Denton ISD

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A lifetime of influence

For teachers, the results of a student’s educational advancement are often seen primarily over the course of a year. For Evers Park Elementary School teacher Carrie Martin, one student made it her goal to show how that impact can last a lifetime.

Thanks to recent graduate Ti Anna Bridges-Reed, Mrs. Martin recently received Barnes & Noble’s national Teacher of the Year award, primarily for how she helped Ti Anna pass a state-mandated test. Mrs. Martin beat more than 10,000 entries submitted by students nationwide to win the award as part of Barnes & Noble’s “My Favorite Teacher Contest.”

In her essay detailing why she felt Mrs. Martin should win the award, Ti Anna wrote that Mrs. Martin gave her the encouragement she needed to succeed both academically and as a person.

“Mrs. Martin was the first teacher I can ever remember who put faith in me; I didn't even have faith in myself,” she wrote. “She let me know I could do anything if I believed. As a dyslexic child, I never had that special someone. Dyslexia is a reading and writing disorder that affects the way a child learns to read and write; it can affect other subjects as well. I struggled in all subjects – writing and math also.”

Ti Anna’s struggles eventually culminated by failing the state-required math test in fifth grade, which she needed to pass to advance to middle school. Mrs. Martin was there to comfort her, however, pulling her into the hall and letting her know she had confidence that the outcome of her re-take test would be different.

“Mrs. Martin was the first teacher I can ever remember who put faith in me; I didn't even have faith in myself. She let me know I could do anything if I believed.”  – TI ANNA BRIDGES-REED, RYAN ALUMNA

“You are going to pass that test,” Mrs. Martin told her, Ti Anna wrote. “I believe in you. And I know you can do it.”

Ti Anna did go on to pass the test, and she graduated from Ryan High School on June 3 with the goal of becoming a teacher, largely because of Mrs. Martin. In fact, Mrs. Martin made such an impact that Ti Anna began pursuing her desired career path before graduating. She served as an intern – or high school helper – for Mrs. Martin’s second-grade class last year, learning the ropes of what her former teacher does on a daily basis.

The reunion served as a reminder of how teachers can leave a lasting mark on students, Mrs. Martin said.

“When I found out she was going to be my high school helper, I immediately thought that I get to be with her again and have the opportunity to help her out – hopefully impact her life – again,” she said. “I remember the moment seven years ago when I pulled her in the hallway and told her I knew she’d pass. It’s such an amazing experience as a teacher knowing you can make an impact like that on someone’s life for the better.”

At a ceremony held by Barnes & Noble at Evers Park Elementary in May, that was evident when the company rewarded both Ti Anna and Mrs. Martin for their commitment to education. Mrs. Martin and Evers Park Elementary each received $5,000, while Ti Anna received $500 to use on her college textbooks as well as a Nook e-reader.

While the monetary reward was exciting, Mrs. Martin said, teachers aren’t expecting to become rich in their profession – but they do make impacts and friendships that rival any amount of money.

“Teaching can be a difficult job because you spend so much time doing it without a break, but it’s so rewarding because my students tell me they love me on a daily basis,” she explained. “When they get that ‘ah-ha’ moment, it makes it all worthwhile. My husband was recently telling me he wishes he had a job where he could touch peoples’ lives, and I feel like I’m able to do that – I get to do that.”

As for Ti Anna, she plans to attend North Central Texas College before transferring to Texas Woman’s University and pursuing a teaching degree. Her winning essay cites Mrs. Martin’s commitment to tutoring her after school as a turning point in her educational journey, a standard of excellence she wants to have as a teacher with students of her own.

Ti Anna said that, with the exception of her mother, Mrs. Martin was the individual who most influenced her to become the person she is today.

“I always go back and look at my fifth-grade year when things are hard,” she said. “The transition to middle school was hard, and the transition from high school to college will be even harder, but I know I can do it – as long as I push myself and remember the faith Mrs. Martin put in me.”

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Keyboardist from Denton is inspiring people worldwide with fierce, viral performance

Have you seen Guyer High School student and band member Anna Eberhart steal the show at a recent Boston Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corps performance? Check it out! She’s spending the summer performing with the group before returning to Guyer for her senior year.

