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Lovejoy Independent School District
Celebrating 100 Years of Excellence in Education
Centennial Logo Designed by Hudson Samuels, LHS Student
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A Message from the Superintendent
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Dear Lovejoy Community:
I hope this finds you and your family enjoying the cooler weather. It was great to see so many of you at the Fine Arts Festival this past weekend. The Fine Arts Festival is always one of my favorite events and this year was no exception. The talents of your students showcased in both the performing and visual arts was extraordinary. Congratulations to the staff and students on an exemplary festival.
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Wednesday, December 20th, is the last day for students prior to Christmas break. The 20th is an early release day. Please be sure to check with your campuses regarding early release information.
Monday, January 8th, is the first day of school for 2018. We look forward to welcoming the students and staff back to school on this date.
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Worthwhile Senior Project
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I met with LHS Senior John Treanor yesterday regarding his senior project. John's project will benefit the USO through in-kind donations. He will be placing boxes for collection at our 3 elementary schools and at Sloan Creek. He shared that he wants to serve in the Navy after college, and has always respected the men and women who serve our country. He plans to have the boxes out for collection by December 13th. Click here for a list of suggested donation items.
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School finance is a top priority as we remain vigilant in our work to increase funding at the state level. The Texas Association of School Boards posted the following graphic on their twitter account this week. It shares important information regarding cuts to state education funding in the past decade.
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Lovejoy High School Journalism
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The Lovejoy News Network staff won for its flagship program, Leopard Spotlight, which was launched last fall. Only eight schools nationwide received the award.
"The Pacemaker is the association's preeminent award and is often called the Pulitzer Prize of scholastic journalism," said Laura Widmer, executive director. "NSPA is honored to recognize the best of the best." Each school entered three programs from the 2016-2017 school year. A team of three judges from College Broadcasters, Inc. viewed each entry, discussing its strengths and weaknesses. The judging team praised the overall quality of the entries: "The Pacemaker-winning entries stood out for their quality, not only in the production, but in the stories being told, the writing, editing and hosting, and the willingness to tackle controversial topics. These were exceptional newscasts start to finish."
Matthew Cinquepalmi
, 2017 graduate, was executive producer of the winning staff. "Matthew's leadership was crucial to us launching Leopard Spotlight," advisor Corey Hale said. "I'm so happy to see the hard work by him, and all our staff, recognized on a national level."
Other broadcast staff members included 2017 graduates Haley Kranz, Dara Fadel, Patrick Compton, and returning staffers Grant Dennis, Bradley Davis, Parker Nolan, Falyn Brothers, Clayton Houts, and Shivani Radhakrishnan. Seniors Clay Parker and Joe Cross were also members of the winning staff.
Lovejoy Journalism also had several students honored for NSPA Individual Awards. Senior Hannah Ortega placed third in the nation for NSPA story of the year in the category of sports for
her feature on former student Jacob Parrott.
Ortega also received a rating of "excellent" in the Journalism Education Association on-site feature writing competition.
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WSMS Newspaper and Yearbook
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Congratulations to the Willow Springs Middle School Newspaper and Yearbook staff members for placing in the Best of Show awards at the Fall Journalism Educators Association and National Student Press Association convention in Dallas. The LeopardLife Newspaper placed third in Best of Show newspapers among thousands of students in the middle and junior high division. The Rosette Yearbook placed 8th.
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Lovejoy High School Fishing
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Congratulations to Lovejoy High School Freshmen John Armstrong and Josh Bittlestone for taking first place at the THSBA Texoma tournament this past Saturday. With their victory, the two-man team takes over the Angler(s) of the Year (AOY) points total from Seniors Kellen Worley and Trey Johnson. After winning the team title for the first two season tournaments, Lovejoy stepped back as a team to finish 3rd overall. This maintains the team's eligibility for Team of the Year title.
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The Speech & Debate team traveled to both Austin and Abilene this weekend, and achieved the following accomplishments.
UT Competition
LD Debate
Collins Morgan
- Triple Octo Finals (Top 64 debaters)
Duo Interp
Grant Dennis
and Clay Parker - Semi Finalist (Top 32)
Abilene Competition
This was a "swing" tournament, which means students were competing in 2 tournaments at Abilene High School and Cooper High School, and ultimately placed 3rd in sweepstakes as a team.
