November 2, 2017
Homecoming week is always filled with excitement! This year the Student Council hosted a tailgate event on Thursday evening, followed by the traditional "Burning of the B." The pep rally on Friday afternoon was full of spirit and the Tigers went on to win their game against Shoemaker 35-12! Congratulations to this year's Homecoming Queen Arianna Garcia and King Weston Bass!
 

On October 20, our schools celebrated The National Day on Writing. This special event was started by the National Council of Teachers of English to emphasize how critical writing is to literacy. In Belton ISD, we absolutely believe this to be true. That's why one of our 2017-2018 priority areas is improving achievement in writing. We want to ensure that our students are given the opportunity to develop and practice their writing skills so that they can effectively and successfully communicate their ideas.   

Preparing our students to become better writers begins with a highly skilled teaching staff. During the summer, nearly 70 teachers attended a one-week Writing Institute facilitated by consultants from Columbia University's Teacher's College. Teachers increased their knowledge of the writing process and discussed effective instructional strategies to develop our students' writing skills. The high-quality training was beneficial to our students and aligns with our mission to provide an education that challenges all of our students to excel.

The video linked below celebrated The National Day on Writing in Belton ISD. I'm proud of our campuses for the special activities that they conducted with our students to emphasize the importance of writing. It was fun seeing students writing and sharing stories together, writing notes to soldiers and others, and participating in numerous engaging lessons developed by our highly qualified teaching staff. We want all of our students to be good writers, and with high-quality instruction and practice, there's no doubt that they can!


Thank you for your supporting our efforts to promote literacy and high achievement in Belton ISD.

Sincerely,

Susan Kincannon, Ed.D.
Superintendent


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This year's "Think Pink Go Red" campaign raised $10,800 to benefit the Baylor Scott & White Cancer Institute. The check was presented during the Pink & White game on October 6. What started in October 2011 has resulted in more than $73,000 being donated to the Cancer Institute.

Along with contributions from Belton ISD employees, Belton ISD raised more than $15,000 for the United Way of Central Texas this year. Spirit chains were displayed across the field as United Way of Central Texas CEO Stephanie O'Banion thanked the Big Red Community for their generous donation. 
What appeared to be a special pre-game recognition, turned into a surprise homecoming for the family of Sergeant First Class Pablo Ureste. SFC Ureste, a 20-year veteran, returned home from a year long deployment in South Korea and surprised his wife and children when he removed the Tigo costume! State Representative Hugh Shine was on hand to greet the happy family and participate in the coin toss.
Message from the School Board President:

Our Schools! Our Community!
 
I love how our community supports our schools and our students! We always enjoy great attendance and participation at athletic and fine arts events where our students perform. Encouraging them is an important part of connecting our community and our schools. And we have had much to support and celebrate!
 
Our awesome students demonstrated their investment in our community by leading us in some very special fundraisers recently. In addition to the recent United Way Kids Campaign which helped raise over $15,000 to help meet community needs, our BHS Cheerleaders led us in collecting $10,800 for the THINK PINK GO RED breast cancer research fundraiser. Over $73,000 has been raised in the seven years of this great effort. The annual Belton FFA/HEB Thanksgiving Food Rally next week is a fun event that will help provide food for our neighbors.
 
The recent Belton Educational Enrichment Foundation (BEEF) Red Carpet Event raised approximately $75,000 to be used for student scholarships and teacher grants. We are thankful for the support of our community for our students, and know that investment will have a long lasting effect.
 
We are also thankful for the tremendous community involvement in the process over the past few months to name our new high school. After considering the input and feedback from our students and community, and after significant deliberation, the Board voted on Lake Belton High School, with a mascot of Broncos, and the colors Red and Silver. While we all knew it would be impossible to find a solution that would be everyone's first or favorite choice, we are committed to working together to expand our support for this new school and its students. Thank you for your passionate investment in our schools.
 
We are proud of the leadership of our students and community members in all of these important events. They help demonstrate the vital connection between our schools and our community. We are fortunate to have a supportive community that recognizes the value of strong schools. Thank you for your continued support!

I Love Belton!

Randy Pittenger
President, Board of Trustees


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This year's Belton Educational Enrichment Foundation (BEEF) Red Carpet event was a success with Belton Mayor Marion Grayson and City Councilmember John Holmes serving as emcees. Auctioneer Troy Gallagher and his son, Thomas, led the live auction and the BHS Madrigal provided musical entertainment. Approximately $75,000 was raised for student scholarships and teacher grants. Thank you to the BEEF Board and volunteers who worked hard putting this event together. This video below was shown during the event and captures what BEEF is all about! We thank the participants for sharing their stories.


Special thanks to all of the Red Carpet sponsors and Friends of BEEF. Because of their generous contributions, our students are able to achieve their educational goals beyond high school, paraprofessionals can continue their education, and our teachers are able to fund innovative projects for their classrooms.  
Congressman John Carter had lunch with student leaders from BHS and BNTHS@W and discussed leadership and current events with members of the Student Council and Belton Youth Advisory Commission.

Serena Shedore was recognized for being named a Semifinalist in the National Merit Scholarship Program for high achievement on the PSAT. She was presented with a banner that will hang at BHS. Serena also earned a perfect score on the ACT!
Belton Early Childhood School (BECS) students celebrated their love of reading with a Storybook Character Parade.