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C H R I S T I AACADEMY N CHRISTIAN A C A D E M Y NOVEMBER 20, 2015
Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name. 1 Chronicles 29:13
Have a blessed and happy Thanksgiving!
In observance of Thanksgiving, The Woodlands Christian Academy will be closed November 23-27, 2015. Classes resume Monday, November 30, 2015.
5800 ACADEMY WAY . THE WOODLANDS, TEXAS 77384 . 936-273-2555 . WWW.TWCA.NET
Distinguished Honors Program In the spring of 2015, The Woodlands Christian Academy’s high school leadership began to consider the development of an honors program. After exhaustive research and study of similar programs, Woodlands Christian is pleased to announce the creation of the Distinguished Honors Program (DHP). As Tom Earle, DHP Program Coordinator elaborates, “This program is much more than just academic in focus. We researched over 20 programs, gathered information from the best of them then put our own stamp on the project by including spiritual, social and physical aspects to better reflect our school’s mission statement. ” The reasoning behind the Distinguished Honors Program is to provide an opportunity for our most highly competent students to continue to excel across the four pillars of our school’s mission to develop spiritually, academically, physically and socially. According to Steve Zeal, School Principal, “Academically, we didn’t want the DHP to be an appendage, but rather a natural extension of all that is being accomplished in every classroom every day.” Admission into this program will be by invitation only to those students who, by the end of their sophomore year, have fulfilled specific prerequisites. The standards to be considered for the Distinguished Honors Program are high and are divided into four categories. The first is spiritual. Students will be required to have participated in an approved mission trip and submit a letter of recommendation from their pastor or youth pastor. The second category is academic. While the standards are rigorous, this program is not just for the straight A student. A student must be in the top quartile of his/her class and maintain that standing throughout the program. By the end of the sophomore year, students must have read four books from a pre-determined list and have two documented admissions visits to four year colleges.
Physical requirements include participation in three seasons of team sports at Woodlands Christian (this requirement includes team manager and athletic trainer roles) as well as a baseline result from the Presidential Physical Lifetime Fitness Challenge. The final category is social. Here students must have 100 or more hours of approved community service, have attended two pre-approved cultural or social events, and submit to an interview with the DHP committee on a topic of current concerns. Once a student is accepted into the Distinguished Honors Program, continuing academic requirements must be maintained during the junior and senior years of high school (For information about these requirements, see final paragraph below).
Upon acceptance in the junior year, there is a one time fee of $2,500 for the program. This fee covers the cost of a spiritual leadership course, a school sponsored leadership experience, attendance at two social/cultural events, and a school sponsored wilderness camp experience. Scholarships to help defer this cost will be available to those students with demonstrated need. Participation in the Distinguished Honors program signals to colleges that students are serious about their studies and demonstrate the maturity and readiness to challenge themselves in advanced and/or honors college programs. While all programs at Woodlands Christian are rigorous and college preparatory, the DHP will provide additional opportunities for those students so motivated to further set themselves apart during their high school years. If you have further questions about the Distinguished Honors Program, please contact Tom Earle, DHP Coordinator at tearle@twca.net. A complete overview of the program may be found by clicking here. Information provided by Steve Zeal and Tom Earle.
NOVEMBER 20, 2015
 
Lower School News
Students Show Compassion For Others First grade students are doing their part to give back to our community this Thanksgiving. The students collected and then delivered much needed items to the Interfaith Food Pantry. While there, the items were weighed, and the students were excited to learn that their donations totaled an amazing 275 pounds! Information & photos submitted by Donna Danheim.
Kindergarten students and their senior class buddies went on a shopping excursion at the local dollar store to purchase items with which to fill their Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. Showing Christ’s love to others is a valuable lesson to learn no matter what your age! Photos submitted by Hannah Bub.
NOVEMBER 20, 2015
 
2015 Spelling Bee The Woodlands Christian Academy held its annual spelling bee on Friday, November 13. Congratulations to all of the participants for a job well done!
Third Grade Participants - Hallie Dittoe, Alistair Cuevas (3rd place), Thijs vanEgmond, Tami Adesiyan (1st place), Grant Lusk, Hudson Howard (2nd place), Charles York, Ysabel Bajoyo
Fifth Grade Participants - Seth Culberson, Mitchell Gunthorpe, Evan Giacona (1st place), Avery Buck, Hannah Grace Bryant, Ben Paylor (2nd place), Zachary Bagnoli, Katie Wise (3rd place)
Seventh Grade Participants - Tanner Torres (3rd place), Meredith Wyrick, Connor Dechiro (1st place), Fern Shirley, Thomas Visini, Avery Blake, Reese Ray (2nd place)
Fourth Grade Participants - Luke Adams (3rd place), Cara Kent (1st place), Paris Pavalas, Arden Blake, Mario Awasum, Matei Dumitru, Gianna Radvansky (2nd place), Vanessa Yakunovich, Brady Hollas
Sixth Grade Participants - Joshua Phan, Rachel McKay (1st place), Daniel Sharron (2nd place), Anne McCoy (3rd place)
Eighth Grade Participants - Josh Melber (3rd place), Nicolas Bryngelson (1st place), Connor Davis (2nd place)
The first, second and/or third place winners in these competitions will represent Woodlands Christian at the ACSI district spelling bee to be held on January 15, 2016 at Alpha Omega Academy in Huntsville, Texas. Per ACSI guidelines, the number of district spelling bee contestants is determined by the number of classes in a grade.
NOVEMBER 20, 2015
 