Abilene High School Results
Lincoln Douglas Debate
Kaya Czyz
- Octo Finals (Top 48)
PF Debate
Pierce Richardson
and Dayton Thompson - Quarter Finalists (Top 8)
Original Oratory
Kaeli Wilburn
- Semi Finals (Top 12)
Anna Rouse
- 4th place finalist (Earned 3 state points)
Poetry
Christopher Abdalla
- Semi Finals (Top 12)
Kaeli Wilburn
- Semi Finals (Top 16)
Humorous Interp
Shivani Radhakrishnan
- Semi Finals (Top 12)
Dramatic Interpretation
Luke Wheatley
- 2nd place Finalist (Earned 6 state points)
Informative Speaking
Justin Maroney
- 4th place Finalist (Earned 2 state points)
Nia Marwaha
- 7th place Finalist
Domestic Extemp
Dayton Thompson
- Semi Finalist (Top 12) (Earned 1 state point)
Darby Price
- Semi Finalist (Top 12) (Earned 1 state point)
Anna Rouse
- 1st place Finalist (Earned 8 state points)
Cooper High School Results
PF Debate
Darby Price
and Matthew Sipes - Quarter Finalists (Top 8) (Earned 1 state point)
Original Oratory
Anna Rouse
- Semi Finals (Top 12)
Kaeli Wilburn
- 6th place Finalist (Earned 1 state point)
Humorous Interp
Shivani Radhakrishnan
- Semi Finals (Top 12)
Informative Speaking
Justin Maroney
- 3rd place Finalist (Earned 3 state points)
Nia Marwaha
- 6th place Finalist (Earned 1 state point)
Dramatic Interp
Luke Wheatley
- 3rd place Finalist (Earned 6 state points)
Domestic Extemp
Anna Rouse
- 3rd place Finalist (Earned 6 state points)
Anna Rouse
earned the necessary state points needed to compete at the Texas Forensics State Tournament in March of 2018.
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Foundation for Lovejoy Schools
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2017 Annual Appeal Ends December 31
As the end of the calendar year approaches, the Foundation for Lovejoy Schools would like to say thank you for your generosity to the annual appeal campaign. We have received donations from 542 donors totaling $177,977. This is just shy of our goal of $200,000 and 650 donors. If you have not yet donated or you wish to make a final end-of-year, tax-deductible donation, please
click here
. Without you, we could not carry out our mission to enhance the educational experience for Lovejoy students and staff.
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Lovejoy Ladies' Night Out
Join us for a Lovejoy Ladies' Night Out to raise funds to award grants to Lovejoy ISD. The event will be held on Wednesday, January 10, 2018, at Cross Creek Ranch in Parker. This event sold out last year. Tickets are on sale now.
For pricing and ticket information,
click here
or contact Cindy Booker at 469.742.8043
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Curriculum Express
News from the Deputy Superintendent
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Tests and Growth Mindset
Dear Lovejoy Community:
I hope everyone is staying warm during this recent cold front. It is hard to believe we have just ten days left in this semester. In the next week or so, final exams are scheduled for high school students, and major exams for many of our students in grades 5-8.
This time of year, I am often included in discussions with parents about grades, grading, and semester averages, etc. Grades and the importance of grades, or emphasis on grades, are often different in each family and sometimes for each child within the same family. This reality makes grading policies and philosophies among the most challenging and controversial topics in schools.
Stanford professor, author and past presenter at Learning@Lovejoy, Dr. Carol Dweck's book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success uncovers the differences between two core mindsets. Dweck shows how success in school, work, sports, the arts, and almost every area of human endeavor can be dramatically influenced by how we approach our goals. People with a fixed mindset - those who believe that abilities are fixed - are far less likely to flourish than those with a growth mindset - those who believe abilities can be developed through hard work, good strategies and mentorship.
Mindset
reveals how great parents, teachers, managers, and athletes can use this idea to foster outstanding accomplishments.
A key part of Dweck's research addresses the issue of praise. As Dweck describes, over time, praising an outcome rather than the effort put forth to achieve an intended outcome or reach a goal, can actually be more detrimental and cause us to have a more fixed mindset. In schools, we often see this when students are unwilling to try something new for fear of failure.
As Dweck shared with Lovejoy educators, "If there could be one key take away from this book: I would hope we could all do a better job of praising students' efforts and not just the grade they achieve." She also shared one strategy we could all adopt: "At the end of each day, ask each student, 'What was your one glorious struggle today?'"
As you consider books to read over the holiday season, I would highly recommend Dweck's book Mindset as a resource for considering how we support and parent our children through the various challenges which will be encountered in school and in life.
We hope you continue to love where you learn. If you have feedback to help us improve, please do not hesitate to contact me on my cell at 214.385.1967.