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Denton alumna Adinawa Adjagbodjou accepted into seven of eight Ivy League schools

When Denton High School’s Adinawa Adjagbodjou walked across the stage in early June alongside 472 of her peers, she did so with the distinction of being a class valedictorian. One other distinction – the only documented of its kind in Denton ISD history – wasn’t commemorated by an honor cord or stole, however.

Adinawa’s biggest graduation accomplishment is one few people can boast: being accepted into seven of eight Ivy League schools. With acceptance letters from Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Pennsylvania, Princeton and Yale, the only Ivy League school she wasn’t immediately accepted in was Brown – and she may have received admission had she not told them she would attend Harvard and taken herself off the school’s waitlist.

Her enviable task of deciding which school to attend was further compounded by the fact that she was also accepted into a variety of other top-tier universities. Adinawa said her visit to Harvard made her feel at home, however, making the choice easier.

“I went to three of the schools I was accepted into – Princeton, Stanford and Harvard – but Harvard’s atmosphere really set it apart,” she said. “I loved the academic environment and how they encourage you to learn and surround yourself with different ideas. People there seem willing to do all kinds of things to better themselves.”

Adinawa also cited the school’s educational philosophy of trying different fields and learning from others as one of the major factors in her decision to attend Harvard. That philosophy is similar to what she learned in Denton High School’s International Baccalaureate classes. In IB classes, students are held to lofty academic standards that involve dissecting how actions in one country can impact others across the globe.

“I loved the academic environment [of Harvard] and how they encourage you to learn and surround yourself with different ideas.” – ADINAWA ADJAGBODJOU, DENTON ALUMNA

In a history class, for instance, Adinawa and classmates learned how the United States’ bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II impacted Japan by reading accounts from Japanese survivors.

“Traditionally, American history classes only look at an American perspective, but in our class, we looked at that side as well as the other global points of view,” Adinawa said. “That was one of the most eye-opening experiences ever, when it came to reading accounts from atomic bomb survivors. That’s one of the things I love about IB – having different perspectives and people from different backgrounds really makes conversations more interesting.”

Beth Hughes, Denton ISD’s high school IB coordinator for upperclassmen, said Adinawa’s experiences, drive for success and care for others perfectly meshes with what IB classes teach and what Adinawa will further explore at Harvard.

“I could tell in the beginning that she had a very strong motivational drive that can sometimes be lacking in students,” Mrs. Hughes said. “She asks a lot of good questions if she doesn’t know about something, and she always respects the views of others. She’s not the kind of person who’s afraid to admit someone else may be right, and I think her mentality on how to better herself is a big reason why she’s so successful in everything she does.”

One of Adinawa’s strongest attributes is that she doesn’t just want to better herself, however – she wants to better everyone else as well, especially those who need the most help.

An example of Adinawa’s commitment to others can be seen in her goals for the future. She plans to major in economics and computer science, which she hopes to use to benefit underdeveloped countries, such as Benin and its neighbors.

Adinawa cites the emphasis her parents, Dr. Paulin Adjagbodjou and Colette Tinkpon, placed on education as a major reason for her goal of helping others.

“They left Benin because they wanted more opportunities for us; the educational system over there isn’t as strongly founded as it is in the U.S.,” she said. “That’s why I want to give back. I believe developmental economics can make a systemic change to benefit an entire population.”

Thanks to her hard work and the support of her parents, Adinawa actually won’t have to worry about economics for a while – not for herself, that is. She’s received several local and national scholarships, including the prestigious Gates Millennium and Ron Brown scholarships, among others. The Gates scholarship can fully pay for up to 10 years of post-secondary education, while the Brown scholarship provides up to $10,000 per year over four years for other educational expenses.

When Adinawa arrives for classes at Harvard in the spring, she’ll work toward her future dreams with the benefit of knowing she’s already achieved one lofty dream.

“I definitely didn’t think I was going to get into [seven Ivy League schools],” she said. “It would be a dream to get into any Ivy League school. I wanted to challenge myself after all the hard academic work I’ve put in, and all extracurricular work – I wanted to see where it could get me.”

