Connect with Katie.10.25.2024.Issue13 by Lovejoy ISD

Connect with Katie

OCTOBER

25, 2024

Lovejoy Lovejoy Leopards Leopards

PRINCIPAL

from the Superintendent MESSAGE

LovejoyCommunity,

TheLovejoyLetterWritingCampaignisacherished tradition that embodies our core value of One Heart, One Lovejoy. Through this campaign, students, parents, and community members write notes of appreciation to each Lovejoy ISD teacher and staff member, sharing our gratitude for their dedication and care. Our PTO devotes significant time to making this campaign possible, and it’s hard to express just how much it means for our teachers andstafftoreceiveenvelopesfilledwithheartfeltmessages.

Yournotedoesn’tneedtobelengthyorelaborate asimple,sincereexpression of thanks is all it takes. Every message contributes to a powerful reminder of howvaluedoureducatorsandstafftrulyare.

You can address your letters to a specific teacher or staff member and drop them off at the front office of any Lovejoy ISD school or the Administration Building by November 15th. Our wonderful PTO will organize these notes and makesurethey’redeliveredjustintimeforThanksgiving.

Thankyousomuchforhelpingusshowourgratitude.Together,let’smakethis ThanksgivingextraspecialforourOneHeartOneLovejoyfamily.

CongratulationstotheLovejoyHighSchoolBandandColorGuardonreceiving unanimous 1st Division Superior Ratings from judges at the UIL Region MarchingContest.TheyperformattheUILAreaMarchingContesttomorrowat 2:45 p.m. at Kenny Deel Stadium in Melissa. The Band’s “Locked Away” marching show is outstanding. Well done to our student musicians and their directors. We are grateful for the leadership and impact of Marty Ball, Tyler Harris,MatthewJoslin,andGloriaGarciaonourbandstudentsandprogram.

Statebound! The Lovejoy Girls and Boys Cross Country teams are both State BoundafterwinningtheRegionalChampionship.Bothteamswillcompeteatthe UIL State Championship on Saturday, November 2nd in Round Rock. We are remarkably proud of these elite student athletes and their amazing coaches, CoachKelly,andCoachLittlefield.

Lovejoy ISD Athletic Director and Head Football Coach, Todd Dodge, is being inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. Coach Dodge’s significant accomplishments as both a player and coach have earned him this remarkable recognition.CoachDodgeisanincrediblecoachandanevenbetterleaderand person.Wecannotthinkofanyonemoredeservingandwearegratefultohave hisimpactinLovejoyISD.Youcanreadmoreatthislink.

ThereisonlyONELOVEJOY,andweareALLLEOPARDS!

LovejoyProud, KatieKordel

Superintendent

Lovejoy High School Student-Superintendent Connection Council

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. Four hundred and twenty 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 22 LHS students, out of 90,000 students from across the country, who earned academic honors from College Board’s National RecognitionPrograms!

The National Recognition Programs honor the strong academicachievementsofunderrepresentedstudents. They’reagreatwayforstudentstoshowcasetheirhard work in high school. The programs not only benefit students, they also benefit colleges looking to recruit diverse,talentedstudents.

CongratulationstothefollowingstudentsforearningtheNationalAfricanAmerican Recognition Award (NAARA): Luca Campbell, Ruona Enaohwo, Sienna Franks, and TeniolaSegun.

Congratulations to the following students for earning the National Hispanic RecognitionAward(NHRA):SofiaDominguez,AllisonDoucet,DominiqueIannarelli, Ava Ibarrola, Chloe Long, Waverly Moore, Olivia Nickell, Sophia Ogle-Garza, Emma Pierce,AmyRomero,VioletSalvo,andFabianTorres.

CongratulationstothefollowingstudentsforearningtheNationalIndigenousAward (NIA):FaithFarkas,CaileeHorinek,IrisLee,SophiaOgle-Garza,andGarinRuppert.

CongratulationstothefollowingstudentsforearningtheNationalFirstGeneration Award(NFGA):OliviaNickell,AnicahSexauer,andZacharyTiedt.

The National Recognition Programs help students find ways to celebrate their achievements.StudentsmusthaveaGPAof3.3orhigher.Theyarethetop10%of PSAT/NMSQT® or PSAT™ 10 assessment takers in each state for each program or have earned a score of 3 or higher on two or more AP® Exams. Additionally, they must attend school in a rural area or small town, or identify as First Generation, African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, or Indigenous/Native. They’re invited to applyduringtheirsophomoreorjunioryear.Studentswhoareawardedrecognition willbenotifiedatthebeginningofthenextschoolyear.

