Back to School Health Fair Offers Up Health Screenings, School Supplies

 An estimated 5,000 Spring Branch ISD students and families were served Saturday, Aug. 22, at the annual Back to School Health Fair event at the Spring Branch Family Development Center, on Pitner Road.

Families started lining up around midnight the night before – the line forms earlier each year – in anticipation of health screenings, immunizations and backpacks filled with school supplies. This year, more than 2,000 backpacks with supplies were distributed.

The health fair is a community effort between SBFDC, Spring Branch ISD, the Memorial-Spring Branch Rotary Club, the city of Houston, Texas Children’s Hospital and a host of agencies and vendors on hand to make attendees aware of services available to them. Longtime corporate partner Walmart donated 2,000 backpacks filled with a dozen school supplies. New this year was preventative dentistry, brought in by the city of Houston.

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SBISD Earns National Award from Action Based Learning

Action Based Learning President Jean Blaydes Moize (center) presents the national

award to SBISD leaders and teachers during Aug. 24 board meeting.

Spring Branch ISD’s longtime support for Action Based Learning (ABL) programs using neuroscience insights to link intentional movement with student learning has earned it ABL’s National Showcase District Award for 2015.

ABL President Jean Blaydes Moize presented the national award to SBISD leaders and teachers during the SBISD Board of Trustees monthly meeting on Aug. 24.

“Spring Branch ISD exemplifies excellence and innovation by providing Action Based Learning programs that improve the overall health and academic performance of its students,” Moize said in a prepared statement.

The Action Based Learning Lab at Shadow Oaks Elementary has been recognized as one of the first physical-based centers of its kind. SBISD’s Academy of Choice piloted the nation’s first so-called NeuroNasium. The NeuroNasium now operates in more than 1,000 high schools worldwide due to its success.

In addition, the district’s TOTAL program has received state and national attention as an innovative, research-based program that uses kinesthetic strategies to boost the success of struggling learners.

ABL is based on research that shows exercise helps grow brain cells, reduce stress and calm student behavior. SBISD has partnered with ABL for more than a decade on movement and learning, beginning with former area director Marty Urand up to current Director of Student Wellness Rebecca Fuchs.

Success with movement-based learning is also credited to many talented educators and school or district administrators. ABL recognized these district teachers in its recent award announcement: Darlene Evans, Jamie and Samuel Karns, Courtney Roberts, Marla Squires, Cherilyn Lantrip, Debbie Moore, Gail Willoughby, John Kenna, Maria James, Gayle Martinez, Wendy Granger, Kate Stoll, Carol Andrews and Anne Daily.

ABL recognized the following campus or district administrators: Julie Baggerly, Kay Kennard, Michele Hilberth, Jeff Post, Valerie Johnson, Pamela Pennington, Pamela Redd, Jennifer Blaine, Sofia Petrou and Pamela Butler.

As a National Showcase District, SBISD will allow visitors to view model Action Based Learning programs in action and consider the programs for their own use.

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SBISD’s School Health Advisory Council Honored

Rebecca Fuchs (center left), SBISD director of wellness and elementary counseling,

and Lisa Lauter, DSHAC parent co-chair, receive the It’s Time Texas award during

the Aug. 24 board meeting along with committee members and senior staff.

Spring Branch ISD’s District School Health Advisory Council (DSHAC) is one of five district councils from across the state to earn the 2015 It’s Time Texas SHAC Award.

This award was presented in June to SBISD’s school health advisory council, and the SHAC was recognized Aug. 24 during the SBISD Board of Trustees meeting. It’s Time Texas CEO Baker Harrell, Ed.D., presented the award.

Criteria for the It’s Time Texas SHAC award included engagement of parents and students, program and/or policy contributions and recommendations, total number of Coordinated School Health areas addressed in annual recommendations, as well as the frequency of SHAC meetings.

“We are very proud to recognize the Spring Branch ISD SHAC for this award. The Spring Branch ISD SHAC is truly a model for other SHACs across the state, and we are proud to both recognize its successes and share its story with others across Texas,” said Harrell in a prepared statement.

As an It’s Time Texas top award winner, the district SHAC will be featured on the Austin group’s website and was also awarded a $300 grant.

During the past year, the district SHAC helped increase student participation at the campus level and helped provide health awareness across the district for a healthier community through participation in the HEB Community Challenge.

Among others across the district, it was reported that DSHAC parent co-chair Lisa Lauter, a parent of students at Frostwood Elementary and at Westchester Academy for International Studies, has helped take the district council to a new level.

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