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City, district partner to show students local government jobs

Career fairs are a staple in education because they tend to show students the various options available to them upon graduation from high school and college.

But are these examples exciting? Moreover, can they be exciting enough to convince a 16- or 17-year-old to invest the time to pursue that as a career?

Understanding this process, the City of Denton broke from the traditional career fair path and didn’t bring speakers into the classroom – they brought a group of approximately 30 students into the field or office to get a hands-on look at what their potential job or career would be like. Instead of a typical career fair, it was aptly named Denton Experience Day.

“When I spoke to [Assistant City Manager] John Cabrales about the possibility of putting students in position to get an actual look at what jobs the city has to offer and ask questions to the people working them, I thought it was a no-brainer,” said Tim Sanchez, a science teacher and LULAC Youth Council sponsor at Denton High School. “I mean, where are else are these kids going to get that kind of opportunity?”

Leslie Salazar agreed.

While the Denton High junior thought she was going to be in for a long day of listening to adults preach about why their jobs or careers are good, she instead listened to impassioned messages from people excited to be at work. She admitted that it wasn’t what she was expecting to hear.

“When the people here speak about their jobs, you hear how much they love their jobs,” Leslie said. “A lot of them said that they started at the very bottom and have now gone very high up, telling me that they grew here and appreciated that they’re now in a position to make better choices for the place we live.”

Students said that coming into Denton Experience Day, they often associated city or municipality jobs were roles along the lines of sanitation workers, police officers and summer jobs, such as lifeguards. What they quickly learned is that Denton isn’t your typical city.

With its own electric company, water treatment plant and a focus on renewable goods, students learned that Denton offers a variety of engineering careers. They toured the city landfill, fleet service center, police training facility and Pecan Creek Water Reclamation Plant, where they were able to ask questions from a wide range of employees, including entry-level workers, supervisors and department heads.

“A lot of [government workers] said that they started at the very bottom and have now gone very high up, telling me that they grew here and appreciated that they’re now in a position to make better choices for the place we live.” – LESLIE SALAZAR, DENTON STUDENT

Each department gave a brief presentation outlining what its duties are in supporting the city and its various jobs and careers. The usual questions of salaries, benefits and vacation time came up, but so did more serious ones invoking stress levels and the probability of getting hurt on the job. Students were even shocked to learn that the city pays tuition reimbursement, allowing hourly paid workers to earn their bachelor’s degrees or those on salary to gain their master’s degrees.

George Campbell, Denton’s city manager, said the goal was twofold on the city’s behalf. While they did want students to know that the city employs more than 1,300 people across 700 departments and in 60 facilities, they also want to stress the opportunities Denton offers to bilingual workers.

“We always want people to learn about the city as a good employer and organization, but we also want kids to see how they can take a regular job and make it into a career here in their hometown,” Campbell said. “Our hope is to find more bilingual employees for the city, so why not have them be products of Denton ISD.”

Students got a first-hand glimpse at one of their own succeeding at home while touring the fleet services center. Fuel Specialist Charlie Rosendahl talked about how his time in automotive technology at the LaGrone Advanced Technology Complex helped prepare him for the nuances of maintaining all of the city’s vehicles, keeping them fueled and in working order.

Cabrales even opened one student’s eyes and mind as he described his rise through the ranks as a former police officer who worked with students as part of the DARE drug awareness program into city administration.

“I came in thinking that I wanted to go to college and be a police officer,” said Francisco Flores, a Denton High junior. “Now, I’m thinking that if he can go from being a police officer to a city manager’s job, I can too.”

The city and district are looking at ways to expand Denton Experience Day to include more students and possibly more career fields. Students said tours of the new animal shelter or DTV studios would likely be a hit with their classmates and friends at the other Denton ISD high schools.

“This was a great experience for my kids and I want the students at our other high schools to benefit from this too,” Sanchez said.

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Denton, Guyer and Ryan high schools each held their graduation ceremonies on Friday, June 3, while Fred Moore High School held its ceremony on Wednesday, June 1. To see photos from each event, visit www.flickr.com/dentonisd. Click on “albums” to quickly jump to one school’s group of photos.