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

FIRST RESPONDER

PARTNERSHIP

LovejoyIndependentSchoolDistrictextendsaheartfelt thank you to Mayor Kuykendall and the Lucas City Council for their visionary approval of the groundbreaking "Drone as a First Responder" partnership. This exciting collaboration between the CityofLucasandLovejoyIndependentSchoolDistrictis a major step forward in enhancing community safety andsecurity.

WiththeLucasCityCouncil’srecentapprovaloftheInterlocalAgreement,theLucas FireDepartmentandLovejoyISDareastepclosertohvaingthebenefitofcuttingedge drone technology designed to transform both proactive security efforts and emergency response. This first-of-its-kind partnership is designed to support both agencieswithapowerfuldroneequippedwithadvancedsensors,thermalimaging, autonomous deployment, remote piloting, live feed monitoring, and automated reporting.

Special recognition goes to Fire Chief Ted Stephens for his dedication in fostering this forward-thinking partnership, which not only strengthens the effectiveness of both agencies but also maximizes financial efficiency through an interlocal agreement.

The drone system, tailored specifically for governmental use, will significantly elevatesafetyandsecuritymeasuresforboththeschooldistrictandthecommunity. The City of Lucas Fire Department will house the drone, with personnel from both the Fire Department and Lovejoy ISD trained as operators - providing critical redundancytosupportrapidresponseduringemergencies.

Following the Lucas City Council’s approval of the Drone as a First Responder partnership,theLovejoyIndependentSchoolDistrictBoardofTrusteeswillconsider formal approval to solidify the partnership at their October 28th Regular Board Meeting.

ANCHOR SPONSOR RECOGNITION

Last week, at Friday’s varsity football game, Lovejoy ISD honored a very important local business that has an incredible impact on Lovejoy’s students andprograms.

ShaddockHomes,AnchorSponsor LovejoyISDwasproudtointroduceourGame Night Sponsor, Shaddock Homes. Peter Shaddock Jr. was joined at the game by his wife Julie. Their daughter Kate is a Junior at LovejoyHighSchool.

AsanAnchorSponsor,ShaddockHomes,representsLovejoy'shighestlevelof advertisingsponsor. WearedeeplyappreciativetotheShaddockHomesteam for their support and contribution to the community. We are honored to recognizeMr.Shaddockandhisfamilywithacertificateofappreciation.

APPRECIATION

October is Principal Appreciation Month and we are proud to continue celebrating our incredible campus leaders! This week we are highlighing Mr. Wieller,PrincipalofLovejoyHighSchool!

H O N O R I N G

Justin Wieller

Q:HowManyYearshaveyouworkedineducation? A:14

Q:Whatisthebestthingaboutbeingaprincipal?

A:Buildingrelationshipswiththestudents,teachers, andstaffatLovejoyHighSchool!

Q:Whatisa"funfact"ortalentthatstudentswould besurprisedtoknowaboutyou?

A:I'dsaytwothingsthatmostdon'tknowaboutme is I was a Pennsylvania wrestling state champion in myglorydays,andIstartedmyteachingcareerina kindergartenclassroom.

Q:Whatsongdoyouknowallthelyricsto?

A:SmashMouth-AllStar.

Q:Ifyoucouldhaveasuperpower,whatwoulditbe andwhy?

A: I would want to fly so I can easily visit all places aroundtheworld.

LOVEJOY LETTER

CAMPAIGN

LovejoyFamiliesandCommunityMembers:

The Annual Lovejoy Letter Campaign for teachers and staff members is just aroundthecorner!Manyofyouarefamiliarwiththisbelovedtradition,butfor those of you who are not, it is the time of year when our community writes appreciation letters for each of our teachers and staff members across the District.

The letters do not have to be elaborate or lengthy. The goal is to share your gratitude for Lovejoy teachers, the staff and administration. It is a wonderful opportunity for students and parents to let each Lovejoy staff member know howmuchtheyarevaluedandthedifferencetheymakeeachday.Thisyear’s campaignbeganMonday,October21st.

Please place your letter in a clearly labeled envelope including the staff/teacher’s name, the campus, and LLC (Lovejoy Letter Campaign). There willbecollectionboxesavailableatallcampusesintheDistrict.Thelastdayfor dropoffisFriday,November15th.Pleasefeelfreetosharethismessageaswe spread the word about the campaign. Let’s show our teachers and staff just howmuchweappreciatethem!

