May 2003

RECOGNITIONS

The Board of Trustees recognized the following staff members:

• Donna Jo Strickler, administrative secretary at Cypress Springs High School, was chosen as this year's Spotlight Award winner by the Paraprofessional Service Committee (PSC). This year's runner-up is Barbara Kainer, clerical aide at Ault Elementary School, was the runner-up.
• Angelica Grigalanz, food service worker at Post Elementary School, was selected by the Education Support Personnel Committee (ESP) as this year's Spotlight Award winner. Janita Carrier, custodian at Walker Elementary School, was the runner-up.
• Mitzi Phillips, drill team director at Langham Creek High School, was named Drill Team Director of the Year by the Texas Dance Educators Association.
• In recognition of their high expectations and dedication to student success during the 2002-2003 school year, 58 elementary and secondary teachers were selected as Spotlight Teachers. The following teachers were introduced as this year's inductees: Karen Bjork-Comer (Lowery); Lilia Salinas Chumley (Matzke); Sheri J. Cowart (Cook); Sandra Hardie (Horne); Kathy Stokan (Truitt); Laurie E. Westphal (Thornton); Laurie M. Aldridge (Hamilton Elementary); Linda Bonham (Lamkin); Lisa Bremer (Copeland); Jeff Clary (Campbell); Kathleen Covey (Millsap); Rachel DiAngelo (Bane); Dana Farley (Holbrook); Beth Haines (Moore); Carolyn L. Harris (Carlton Center); Colleen D. Haynes (Hancock); Jessica Hernandez (Kirk); Donna Holle (Labay); Karen L. Johnson (Holmsley); Susan Lavelle (ALC); Renee Mai (Yeager); Julie Marczak (Emmott); Pamela McAneny (Hamilton M.S.); Terry Noe (Goodson); Sheryl Qualls (Reed); Brenda D. Thonsgaard (Jersey Village); Frank Troyka (Cypress Falls); Leilani Weber (Hairgrove); Jane Balsam (Metcalf); Kerri Boothe (Arnold); Betty Brownell (Windfern); Debra Compton (Cy-Fair H.S.); Tammye Crosskno (Willbern); Reneé Fiorella (Walker); Robbie Fox (Owens); Tom Harrington (Dean); Shanie LaCoke (Ault); Mary McCracken (Francone); Charmion Mohning (Frazier); Carol Mumma (Fiest); Charlotte Peil (Cypress Springs); Mandy Peoples (Lieder); Diana Plamondon (Farney); Stanna Schrieber (Bleyl); Michelle Torp (Sampson); Carolyn D’Anna (Gleason); Ronald Esch (ABC); Vickie Frnka (Langham Creek); Julie Holt (Jowell); Gina Reuter (Sheridan); Mary Wells (Post); Gregory Zureich (Cypress Ridge); Jodie Dauzat (Watkins); Mariellen Hug (Adam); Ella Roskey (Bang); Lisa Schiro (Wilson); Kathleen Voltz (Aragon); and the late Mary Pat Thomas (Cypress Creek). Information about each of this year's Spotlight Teacher's is available online at www.cfisd.net.

• Labay Junior High School student Vicky Ren for winning first place for level two (7th and 8th graders) in the Texas Letters About Literature Contest.
• Cypress Falls High School student Isaiah Broussard for winning first place in Student Congress at the Texas Forensic Association State Competition.
• A record number of 44 CFISD high school students were recognized for earning membership in various All-State music organizations. Among these students, 18 were in band, 17 in choir and nine in orchestra.
• Sixteen students and their respective faculty sponsors from Cypress Creek, Cypress Springs and Langham Creek high schools were recognized for receiving first or second place at the Texas Thespians Festival or honors from the Texas Thespian Convention. Those students included: Lauran Gaston, Jenny Martin, Shawn Smith, Esther Lee, Veronica Gomez, Kristen Lewandowski, Vanessa Sinatora, Katie Kasper, Landon Ellis, Jennifer Sandel, Kathy Hallmark and Emily Bolt of Cypress Creek, directed by Marilyn Miller and Peter Dias; Kristin Hagy of Cypress Springs, directed by Ann Wilson; and Jill Bornhurst, Matt Lusk and Jared Doreck of Langham Creek, directed by Cheryl Bradford and Coy Drisdale.
• Sixty-nine middle and high school students were recognized for earning first or second place individual honors at this year's state Science Olympiad competition.