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Denton High School seniors earned awards today, and in two days they'll earn diplomas! The Broncos celebrated their impending graduation at the school’s annual senior awards ceremony and senior breakfast as part of their week-long events. To see more photos from the senior awards ceremony, click here.

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Ginnings Elementary held its annual Jaguars Swimming for Success program at the Denton ISD Natatorium today, teaching students important safety measures to take when in or by bodies of water. To see more photos from the program, click here.

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Guyer’s Ethan Toy wins UIL 6A long jump crown

Guyer High School senior Ethan Toy won the University Interscholastic League’s 6A long jump championship on May 14, giving the Wildcats their first state track and field title ever.

Ethan won the long jump in the UIL’s largest classification with a leap of 23 feet, 8 inches, surpassing his closest competitor’s best jump by nearly half a foot. The distance marked a personal record for Ethan, who had three jumps exceeding 23 feet at the state meet – the only contestant with more than one jump greater than 23 feet.

Going into the state meet, Ethan had the fourth-best qualifying mark of the nine 6A long jump contestants from their regional meets. He had experience from last year, however, when he finished fifth at the state meet.

“I practiced a lot more this year, staying after school even longer, so I was confident going in,” Ethan said. “I definitely learned how much work it takes – you can’t just win the state meet with raw talent; you’ve got to put in the hours. Words really can’t explain how excited I was when I finally won the medal. It was absolutely icing on the cake of all that hard work.”

The state track meet was delayed by nearly six hours because of lightning when Ethan was set to compete, changing scheduled event times. As a result, Ethan and seven other student-athletes completed all six of their jumps before the final competitor had even taken a single jump, as he was competing in running events throughout the day’s condensed schedule.

Despite the unusual situation, Ethan said he wasn’t too nervous.

“No one else was really jumping well, but I put together a string of good jumps,” he said. “You’re always a little nervous, but I knew I did what it took.”

Ethan’s jumping prowess has earned him a track and field scholarship with the University of South Dakota, where he hopes to eventually compete in high-level NCAA competitions.

J.D. Aaron, head coach of the Guyer boys track and field program, said Ethan has served as a role model for other student-athletes, being willing to try new events, such as running the leadoff leg of the 4x100-meter relay, to help his team.

“Ethan’s so easy to coach, with great talent and a great work ethic,” he said. “We’re going to miss him on our team for everything he provides – from his individual success to his leadership to his positive attitude. He had the meet of his life with several consistent jumps, and it was great seeing a kid like him go out on top.”

To see the full results from the 2016 UIL State Track & Field Meet, click here. 

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Laura Bush Foundation awards Windle $6,800 library grant

The Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries recently awarded Denton ISD’s Ann Windle School for Young Children with a $6,800 grant for the school’s library, with the former first lady meeting with campus staff as part of the honor.

Windle was among just 130 school libraries across the United States that received grants from the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries. This year, the foundation gave more than $831,000 to U.S. school libraries through its grant program. The foundation provides grants of up to $7,000 to the neediest U.S. schools to extend, update and diversify the book and print collections in their libraries. These books help meet the foundation’s goal of encouraging students to develop a love of reading and learning.

“With this grant, your librarian will order new books and materials for your school – something everyone can enjoy,” Mrs. Bush said. “I challenge every student to build your reading skills during the summer break, and come back to your new-and-improved school library ready to learn next year.”

Mrs. Bush met with Dallas-area grant recipients – including Windle and Denton ISD staff members as well as Dallas ISD librarians – at a recent ceremony at the George W. Bush Presidential Center. The event celebrated the release of the children’s book Mrs. Bush co-authored with daughter Jenna Bush Hager, “Our Great Big Backyard,” with both the Windle and Dallas ISD representatives receiving signed copies for their libraries.

Windle will use its grant to expand its non-fiction and Spanish collections and add award-winning fiction books to its library. Currently, its library is primarily composed of fiction books.

Betty Nance, librarian at the Windle and Gonalez schools for young children, said the grant will have an immediate impact on Windle’s library.

“This will mark a tremendous improvement and help build our library for the young reader, offering them a variety of book types they can enjoy,” she said. “It was such an honor to meet Mrs. Bush – a former librarian and educator herself – because I’ve always admired her passion for reading and how her work has positively impacted children across the nation.”

