Connect with Katie.10.06.2023.Issue11

Connect with Katie

Lovejoy Lovejoy Leopards Leopards

from the Superintendent MESSAGE

LovejoyCommunity,

We had a wonderful time at 5th Grade Camp! I spent the last fewdayswithourstudents,teachers,andparentchaperonesat Sky Ranch in Van, Texas. It was a special experience to be at camp with Claire and Jacob. We learned, laughed, and built lastingrelationships.TheClassof2031 bondedoverlessonsin leadership, studying living creatures, fishing, zip lining, bravingwaterslides,andstayinginacabintogether.

Eachyear,wetake5thgraderstocampasanextensionofour curriculum. They have the opportunity to interact with their natural environment through hands-on activities, demonstrations and teamwork exercises I appreciate the knowledge our students gain in this outdoor learning environment as well as the personal growth that occurs when students have the opportunity to step outside their comfort zone

TherearethreeveryspecialgroupsofpeoplethatarecelebratedinOctober.OnMonday,October2nd,we celebratedCustodianDay.WehavetheabsolutebestcustodiansinLovejoyISD.Thecustodialteamisled byRigoValdivia.Mr.Valdiviamodelsservantleadershipandisoftenfoundcleaningatoneofourschools tofillinthegapcausedbythechallengeswehaveinfillingcustodialpositions.Weappreciateeverything thatMr.Valdiviaandourcustodiansdotokeepourschoolscleanandhealthyplacestolearnandwork.

Today,wearecelebratingNationalCoachesDay.Ourcoachesareincredibleteachersandleaders.They propelourstudentstoexcellencebothonandoffthefieldbymotivatingstudentstogive110%effortin everything they do #OneStandard We are fortunate to have the very best coaches in Lovejoy inspiring studentsandstaffwiththeirpassion,optimismandfortitude.

Finally,OctoberisPrincipalAppreciationmonth.Wordsaretrulynotadequatetoexpresstheimportance ofourprincipals Principalsareuniquelypositionedtoimpactstudentoutcomes,providesupportforour teachers, and partner with parents. There is no doubt, principal leadership matters. Our heartfelt appreciationandgratitudetoWendyCraft,HollyHaynes,MeganRawlins,CaitlinEldredge,andDr Travis Zambiasi.WeareexceptionallyfortunateandgratefultohavetheirleadershipandimpactinLovejoyISD.

Next week, our campuses are closed for Fall Break and there will not be a Connect with Katie. Wishing eachofourLeopardsasafeandenjoyablebreaknextweek.

ThereisonlyONELOVEJOYandweareALLLEOPARDS!

LovejoyProud, KatieKordel Superintendent

Supt. Kordel played the clown in the “Clue” game at 5th grade camp and was found guilty of stealing the keys to the cafeteria!

C E R T I F I C A T E OF ACHIEVEMENT

THIS AWARD CERTIFICATE IS PRESENTED TO

LovejoyHighSchool

AP Scholars

The College Board recognizes several levels of achievement based on students’ performance on AP Exams. Three hundred fifteen students at Lovejoy High School have earned AP Scholar Awards and recognitions of their exceptional achievement on AP Exams.

VIEW THE FULL LIST OF AP SCHOLARS AND THEIR RECOGNITIONS

COLLEGE BOARD

RECOGNITIONS

We’re celebrating 14 LHS students, out of 72,000studentsfromacrossthecountry,who earned academic honors from College Board’sNationalRecognitionPrograms!

TheNationalRecognitionProgramshonorthe strong academic achievements of underrepresented students. They’re a great wayforstudentstoshowcasetheirhardwork inhighschool.Theprogramsnotonlybenefit students,theyalsobenefitcollegeslookingto recruitdiverse,talentedstudents.

Congratulations to the following students for earning the National African American Recognition Award (NAARA) Romares Barnett, Jr., Cameron Lopez, TiernanMiller,ApiaOkorafor,ZoePitan,andAuburnaeWilliams.

Congratulations to the following students for earning the National Hispanic Recognition Award (NHRA): Myles Beard, Sofia Denham, Julianne Garcia, Mia George,OliviaLong,GabrielSofia,andGracynThompson.

Congratulations to the following student for earning the National Indigenous Award(NIA):BrodyMcKnight.