Respectfully,
Dennis Muizers
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LHS Theatre Department
The LHS Theatre Thespian Troupe 8345 attended its first Thespian State Festival the week preceding Thanksgiving Break. Twenty eight students attended and 6 competed in individual performance or technical events. Of those students who competed, Junior Alec Welhouse qualified for the National Conference with his monologue piece, and Junior Adelyn Maruca qualified for the National Conference with her solo musical piece. Alec and Adelyn will compete at the National Thespian Conference in Lincoln, Nebraska, in the summer of 2018. Congratulations to all of the Thespians who attended. The conference was a fantastic learning experience for the students in Lovejoy Theatre.
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LHS Choir
Pre-Area, the toughest round of auditions in the All-State choir process, took place prior to Thanksgiving break. In order to advance to the next round of auditions, students had to place in the top 5 chairs in their respective voice parts. Lovejoy High School had the most students advance to the final round of auditions. Congratulations to the 8 students who are advancing and to the 4 alternates:
Hannah Hansen
Noah Johnson
Andrew Mao
Mandy Rickett
Mikayla Slatten
Hallie Steadman
Katie Strand
Jack Supan
Alison Jobes
, alternate
Connor Martin
, alternate
Catherine Stewart
, alternate
Luke Wild
, alternate
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LHS Band
The dust has settled after a long two days of regional auditions. With over 1000 entries in the region, the following students have earned a place in the regional band. As you can see, many have also qualified for the Area level of competition in January, which may qualify them for All-State. This is the largest number of students in school history to qualify at the regional and area levels. A special congratulations to Jack Supan, as he has secured a place in the All-State Jazz band on guitar. This is Jack's second year to earn this prestigious placement.
PK Kotra
, Bass Clarinet, 9th Grade Region
Sam Lamping
, Horn, 9th Grade Region
JR Frazier
, Trumpet, 9th Grade Region
Charis Vela
, Percussion, All Region
Jensen Kinnebrew
, Piccolo, Area
Sarah Jahnke
, Flute, Area
Pallavi Muraleedha
ran, Flute, Area
Bryn Goldsmith
, Oboe, Area
Samir Mehta
, Oboe, Area
Sophia Heussner
, Clarinet, Area
Joe Harris
, Horn, Area
Dawson Pavelock
, Horn, Area
Patrick O'Brien
, Trumpet, Area
Joel Reaves
, Trumpet, Area
Kyle Easley
, Trombone, Area
Charis Vela
, Percussion
Jesse Vela
, Percussion
Noah Cooper
, Percussion
Patrick O'Brien
, Trumpet, Jazz
Joel Reaves
, Trumpet, Jazz
Sam Oates
, Trumpet, Jazz
Luke Prins
, Trombone, Jazz
Charis Vela
, Vibes, Jazz
Jack Supan
, Guitar, Jazz,
All-State
All Region Alternates
Kyle Easley
, Trombone, Jazz
Landon Snow
, Trombone
Catherine O'Brien
, Flute
Renee Barnes
, Trumpet
Maddy Allen
, Percussion
Daniel Tao
, Clarinet
Kylee Tyra
, Clarinet
Katie Lowe
, Clarinet
Joe Ridgeway
, Bari Sax
Annika Kjellgren
, Percussion
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Lovejoy Boys Basketball
The Varsity team defeated Frisco Centennial on Tuesday, and went 2-2 in the Prosper Tournament with wins over TAPPS 5A state Runner-Up Legacy Christian and a tight 56-53 win over Frisco. The JV finished the Prosper Tournament with a convincing win over Creekview after beating Centennial.
The JV Red team had a thrilling game against Rockwall, but lost a heartbreaker as they got beat at the buzzer earlier in the week. The JV Red Leopards fell on Monday night to Plano Williams' Sophomore team by a score of 54-31.
The freshmen continue to roll, as they remain undefeated. The freshman won the McKinney Tournament yesterday. They beat Plano Williams, McKinney, Highland Park, and Allen to capture the crown.
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Lovejoy Girls Basketball
The Lady Leopards traveled to Buda Hays this past weekend to compete in a very competitive 32-team tournament. The Leopards went 4-1 on their way to a 2nd place finish. The Leopards defeated El Paso Del Valle 52-37, Austin High (#23 ranked team in 5A) 46-38, Dripping Springs 47-43, and San Antonio Johnson 51-43. In the championship game, the Leopards fell to Cedar Ridge, the 13th ranked team in 6A, 58-54. After an impressive showing in the tournament, the Leopards earned recognition in two of the state polls, being ranked #21 by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches and #20 by the Texas Girls Coaches Association. Congratulations to Kaylee Rekieta and Carsen McFadden for being named to the all-tournament team. The Lady Leopards will have their last tournament of the year this weekend, as all three teams travel to play in the Princeton Tournament. Please join us in support of the teams.