Donna Kearley, the Denton ISD library media coordinator who wrote the grant proposal, shared Mrs. Nance’s thrill of the award.

“This grant will bring some much-needed resources to Ann Windle and give our children a variety of choices as they learn to read,” she said. “Mrs. Bush is a gracious and lovely woman, and her love of education was apparent as she spent time with two of our students.”

For more information about the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries and its grants, visit its official website by clicking here.

Photo courtesy of Grant Miller for the George W. Bush Presidential Center. Seen in the photo are, from left, Betty Nance (Windle librarian), Laura Bush and Donna Kearley (Denton ISD library media coordinator) along with Windle students Matthew Garcia and Ashtin Fleeks.

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Guyer seniors are ready for graduation on June 3 after today’s Wildcat Walk ceremony! The annual event for graduating seniors honors their scholarship awards and takes them through a ceremonial tour of the school that marks the culmination of their high school careers. See more photos from Wildcat Walk by clicking here.

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Houston running club keeps students in shape mentally and physically

Ask an elementary student what his or her favorite subject is and two common responses are recess and P.E. To take advantage of students’ interest in exercise-related activities, several Denton ISD schools offer running clubs that provide benefits beyond simply improving physical fitness.

At Sam Houston Elementary School, running is used as a tool to build cardiovascular health while also fostering positive relationships. The school’s running club, which was founded in 2007, is open to fourth- and fifth-graders and focuses not just on staying healthy, but also having fun and socializing. In addition to Houston, 10 other Denton ISD elementary schools have running clubs: Adkins, Blanton, Borman, Cross Oaks, E.P. Rayzor, Hawk, Newton Rayzor, Ryan, Savannah and Wilson.

Jessica Dean, Houston Elementary counselor and coordinator of her school’s running club, said one of the club’s biggest benefits is how its exercises can positively impact someone’s day.

“Studies have shown that when you’re physically active, your mood is elevated,” she said. “We exercise all our students each morning at our school to get them primed for learning, and we’ve noticed a positive emotional improvement. Our running club is really a continuation of that – we want our students to feel good throughout the day, and we want them to have a sense of togetherness.”

To promote that socialization, Houston’s running club trains toward a goal of completing a group 5K. In both the fall and spring, the club trains twice a week – on Mondays and Fridays – completing a variety of workouts, from distance runs in a local neighborhood to stamina games such as capture the flag.

The training methods have already proven successful, with multiple Houston running club members placing near the top of their age division in recent 5K races.

As a counselor, Mrs. Dean said, seeing relationships built within the club is one of the most rewarding experiences. Houston’s running club has attained as many as 70 students in the program at a single time, with its membership hovering in the mid-50s most years. Those dozens of students work together throughout the year and encourage each other to succeed, Mrs. Dean added, which helps students as they prepare to transition to the middle school ranks.

“This club goes beyond just physical healthiness and really helps students work together,” she said. “Running may be individualized, but seeing your friends succeed and working to succeed together is a big part of this club. We talk about setting goals, for example, and the students love to cheer their friends on. It helps that we have a lot of parent support, which sets a good example. We’re blessed to have such great parent involvement at our school.”

Students in the club agreed, with the majority saying they enjoy running, but their favorite part of the club was being able to enjoy their free time in a group setting with peers.

“I love playing games and hanging out with my friends, so this is a really good way to do that,” said Nick Aiai, a Houston fifth-grader. “I play sports but didn’t run 5K races or anything like that before, and now I’ve done a few with my friends.”

Fellow fifth-grader Sarah Wood also emphasized the dual nature of the club, which allows her to stay in shape and have fun at the same time.

“I’ve definitely got better at running with the club, but I like the fact that it’s not just running – you also get to play games,” she said. “My first 5K was challenging but it was fun to prepare for and see how well I did. I didn’t really focus on time for my second 5K, but I know I did even better.”

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Congratulations to Will Milne’s ATC photography program for winning a recent statewide portrait portfolio contest held by the Association of Texas Photography Instructors! Photos from nine students from our three comprehensive high schools were featured in the portfolio, which won the Rising Star competition. Be sure to check out the program’s Instagram account, @atccommphoto, to see more great photos! Seen here is Mireya Villanueva’s photo of Eric Molina in the style of a “Saturday Night Live” title card.

