Woods’ KudosNorthside Independent School District, San Antonio TX 78238-1606

inside.nisd.net/weekly

September 20, 2017

join like us follow us watch us

9-11 brought to life for students at Aue ESSeptember 11, 2001 is ancient history for many NISD elementary students. With each passing year, students are further removed from its events, unless someone makes it real to them and inspires them to dig into the past even though the memories might be painful.

At Aue ES, 4th graders heard a personal account from their principal, Kathy Hayes, whose brother, Andy Spencer, lost his life in the twin tower attacks.  He was on the 105th floor when the planes hit.

As part of the school’s remembrance of Sept. 11, Hayes talked about the buildings, the loss of her brother, and the resulting unity felt across the country at that time. She also shared memorabilia of the events from magazines and newspapers to the missing person’s flyer her family used in hopes of finding her missing brother.  

“The students’ reactions were priceless as they learned about such an important day in our history from an important person in their lives,” said fourth grade teacher Drew Randolph. “No doubt students will remember this story in our history for many years to come.”

Glenoaks teacher receives 2017-18 ExCEL AwardRosio Martinez-Apolinar, a fourth grade teacher at Glenoaks ES, was told by her principal, Maria Elena Meza, to bring her students to the gym for an all-school goal-setting assembly. She had no idea it was all a ruse.

As students and teachers anxiously awaited the start of the assembly, Superintendent Dr. Brian Woods walked into the gym to address the crowd about what they thought was the importance of goal-setting. After a few comments, Dr. Woods stopped what he was saying and introduced news anchor Deborah Knapp. Knapp explained the real reason for the assembly – the announcement that Apolinar is the 2017-18 ExCEL Award winner for NISD.

“I feel very humbled,” she said as the students applauded the announcement. “I do it for all the students.”

The ExCEL Award is given to outstanding teachers in San Antonio by KENS5TV and Human Credit representatives who joined the assembly and presented Apolinar with a silver apple and a $1,000 check.

Apolinar is in her 11th year of teaching, nine of those in NISD.

Click here to read the entire story. Click here to see pictures from the surprise announcement.

Pictured are (from l-r) Superintendent Dr. Brian Woods, Rosio Martinez-Apolinar, and Glenoaks Principal Maria Elena Meza.

Pictured is Hayes showing a Newsweek magazine while discussing the events of 9-11.

Future scientists participate in NISD mentorship program Eight students were selected from NISD high schools to present research projects as part of the Northside ISD summer mentorship program with UT Health San Antonio. This is the 26th year for students to work with teachers in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. The program allows students to get a taste of the various career fields in science. “This unique opportunity is a window into science for the students, and an investment in our future and the future of science,” said Rosemary Riggs, education development specialist and director of the NISD mentorship program.

Students participating were Daniel Cao, Margaret Godfrey, Sydne Ward, and Jingsi Zhou, Brandeis HS; Mackenzie Cooper, Brennan HS; Rodrigo Gonzales-Rojas, Health Careers HS; Carl Johnson, Jay Science and Engineering Academy; and Jeffrey Knoop, Communications Arts HS.

Teachers go to camp overseas Five NISD teachers spent their summer as camp counselors in Tokyo, Japan. Shannon Acap, a teacher at Northwest Crossing ES, served as director of Camp Wakaba at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo. She was joined by Sarah Ramirez, Forester ES; Raeanna Flores, Fernandez ES; and Ala’a Al-Hamaydeh and Michael Deleon, Mead ES. The teachers spent 10 weeks implementing lesson plans for children of American and foreign diplomats. With a camp enrollment of more than 100 children a week ranging in age from 3½ to 15 years old, they worked with counselors from Oregon, Ohio, Iowa, Texas, and Tokyo.

Campus RoundupLeon Valley ESDad’s Day to Read is an annual parental involvement initiative at Leon Valley ES. Last week, 80 fathers and father figures read to pre-kindergarten through fifth grade students.

Pictured is Leon Valley Fire Chief Luis Valdez who read to his son Joaquin’s second grade class.

Communications Arts HSTwice a year, Communications Arts High School hosts Skills and Strategies Days to help students acquire skills that will assist them in school and beyond. Some of the topics covered last week included financial literacy, the car buying/loan process, ethics, habits of millennials, and tips to avoid procrastination.

Pictured are seniors Colton Barnhart, Hallie Borden, and Julia Marino with representatives from Credit Human who presented on financial literacy.

OF THE WEEK

inside.nisd.net/weekly

2

Woods’ KudosCAHS student invited to leadership conferenceEmily MacCormack, a student at Communications Arts HS, participated in the 2017 Lorenzo de Zavala Youth Legislative Session (TXLDZ) with the National Hispanic Institute (NHI). Due to her successful participation, she was invited to participate in the Celebración 2017 conference to be held Nov. 16-19 in San Marcos. Celebración is a showcase event of the NHI that annually invites high school students to participate in a four-day experience that introduces them to community social entrepreneurship as part of their continued involvement in leadership training.

Road ready?Jiffy Lube has you covered here, there, and everywhere. NISD employees receive 15 percent off services with a valid employee ID and must use promo code #184. The offer is good at all San Antonio Jiffy Lube locations and can’t be combined with any other promotion, coupon, or discount. Click here for more information about Jiffy Lube services and locations.

Grant of the WeekClassroom Herb Garden Grant As a recipient from the estate of Donald Samull, The Herb Society of America established an herb garden grant for elementary school classes in grades 3 through 6.

Ten grants are given away annually and winners will receive $200 “seed money” to establish an indoor or outdoor herb garden. The funds may be used for supplies such as soil, plant trays, containers, child or youth sized tools, etc.

For more information, contact the Grants and Recognitions Department at 397-8562 or go to their Employee Connection site by clicking here.

Website: http://www.herbsociety.org/support/grants-scholarships/grant-details.html