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Lovejoy Football - Correction
In the November 29th edition of Email Express, Malachi Al-Zuraqi, LHS Senior, was not identified as a defensive leader in the November 17th game against the Sulphur Springs Wildcats. Congratulation to Malachi on his acheivement.
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Lovejoy Swim and Dive
The Leopard Swim team will be competing in the 5-A TISCA meet this Friday at the Frisco Natatorium located at 7411 First Street in Frisco. Details are as follows:
Prelims - Friday, December 8th
Doors open at 7:30 AM
1st warm-up session 8:00 - 8:30 AM
2nd warm-up sessions 8:30-9:00 AM
Finals - Saturday, December 9th
Warm-up opens at 9:00 AM
Meet starts at 11:00 AM
Admission fee (cash only): Adults: $7, Students: $4
Heat sheets: $3
There will be a limited supply of two-day adult passes (admission and heat sheet each day): $15.00
We hope you will join us in support of the Lovejoy Swim and Dive team.
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Lovejoy Wrestling
The men's varsity team opened the dual season with a well-fought win over Reedy by a score of 33-24. The Leopards wrestled 8 underclassmen on the varsity team, with many freshmen making their varsity debut. Freshmen with key victories for Lovejoy were Ralph Rucker and Zack Valentine. For a complete list of all the matches from the dual, please click here.
The women's team was led by three wrestlers last Friday in Coppell. Lilly Musselman, Alexandria LeFort and Morgan Elvin represented the Leopard Women's wrestling team well Friday night. Katherine Heath also attended, and helped to coach and film the team. Despite only having 3 of the 10 weights filled, the team finished 8th out of 19 teams. Congratulations to:
4th place - Alexandria LeFort
2nd place - Lilly Musselman and Morgan Elvin
For complete results from this tournament, please
click here
.
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Family Promise of Collin County
Angelina Mapes,
a 7th grade student at WSMS, is raising funds to benefit Family Promise of Collin County. Angelina hopes to receive enough donations for parents to purchase presents for their children for Christmas. The donation box is located at Willow Springs Middle School.
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University of North Texas
The University of North Texas is pleased to announce the Eagle Advantage program for Lovejoy students graduating in the top 20% of their class. Qualifying students are guaranteed automatic admission to the University of North Texas, and are eligible for scholarships.
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MySchoolBucks Convenience Fee
MySchoolBucks, the district's online meal prepayment program, has provided notification regarding an increase in the convenience fee paid by parents using the online payment feature. The fee will be increasing from $1.95 per payment to $2.49 per payment and will be effective as of December 11, 2017. This increase is the result of an increase in card scheme fees. The district does not receive any convenience fee funds from MySchoolBucks.
In light of the increase, the district contacted MySchoolBucks. They agreed to increase the maximum payment from $120 per deposit to $240 per deposit. This payment deposit increase is effective immediately. You may contact MySchoolBucks directly by telephone at 855.832.5226 or via email at
[email protected]
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LHS Collecting Donations for Coats for Kids
Lovejoy High School is collecting donations to buy coats for S.M. Wright's Christmas in the Park Event. The purpose is to provide funding and resources for underprivileged children and families through the nonprofit organization For Kids Foundation. Every $15 donated will provide a child in the Dallas area with a new coat. This is a great opportunity for everyone to give back this Christmas. You may
click here
to donate.
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Relay for Life Gallery Wall Opportunity
Relay for Life is an annual event held at Lovejoy High School to raise awareness of cancer and donate to cancer research. This year's initiative is to bring the Lovejoy community together as a whole to promote a sense of community and care. The entire Lovejoy community is invited to participate in this event on April 6, 2018.
To encourage participation of students at the elementary and intermediate school levels, the LHS Relay for Life organizers are hosting a coloring page activity. Students may
click here
to print the coloring page and decorate it as creatively as they can. Beginning December 11th, they may turn the page into the receptionist desk at their campus to receive a pencil, sticker or other prize. The event organizers will use all coloring pages to create a gallery wall for the event, which will represent loving support for those whose lives have been affected by cancer.
We hope you will save the date of April 6th and join us for Relay for Life.
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Relay for Life Luminarias
Relay for Life is selling Luminarias for the Relay for Life event on April 6th at Lovejoy High School. Luminarias honor those whose lives have been affected by cancer. You may dedicate a Luminaria to loved ones who lost their battles with cancer, someone currently battling cancer, or anyone who has overcome cancer. When you attend the Relay event, you will see the Luminarias placed around the track, decorated with names and sometimes messages to whom they are dedicated. Luminarias are $10. If you would like to purchase one, please
click here
.