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Myers Middle School saw a great turnout for its college and career on Tuesday! The event allowed students of all ages to meet business professionals and university representatives to help get ideas for their future paths. To see more photos from the event, click here.

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Evers Park’s Carrie Martin named Barnes & Noble national Teacher of the Year

Barnes & Noble has named Evers Park Elementary School second-grade teacher Carrie Martin as its national Teacher of the Year thanks to the submission of Ryan High School senior Ti Anna Bridges-Reed, her former student.

Mrs. Martin beat more than 10,000 entries submitted by students nationwide in Barnes & Noble’s “My Favorite Teacher Contest” to win the honor. Students were encouraged to nominate their favorite teachers by submitting essays, poems or thank you letters sharing how their favorite educators influenced their lives. The contest lasted the first three months of 2016, with submissions accepted at Barnes & Noble stores.

In her essay, Ti Anna wrote that Mrs. Martin gave her the encouragement she needed to succeed both in academics and as a person.

“Mrs. Martin was the first teacher I can ever remember who put faith in me; I didn't even have faith in myself,” she wrote. “She let me know I could do anything if I believed. As a dyslexic child, I never had that special someone. Dyslexia is a reading and writing disorder that affects the way a child learns to read and write; it can affect other subjects as well. I struggled in all subjects – writing and math also.”

Ti Anna wrote that, with the exception of her mother, Mrs. Martin was the individual who most influenced her to become the person she is today. Additionally, Mrs. Martin’s work made Ti Anna want to become a teacher. She has since gone on to intern at Evers Park Elementary – with Mrs. Martin as her mentor.

“Every day in the classroom is a validation of what I do as a teacher, but it’s so rewarding and fulfilling to know that Ti Anna thought so much of me to submit this essay,” Mrs. Martin said. “The work we do as teachers is so important, and I feel like there’s a lot of people who could have won this, so being the teacher selected is very humbling. I’m so thankful to have had Ti Anna as both a student and high school helper.”

As a result of her honor, Mrs. Martin will receive $5,000 and be recognized at Evers Park Elementary on May 6. Evers Park Elementary will also receive $5,000.

For more information about the Barnes & Noble My Favorite Teacher Contest and its rules, visit its official website by clicking here.

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Congratulations to our qualifiers for this year’s state track meet! Ryan pole vaulter Avery Stuchell, Guyer long jumper Ethan Toy, Denton high jumper Selena Gembeh, Denton long jumper Logan McDaniel and Denton’s boys 4x200-meter relay all advanced to state! Seen above, Denton ISD athletes compete in the UIL Region I-6A meet. To see more photos from the meet, click here.

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Borman shaping trilingual students with IB implementation

Second-grader Clara Castro excitedly flipped through flash cards, challenging her classmates to match the appropriate photo with the corresponding word. She whispered to them in a different language – one not normally used in the hallways at Borman Elementary.

At Borman, many students chat excitedly in both English and Spanish, and most share translations in Spanish, their native language. Cheers erupt when matches are made and teams progress.

“Utilisez-vous le français?” says Madame Whitney Villenari when students are supposed to be speaking in a third language. “Make sure you are using French.”

For the school’s first and only world language teacher, Madame Villenari, the decision to add French at the elementary school not only created an opportunity for her to pursue a career in teaching, it is creating trilingual students – those who speak three languages fluently.

The school is nestled in an older part of Denton, where more than 80 percent of its students come from economically disadvantaged families, and more than half have already learned English as their second language.

“Learning French is a little easy,” said second-grader Clara Castro. “Some of the words that we pronounce in Spanish are almost the same in French.”

The school decided to add French instruction for all students in kindergarten through fifth grade after conducting a survey with parents. The staff also met with researchers from the world language departments at both Texas Christian University and The University of North Texas to help validate the decision.

“My bilingual students are picking up the language so quickly,” said Ms. Villenari. “I am starting to hear more and more French phrases in the hallways, and they are definitely connecting it to other areas of their lives. They are constantly coming into my classroom with stories of French words they see around town, in their classrooms and on TV.” 