The National Recognition Programs help students find ways to celebrate their achievements.StudentsmusthaveaGPAof3.5orhigher.They’rethetop10% ofPSAT/NMSQT®orPSAT™10assessmenttakersineachstateforeachprogram orhaveearnedascoreof3orhigherontwoormoreAP®Exams.Additionally, they must attend school in a rural area or small town, or identify as African American/Black,Hispanic/Latino,orIndigenous/Native.They’reinvitedtoapply during their sophomore or junior year. Students who are awarded recognition willbenotifiedatthebeginningofthenextschoolyear.

We are #LovejoyProud of these students hard work and outstanding academic accomplishments!

AP PLATINUM

HONOR ROLL

Lovejoy High School has earned Platinum recognitiononthe2023APSchoolHonorRoll.

To qualify for the 2023 Platinum AP School Honor Roll,LovejoyISDhadtomeettheplatinumcriteriafor all three metrics: College Culture, College Credit, CollegeOptimization.

TheAPSchoolHonorRollrecognizesschoolsthathavedoneoutstandingwork to welcome more students into AP courses and support them on the path to collegesuccess.

ResearchshowsthatstudentswhotakeAPcoursesandexamsaremorelikelyto attendcollegeandgraduateontime.Thestudentswhoenterfour-yearcolleges withcreditfromAPacceleratetheirpathtograduationandbuildconfidencefor college success. And even for those who don’t earn college credit, AP coursework provides early exposure to college-level work and contributes to a college-goingschoolculture.

LovejoyHighSchoolResults

The2023APSchoolHonorRollalsorecognized LovejoyHighSchoolforprovidingallstudentsthe chancetoparticipateinAP,includingstudentsof underrepresentedpopulations.

CONNECTION

COUNCIL

Lovejoy’s Student-Superintendent Connection Council is off to a great third year. The Connection Council meets monthly and facilitates meaningful conversationbetweenstudentsanddistrictleadership.

LITERACY VERTICAL

TEAMS

ThePK-12LiteracyVerticalteamhadtheopportunitytolearnmoreaboutSTEM programming in Lovejoy by participating in a STEM experience called Take a Stand. Teachers were able to communicate their opinion in the Great Debate between TechnologyvsPaperandPencilintheclassroom.Teacherslistenedto theircolleaguespointofviewandwerethenabletosharetheiropinionthrough writing. ThisexperiencemirrorswhatstudentswilldoinourPK-12readingand Englishclassrooms.

ATTENDANCE UPDATE

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

CALENDAR EVENT LINKS

WIPE OUT KIDS

CANCER

Students Becca Hull and Izzy Joyner are pictured in the studio with Ryan andTarafrom99.5'sWakeupwiththe Wolf show. Lovejoy High School was among the four schools who were invited to participate in and promote on the air their efforts to support the Wipe Out Kids' Cancer fundraiser challenge.

Wehopethatyouconsiderdonatingto this great organization that offers resources and guidance for the whole familyontheircancerjourney.

Clickheretodonatetoourfundraiser, https://lovejoy.revtrak.net/hs/#/v/wip e-out-kids-cancer. If you're interested in fund matching, please email Student Council Advisor BillieJean Kelsey atbillie kelsey@lovejoyisd.net.

The fundraiser ends November 7th with all proceeds going to the organization.Lookformoreinfoabout ourBoo-tique@LHScomingsoon!

For more information, please visit https://www.wokc.org/.

LHS THEATRE

PRESENTS CLUE

Congratulations to the AMAZING cast of Clue: High School Edition on TWO successful shows! The Production and Theatre Tech classes worked hard over the past six weeks to showcase their top notch acting and technical skills, leavingaudiencesentertained.Wearesoproudofalloftheirefforts!

Photo Credit: LHS Yearbook

TOP ART SCHOOLS

VISIT LJVA

This week Lovejoy Visual Arts (LJVA) welcomed some of the top art schools in thecountrytopresentwhattheirinstitutionofferedtofutureartists,designers, andthoseheadedintocreativecareers.

ThevisitscomeonthetailofmanyofourLJVAartistsparticipatinginNational PortfolioDayinDallas.Theseannualeventsareheldinmultiplelocationsacross the United States, Canada, and Europe and are designed to provide a unique opportunity for students to present their portfolio of artwork for review from professionalrepresentativesfromcolleges,universities,andartschools.These portfolioreviewsandcritiqueoftheartist'sworknotonlyoffersartistsvaluable feedbackaroundtheirworkforsubmissionintotheseprograms,butalsoserves as the foundation for acceptance and scholarship to these renowned institutions.