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Kindergarten Gifted and Talented Referrels
Referrals for kindergarten Gifted and Talented services are available through the PowerSchool Parent Portal from December 1, 2017 - January 12, 2018.
An information session for the parents of kindergarten students will review the referral process, as well as the G/T services offered in Lovejoy.
Lovejoy ISD Administration Building
Board Room
December 15, 2017
9:00 AM or 4:30 PM (Session information repeats)
If you are unable to attend and would like more information, a slideshow presentation is now available on the
Gifted and Talented webpage
.
All kindergarten students will be tested at their home campuses in January. Additional testing for referred students is scheduled for both Saturday, February 10th and 24th. Services for identified kindergarten students begin March 1, 2018.
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The Lovejoy Running Club
The Lovejoy Running Club meets every Tuesday and Thursday evening at 6:00 PM near the Duck Pond at Celebration Park. All ages and ability levels are welcome to attend, from novice walkers looking to shed a few pounds, to elite runners gearing up for the next race. If you have questions regarding the running program, you may contact:
[email protected]
. P.S. Dogs are welcome.
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Lovejoy ISD Pre-Kindergarten
Space Available
Our
district has offered a Pre-K program as a part of our employee daycare progr
a
m for the past 11 years. On the suggestion of parents, we decided to expand that program and offer a tuition-based program open to our community. We currently hav
e two Pre-K classrooms open at Puster Elementary. This program offers enhancements in music, fitness, art, library, science, technology, engineering, and math. We are enthusiastic about providing a Lovejoy education for community members looking for a rich learning experience which will provide a firm foundation for kindergarten and beyond.
If you are interested in applying, please
click here
. To schedule a tour of the Pre-Kindergarten program, please contact
Stacey Dillon
at 469.742.8003.
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Drop N Shop Fundraiser: December 8
Pajama Night with the LHS Cheerleaders
Kids, wear your pajamas and join the LHS Cheerleaders for a holiday fun-filled night while your parents shop or enjoy a night out. Play games, color, craft, and watch a holiday movie with the LHS Cheerleaders.
Click here
for additional information and to register.
Friday, December 8
6:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Lovejoy High School Auxiliary Gym
$30 first child; $20 each additional child
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SCIS Choir to Perform at Dallas Arboretum:
December 11
The SCIS select Fifth Grade Choir, Sloan Creek Chorale, will be performing at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Gardens on Monday, December 11th. This special holiday concert will be at 11:00 AM. Join student performers in the beautiful gardens at the famous "Twelve Days of Christmas" display, and enjoy holiday cheer.
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Orchestra Spirit Day: December 12
The Lovejoy Orchestra Spirit day/ night will be held at Pei Wei on Tuesday, December 12th from 4:00 PM - 9:00 PM. Please join the orchestra for a great combo of delicious food, good company, and support of the Lovejoy Orchestra. 20% of the proceeds will go to the Orchestra Booster Club. When you order, please let them know you are with Lovejoy Orchestra. This includes dine in and take out at the Pei Wei located at 1008 West McDermott Drive in Allen.
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BYOP® (Volleyball Winter and Spring Sessions): Pre-registration ends December 22
BYOP® Program Overview:
This training program is designed for any volleyball player, no matter what skill or ability level, as long as their goal is to become the best they can be. Parents must be fully dedicated to being actively involved in this program. BYOP® will provide excellent volleyball fundamental skills training, as well as life lessons to both player and parent.
BYOP® Program Details:
Each training session will build upon a solid foundation of all fundamental skills needed to participate in the sport of volleyball. Parents must be engaged in every training session and involved in the home training program involving physical and skills activities.
Click here
for full details regarding Session 1 (January, February and March) and Session 2 (April and May).
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If you would like to provide us with accomplishments of a Lovejoy graduate, please click here. We will share this information in the "Where Are They Now?" section of Email Express. It is a pleasure to report the successes of Lovejoy graduates during their college years and beyond.
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Inclement Weather
School closures will be determined based on safety. In the event of a school closure, notifications will be announced on the district's website, Facebook, and Twitter pages. We will also announce any closure through the media and by phone. Links to our social media accounts are shown below.
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Lovejoy ISD App
The Lovejoy ISD App is available for download on both Apple and Android devices. To download the app for Apple devices, please
click here
. To download the app for Android devices, please
click here
.
Twitter and Facebook
Are
you following the district on
Twitter
? Have you liked us on
Facebook
? Join us on social media for news and announcements.
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As always, please feel free to contact me with questions or concerns.
With Respect,
Ted Moore
Superintendent
Lovejoy ISD
972.415.8129 (mobile)
469.742.8011 (office)
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