Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo picks art by 12 students

Blurred Focus (Prismacolor Pencil) by Ashley Park, 11th grade, Memorial High

Artwork created by 12 Spring Branch ISD students of all ages has been selected by Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo judges for public display in the Hayloft Gallery during the upcoming Rodeo, which will be held from March 1-20.

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Photographs of these winning rodeo-themed images will be displayed on Tuesday, Jan. 19, during Parents and Patron Night, sponsored by SBISD’s K-12 Rodeo Art Exhibit. Artwork by other SBISD students in elementary, middle and high school will also be on display for public viewing.  

This Open House evening event will be conducted from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday at the Altharetta Yeargin Art Museum, located on the Westchester Academy campus at 901 Yorkchester. In addition, the art museum is open to the public 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 19.

Out on the Farm (Crayon Resist) by Emmy Kate Maynard, Terrace Elementary

The art museum’s annual K-12 Rodeo Art Exhibit, held on Jan. 14-15 and Jan. 19, draws hundreds of students and parents for the two-day viewing session with area judging. SBISD students who are awarded Best of Show, Gold Medal and Special Merit by Rodeo officials win the right to display their works in Hayloft Gallery at Reliant Park.

During the Rodeo in March, several dozen student artworks from across the region will be chosen for Grand Prix judging and the annual Rodeo art auction, which can result in significant scholarships for fortunate young artists like those in SBISD.

District winners headed to the Houston Rodeo for public display include:

Best of Show

• Elementary – Ricardo Maldonado, 2nd grade, Housman Elementary, Painting titled “Rodeo Clowns and a Bull”
• Middle School – Kunyang Li, 7th grade, Memorial Middle, Prismacolor Pencil titled “The Lonely Doll”
• High School – Ashley Park, 11th grade, Memorial High, Prismacolor Pencil titled “Blurred Focus”

Gold Medal

• Elementary – Emmy Kate Maynard, Terrace Elementary, Crayon Resist titled “Out on the Farm”
• Middle School – Natalie Atkinson, Spring Branch Middle, Prismacolor Pencil titled “On Guard”
• High Schools – Erica Kim, Memorial High, Prismacolor Pencil titled “A Peaceful Afternoon,” and Juwon Yoo, Stratford High, Prismacolor Pencil titled “Looking for a Friend”

High School Special Merit

• Madeline Harms, Stratford High, Prismacolor Pencil titled “The Journey”
• Kathrine Hrap, Memorial High, Graphite titled “#40”
• Paige Shiring, Memorial High, Graphite titled “Grandpa Steven”
• Julia Delaney, Memorial High, Prismacolor Pencil titled “One and Indivisible”
• Emily Gex, Stratford High, Prismacolor Pencil titled “Buddy 2.0”

SBISD art instructors for these students are Michael Terlouw, Jonette Jones, Lynn Ludlam, Elisa Barry, Crystal Fiocchi, Jennifer Clouse, Elizabeth Garison and Marilyn Guerinot.

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Teacher Motivates With J.J. Watt on the Spot Doll

Prekindergarten teacher Lindsay Duke uses a J.J. Watt doll in her classroom to motivate 4-year-olds to do the right thing. Watch the KTRK-TV13 video segment on this Bear Boulevard School for Early Learning classroom, teacher and Texans #99 doll here. See what happens when he breaks his hand.

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‘Team of Heroes’ Makes the Holidays Bright for Ugandan Refugees

Recent Uganda refugees Hakia Ndabatiza and Flomina Nyirantereke with their children 

Spring Branch ISD Police Department Officer Connie Washington was dispatched to Spring Shadows Elementary School in the late afternoon on Monday, Dec. 14, about a call related to refugee students who hadn’t been picked up by their parents yet.

Today, Washington and many others inside the SBISD Police Dept. feel like they have 10 new family members. Since Monday, they have showered eight children and two parents who have few possessions with seasonal gifts, groceries and new clothing.

This story begins Monday afternoon when the three young children of recent Uganda refugees Hakia Ndabatiza and Flomina Nyirantereke returned from the Waterford Place Apartments to Spring Shadows Elementary. They would eventually spend the night at the elementary school, protected by their principal and Officer Washington.

