/dim-Jan-11

A lumni notes Class of 1987 Rebecca Reynolds McMillon resides with her husband Matt and three children in Abilene, Texas. She is the Head of School at St. John’s Episcopal School in Abilene. Her email address is mcmillon@ stjohnsabilene.org.

Class of 1994 Norjuan Q. Austin, Ph.D. was awarded tenure and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor of English at Stephen F. Austin State University. He teaches classes in Children’s Literature, English Education, and Composition and Rhetoric. His email is nqaustin@ sfasu.edu Class of 1995 Don K. Caleb is married to Renata and they have 1 child. graduated from U of H and is now a teacher and a coach.

Don

Class of 1995 Heather Hess McHugh married Paul McHugh on February 27, 2010.

Her email address is heidihi@msn.com.

Class of 1996 Jennifer Semanek Greenwell and her husband Travis graduated from Harding University. They have been married for 10 years and Travis works as an Accountant for Verizon. They have 3 children Hannah age 9, Emily age 8, and Andrew age 5.

They live in Benton, Ark and Jennifer is a stay-at-home mom and a substitute teacher for the Benton Public School System.

Class of 2001 Chris Gonzalez graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from St. Edward’s University in 2006 and is now working for St. Edward’s University as a Project Manager.

Class of 2008 Shawn Kelly is currently playing soccer for Sam Houston State University. He is studying Accounting and is working on a minor in International Business.

Class of 2009 Richard Glenn attends Harding University and plays on the soccer team. He is engaged to be married in March to Callie McAlister. His email address is richyglenn11490@yahoo.com.

Our readers enjoy hearing from former students. Please continue to send updates to Janice Pearson at: jpearson@westburychristian.org.

In Memory Of Bill and Mary Anne Avery Ms. Donna Meeks Mr. and Mrs. Harold Northcutt Mr. and Mrs. Robert Farrar

Jake Burns

Mr. and Mrs. Harold Northcutt

Marvin Fontenot Ione Cox

Richard Goodwin

&

In Honor Of Tom Osborne

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Farrar

Travis Turner

Mr. and Mrs. Jack Gray

Gloria Wilkins

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Farrar

Want to know what's going on at our school?

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Become A Fan: Westbury Christian School Join A Group: Westbury Christian School Alumni

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Mr. and Mrs. Jack Gray

Donald Nelson

Mr. and Mrs. Norman Weller

Jesse Martin

Mr. and Mrs. Fred Olson

LaVonne Olson

Mr. Marvin Curtis Mr. and Mrs. W.C. Ferguson Mr. and Mrs. Jack Gray Mr. and Mrs. Brent Hughes Mr. and Mrs. Brian Olson Mr. and Mrs. Fred Olson Ms. Janet Olson

Mr. William Goldstein

David Whisner Ms. Zee Klein

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Legacy Tile Project

Families Make Lasting Imprint on WCS The Westbury Christian School Legacy Tile Project is a fundraising initiative created to help support the construction of the new Lower School playground. Together with the Westbury Church of Christ, our faculty and staff hosted a Legacy Tile decorating event, held at the WCS courtyard, with proceeds going directly towards the cost for the new grounds. Shara Carr, wife of Athletic Director Russell Carr, and Jennifer White, wife of guidance counselor Mike White, played a large role in the process of organizing the Legacy Tile Project.

Current Westbury Christian students and their families were invited to make their mark on the playground by purchasing one six inch tile, or two four inch tiles, to decorate during the event, leaving their legacy for many years to come. WCS faculty opened the activities with morning worship, followed by Bible class and finally lunch, before the tile decorating began.

The decorated tiles are being placed into frames and will soon be on permanent display on the wall by the playground to be enjoyed by current, past and future students, parents, teachers and visitors. Parents and friends of WCS are encouraged to participate in this ongoing campaign. Tile decorating packages are still available as well as an opportunity for a larger donation option to sponsor a bench for the playground. For more information about this project visit the WCS website. You can make a donation to this fund by clicking the online donation button on the homepage or you can contact Catherine Tinkler, Director of Development.

January 2011

WCS School Magazine

Academics, Activities, Spiritual Life At Westbury Christian, we provide our students’ with a balanced opportunity to excel academically, spiritually, and socially, based upon our 3-dimensional philosophy of education.

The opportunities found within each of these dimensions are what makes WCS such a special place, and are characteristics we feel should be revealed to those who are less familiar.