• The new flags and flagpoles in the Board room were donated by the Cypress Springs High School ROTC program under the direction of Major Wanda Ewing.
• Amanda Clauson, a Langham Creek High School senior, has been selected to participate in the M.D. Anderson Cancer Summer Research Program. Only seven high school seniors in Texas have been chosen to participate in current research, attend seminars and network with doctors of the institution.
• The Cypress-Fairbanks ISD Bus Road-e-o was held Saturday, April 12 at the Barker-Cypress Transportation Center. Advancing to regional competition were Linda Hair who was the winner, Billie Jordan who placed second, Amanda Bell who was third, Helen Nixon who was fourth and alternate Jeff Smith.
• Students in Jersey Village High School’s television program (JVTV) and Cypress Creek’s United Cougar Television (UCTV) won awards in Houston’s Young Moviemakers 2003 competition and were honored at a ceremony on April 13 at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. JVTV students Grace Feigh, Laura Mardis and Leslie Mardis were second in Narrative for "Doorway to Sanity." UCTV student Donny Holmes won first place for "Something Random" in High School Music Video while fellow UCTV students Ryan Rios, Danielle LaMarche and Jenny Martin were third in the High School News division with "What’s New at Creek."
• The Goodson Middle School student council has been honored by the Texas Association of School Councils (TASC) as one of the Outstanding Student Councils. This award was presented to the group on May 9. The student council also won the award for Scrapbook.
• Laura Burns, a street law and U.S. government teacher at Cy-Fair High School, was selected to attend the Supreme Court Institute this summer. Elaine Schwartz, U.S. history teacher at Langham Creek High School, will attend the Monticello-Stratford Hall Summer Institute for Teachers.
• The Cy-Fair Council for Social Studies recently presented its annual awards. Michelle Peterson, Cypress Ridge High School, won the Nova award that is presented to a first or second-year teacher who has contributed to the students and to the social studies beyond what is expected of a novice teacher. Jan Rall, Gleason Elementary, was named Elementary Teacher of the Year; Barbara McFatter, Truitt Middle School, was named Middle School Teacher of the Year and Amy Thibaut, Cypress Falls High School, was named the High School Teacher of the Year. Esther Robinson, Langham Creek High School, won the Joe Janca Distinguished Service Award for 2003. This is a service award for the field of social studies. Each of these award-winning teachers will now compete on the state level.
• Kathleen Johnson, Cypress Springs, and Samuel K. Lee, Jersey Village High School, have been selected as candidates to the United States Presidential Scholars Program.
• Jersey Village High School senior Jillian Bontke won the Nestlé Very Best in Youth Award. She is one of 15 high school recipients in the nation. Nestlé will donate $1,000 to her favorite charity and will provide an all-expenses paid trip to Los Angeles for the awards ceremony for her and her family. Her story will be published in a book honoring all the Best in Youth this summer. Her teacher is Margie Comstock.
• Several CFISD teachers and administrators received honors at the Suburban Houston Area Association of Bilingual Education (SHAABE) Teacher of the Year Banquet. Sally Arce from Francone Elementary and Kelli Iselt from Jowell Elementary were named Campus Teachers of the Year. Brenda Spillman, Bane Elementary; Cindy Ruchksdashel, Fiest Elementary; Janet Witank, Francone Elementary; Vicki Ledgerwook, Hairgrove Elementary; Celeste Lewis, Horne Elementary; Cori Reed, Jowell Elementary; and Celise Hamann, Lieder Elementary, were named Teachers of the Year for ESL Elementary. In addition, Dianna Marion in the curriculum department was named SHABE Citizen of the Year for her contributions to bilingual and ESL education.
• Seventy middle school and high school students who placed third or fourth in the Texas Science Olympiad were recognized.
• The Cypress Ridge High School Color Guard won first place in the Novice Division in San Marcos, Texas on April 5. Team members are Ashley Garrison, Bridget Goins, Jennifer Greb, Vanessa Guajardo, Khindra Harper, Amy Meeker, Melissa Mobley, Ashley Periman and Shannon Smith. The Color Guard instructor is Travis Prudehome and the band directors are Andrew Nixon and Adrian Munoz.
• Many of the district’s athletic teams and athletes enjoyed success this spring. The Cy-Fair Lady Bobcats earned the area championship in softball with a 1-0 victory over Round Rock McNeil. The Cypress Creek Cougars ended the season as district champions in baseball. Langham Creek’s Brittany Brockman and Nina Gilbert each won state titles in track and field. Brockman was first in the state in the 3,200 meters with a time of 10:52.78 while Gilbert placed first in the 400-meter race with a time of 54:16. They are coached by Ellen Robinson. Cypress Creek High School’s Adam Fretwell placed fourth in the long jump with 23 feet, 2 inches. He is coached by Bill Vacek. Special recognition for first and second place winners at the state meet will take place at the June Board Meeting.
• Jersey Village High School student Alyssa Rodriguez is the state tennis singles champion. She is coached by Robert Denison. The Houston Athletic Committee has announced the following finalists for the Spring Sports Banquet May 28, 2003 at the J.W. Marriott: Cypress Falls students Laurie Rhodes and Andrea Stewart in volleyball; Patrick Timmons, Cy-Fair, boys’ basketball; Ryan Eurek, Cy-Fair, boys’ soccer; Casey Plant, Cy-Fair, baseball and Chris Knaute, Cypress Creek, swimming.