Their school counselor, Demetra Rushing, and then school receptionist Bea Castillo walked the three children to their locked apartment twice before returning to the elementary. Their parents usually were at the front doors when the dismissal bell rang.

The refugee family, completely new to Spring Branch ISD, enrolled their children in October.

The parents of Jackson, who is in kindergarten, Erike in second grade, and Irene, who is now in fourth grade, had, in fact, became delayed for hours into the night when they boarded the wrong Metro bus after visiting Catholic Charities offices across town near Bellaire and Gessner.

When SBISD Police Officer Washington finally arrived at Spring Shadows Elementary, all seven children were gathered together. They include Viene and Esther, Spring Woods Middle students, and Amos and Peter, enrolled at Spring Woods High. The family has a 2-year-old child, too.

At the school, Spring Shadows Principal Rachel Martinez and Officer Washington made on-the-spot leadership decisions to remain with the refugee children in lieu of calling Child Protective Services immediately. They ordered pizza and tried to reach Hakia and Flomina.

“I told Mrs. Martinez that I would stay with her as long as I had to. To put their minds at ease, and to not worry about mom and dad, we colored, we played soccer, and we danced,” Officer Washington said. “I even learned about the music they listened to in Uganda.”

The refugee children and parents were eventually reunited at about 8 p.m. Monday. Since then, SBISD Police Cpl. Ray Gonzales and Officers Washington and Bern Collum joined others in being moved by how little the family had in its Waterford Place Apartment home.

They spent time this week shopping for gifts, food and clothing, and then delivered their gifts.

“We gave each child their gift, and gave mom and dad the groceries. It was the greatest feeling ever seeing how thankful and excited the family was. The love was great in the room,” Officer Washington said. Officer Collum gave a cash donation to the family.

“It takes a team to ensure that our children’s best interest is at the heart of everything we do,” said Principal Martinez. “I just want to thank the entire team for helping – our counselor and receptionist, and our friendly and loving officers who responded to the call.”

Principal Martinez said the school and SBISD Police response to this family’s sudden need “is one of the reasons I’m part of Spring Branch ISD, with district Collaborative Spirit and Moral Compass guiding us to do what is right for kids!”

“The ultimate winners in this situation were seven children that a ‘team of heroes’ kept safe,” said SBISD Police Chief Chuck Brawner.

Happy holidays!

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Fourth-graders Share Favorite Books in Letters, Gifts

More than 100 Wilchester Elementary fourth-graders wrote personal letters to fourth-graders at Spring Shadows Elementary about their favorite books, then shared gently used copies, or even bought new books – all as a seasonal, heartfelt gift from one student to another.

About 125 personally gift-wrapped books appeared on desks at Spring Shadows recently. Letters from fourth-graders were tucked inside these gift books, the most personal kind of pitch possible to promote a really good read.

This unusual exercise in letter writing, student exchange and community service began inside the Wilchester classroom of fourth-grade teacher Megan Dobbs.

The school-to-school project was born to connect her students’ love of books with class exercises in writing, which then expanded into a seasonal outreach from the West Houston campus.

Spring Shadows and Wilchester are PTA Sister School Partnership campuses, a support system in Spring Branch ISD that pairs campuses from varied neighborhoods and social backgrounds.

Wilchester PTA’s Marty Chapman and Patrice Jegi helped make all the donations occur, and got gift-wrapped books delivered. Students wrapped the books in class, creating and decorating with their own wrapping papers.

Jake Chapman, Marty’s son, helped hand out the books to surprised but eager Spring Shadows fourth-graders.

“Our students loved it,” Ms. Dobbs said. “It was different for these students because they had to write a personal letter. They had to have a thought behind the books they gave other students.”

“They shared their feelings and views about a book they really cared about, why it was special to them. That’s special,” she also said.

On the Sister School project, she adds, “It was a true team effort. I was merely the coordinator. Our awesome fourth-grade team put heads together to make a special gift happen for our sweet Sister School. I want to thank them so much.”