OurLovejoyartistsstoodoutasusual,notonlyfortheirincredibleartworkbut their professionalism and character as they met with these professors and admissionsofficerstogainnewperspectivesontheirwork.Itwasawonderful experienceforstudentsandtherepresentativesfromPrattInstitute,Milwaukee InstituteofArt&Design(MIAD),MarylandInstituteCollegeofArt(MICA),Rhode IslandSchoolofDesign(RISD),SchooloftheArtInstituteofChicago(SAIC),and Temple University. Visiting our studios and student-managed gallery is a testamenttoourexceptionalLovejoy’sVisualArtprogram.

UNMANNED VEHICLE

FIELD TRIP

The LHS Introduction to Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) class took part in a studytriponSeptember21totheUAVMuseuminCaddoMills,TX.Studentshad awonderfulexperiencelearningaboutUAVsfromthe50'stomoderntimesand evengottoseeaPredatordroneupclose!

LOVEJOY GOLF

INVITATIONAL

The Leopard Ladies competed intheLovejoyInvitationalgolf tournament last week. We hosted a strong field, and the Black team finished 3rd posting a solid team score of 324. The red team shot 392 and finished 7th. Our Leopard Ladies continue to grow and strengthen their skills with eachtournament!

READING WITH THE

LEOPARDS

Reading with the Leopards is a long standing tradition in Lovejoy creating connectionsandinspiringfuturegenerationsofLeopardLeaders!Duringthese impactfulmornings,ourlittlestLeopardsaregreeted duringcarlineandreadto in their classrooms! This is a wonderful example of our #OneHeartOneLovejoy corevalue!ThankYOUforLivingLovejoy!

Photo Credit: Becky Hand

BOOMWHACKER

MUSIC MAKERS

Students at Hart Elementary are having a blast playing the Boomwhackers in Music class! These colored tubes each play a different sound based on the length of the tube. Our Leopard Musicians are following iconic notation to play chords. Mrs. Hebert always makes it fun to learnaboutMusic.

Photo Credit: Becky Hand

ORCHESTRA FALL

CONCERTS

SCISandWSMSOrchestrasheldtheirFall Concertsthisweek. Theyhaveachieved an extraordinary amount of learning and growth in just 8 weeks and it was apparentintheirperformances!

CONNECTING LOCAL BUSINESSES AND THE LOVEJOY COMMUNITY

WHILE SUPPORTING LOVEJOY ISD THROUGH REVENUE GENERATION

TheLovejoyISDCommunityPartnerprogramisanew way for local businesses to support Lovejoy ISD and connect with the Lovejoy Community! Community Partner advertisements are featured in our weekly Districtnewsletter,ConnectwithKatie,LivingLovejoy videos,andDistrictSocialMedia

InterestedinbecomingaCommunityPartner? ClickHEREtolearnmore!

The Girls Cross Country teams competed in two meets this week. On Thursday we took half of our squad to Blue Ridge where we dominated the competition and took wins in both the JVandVarsitydivisions.Therestofthe team traveled to Arkansas for the Chile PepperFestivalwherewefacedoffwith somenationallyrankedteams.Wetook hometwodominatingwins!Thevarsity team

isundefeatedthusfarandhasmovedupto#7inNationalRankings!We now enter into Championship season starting with District next Tuesday at MyersPark!

GIRLS CROSS BOYS CROSS

The Varsity Boys Cross Country team also competed in the Arkansas Chile Pepper Festival on Saturday, September 28th. The topboysteamplaced3rdoveralloutof110 teams in the El Caliente division. The second group of varsity boys, "B team", placed 15th overall in the El Caliente division, beating every other Texas team entered including #7 5A ranked Colleyville Heritage.CadenGaryandNickYaradboth

finished in the top 25 with 15th and 24th place respectively. The third team enteredforLovejoycompetedintheOpenVarsitydivisionandplaced8thoutof 77teams. 860runnersfinishedintheElCalienterace.

VOLLEYBALL 7-0

DISTRICT PLAY

Lovejoy Volleyball started their secondroundofdistrictTuesday night against the Melissa Cardinals!Withanotherprogram sweep, all three teams are now 7-0indistrictplay.

During Fall Break your Leopards willhaveahomegameTuesday night against the Sherman Bearcats, Sub-Varsity teams will play at 5:00pm and Varsity will followaround6:00pm.