Richard E. Berry, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD superintendent of schools announced his retirement, effective June 2004, at the Board meeting on Monday, May 12, 2003. Beginning in December 2003, he will take accumulated leave until the end of June. In his announcement, he expressed appreciation for the support of patrons, business partners, volunteers, staff, parents, and students during his 11-year tenure as superintendent. "Success is not about one person. It is about a team of people working together to accomplish common goals," Berry reflected. "The time has come to let another leader step forward to carry on the tradition of putting children first and believing in my kids…our kids."

PERSONNEL

After approving the personnel transactions for May, the superintendent introduced Dr. Donna Poland as the new principal for Bleyl Middle School. With 19 of her 21 years of educational experience earned in CFISD, Poland will finish the school year in her current position as director of instruction at Thornton Middle School. In June, she will assume the duties of current Bleyl Principal Nadine Fidler, who was named as assistant superintendent for educational support services in April.

TRUSTEE INDUCTION

The Board canvassed and approved the results for positions 6 and 7 from the May 3 Trustee Election. A recount of the position 5 race was conducted May 13, which confirmed John D. Ogletree as the winner of position 5. Ogletree is scheduled for induction during a special-called meeting of the Board set for May 20. Board officers will also be selected at the meeting. As a result of the election, Don Ryan was re-elected to position 6 and Dr. William O’Brien was re-elected to position 7. Ryan begins serving his second term while O’Brien begins his fourth term. This is the first term for Ogletree. Trustees are elected to three-year terms in Cypress-Fairbanks ISD.

BOND UPDATE

Representatives from PBK Architects and HOK Sport, Venue and Event presented the Board with more architectural design options for the Richard E. Berry Educational Support Center and the district’s second athletic stadium. The two firms will continue the design phase for these projects based on trustees’ comments.

BOUNDARY CHANGE

Trustees approved the recommendation for an attendance boundary change and transfer rules for Concord Bridge. All 10^th- and 11^th-grade students in Concord Bridge west of Bryant Pond as well as all areas north of Klamath Falls will be rezoned from Langham Creek High School to Cypress Ridge High School for the 2003-04 school year. Students affected by this boundary change currently attending Langham Creek may remain at that campus if they follow the approved procedures for student transfers.

SUPERINTENDENT’S BRIEFING

Mr. Berry reminded all in attendance that the district would celebrate Memorial Day May 26, 2003. Classes will resume May 27. He extended his wishes for everyone to have a restful holiday and offered good luck to students preparing for final exams. The superintendent reviewed the schedule for the upcoming graduation ceremonies. Windfern High School students will graduate May 29 with the ceremony set for 7 p.m. at Copperfield Baptist Church. The remainder of the district high schools will hold commencement activities June 1. Graduation times and locations are as follows: Langham Creek – 1 p.m. at the Campbell Center, Cypress Springs – 4 p.m. at the Campbell Center; Cypress Falls – 7 p.m. at the Campbell Center; Jersey Village – 1 p.m. at Coleman Coliseum; Cypress Creek – 4 p.m. at Coleman Coliseum and Cy-Fair – 7:30 p.m. at Coleman Coliseum. The TAKS retest for third grade reading and Spanish will be conducted July 8. This test will be the final administration of TAKS until next spring. Additionally, Advanced Placement exams began May 5 and ended May 16.

There are numerous locations and offerings for summer school programs this year. Mr. Berry referred students and parents to the district Web site for the locations, times and available courses. Original credit courses and repeat courses have different start dates. The Web site can be accessed at www.cfisd.net.

Mr. Berry thanked all staff members and district students for another successful school year. He wished everyone a happy and restful summer and teachers a safe return for their first day of in-service scheduled August 7. The first day of school for students is August 13.

AGENDA ITEMS

In other action, the Cypress-Fairbanks ISD Board of Trustees:

• received a written report on legislative issues and the activities of the State Board of Education, Texas School Alliance and the Fast-Growth School Coalition;
• received a report on the revenues generated by an internet auction held in March;
• received a report on the 2003-2004 Student Handbook and Code of Conduct;
• received an update on the preliminary budget for the 2003-2004 school year;
• heard a report on the elementary coordinated school health program that was selected by CFISD to meet the requirements of SB 19;
• approved budget amendments for the period December 1, 2002 through February 28, 2003;
• approved the list of financial institutions and brokers/dealers eligible to provide investment services to Cypress-Fairbanks ISD;
• approved the district’s technology plan for the period 2003-2007;
• adopted a resolution naming Citibank, N.A., a depository of the district for the purpose of paying Cigna health care claim payments;
• authorized tax refunds of $500 or greater for Cypress-Fairbanks ISD and/or the Harris County Education District in the amount of $207,932.23;
• approved bids and contracts from recommended vendors for goods and services;
• approved on first reading three local policy revisions. Policies approved pertained to Board meetings, local district update, Update 69 with modification; other revenues: investments – local district update; assignments and schedules – Update 69; and
• approved 95 personnel recommendations, resignations, retirements, promotions, terminations and discharges.