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Two Sample Student Letters:

Dear Spring Shadows Friend,

Hello my name is Samantha Smith and I am in 4th grade too! I want to wish you a Happy Holidays! To me giving is better than getting, so I want to give you this book called Secrets According to Humphrey. This book is about a Hamster well, a class hamster named Humphrey. Humphrey figures out there are so many secrets flying around in the classroom. Humphrey's job is to help out his human friends. I hope you love this book as much as I do!

Your Wilchester friend,
Samantha Smith


Dear 4th grade friend,

Happy Holidays! My name is Natalie Boersma, and I am in 4th grade at Wilchester Elementary. I am in Mrs. Day's and Ms. Dobbs' class. I wanted to give you the book Out of My Mind. I chose this sad, exciting, interesting novel because it really makes you think and hope that 11 year old Melody will not give up and show everybody her "real" voice. I hope this book is meant just for you!

Your friend,
Natalie Boersma

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One Book, One School

Meadow Wood Elementary Librarian Karyn Lewis with the children's book The One and Only Ivan

Meadow Wood Elementary students and parents were never at a loss for a shared discussion topic this fall. Every student from kindergarten up to fifth grade at this elementary campus on Memorial Drive read the same children’s book.

School librarian Karyn Lewis created the One Book One School program, which first won Meadow Wood administrative and teaching staff support. With funding from a successful book fair, every student received a copy of the children’s book, The One and Only Ivan.

The children’s book is written by Katherine Applegate and illustrated by Patricia Castelao. It describes the life of a gorilla named Ivan who lives in a cage at the mall. Published in 2011, the novel won a high-level John Newbery Award.

The much loved, fictional work was inspired by a real-life gorilla who lived in a mall in Tacoma, Wash. The school-wide reading campaign closed in November with a variety of celebrations, including Skype student sessions with a Houston Zoo gorilla keeper.

Parents learned about the single focus reading event at Curriculum Night, Lewis said. Students were elated when they received illustrated books, theirs to keep.

Lewis recalls, “Several of them asked me repeatedly, ‘Can I keep this book?’ And when I said, ‘Yes, it’s yours to read as many times as you want!’ many of them squealed and hugged me, or said, ‘Really?! Thank you!’”

Students were assigned chapters on a schedule. Many Meadow Wood families made reading the book a regular, shared activity. Family reading grew.

Parents “loved how it allowed them to talk to children over a shared experience,” librarian Lewis said. Students were concerned for Ivan the gorilla and his friends as they became immersed inside the lengthy chapters.

The librarian used social media like Twitter and other communications pathways to support student, family and school community interest and discussion.

“I have loved seeing students carrying The One and Only Ivan book around with them, or seeing it on their book stack on their desk, or in their book box,” Lewis also said.

“Our students have now had a shared book experience and it has helped them find a connection with one another as well. Teachers said it was a topic of conversation in their [student/classroom] community circles and at the lunch table. We all loved Ivan and Ruby!”

“The whole school tells you about this one book. I liked reading it,” said Meadow Wood student Elyse Carlson. “Everyone likes to talk about their own favorite part of the book.”

“It’s been a good opportunity to read one book and to be together,” said Meadow Wood parent Judith Sakolosky during the book reading campaign period. “All of our neighbors are talking about the book. It’s nice for the families to get together for 20 or 30 minutes, too.”

This book campaign is over, but librarian Lewis reports that families have asked about the next book. She is hoping that the upcoming book fair will fund the next, big shared reading campaign.

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WAIS IB Graduates Implored to Change the World

Danielle Couch had a message for Westchester Academy of International Studies seniors working on their International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma: You can do this.

Spring Branch ISD Superintendent Scott Muri doubled down on Couch’s reassurance: Not only can you do this – you have to do this.

“Our world faces problems so complex that my generation and generations before it can’t figure them out,” he told WAIS IB graduates and students on Thursday, Dec. 17, at an IB graduation program. “We need you. We have yet to solve the complex problems of the world.”

