Connect with Katie.05.02.2025.Issue36 by Lovejoy ISD

Connect with Katie

MAY 02, 2025

Lovejoy Lovejoy Leopards Leopards

LovejoyCommunity,

It’shardtobelievewe’vealreadyreachedthefinal month of the 2024–2025 school year. Time has flown, and I continue to be inspired by the hard work of our students and the unwavering commitmentofourteachersandstaff.

Next week marks a particularly meaningful occasion Teacher Appreciation Week! We will be celebrating and honoring our outstanding educators educatorswhogoaboveandbeyondeverydaytosupport,guide,andupliftour students. Their love for our students and impact is what makes Lovejoy ISD suchaspecialplacetolearnandthrive.

TransportationAppreciationDay

We celebrated our wonderful Transportation Team this week. Our committed busdriverstransportover1,500studentsondailyroutes,driving175,000miles annually. Thank you to our amazing drivers and Transportation Team. We appreciateyou!

PTOOutstandingServiceAwards

This week, I was humbled to be part of a special Lovejoy tradition - The PTO OutstandingServiceAwards.OurhighlydedicatedPTOgoesaboveandbeyond to appreciate and recognize our teachers, staff, and community. More informationcanbefoundonpage10.Congratulations2024-2025recipients!

BoardofTrusteesRecognition:AmySmith

LovejoyISDhonoredAmySmithattheAprilBoardofTrusteesMeetingforher nineyearsofdedicatedserviceontheBoardofTrustees.TrusteeSmithdidnot seek reelection this election cycle. Throughout her tenure on the Board, Amy Smithhasdemonstratedunwaveringcommitment,thoughtfulleadership,and adeeppassionforpubliceducation.Hercontributionshavehelpedshapethe visionanddirectionofLovejoyISD,positivelyimpactingstudents,staff,andthe community.WeextendourdeepestgratitudeforherserviceandlastingLegacy ofExcellence.

2025BondInformation

The proposed projects in the Lovejoy ISD 2025 Bond will impact every student and every school. We have created a website with information that can be accessed here: https://www.lovejoyisd.net/o/bond2025. We also encourage you tovisitour2025BondFrequentlyAskedQuestionsfoundatthislink.

ThelastdaytovoteisSaturday,May3,2025from7:00a.m.-7:00p.m.

NearestVotingLocation

LovejoyISDAdministration-Portable#1TrainingRoom 259CountryClubRd. Allen,TX75002

LegacyofExcellence:HighlightsandCelebrations

Congratulations to our Lovejoy High School Baseball team on recently winningtheDistrictChampionshipandwinningGame1ofBi-DistrictPlayoffs lastnight! Game2willbeplayedtonightathome!

Congratulations to our Lovejoy High School Softball team on winning their DistrictandBi-DistrictChampionshipsandwinningGame1ofAreaPlayoffs lastnight! Game2willbeplayedtonightathome!

LovejoyHighSchoolTrackandFieldwillbecompetingattheUILStateMeet today,May2nd,inAustin.WeareLovejoyProudofourStateQualifiersand willbecheeringthemon!

ThefinalperformanceoftheChoirPopShowisthiseveningat7:00p.m.in theLovejoyHighSchoolAuditorium!

WishingyouaweekendfilledwithLoveandJoy.

ThereisonlyONELOVEJOYandweareALLLEOPARDS!

LovejoyProud, KatieKordel

Superintendent

Nearest Early Voting Location

LovejoyISDAdministrationBuilding-Portable#1TrainingRoom 259CountryClubRoad Allen,TX75002

Forafulllistofvotinglocationsandwaittimesclickhere.

2025 Bond Propositions

Therearefivepropositions,organizedbyprojecttype,duetoTexasstatelaw.Votershave theopportunitytovoteonallfivepropositions Youdonothavetochoosebetweenthem

LovejoyISDpropositionsinclude:

Proposition A: School Facility Improvements and Renovations, Safety & Security, ConstructionofTransportation&MaintenanceFacility,SchoolBuses&Transportation SafetyEquipment$265,510,000

PropositionB:InstructionalTechnology:StudentandStaffDevices$3,930,000

PropositionC:TrackResurfacing,ConcessionStandRenovations,includingRoofsand KitchenEquipment$4,525,000

Proposition D: Renovations to Existing Tennis Courts, Softball and Baseball Facilities Improvements$1,505,000

PropositionE:NatatoriumRenovations$700,000

A detailed list of projects by campus may be found on pages 8-12.