NATONAL BOSS’S DAY

Fall break couldn’t stop us from celebrating National Boss's Day on October 16th! We are honored to recognize the guidance, vision, and expertise of our leadership in LovejoyISD.

Thank you, Superintendent Kordel andLovejoyleaders,foryourtireless dedicationtoourstudentsandstaff throughouttheDistrict!

SCHOOL BUS SAFETY WEEK

Happy National School Bus Safety Week! Lovejoy ISD is proud to have an exceptional transportation team dedicated to the safety of our Lovejoy students!

Our Lovejoy community can help keep ourkidssafe,pleaseremember: Stayalertinschoolzones.1. Always stop (and never pass) a school bus with flashing red lights andanextendedstoparm. 2. Obeytrafficsignsandspeedlimits.3.

NO SCHOOL

NOVEMBER

Leopard Reminder: All campuses will be closed Friday, November 1st for a Student Holiday/TeacherProfessionalDevelopment.

LovejoyAdministrationwillbeopennormal businesshours.

1ST

ATTENDANCE

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

LHS CAMPUS SHOW GALLERY OPENING

The Lovejoy Visual Arts program would like toinviteyoutothe8thAnnualLovejoyHigh SchoolCampusExhibit!OpeningonOctober 29th at 5pm, this exhibit displays an incredibleselectionofworkfromeachofour variousartcoursesatLHS.

Whether exercising foundational artistic talent, building upon newly discovered interests, or working on their senior portfolio,eachstudenthas workeddiligently topracticeanddeveloptheircreativevoiceinthestudio.Theworkselectedfor thisexhibitionspeaksclearlyofthegrowth,breadthofapproach,andchasefor personalbestthatmakeourLJVAstudioswhattheyare.

Please join us from 5 - 7 pm on October29thintheLHSGalleryto celebrate the intention, ideation, and process behind each artist's work!

If you are unable to attend the night of the opening, please contact brice mccasland@lovejoyisd.net to set up an appointment to tour the Gallery after 4:30pm October 30thNovember 8th.

DISTRICT CALENDAR

LCDC DONUTS

WITH DAD

The Lovejoy Child Development Center hosted their annual Donuts with Dads eventthismorning! Staffandstudentswelcomeddadsandotherspecialguests for breakfast. Dads were then invited into classrooms so children could show them the fun things they do and learn each day. Thanks to all our LCDC dads andvisitorsforaveryspecialstarttotheday!

REALISTIC FICTION

CELEBRATION

OnFriday,October11ththeHart4thgraderscelebratedtheendoftheirrealistic fiction reading and writing unit. During the unit they read the book The Tiger Rising, by Kate DiCamillo. The main character, Rob, expresses his feelings and emotions through whittling wood. Each student was given a bar of soap and had the freedom to let the soap "do what it wanted." Through this hands on activity, students expressed their creativity, empathy, perseverance, and curiosity!

HART ART CREATURE

TRANSFORMATIONS

3rd grade students at Hart Elementary have been engaged in transforming creatures from a 2D to 3D using clay sculpting methods. This project incorporated art standards, geometry, and writing. We cannot wait to see the finishedproductswhentheycomeoutofthekiln!

BOYS XC REGION

CHAMPIONS!

The Lovejoy Boys Cross Country team won the Region II-5A Championship on Tuesday.Thisistheir9thconsecutiveRegionalChampionshipand10thoverall inprogramhistory.Inaddition,thisisthe17thconsecutiveyeartheboyshave qualified for the State Championship. The Leopards will race at Old Settlers ParkonNovember2ndat11:25AM.

AllRegionRunners:

TristanArceneau-5th

WillCarlson-7th

UILStateChampionshipInformationHERE CompleteRegionII-5ABoysResultsHERE

GIRLS XC REGION

CHAMPIONS!

The Lovejoy Girls Cross Country team won their 5th consecutive Regional ChampionshiponTuesday.Thegirlssteppedupinabigwayandexecutedthe team’s race strategy to near perfection. The Leopards will race at Old Settlers ParkonNovember2ndat10:45AM.