Couch was one of 16 members of the WAIS class of 2015 to earn the IB diploma, recognized around the world for its academic rigor and assessment. A freshman at Trinity University in San Antonio, Couch told seniors that the IB experience helped her hold deeper conversations with peers and to develop and express strong opinions in class.

WAIS offers the IB Diploma Programme and the IB Career-related Programme for grades 11 and 12, and the IB Middle Years Programme for grades 6-10. Only schools authorized by the International Baccalaureate Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, can offer IB programming.

Most students at WAIS are involved in IB in some way. WAIS, a district public charter school, draws students from across the district through a choice application process that typically involves a lottery as applicants outnumber available seats.

School Director Jennifer Collier told the IB students that they’re on a journey.

“The work is hard and difficult,” she said, “but the work is important. It has value.”

She said that the WAIS class of 2015 has the largest number of students ever in college, a testament to both the students and the “amazing” faculty at the campus.

Returning graduates who completed the IB Diploma Programme, sat on the auditorium stage Thursday with seniors, who were also recognized during the program.

Couch told the assembly that as a sophomore four years ago, she sat in the audience looking at the seniors on the stage while thinking that they were “untouchable” – that she would never reach that place. The junior IB year “kicked my butt,” she said, and although by her senior year she was beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel, she began “devaluing” the IB diploma as something she didn’t need and might never accomplish.

So when she opened the electronic document that contained her exam scores, she laughed. She laughed, she said, because she was so wrong – not only could she get the IB diploma but she was excited to get it.

“I’m one of the untouchable few,” she said. “I can do this.”

Muri reiterated the value of the IB diploma in an uncertain world, one in which he said his Thursday morninig started at 5 a.m. in response to terroristic threats to large school systems across the country.

“You’ll have a credential like no other,” said Muri. “Yes, it’s a piece of paper, but it carries with it a lot of blood, sweat and tears. And it carries with it a lot of promise.”

“You make a choice and you were selected to be here,” he said. “You must do this – not only for yourselves but for all of us.”

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A Best Model in Literacy

Teaching and Learning Associate Superintendent Patti Pace (left) awards Principal Lynn Austin (right) with one of the district’s new “I Am SBISD” honors.

Teachers and administrators from a New Mexico school district visited Thornwood Elementary School this month after a foundation and educational consultant group picked the Spring Branch ISD elementary as a model of best practices in important areas of literacy. These model areas include Reader’s and Writer’s Workshops and an initiative called Consume, Critique and Produce, or CCP.

A Look at Consume, Critique, Produce in SBISD - View the video >>

The New Mexico-based J.F. Maddox Foundation and Smarter Learning Group, a national consulting firm, helped bring a group of educators from Hobbs Municipal Schools to Thornwood Elementary on a two-day “learning visit” on Dec. 8-9.

Maddox Foundation and consulting group representatives visited several districts and public schools in the Houston region before selecting Thornwood, a Title 1 public school, as a model campus in meeting the literacy needs of students, especially those with lower socioeconomic backgrounds.

Thornwood is one of several SBISD campuses to adopt a Teaching and Learning Dept. initiative known as Consume, Critique and Produce (CCP), which has been modeled in district schools by the University of Maryland reading professor, Dr. John O’Flahavan, and Kelly Edwards, who is a district literacy specialist.

At a kick-off dinner held Dec. 8 in the Thornwood Elementary library, Principal Lynn Austin was surprised by Teaching and Learning Associate Superintendent Patti Pace, who awarded Austin one of the district’s new “I Am SBISD” honors, which includes a specially made medallion.

“What makes Thornwood so special is that the school’s leadership team, and the teachers, truly embrace the CCP literacy model, and they have adopted and now use it in their classrooms. The fidelity that they have shown in using this literacy model is very important,” Associate Superintendent Pace said.

Principal Austin noted during dinner remarks that Thornwood has both a diverse and highly mobile student population. Student mobility is about 25 percent, and that is down somewhat from previous years. Thornwood’s students and families speak more than a dozen languages. They hail from 28 separate countries.