EveryStudent,EverySchool

Thebondproposalincludesupgradestoallexistingschoolsanddistrictfacilities,including: Mechanical,electrical,plumbing(MEP)facilitysystemupdates

SafetyandSecuritymodernization

Kitchenupgrades

Technologyinfrastructureimprovements

Roofingupdates

Willthe2025BondIncreaseMyTaxRate?

No. Due to Lovejoy ISD’s property value growth and early repayment of existing debt, the proposed projects can be funded with Lovejoy ISD’s existing I&S tax rate of $0.50 per $100 of property value. All bond election ballots are required by law to include language that states "this is a property tax increase " However, the 2025 Bond will not increase Lovejoy ISD’s tax rate

BudgetEfficiencies&Optimization

Funding eligible facility projects through bonds saves money in the general (M&O) budget that can then be used for expenses related to teaching and learning In fact, some of the bond projects,suchasLEDlightingupgradesandHVACreplacementwillsaveanestimated$300,000 dollarsannuallyinoperationcostsoncetheprojectsarefullyimplemented.

District-WideSafetyandSecurity

Proposed bond projects include upgrades that would modernize and enhance safety and security technology and infrastructure across Lovejoy ISD. District-wide safety and security improvements include upgraded security cameras, uniform classroom locksets, k-12 security fencing, emergency responder technology, and safety protocol systems that integrate and automate emergency messaging, intercom systems, and displays.

RenovationsforStudentOpportunity

BondprojectswillmodernizeinstructionallearningspacesatHartElementaryandLovejoyHigh Schooltosupportavarietyoflearningexperiencesandteachingmethods.

LovejoyISDHasNotHeldaBondElectionSince2014

Bond funds are the primary funding mechanism for school districts to address major facility upgrades, renovations, and construction projects. The last Lovejoy ISD bond package was called for and approved over 10 years ago in 2014

BondFundsStayLocal

All money raised by a bond election stays in Lovejoy ISD and is not subject to recapture. This allows for local control and decision-making, which has allowed the District to pay down debt early. In fact, Lovejoy ISD has saved $31 million by refunding existing bonds and approximately $6 9 million by making early principal payments

WhatisLovejoyISD’sCreditRating?

Moody’s Credit Rating: Since 2010, Lovejoy ISD has received a credit rating of Aa2. This is consideredahighinvestmentgrade Only36districtsinthestatehaveahigherrating S&P Credit Rating: Since 2010, Lovejoy ISD has received a credit rating of Aa-. This is consideredahighinvestmentgrade.Only62districtsinthestatehaveahigherrating.

The Outstanding Service Award is one of the highest honors bestowed by Lovejoy’s PTO. This award recognizes individuals who have gone above and beyond expectations, promoting students’ well-being and demonstrating exceptionalcareforchildren.

Each year, the PTO invites our community to nominate a parent, volunteer, teacher, administrator, or community leader who has made a meaningful and lasting impact. Some contributions are bold and highly visible, while others happen quietly behind the scenes both equally valuable and powerful in shapingourstudents'experiences.Thisyear,PTOwasthrilledtoreceivenearly 200nominations,farsurpassingtheaverageinpreviousyears.

Congratulationstoour2024–2025OutstandingServiceAwardrecipients!

May 2nd is School Lunch Hero Day!

Lovejoy ISD is proud to recognize our student nutrition professionals today and the difference they make every day!

Each day they prepare healthy meals forstudents,adheretostrictnutrition standards, build relationships with students, and offer service with a smile! Real heroes wear aprons not capes! Theupcommingweeksarepackedwithschoolappreciationdays!