“I am starting to hear more and more French phrases in the hallways ... [Students] are constantly coming into my classroom with stories of French words they see around town, in their classrooms and on TV.” – WHITNEY VILLENARI, WORLD LANGUAGE TEACHER

In February, Denton ISD announced Borman has become just the second elementary school in the district to complete International Baccalaureate certification, giving it world-respected academic instructional backing. Teachers and staff worked diligently with campus and district administrators over the past few years to gain accreditation from the Switzerland-based International Baccalaureate Organization.

“We researched the benefits of both languages [French and Spanish] and found that a large percentage of vocabulary found on the Scholastic Aptitude Test and in higher education had connections to French,” said Principal Robert Gonzalez. “We discussed research on how well bilingual students perform in French classes because of the connections that can be made between Spanish and French.”

The International Baccalaureate Organization requires that all students in the Primary Years Programme – the elementary-level portion of its offerings – have the opportunity to learn in more than one language from the age of 7. As part of the lengthy certification process, Borman received two commendations because it began French instruction in kindergarten. Denton ISD is one of only two public school districts in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to offer the IB curriculum from kindergarten through 12th grades.

“I’m so proud of the work our teachers and staff have put in to make this a reality for our students and community,” said Mr. Gonzalez. “IB is an academic designation that is known around the world for its rigor and collaborative learning experiences, so this will only benefit our students, school and district moving forward.”

The IB curriculum is based on and maintained as an international standard built around global concepts and living – an international mindedness. Students learn how to analyze, apply critical thinking and reach considered conclusions about people and other cultures through study.

“My favorite thing about this schools is all of the different types of things we are learning,” said Clara.

Evidence of the school’s commitment to a variety of academic offerings also exists down the hall from Madame Villenari’s room in the EXPO class. In the class, for students identified as gifted and talented, a small group is commonly huddled around a table full of math manipulatives. They spiritedly play a game using multi-sided dice that they created using a 3D printer in the robotics lab.

This year, the school fielded its inaugural robotics team to compete in the First Lego League thanks to a partnership with Devon Energy. Students designed and built a robot using Lego Mindstorms technology, then competed on a table-top playing field.

The Borman team was excited to advance to the second round of competition, crediting much of their success to the donation of four robots from Devon and the work of a volunteer, Carlos Muniz, a retired logistics professional and active participant in the district’s Grandparents in Public Schools Program.

“Five years ago, I started coming one day a week with a group of volunteers from Robson Ranch to read with second graders,” said Mr. Muniz. “Two years ago, Ms. [Adriana] Denison announced that the school was starting a Robotics Team, and boy, did I get hooked.”

Mr. Muniz added that he believes the program is the perfect combination of art and science, offering students the opportunity to work creatively while solving real problems.

“I am continually amazed that these are great kids from low-income families who are building robot Legos, and programming them,” said Muniz. “We found that many of them have not even played with Legos until they got to school because they are so expensive, yet here they are excelling at competitions.”

Mr. Muniz said he loves to see the progress students are making and that students from all different backgrounds at Borman seem to thrive when it comes to using technology even though their exposure to devices outside of school seems to be limited.

“At our school, students are driving learning and our teachers and volunteers are modeling learning,” said Mr. Gonzalez. “The possibilities are limitless, and as educators we know we don’t have all the answers, yet we find that our students are continually challenging us and pushing us to learn new things to stay ahead of them or at least alongside them.”

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Guyer fine arts shining on the big stage

For most musicians and fine arts performers, playing on venues such as Broadway or Carnegie Hall takes a lifetime. For an increasing amount of Guyer High School students, the honor is taking place before attending college.

During the current school year, Guyer fine arts students have performed at several renowned venues, including Carnegie Hall, the Chicago Symphony Hall, Notre Dame Basilica and the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré. Guyer has also seen a large amount of students named to their respective fine arts all-state ensembles during the current school year, including a school-record five students named to the all-state orchestra.

Having existed slightly more than 10 years, Guyer High School has seen many fine arts firsts and record-setting performances recently. Last year, for instance, then-senior Katelyn Cave won a regional musical theatre contest that sent her to perform on Broadway. Guyer’s fine arts staff attributes such success to the school’s environment.