Upper School News
National Junior Honor Society Reaches Out To Others
Members of the National Junior Honor Society have recently been busy serving others in our community. On November 7, several members raised funds and walked in support for a cure for Type 1 juvenile diabetes at the JDRF One Walk in The Woodlands. (See photo above.) NJHS members also spent time at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Peter Bigler creating hand-made items for the Jubilee Prison ministry. This ministry provides inmates with weekend retreats to experience God’s grace and to be exposed to the transforming power of Jesus Christ. Isolated from contact with the outside world, the gesture of cards, letters or placemats created by children has a huge impact on their hearts. Members incorporated scripture into their artwork which will reach prisoners throughout the state of Texas. (See photo below.) Information & photos submitted by Jennifer Russell.
NOVEMBER 20, 2015
 
ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT NEWS Warriors Close Out Strong Season
Despite their best efforts, the Warriors were eliminated from the TAPPS 3A playoffs with a heartbreaking 11-28 loss to Sacred Heart Catholic High School last Friday night. The 2015 season was a fantastic one marked by the opening of Warrior Stadium and filled with many exciting games and outstanding individual and team performances. Warrior fans are already looking forward to next year with great anticipation! Go Warrior Football!
Varsity Boys Basketball Team Wins Tournament The Warrior varsity boys basketball team came home with the first place trophy from the Christian Academy of San Antonio tournament this past week (see photo at left). They continued their winning ways with a 71-30 victory in their home opener against Salt & Light Homeschool Sports on Tuesday night. Another tournament awaits the Warriors on November 23-24 when they travel to Kingwood for the Northeast Christian Academy Varsity Basketball Tournament. The team returns home on Tuesday, December 1 to face St. Pius X. The junior varsity team will get the action started at 4:30 p.m. with the varsity tip-off set for 7:30 p.m. After getting off to a strong start with a win in their season opener last week, the Warrior varsity girls’ team has suffered back to back losses against Covenant Christian, 36-41 and Bellville High School, 23-34. The team looks to get back on track when they travel to Northeast Christian for a game on Tuesday, December 8.
NOVEMBER 20, 2015
All School News
Worthy Servants 2015
The Worthy Servants program is a tradition begun several years ago by Woodlands Christian parents to show love and appreciation to the faculty and staff who touch our children’s lives each day and to offer an alternative to buying individual teacher gifts. If you would like to participate this year, you may donate online by clicking here and designate your gift - Worthy Servants. You may also bring or send your donation to our Business Office no later than Wednesday, December 16. All gifts collected will be equally divided among our faculty and staff. These gifts, along with a card, will be presented at our annual faculty and staff Christmas lunch on December 18. Please note: Unless otherwise requested, each donor’s name will be included on the card. As always, Christmas presents or contributions are never required. However, if you are planning to give gifts, please prayerfully consider showing your appreciation to our outstanding faculty and staff in this way.
NOVEMBER 20, 2015
All School News !
Thank you! Thanks to your support the Camp Read S’More Book Fair was a success with $19,070 in sales! The library earned the following: • $680 in free books from Scholastic. • $4,300 in cash for the library! • Numerous books purchased from the fair by our generous parents for the library shelves! Once again, from loose change collected during the fair, 20 picture books were purchased for the Women’s Storybook Project of Texas. This organization provides an opportunity for an incarcerated mother to record herself reading a bedtime story to her own child. The child is given a copy of the book along with the audio of his/her mother reading. Many hugs of appreciation to ALL of the teams who helped — decorations, set-up, sales, restocking and take-down! Special commendation to our Camp Read S’More Chair…Linda Froelich!
Gina Lunsford
Librarian
Woodlands Christian Families Are Warriors For The World! Thanks to our big hearted families we have collected
729 boxes for Operation Christmas Child! If you have not yet returned your box or if you would like to create a virtual box online, there’s still time! Families have until Friday morning car-line, November 20 to turn in their boxes or receipts for virtual boxes. To create a virtual box, click here.
From left to right: Middle school student, Hope Howard, prays for those who will receive our shoeboxes. The Kent family collected 125 boxes! Mr. Roach as the human Operation Christmas Child shoebox. Information and photos submitted by Katie Smith. NOVEMBER 20, 2015