The Lovejoy Independent School District

 

Welcome to Lovejoy ISD where Kids Come First.

 

Each day we are focused on doing our Best Today. Better Tomorrow .

 

We are One Heart. One Lovejoy.

As Karen exemplifies all of the following characteristics of an extraordinary volunteer, future recipients of this award will also:

 

 

The Karen Karnuta Volunteer Service Award will be presented to future recipients as frequently as individuals are identified to be honored.

 

It was an honor to present Karen with The Karen Karnuta Volunteer Service Award. We thank her for her volunteer service to the Lovejoy Independent School District and for the legacy she leaves for others to emulate.

Lovejoy ISD Interim Superintendent, Dr. Dennis Womack presents the inaugural Karen Karnuta Volunteer Service Award to Karen Karnuta.

 

 

With respect and admiration,

Dr. Dennis Womack

LISD Interim Superintendent

Wednesday night the Lovejoy ISD Board of Trustees took action to hire JG Consulting as the executive search firm to support the board during the selection of Lovejoy’s next superintendent. All eight firms that submitted a bid to provide these services were vetted; however, only the top three were invited to be interviewed. From this process, the board made the decision to hire JG Consulting because their approach and standards mirror that of the district. JG Consulting operates with a high standard of excellence, are innovative, have a personalized collaborative approach, and believe we will attract, land or promote one of the most talented education leaders because of our community and the high standards and performance we have built across academics, fine arts, STEM, athletics and safety and security. We are one of the most desirable districts in Texas and nationally for several reasons, including our board priorities focused on academic achievement, an employer of choice, safety and security, a lighthouse for STEM, and innovative and bold approaches to a complex state financial system supported by highly talented teachers, bright students, and engaged families. Lovejoy will attract the best and brightest.

JG Consulting is based in Texas, but are one of only five accredited national superintendent executive search firms. They are highly specialized and focus most searches on behalf of elite, top performing districts around the country. Their elevated and personalized focus on our search will yield extraordinary candidates that will embody the characteristics our students, parents, community at large, employees, teachers, administrators, and school board seek as we continue our momentum towards setting the standard in public education.

As directed by the board, JG Consulting will solicit extensive feedback in a variety of ways from throughout the stakeholder groups I mentioned above. We believe this is a critical step in identifying the right candidate to lead our great district forward.

Soon, you should be on the lookout for surveys, feedback events, and other methods where our community can provide their perspective on the characteristics and experiences warranted to lead Lovejoy. Your opinion counts.

For additional information, please click here to access the JG Consulting website.

Lovejoy Proud!

Chad Collins

President

Lovejoy ISD Board of Trustees

The full timeline regarding the Superintendent Search is shared later in this edition of Email Express.



A group titled, "Parents for a Smarter Cell Phone Policy at Lovejoy ISD" is circulating a digital petition to seek a change in the District’s policy regarding the use of cell phones by students during the school day.

What is the District's cell phone policy? The District’s cell phone policy may be found in the Lovejoy ISD Student Code of Conduct:

For safety purposes, the District permits students to possess cell phones. All cellular telephones or devices should remain turned off during instructional time. Use of cell phones is permitted before and after school, during lunch and other non-instructional periods. Students shall not use a telecommunications device, including a cellular telephone, or other electronic device in violation of district and campus rules.

In short, with parents’ permission, students are allowed to bring cell phones to school. Cell phones should remain off to not disrupt instruction. Students that have cell phones may use them before or after school, during lunch, and during other non-instructional times. However, each school is permitted to have campus rules which allow the use of cell phones in class with the teacher's permission (i.e. looking something up); or ban them on “No Tech Tuesdays” (Willow Springs) and “No Tech Thursdays” (Sloan Creek); etc.

The use of cell phones by students while at school is a common debate in many communities. Families have different rules and norms about when their kids can have and use a cell phone. Supporters for banning student cell phones at school contend the phones are a distraction that hinders student performance; allows access to social media and texting, which leads to behavior issues like bullying (among others); and fosters students becoming socially inept. Supporters for allowing student cell phone use at school assert it can keep students engaged; provides the opportunity for students to be taught online safety; gives parents a peace of mind; and allows for students to learn about cell phone citizenship. While some believe banning cell phones is a way to recreate the school and social environment from when they were young, others believe banning student cell phones is as futile as former efforts to ban calculators from classrooms.