“I feel like the student culture at Guyer has helped our programs thrive,” said Michelle Hanlon, the school’s orchestra director. “We have some really driven kids who are very competitive with one another. They’re all trying to outdo the others while still being supportive at the same time.”

An example of students pushing their classmates to succeed, band director Amy Woody said, is junior Abhishek Shah, who plays violin in the orchestra and trumpet in band. Abhishek earned a spot on the all-state philharmonic orchestra, which had its state auditions before band. His success, Mrs. Woody said, helped spur junior trombonist Connor Wooley to the all-state band, as the two friends pushed each other to become better.

In addition to its record-setting collective performance, Guyer also saw Inki Lee become the school’s first three-time selection to an all-state orchestra ensemble after he earned a spot on the group for violin again this year. In choir, junior Kate Gillman and senior Kylie Jensen each earned all-state recognition for the second consecutive year in the alto 2 category. Kate could become the first Guyer choral student to make three all-state ensembles if she earns a spot next year.

“I feel like the student culture at Guyer has helped our programs thrive. We have some really driven kids who are very competitive with one another. They’re all trying to outdo the others while still being supportive at the same time.” – MICHELLE HANLON, ORCHESTRA DIRECTOR

Making an all-state fine arts ensemble is an exceptionally difficult task, meaning any support students could provide one another can go a long way. Band, choir and orchestra each have several rounds of competitions to advance through, starting with regional auditions before advancing to area and state auditions. 

Both band and choir students perform in person in front of judges, while orchestra students record their performances for judging submission. Being recorded doesn’t make the process easier, however – the recordings are organized by the Texas Music Educators Association, the group in charge of all-state selections, and are limited to a single take.

The effort to make an all-state ensemble doesn’t just begin with the audition process. Music for each coming year’s auditions is released annually in the mid-summer, giving students a short break before they have to begin preparations to hopefully make an all-state ensemble. The summer isn’t much of a downtime for either students or fine arts teachers – Guyer’s fine arts instructors host several camps at the school or in the general area, while students attend camps.

For the marching band, it’s even more chaotic, as practices begin in August with long hours nearly every day. Freshmen who have only played instruments in middle school now have to learn marching choreography, and students interested in making all-state band still practice for their auditions months down the line.

Josh Mistrot, a Guyer senior euphoniumist who earned all-state band recognition this year, said the long hours made the ensuing accolades even more rewarding.

“It was pretty fulfilling knowing all the hard work I put in – and the band put in – paid off,” he said. “I’ve definitely learned a lot about leadership and the amount of effort it takes to reach this level.”

When asked what changes when a student earns an all-state recognition, Guyer choir director Stephen Evans said the answer is simple: the experience brought back.

“Once you have students who make it [to an all-state group], it really bleeds through to everyone else,” Mr. Evans said. “Those students will start giving an extra push to remain all-state, and they’ll share their experiences with everyone else. And as close as our groups are – band kids work with choir kids, and choir kids are friends with orchestra kids and so on – it really helps all our programs when even one all-state student shares those experiences and what it means to make it to that level, because it impacts everyone.” 

As Guyer continues to receive more fine arts honors, its staff has rewarded students by taking them to bigger and more esteemed venues. New York has been a popular location for performance trips among the school’s fine arts groups, though choir students had perhaps a more unique trip: Québec.

For its trip, the Guyer choir program jointly visited the Canadian province with the Denton High School choir program for performances at Notre Dame Basilica and the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré. Each basilica is more than 350 years old and sees hundreds of thousands of visitors pass through its doors each year.

Ian Grems, a senior bassistin the orchestra, said the trips are among his favorite aspects of his time in Guyer’s fine arts programs.

“I love traveling and playing in huge concert halls,” said Ian, who was named to the all-state orchestra this year and as a sophomore. “Everyone who goes on these trips plays in one big orchestra – around 80 to 90 people – so you can imagine the amount of sound we produce when we’re in a resonant venue.” Top photo courtesy of  Nicole Mendyka. Bottom photo courtesy of Karen Scruggs.