Aswewrapuptheschoolyear,thisistheperfecttimetosendan email/note,favoritedrink,orsmalltokenofappreciationtothank the educators that have impacted your student(s) this year or in pastyears!Pleasecheckyourcampusnewslettersforinformation about appreciation theme days and ideas. #TeamLovejoy #LivingLovejoy#OneHeartOneLovejoy

Lovejoy ISD is proud to celebrate the Class of 2025 at our upcoming Graduation Ceremony on May 24th!Pleasenote,theCreditUnionofTexas(CUTX) Event Center now requires all attendees to have a ticket for entry. This is a venue-wide policy for all events.

In order to provide our families with graduating seniors the maximum tickets, we will not have ticketsavailabletothepublic.Theceremonywillbe availabletolivestreamforthoseunabletoattendin person. We appreciate your understanding regardingthisnewCUTXEventCenterpolicy.

Starting Wednesday, May 7, students must have funds in their lunch accounts to purchase meals charging will no longer be allowed. This helps reduce year-end negative balances. Families with overdue accountswillreceiveemailandphone reminders. Negative balances can’t carry over, but positive ones will. To request a refund, visit the Student Nutrition webpage. Thank you for yoursupport.

Lovejoy ISD hosted a successful job fair this past Saturday, welcoming enthusiastic candidates eager to join our team. We had a great turnout and enjoyed connecting with potential future Leopards! If you missed the event, don’t worry we're still hiring for positions across the district. Click here to explorecurrentopeningsandapplytoday!

Strong school attendance is correlated with higher academic performance. Additionally,averageDailyAttendance(ADA)isametricthattheStateofTexas usestodeterminefundingforpublicschools.Eachweek,thisattendancedata willbeupdatedsoourcommunityisawareofourmostrecentADA.

Reality Check

As a valued stakeholder, we know how much our district matters to you. Therefore, we believe it is important that you have accurate and transparent informationaboutLovejoyISD.WiththeintroductionofRealityCheck,weare taking proactive steps to address misinformation and disinformation. It is our hope that this resource will serve as an informational tool for our community andfurtherLovejoyISD’scommitmenttocommunication.

Students in Mr. Nelson’s 5th and 6th grade science class recently enjoyed a hands-on learning experience at Camp JOLT, located on the shores of Lake Texoma. During the day camp, students had the opportunity to engage in a variety of outdoor science activities that brought their classroom learning to life.Theyspenttimefishing,investigatingsoilcomposition,exploringtherock cycle,anddivingintothestudyofherpetology.Oneofthehighlightsoftheday was meeting a snake named Lady many students even had the chance to touch her as they learned about reptile adaptations and habitats. The camp experience concluded around the campfire with a sweet treat of s’mores, leavingstudentswithfullheartsandstickyfingers.Itwasamemorabledayof exploration,discovery,andfuninnature.

Congratulations to our Lovejoy High School Academic team on their strong performanceatUILRegionals!! Statequalifiersinclude:

ShilohkNananeethakrishnaninComputerScience

Shilohk Navaneethakrishnan, Brayden Mauriello, Justen Mao, Nolan FinniganinComputerScienceTeamProgramming

AndyChoyinCurrentIssues&Events

BryceBrezetteinSocialStudies

TheUILStateAcademiccompetitionisMay1 nusin congratulating all our academic competitor alifiers bestofluck!

CalculatorApplications

CoachJosephRasca 6thPlaceTeam

CharltonKim-16th

JamesBognot-23rd

ClaireWu-32nd

CurrentIssues&Events

CoachCherylAnderson 6thPlaceTeam

*AndyChoy-1st(StateQualifier)

LilyBednar-31st

VictorGold-38th

Mathematics

CoachJosephRasca

5thPlaceTeam

JamesBognot-18th

JustenMao-20th

CharltonKim-23rd

ClaireWu-25

NumberSense

CoachJosephRasca 5thPlaceTeam

JamesBognot-12th

CharltonKim-20th

ClaireWu-31st

LiteraryCriticism

CoachJasenEairheart

5thPlaceTeam

OliviaLong-13th

CarolineWilkins-20th

JuliannaGarcia-17th

AudreyCasey-22nd

SocialStudies

CoachDavidMullerand DeborahAdams 5thPlaceTeam

*BryceBrezette-2nd(StateQualifier)

LucasOspina-16th

ConradHayes-34th

Science

CoachCherylAnderson

ClaireWu-6th

PLAYOFF BASEBALL IS HERE! Congratulations to Baseball on winning the District Championships and advancing to the Bi-District Playoffs! Round 1 kicked off Thursday in Hallsville with a Leopard WIN! Game 2 will be played tonightatHOME!Let'spackthestandsandshowourLeopardPride!