“I surround myself with good people. We have great teachers and staff working here, and they bring to me other great people and great community resources,” Austin said. CCP and the Balanced Literacy Model helped greatly, she added.

Visiting from Hobbs, N.M., were Schools Superintendent T.J. Parks, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction, Debbie Cooper, and group of language arts and reading specialists and instructors.

Judy Wallis, a national-level consultant who worked in SBISD for many years, spoke during the first-evening dinner about the importance of teacher modeling across many key literacy areas. She also spoke about three key “wins,” or goals, for all language arts and other classrooms:

• Increasing students access to books and periodicals, as well as volume of reading for all students
• Increasing the quality of explicit teaching: modeling and demonstrating
• Increasing student discussion and talk about thinking and learning

Thornwood Elementary School is located at 14400 Fern. School Principal Lynn Austin has led this campus for five years.

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Teacher Wins Energy Day Award

Helen Roberts, a 26-year teacher in Spring Branch ISD, was named the winner early this year of the John Kingsley Kerver Educator Award during an Energy Day Festival gathering held in Sam Houston Park downtown.

Roberts, who teaches sixth-grade science, received two Wells Fargo gift cards valued at $1,000 as part of her surprise announcement award. The annual Energy Day was celebrated in a festival setting in the city park on Oct. 17.

The weekend festival is designed, in part, to increase student interest in careers across the energy arena, including the exploration, production and refining fields.

Roberts was stunned by the award, which is closed to applications and awarded through industry and educator recommendations. “I must be making an impact on some kids. I do know that I love what I do,” Roberts said after the award was issued.

Roberts has been named a campus Teacher of the Year three separate times in her career. “I like this community. I like the parents. I like the students, and I like the science team we have here at Spring Branch Middle,” she also said.

In separate but related news, two Gifted and Talented students based at Spring Branch Middle School won cash awards during the Energy Day event for the essays that they wrote.

Delaney Polocheck won 1st place and a $250 Wells Fargo gift card for an essay about Alaska.

Winning a $50 Wells Fargo gift card in the media category was Katherine Carlson. Her entry also focused on Alaska as a student entry topic.

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Memorial High School Student Couple ‘Radiates Laughter and Joy’ During Their Recent Homecoming Activities

Special to SBISD written by Suzanne Garofalo

Miriam Saterbak (left) and Blakeley Kress (right).  Photo by Joe Center

The sun is setting over Darrell Tully Stadium as Spring Branch ISD’s Memorial Mustangs host the Aldine Nimitz Cougars. On the Memorial side, red and black pepper the sidelines and stands — a microcosm of unity and support like that of the district itself, where not only can students feel they belong, but they are encouraged to carve out that seat at the table for themselves.

On this night, two students exemplify that standard perfectly.

In the bleachers, sophomore Miriam Saterbak, 15, claps her cymbals in time with her fellow percussionists in the Mustangs Marching Band. On the field, junior Blakeley Kress, 17, horses around with the players while attending to their needs as football manager. Both have Down syndrome. They’ve known one another since they were small and have been a couple for about a year.

“I’m proud of getting a 1 at UIL,” Miriam says of the band’s achievement earlier in October at the Berry Center in Cypress. The shy smile of the girl who played piano a bit before taking up her favorite instrument, guitar, is infectious.

Miriam has long enjoyed being part of a team: She performed with the Memorial Middle School Band as a student, and enjoys gymnastics and competing in swimming for Special Olympics.

Miriam Saterbak (fourth from left) with her fellow Mustangs Marching Band members.  Photo by Joe Center

In his third year as football manager, Blakeley attends all team workouts, taking part in some of the training, and is something of an expert in the weight room. He guides players through the various machines, a duty he performs in the offseason for the baseball team. He also serves as manager of Memorial’s rugby squad.

Asked what he’s most proud of in his current role, he lights up and says simply: “Helping.”

MHS Football Manager Blakeley Kress enters the field with his teammates.  Photo by Joe Center

Memorial’s quarterback Colton Taylor, a senior, says anyone who comes into contact with Miriam “immediately experiences a mood boost,” and that Blakeley “is definitely the life of the locker room.”