AllRegionRunners:

BAND ADVANCES

TO AREA CONTEST

PALS PROGRAM

LEOPARD LEADERS

LovejoyISDisthrilledtocelebratePeerAssistanceLeadershipStudents(PALS), whoembodythespiritofleadershipandmentorshipinourLovejoycommunity. As student role models, our PALS are sources of inspiration for our younger Leopards.

The Lovejoy PALS program is a high school class that requires an application and interview process. Students must submit teacher recommendations, and thoseselectedmoveontointerviews.OncechosenasaPAL,studentsundergo sixweeksofcomprehensivetrainingatthestartoftheschoolyear.

Duringthistraining,PALSlearnessentialproblem-solvingandleadershipskills, engaging in discussions around real-life scenarios they may encounter. Additionally, to enrich their experience, each PAL is required to complete 10 hoursofcommunityserviceeachquarteroutsideofschoolhours.

Thisquarter,ourdedicatedPALSwereawardedthe“LeopardLeader”award,a recognitionoftheiroutstandingcontributions.Trueleadershipisnotjustabout beingattheforefront;it'saboutliftingothers,guidingthem,anddemonstrating therightpath.Thankyou,PALS,foryourcommitmenttomakingourdistricta betterplace.Yourhardworkanddedicationdonotgounnoticed!Keepshining andinspiringthosearoundyou!

PAL Students: Brock Bernal, Camryn Benson, Eva Meldrum, Jordan Wheelis, Skylar Jackson, Sophie Konecny, Chloe Gidden, Harper Jaynes, Jack Miller, Jackson Reid, Lainey Pierce, Parker Wood, Pearce Kiper, Pierce Patel, Zane Kruzenski

PAL High School Instructor: Brooke Puckett

Counselors: Kelly Collins, Susan Delarosa, Glenda Martin, Carey Miller, and Mary Ruggeri

SWIM & DIVE

DUAL MEET

OnWednesdayLovejoySwim&DivefinishedtheirdualmeetagainstMcKinney North! Kennadie Hummel started the team off strong, winning the diving sectionofthemeet!ThegirlsandboyswentontosecureavictoryoverNorth, oneofLovejoy’smostseriouscompetitorsatDistricts!

CoachJayBolingersaid,“IambeyondproudofthesportsmanshipIobserved on both the Lovejoy and McKinney North teams. Each team was cheering for boththeirteammatesandtheopposingteam'sswimmers.Itwassuchagreat sighttoseecompetitorstreateachotherwithsuchgreatsupportandrespect!”

Swim of the meet went to Addy Taylor, Freshman JV, who dropped over 15 secondsinher200freeand5secondsinher100Free!Fantasticswims!

LJVA ART BENEFITS

VOGEL ALCOVE

EachyearourLovejoyVisualArtAPStudioartistsholdabenefitauctiontoraise fundsforacharityoftheirchoice.LastyearwasthefourthyearthatAPartists have selected to sell their original work to benefit the art program at Vogel Alcove; a Dallas school focused on helping students and their families recover fromthetraumaofhomelessnessandpoverty.LJVAwasthrilledtoraise$1640 thispastyeartobenefitthiswonderfulorganization,and4oftheartistsgotthe chancetodeliverthedonationandvisitVogelAlcoveandseetheirstudentsat worklastweek.Thiswasawonderfulopportunityforstudioleaderstoseethe powerandimportanceofthisdonationfirsthand;motivatingandencouraging ourstudentstocontinuetousetheirartisticgiftstogivebackandworktomake changeinourlargercommunity.

LJVAissoverygratefultoallofthepatronsinthecommunitywhoparticipatein this yearly LJVA Benefit Auction, and they are thankful that they can use their artisticvoicestogivebacktothoseinneed.AhugethankyoutoVogelAlcove for the tour and warm welcome! LJVA is so proud to be partnered with this incredible organization and the experience they offer their students and families. For more information about Vogel Alcove or to make your own donation please visit their website. We hope that you will participate in this year’sLJVAAPStudioExhibitinMay,whereyoucanbidonoriginalartworkto advanceVogelAlcove’smissiontobenefitthosethreatenedbyhomelessness.

