trail Chapter Competition and finished in 6th place, earning a spot in the State competition to be held in Irving on March 23rd. Congratulations boys, and good luck at the State MathCounts Competition.

3...2...1 BLAST OFF! Mrs. Gaddie and her Aerospace class participated in their annual rocket launch day on Tuesday February 13 at 8:40 am.

Rocket launch day is part of our engineering process of testing student designed and built rockets. Students attempt to measure the height the rocket flew and analyze the performance of the rocket and its parachute system.

GIRLS SOCCER & FUTURE LEOPARDS Last week the Varsity girls soccer team beat Princeton 1-0 with a late goal scored by Kenzie Lavender and assisted by Kylee Dziubinski. On Tuesday, the girls tied McKinney North 1-1 and lost the penalty shootout 1-2. Halfway through district the team is 12-1-4 (5-0-1) and tied for first in district.

Last week the JV girls soccer team beat Princeton 3-0. On Tuesday, the girls beat McKinney North 4-0. Through the first half of district the JV is 10-2-1 (6-0) and in first place in district.

Next up for the girls is Future Leopard Night on Tuesday, February 20th. Varsity kicks off at 5:30 and JV at 7:15 at Leopard Stadium.

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

DANCING WITH THE MAJESTICS

LOVEJOY ORCHESTRA FUNDRAISER

STUDENT ATHLETICS TRAINING

LHS STUDENT ATHLETIC TRAINING

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

NUTRITION NEWS

BOYS SOCCER

SAT TEST PREP

STUDENT COUNCIL BLOOD DRIVE

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

PTO PRESENTATION

STEM IS SWEET!

STEM FESTIVAL

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

LOVEJOY BATGIRLS

MCCU DEBIT CARD DESIGN CONTEST Lovejoy ISD recently entered into a partnership with My Community Credit Union. This partnership is intended to enhance student opportunities in the areas of financial literacy and provide hands-on learning experiences for future careers related to finance. An MCCU branch is scheduled to open at Lovejoy High School in the fall of 2024.

Card Size: 2-1/8 by 3-3/8

Scan the QR Code for Official Rules and additional details, or visit mccu.coop/lovejoy.

On Friday, October 27th, MCCU kicked off their Debit Card Design Contest. The contest is open to all Lovejoy ISD students. Three debit card design winners will be selected representing grades K-5, 6-8, and 9-12. The winners will have their designs on our Lovejoy Leopard MCCU Debit Cards and will receive a $100 gift card!

Contest Rules: Must be an original image/design/artwork.

Participants may submit up to 2 designs.

Parent consent is required.

Submissions are due to marketing@mccu.coop by midnight on February 29.

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

EXTENDED DAY LEOPARD ACADEMY Leopard Academy is an opportunity for your child to participate in enrichment activities on his or her campus before and after school. Our goal is that these enrichment opportunities will allow our Lovejoy Leopards to develop creativity and critical thinking skills through activities related to their personal interests.

Registration is open for the following academies for students in first through 6th grade. Choose from one of the links below for more information.

Board and Card Game Academy Yo Yo Academy

COMMUNITY COFFEE TALKS This is an opportunity for parents and community members to connect with Lovejoy ISD Trustees and Superintendent Katie Kordel in an informal setting.

During Community Coffee Talks, Lovejoy ISD leadership listens, shares and engages in open dialogue/discussion with our community.

August 29, 2023 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

Sloan Creek Intermediate

February 28, 2024 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

Lovejoy High School

November 30, 2023 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Hart Elementary School

April 30, 2024 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

Willow Springs Middle School

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT Calling all Lovejoy Alumni! The Lovejoy Independent School District is excited to engage former LISD students and our community through Alumni spotlights in the district newsletter, as well as LISD social media. Alumni spotlights are a fun way for the district to celebrate our students' educational, professional, and personal journeys after graduation. If you wish to participate, please complete this form for our LISD Communications Department.

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT INTEREST FORM

Lovejoy ISD is proud to continue facilitating student opportunities through the Professional-to-Student Engagement Portal. Sign-up and share your talents!

Lovejoy Community Professionals: Who are Lovejoy Community Professionals?

Engage with students by sharing their Industry & Business Leaders expertise and knowledge Parents Mentor students through various Lovejoy Alumni career and college ready experiences Lovejoy Neighbors Strengthen students skills in the areas Senior Community Members of communication, collaboration, Heritage Ranch Community Members critical thinking and problem solving Family Members of Lovejoy Students Build leadership skills, develop self confidence

DISTRICT & CAMPUS NEWSLETTERS Lovejoy ISD is committed to creating strong connections and providing clear communication with our Lovejoy parents and families. Below you will find links to the most recent newsletters from each campus. Sign up for weekly Principal Newsletters here to stay informed!

DISTRICT NEWSLETTER Connect with Katie

SLOAN CREEK INTERMEDIATE Principal Newsletter

HART ELEMENTARY Principal Newsletter

WILLOW SPRINGS MIDDLE Principal Newsletter

PUSTER ELEMENTARY Principal Newsletter

LOVEJOY HIGH SCHOOL Principal Newsletter

Leopard Life

COMMUNITY NEWS

The Lovejoy ISD Community News website is intended to facilitate connections and raise awareness of local events, activities, fundraisers and organizations that might interest Lovejoy families.

The information featured on the Community News website is submitted by community members. Lovejoy ISD is not affiliated with the organizations and does not claim to endorse them.

CLICK HERE

Connect with Katie . February 16, 2024. Issue 26