“He is a part of the team, and the coaches are very good about incorporating him into all of the drills and exercises that we do,” says senior Jake Reistroffer, an offensive tackle who has known Blakeley a little more than a year. “…He always has a very big smile on his face and is ready to laugh and make me laugh. He has his own little inside jokes with everyone on the team that he cracks out from time to time.”

Jake’s father, Will Reistroffer, echoes his son: “[Blakeley is] just as important to the identity of the team as any player, coach or trainer. He enjoys genuine friendships with many of the boys on the team and [is] treated as an equal by all. He is extremely independent and has a sense as to when it is appropriate to joke around and be silly, but he also understands when to be focused and serious. 

“He is part of the locker room, practice, bus rides, pre-game preparation and warm-up, halftime and post-game celebration and sadness. Each and every one of those boys and coaches [is] lucky to know Blakeley and to receive his gift of friendship without pretense and without conditions.”  

Reistroffer knows well the sense of character Blakeley exhibits. He and Jake’s mother, Marci, lost a younger son with Down syndrome, Simon, to leukemia five years ago (the incidence of the disease is 10- to 20-fold higher in those with Down syndrome, studies show).

“Down syndrome people give and accept love unconditionally, without pretense,” Reistroffer says. “From Simon we learned that life is fragile and to treasure our relationships and friendships.” 

Among other things, Miriam and Blakeley play basketball together for fun. Their easy relationship is a joy to watch, friends and family say.

“She and Blakeley together radiate laughter and joy, which is something that is admirable and awesome to be around,” Colton says.

Jake adds, “They are very sweet to one another, and it always makes me happy to see them together.”

These students are “very aware of who they are,” says Blakeley’s mother, Ashley Kress. To borrow a Buddhist term, she says many youths with Down syndrome “have radical self-acceptance.”

Perhaps that helps explain how they fit in easily not only with the band and team, but with each other. Miriam and Blakeley attended their second homecoming dance together a few days later on Nov. 7.

Of Miriam, Blakeley says, “She’s awesome. We talk a lot.”

Blakeley plans to study science in college, where he says he still hopes to work with the football team.

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Eighth-graders Begin Counting Down to Their Futures

Thanks to the support of about 50 community volunteers and partners, nearly 2,200 SBISD eighth-graders received the Countdown to Your Future program this month. The program, which uses Junior Achievement’s “Your Career, Your Future” curriculum, places community volunteers in classrooms to motivate and inspire students to start thinking about their futures today.

Participating volunteers represented SBISD’s Partners in Education and Volunteer Advisory Boards, SBISD’s individual volunteer base, and corporate teams from partner organizations including Amec Foster Wheeler, CenterPoint Energy, Community Health Choice and Dow Chemical.

In a 45-minute presentation, students learned about the connections between one’s education, career choices, earnings and lifestyle. After sharing their own stories and career pathways, volunteers encouraged students to make informed choices in order to best position themselves for future successes. Presenters also showcased a range of career opportunities aligned with each of the high school graduation endorsements students will select and earn based on high school course selections.

“The program reminds students that the choices they will soon be faced with are exciting opportunities to start charting their future paths. The message ‘the more you learn, the more you earn’ is not just about the financial rewards of pursuing a higher education, but instead speaks to the wealth of opportunities that exist when you take the time to invest in yourself” said Abby Walker, who coordinates the program. The program strategically aligns with eighth-graders’ course and endorsement selections that occur in mid-January.*

A Junior Achievement developed board game accompanies the presentation, challenging students to make financial decisions for a month based on an assigned career and education profile. For many, playing the game helps connect the volunteer-delivered message and a real-world simulation proving that the choices you make have a significant impact on your day-to-day lifestyle and opportunities.

For more information about the Countdown to Your Future Program, or to inquire about providing higher education and career exposure opportunities to students, contact Abby Walker at 713.251.2289 or Abigail.Walker@springbranchisd.com.

*Spring Forest Middle School 8th graders will receive the presentation in May due to a previously arranged schedule with their corporate partner.

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