VOLLEYBALL

JUNGLE NIGHT

Lovejoy Volleyball has had an awesome start to the week with their annual jungle night on Tuesday! Jungle night is held during one district game every yearthathasaspecialjunglenightt-shirtandpizzaforfans!Volleyballwantsto thank ALL of the Lovejoy community for showing up to support their program Tuesdaynight!AspecialshoutouttotheLovejoyFootballteamandtheWillow Springsvolleyballprogramforshowingupandbeingtheloudestfans!District continues tonight at the away game against Greenville, and then volleyball’s district season will come to a close next Tuesday at the final district home game/seniornight. VolleyballisexcitedtocelebratetheirFIVEamazingseniors! MakesureyoufollowtheirTwitterandInstagram(@lovejoy vb)forupdateson Volleyball’s2024playoffrun!#OnAMission

LEOPARDS WIN

48-7 OVER EMERSON

The Lovejoy Leopards competed last week against Frisco Emerson in another crucialdistrictgame.TheLeopardsdominatedtheMavericksfromthestartto finishwiththefinalscore48-7.

The Leopards are back in action tonight in Prosper and will take on another toughteaminWalnutGrove.Thisisgoingtobehardfoughtgameandweneed theentirecommunityouttonightinProspertohelpcheerontheLeopards.The game will be played at Children's Health Stadium and will start at 7:00 p.m. Goodluck,Leopards!

LEOPARD FISHING

TOURNAMENT

LeopardFishinghadtheir2ndtournamentoftheseasonthispastweekendon LakeTexoma.Whileitwasatoughdayonthewater,theydidbringhomea4th placefinishasTEAMoftheTournament!

211boatsparticipated 23outofthe26LeopardFishingTeamscompeted 9outofthe23teamsweighedinfish 15fishwereweighedinfortheteam

IndividualRankings:

Boots/Rowe-5for8.52lbs5thplace

Wier/Wyatt-3for4.63lbs21stplace

Lindsay/Starr-1for3.13lbs

Brownlow/Brownlow-1for2.36lbs

Griffin/Ralph-1for2.30lbs

Harrell/Riggins-1for2.25lbs

Cox/Dunn-1for2.24lbs

McWhorter-1for2.16lbs

Lopez/Washko-1for1.93lbs

FCA CLUB EVENT:

FIELDS OF FAITH

Lovejoy’s FCA club hosted their annual Fields of Faith event Wednesday night. FieldsofFaithisaneventheldinthefalleveryyearwherestudentsgettogether to worship, share their favorite scripture, listen to a guest speaker and collaborate in small groups. This year's guest speaker was former head basketball coach, Kyle Herrema. Students enjoyed hearing Coach Herrema share wisdom and life lessons. Lovejoy FCA also collaborated with the Lucas Christian Academy to provide fellowship and worship. LCA's student worship teamdidanwonderfuljobleadingover115+studentsinsong,andLovejoyFCA leaders did an incredible job putting on this event. FCA is excited to see what the spring semester holds for their program. To stay updated on events, you mayfollowthemoninstagram@lovejoyfca.

SOFTBALL

TEAM BONDING

Lovejoy softball had another fun night of team bonding this week carving pumpkins and spending time outdoors! The softball program makes team bonding a top priority during their off-season. Softball season begins in the middleofJanuaryandtheycannotwaittogetbackonthefield!

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.

October28,2024PublicNoticeWebsite

(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, TheLovejoyISDBoardofTrustees

Barrett Owens, President

Jeff Wood, Vice-President

Amy Smith, Secretary

Marvin Bobo, Trustee

Jason Jaynes, Trustee

Julie McLaughlin, Trustee

Mark Wheelis, Trustee

LEOPARD LIFE

TheLeopardLifewebsiteisanewadditiontoLovejoy’swaystostayengaged. SchoolrelatedflyersandcommunitynewswillbesharedontheLeopardLife.

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!

ExtendedDayLeopardAcademyisan opportunity for your child to participate in enrichment activities onhisorhercampusbeforeandafter 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 personalinterests.

Registrationisopenforthefollowing academies for students in 1st through 6th grade. Choose from one of the links below for more information.

Lovejoy SAT Prep classes are openforregistration.Clickhere tolearnmoreandregister!

BOARD ACADEMY

REGISTRATION

The Lovejoy ISD Board Academy is designed for anyone considering public service on the Board of Trustees as those that would like to learn more about local school district governance. School Board Members will explain the roles and responsibilities of serving on the Board, review the statestate-required training requirements, and discuss the difference between Boardoversightandday-to-dayoperationsofthedistrict.Informationwillalso be shared on the guidance, logistics, and timelines to run for a Board of Trustees seat. The Board Academy will be on Wednesday, December 4, 2024 from1:00p.m.to3:00p.m.

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.

September4,2024

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!