Our Lovejoy Leopard Softball team took home the Bi-District Championship, beatingWhitehouse1-0inGame3lastweekend!!Joinusincongratulatingour athletes and coaches for their hard work, dedication, and perseverance! Last nightsoftballbeatFriscoEmersoninGame1oftheAreaPlayoffs!Game2will beplayedtonightatHOME! Let'spackthestandsandcheerthemon!

THSBA Regionals on Lake Lewisville concluded this past Saturday with 229 teams fishing and 10 of those representing Leopard Fishing. Lovejoy had 7 teamsweighinfish.

TournamentResults:

GraysonCox/CarstenDunn-12thPlace-4fish16.16lbs

MatthewLopez/CalebWashko-3fish8.62lbs

WillCraun/DiegoNguyen-3fish7.32lbs

KadeStubbs/CashDardano-3fish7.30lbs

CooperWier/EvanWyatt-2fish6.61lbs

Carson&WilliamBrownlow-3fish5.22lbs

GradyBoots/NicholasRowe-1fish2.48lbs

Thetop67teamswillmoveontoState!Congratulationstoourteamsthatwill representLeopardFishing!

The Lovejoy ISD Board of Trustees invites you to attend the upcoming Board Workshop

May 7th, 2025

DearLovejoyCommunity,

As a Board, we are committed to strong and proactive communication with our community. Part of this commitment is sending an email invitation to our community prior to Board Meetings with a sincere desire for you to be involved andfullyaware,sowecancometogetherasacommunityforourchildren.

May07th,2025PublicNoticeWebsite

(Public ntoice will be posted a minimum of 72 hours in advance)

You may find the full agenda with supporting documentation on our district's BoardBookPremierwebsiteHERE.

Sincerely,

Barrett Owens, President

Jeff Wood, Vice-President

Amy Smith, Secretary

TheLovejoyISDBoardofTrustees

Marvin Bobo, Trustee

Jason Jaynes, Trustee

Julie McLaughlin, Trustee

Mark Wheelis, Trustee

Lovejoy ISD is committed to providing consistent, transparent communication with ourcommunityandemployees.Wehopethis meeting summary will support you in staying connected and informed. Click the image on thelefttoopenthesummaryandpictures.

Regular Board Meetings and Workshops are nowrecordedandarchivedontheLovejoyISD website. You can access Regular Board Meeting and Workshop recordings by clicking theimageontheright.

The full Regular Board Meeting agenda with supporting documents may be viewedbyclickingtheimageontheleft.

Can't remember where you saw a flyer? Not a problem! Leopard Life is connected to all campus newsletters, Connect with Katie, campus websites, ANDLovejoyISDmobileapp!

Are you ready to build, innovate, and compete with a team of passionate roboticsenthusiasts?OurhighschoolVEXRoboticsprogramisrecruitingnew& existing members,andwewantyoutobepartoftheexcitement!

This year, we are proud to have five teams traveling to the VEX World Tournament May 6 through the 8 , showcasing our talent on a global stage. Whetheryou'reinterestedincoding,building,strategy,driving,notebooking,or projectmanagementthere'saplaceforyouonourteam.

WhyJoinUs?

Hands-onSTEMlearning

Teamworkandleadershipdevelopment

Competeatstate,national,andgloballevels

Scholarshipandnetworkingopportunities

Ifyouareinterested,scantheQRcodeandfillouttheinformation.Bepartof somethingamazing.Build,compete,andsucceedwithus!

Lovejoy ISD is committed to creating strong connections and providing clear communicationwithourLovejoyparentsandfamilies.Belowyouwillfindlinksto the most recent newsletters from each campus. Sign up for weekly Principal Newslettersheretostayinformed!