HAPPY NATIONAL COACHES DAY

National Coaches Day honors the educatorswhoinspireourathletestowork harder and do their best. We truly appreciate everything our coaches do for ourLovejoyAthleticprograms!

"Behind every fearless player is a fearless coachwhorefusestoletthembeanything butthebesttheycanbe." Anonymous

THANK YOU

CUSTODIANS

On National Custodian Day we celebrated the unsung heroes who keep our learning spaces shining!Theirhardworkandcommitmentmakeour campusessafeandwelcomingeveryday.

Custodianswerecelebratedwithspecialtreatsfrom administration and lunch on several campuses. Thank you, custodians, for making Lovejoy a clean andhappyplacetolearnandgrow!

CELEBRATING OUR

PRINCIPALS

October is National School Principals Month! Please help us thank all of our Lovejoy ISD principals for their courageous leadership and dedication to the success of all Lovejoy students and staff! Our incredible principals exemplify Lovejoy ISD’s pillars: Relationships, Learning, Collaboration, Results, and FUN! Superintendent Kordel and Cabinet Members celebrated by delivering bundt cakestoourHart,PusterandSloanCreekPrincipalsthisweek.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

INVITATION

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.

October16,2023PublicNoticeWebsite

(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

Amy

Jeff

Smith, Vice-President

Wood, Secretary

TheLovejoyISDBoardofTrustees

Marvin Bobo, Trustee

Jason Jaynes, Trustee

Julie McLaughlin, Trustee

Mark Wheelis, Trustee

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

FOR THE LOVE OF BOTS

Lovejoy Robotics is hosting a VEX Robotics Tournament on Saturday, October 21st. This is a great opportunity to bring your kids and see what Lovejoy Roboticsisallabout!

Doorsopentospectators:8:30am

Qualifyingmatches:8:45amtonoon,1pmto2:45pm

Eliminationmatches(play-offs):3:30pm

Finalmatchandawardsceremony:5:15pm

Robotics still need some volunteers for important spots, including skills field refsandskillsfieldassistants,scorekeepersandjudges.Noexperienceisneeded (although some kind of engineering, programming, design or business backgroundispreferredforJUDGESonly)andtrainingisprovided.

Signuptovolunteerhere:https://bit.ly/ftlob23-volunteer

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

NEW! GREEN TEAM

PLASTIC BAG DRIVE

Leopard LifeLOVEJOY

LINKS

NEW! CHIPOTLE SOCCER BOOSTER

HAUNTED SOIREE

LIVING FOR ZACHARY HEART SCREENING

Leopard Life

HOME RUN HEROS

MAJESTIC BUDDY

EVENTS

SWIM & DIVE

Leopard Life

LOVEJOY LINKS

BOARD ACADEMY

The Lovejoy ISD Board Academy is designed for anyone considering public service on the Board of Trustees as well those that would like to learn more aboutlocalschooldistrictgovernance.SchoolBoard memberswillexplaintherolesandresponsibilitiesof serving on the Board, review the state-required training requirements, and discuss the difference between Board oversight and day-to-day operations of ofthedistrict.

Informationwillalsobesharedontheguidelines,logistics,andtimelinestorun for a Board seat. The Board Academy will be on Wednesday, December 6 from 1:00p.m.to3:00p.m.

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 engagesin opendialogue/discussionwithourcommunity.

August29,2023

6:00p.m.-7:00p.m.

SloanCreekIntermediate

November30,2023

12:00p.m.-1:00p.m.

HartElementarySchool

February28,2024

8:00a.m.-9:00a.m. LovejoyHighSchool

April30,2024 9:00a.m.-10:00a.m.

WillowSpringsMiddleSchool

DISTRICT & CAMPUS

NEWSLETTERS

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!

DISTRICT NEWSLETTER

Connect with Katie

HART ELEMENTARY Principal Newsletter

PUSTER ELEMENTARY Principal Newsletter

SLOAN CREEK INTERMEDIATE Principal Newsletter

WILLOW SPRINGS MIDDLE Principal Newsletter

LOVEJOY HIGH SCHOOL Principal Newsletter

COMMUNITY NEWS

TheLovejoyISDCommunityNewswebsiteisintendedtofacilitateconnections and raise awareness of local events, activities, fundraisers and organizations thatmightinterestLovejoyfamilies.

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.