In an effort to raise awareness, both publicly and even within the WCS family, we have transitioned our yearly magazine publication formerly featuring athletics, to an all-school magazine, thoroughly describing the highlights found within each dimension.

Details of our accredited curriculum, advanced placement courses, and educational accomplishments earned by WCS students are identified in the Academics section of the magazine.

Our Student Activities portion covers the wide variety of extracurricular interests we offer, including fine arts and athletics. The Christian environment, student and faculty mission work, and the spiritual training applied daily on campus, through opportunities for service, Bible classes, and Chapel attendance, are outlined in the Spiritual section of this year’s publication.

Copies of the 2010-11 school magazine, titled “Life in 3D,” are available on campus in Mundy Hall, and at select events. If you need a copy mailed to you, please email Janice Pearson at jpearson@westburychristian.org .

E S T B U RY Senior Field Trip

Tour of Houston Provides Rich Learning Experience Social Studies Department Head Mrs. Ruby Parker and Upper School Principal and AP Economics and AP Government instructor Dr. David Lacey organized a special field trip for all Westbury Christian seniors to support the material they are currently learning in the classroom, and to expose them to the rich history of downtown Houston.

The seniors were bused to the Fannin Street Metrorail Park and Ride where they purchased tickets and experienced a ride on the rail line to downtown Houston, including stops at the Texas Medical Center, Hermann Park and Midtown.

Students were then privileged to tour the Houston Division of

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students with a brief overview of their respective role in the legal system before the court proceeding.

Upon leaving the courthouse, the seniors went to the Houston Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. They talked with economists and learned the history behind the Federal Reserve System of the United States, the nation’s central bank. They also took a tour of the facilities, including private board rooms, money processing facilities and the bank’s enormous cash vault, which is capable of holding billions of dollars.

The final stop was to Studio RED, a Houston-based architectural firm. Studio RED partner Trung Doan walked

The trial experience was very surreal for us as an entire class.

We drew closer to each other as they brought the prisoners in and took refuge in seeing the lawyers attempt to bring them to justice. Most importantly, I feel this experience reassured us all that the current moral and spiritual beliefs practiced here at Westbury Christian are indeed the right path to follow.

”

the Southern District of Texas Federal Courthouse, including a private walk through the immaculate chambers of Honorable Judge Gray Miller, and a ride on the service elevators used to transport prisoners, before settling into the courtroom to witness a real hearing. Judge Miller and his team of prosecutors, defense attorneys, probation officers and US Marshalls provided

students through the workroom and detailed the specific projects they do in the city of Houston. Their portfolio includes retail, entertainment, worship and commercial projects such as the Wortham Theater Center, Disney Institute, Terminator 2 : 3D at Universal Studios, Memorial City Mall in Houston and Moody Gardens in Galveston, Texas. The firm's most recent projects include Lakewood Church, Brennan's Restaurant in Houston, and Houston Baptist University Cultural Arts Center. The seniors were asked to answer a short survey in an effort to gather data about what Houston residents want their city to look and feel like in the future. Mr. Doan explained that Studio RED’s current projects will affect our students’ generation more than it will the older ones, making their input particularly valuable to future projects.

According to Dr. Lacey “education includes not only learning about things, but also experiencing them first hand. Every one of our seniors benefitted from their contact with governmental officials and professionals who are at the top of their careers.

Experiences like this one make the benefits of working hard to be well educated more apparent, and allows students to see the rewards that come to those who have prepared themselves to take advantage of opportunities that came their way.”

We would like to thank the gracious staff and hosts at each respective location for allowing our students to have this unique learning experience.

(QUOTE: Curran Kelly)

CHRISTIAN around C ampus This fall, led by drama instructor Megan Gilbert, the theatre department performed a production of the play “Steel Magnolias.”

In only her second year at WCS, Miss Gilbert has been working to develop the skills and abilities of our theatre students, and was incredibly pleased with the group she assembled, saying “we were blessed to have such a talented cast this year. Giselle Johnson and Jeanine Sanderfer, had been involved with theatre before, but Oyinda Odewale and Shannon Murphy, who were new to acting, rounded out the cast perfectly.”

After deciding on “Steel Magnolias,” Miss Gilbert held auditions, and was about one month into rehearsals when she learned that the application for rights to produce the show had been denied. A professional group in Sugar Land was set to perform the same production. “I tried to plead with the publishers, explaining that we would in no way interfere with the other production, but they would not budge,” explained Miss Gilbert. “I re-applied for a later performance date and we were ultimately granted clearance with the stipulation that we could not advertise outside of school.”

After securing the cast, Miss Gilbert focused attention on additional aspects of the production, including set design, lighting, costumes, etc; to be sure they were first-class. With the help of PTO member Dena Swasey, Miss Gilbert was able to

On October 27, Dr. Tim Elmore spoke on the importance of connecting with today's youth to help them reach their full potential through applications outlined in his latest book Generation iY: Our Last Chance to Save the Future. Dr. Elmore chronicled his experiences working with over 300,000 students, faculty and staff across the country, to draw shocking conclusions about the future of the youngest of the Millennial generation, and the tangible, negative impacts of the “i” world. He also provided specific tactics adults must adopt to prepare children for the real world.

enlist the assistance of Houston-based, Christian theatre group A.D. Players. Their technical director, Mark Lewis, designed our set and loaned us several key items, such as the hair cutting chairs, sink, an over-the-head hair dryer, and several costumes.

The show was run entirely by students when it came to performance time. Student stage manager Cody Rowe worked with other middle and high school students to operate the lighting and sound, change the sets, and help the actors with quick costume changes. According to Miss Gilbert, “it is rare that a director can sit in the audience and let the students do all the work at performance time. Cody did an awesome job calling all the lighting, sound, and set cues for the show. I am so proud of each and every student involved with this production!”

Mother Goose "wandered" into the lower

school library Friday, October 22 to the delight of the 3-year-old through fourth grade students. With her goose in-tow, Mrs. Diane Veale, a.k.a Mother Goose, read to the children, who were completely fascinated at how life-like the goose appeared, and were absolutely captivated

by Mrs. Veale’s whimsical nature. A retired school teacher, Mrs. Veale, takes seriously the goal of acquainting children with an appreciation of the English language.

Her presentation is part educational, part theater and totally fun!

As part of the Westbury Christian Professional Mentor Program, select upper school students were privileged to attend a presentation from Dr. Sally Green, Assistant Professor at Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law. Dr. Green chronicled her personal route to success, detailing the training, skills, and schooling necessary for our own students who hope to work within the law. She encouraged students to remain focused and disciplined, especially now, in preparation for college.

SCHOOL WCS Chapel Gets an Update

Campus Ministry Team is Excited About New Chapel Format The WCS campus ministry team has updated the current Middle School chapel format in an effort to allow for more participation, fellowship and opportunities for student leadership. This year, students are broken up into small groups of 10-12 with one adult mentor. The groups are mixed ages which campus ministry team member Brenna Schartz feels is proving very beneficial.

“I’m excited for the younger kids to have their older peers to look up to and also for our older kids to have a chance to practice their leadership skills by mentoring the younger group members,” says Miss. Schartz. Also, the campus ministry team encourages and expects mentors to seek out student’s needs outside of the chapel setting, and make themselves available to lend support, advice and encouragement.

“We are excited about the change and we are aware of the positive benefits

to children having adult relationships,” she says. “We pray the small group settings continue to get the kids thinking about their faith in a way that deepens their walk with Jesus Christ.”

WEN ZHAO

Middle school chapel meets Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 8:40 am. High school chapel also meets on Tuesday and Thursday and begins at 9:28 am. All WCS family and friends are invited to join.

Faculty spotlight

// upper school science teacher BA - University of California, Davis: Microbiology and Biotechnology MSE - University of Pennsylvania: Engineering Biotechnology & Molecular Cell Biology Prior to teaching at WCS, Mr. Zhao was a research assistant at a microbiology lab at The University of Pennsylvania and The California National Primate Research Center.

A Favorite Memory:

I have many unforgettable moments and they all involve watching students' extra-curricular activities. As a teacher, I used to view such things as a distraction from both their academic work and my time, until I came to the first boys' basketball game, then the girls', the drama production, the boys' soccer game, the NJHS induction ceremony, etc.

They opened a new window into the same students that I taught, allowing me to see a more complete person with other dimensions. To see them practice so diligently is heart-warming, and to see them blossom in their individual and creative ways is inspiring. I thank the Holy Spirit for bestowing so many unique and formidable talents amongst us, so we may glorify God, in ways too wonderful for my feeble mind.

Job's most satisfying aspect? The most rewarding thing about my position is to witness students grow, whether through positive or negative reinforcements. As the author of Hebrews said, "for the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it" (Heb 12:11). To see students learn crucial life lessons ought to be a teacher's greatest joy.