We want to know what you believe. The district administration is in the process of developing an online survey for our parents, teachers, and students regarding the student use of cell phones in our schools. We absolutely want to ensure that we provide all stakeholders an opportunity to weigh in on this topic, just like we do on the school district’s calendar. Therefore, we will be conducting a survey to give everyone an opportunity to express their opinion on this matter. A well-thought-out cell phone policy enables school districts to continue to reflect the society they serve. 

 Things are starting to accelerate in the Texas Legislature. The Texas House of Representatives and Texas Senate have filed school finance bills, with stark differences between the two. House Bill 3 authored by House Public Education Chairman Dan Huberty would add $9 billion into property tax relief and school finance reform over the next biennium. This past Friday, along with a few other Collin County Superintendents, I meet with Representative Candy Noble and Chairman Huberty regarding HB 3. I was encouraged that HB 3 would put significant resources into public education and make needed reforms and updates to our school finance system.

All eyes have been on the Senate waiting to see what their school finance bill would contain. Senate Bill 4 by Senator Larry Taylor has some similarities to HB 3, but is currently just a placeholder and has unspecified blanks for amounts making it impossible for anyone to determine how it would impact individual school districts. Senate Bill 3 by Senate Finance Chairman Jane Nelson is the other school finance bill in the Senate which would provide a $5,000 across-the-board pay raise to classroom teachers and librarians. House Speaker Dennis Bonnen said, “I don’t know how you call a $5,000 across-the-board teacher pay raise…with no discussion of reducing recapture, no discussion of reducing property taxes, no discussion of early childhood education, no discussion of absolutely incentivizing the teachers going to a tougher school to teach. What we have is a plan. And I’m proud of our plan. I think teachers are some of the smartest people in Texas. And they are going to figure out that the Texas House has a winning plan for teachers and students in Texas.”



We are tracking several other bills that may have an impact on Lovejoy ISD. Shay Adams, LISD Chief Financial Officer, was at the capital this week testifying at hearings. We will keep you posted as additional details become available. 

Lovejoy ISD Interim Superintendent, Dr. Dennis Womack meets with State Representative Candy Noble during the Superintendent’s Roundtable on HB 3.

 

We send our best wishes to both lifters as they compete at the State level. 

Two changes to the 2019-2020 School Calendar were approved by the Board of Trustees on Wednesday evening:

 

The September Early Release Day was moved from September 27, 2019 to September 13, 2019. This revision was made for the Early Release Day to coincide with Leopard Friday.

 

The October Professional Development Day for Lovejoy High School Staff, and day off for Lovejoy High School students was moved from October 9, 2019 to October 2, 2019. This change allows for a four-day instruction period at the high school the week of October 7, 2019.

To access a printable version of the calendar, please click here . 

Ally Callaway competed in the Girls State Powerlifting Meet, earning second place in the 148 pound class, becoming the first Lovejoy girl to ever medal in the State Meet. She had an eye popping total of 945 which was a personal record. Ally started the day with a 365 pound squat, then went to the bench press where she broke the state record for bench press in her weight class with 205. The very next competitor beat her record setting the new record of 220. Ally then set another new record at 225. Ally finished the day deadlifting 355. Last year she was the first Lovejoy girl to ever compete in the State Meet. Congratulations to Ally on a great season

Brock Prengler travels to Abilene this weekend to compete in the Men’s State Powerlifting Tournament. We send our best wishes to Brock for a successful competition.

Congratulations to LHS Junior Noah Cooper for becoming Lovejoy’s first two-time Regional Bowling Champion! Noah averaged a score of 226 over five games against some fierce competition from Waxahachie ISD, Frisco ISD, Plano ISD, Wylie ISD and Fairhill High School.

 

Noah’s next big competition will be at the State Bowling Tournament at Forum Lanes in Grand Prairie the last weekend in March. Congratulations Noah and best wishes at State!

Congratulations to the WSMS Orchestra students who performed at the Lowery Freshman Center in Allen. Both orchestras performed beautifully and received amazing comments and highest ratings from every judge.

 

Concert and Philharmonic Orchestra

Sweepstakes Award

 

Stage

First Division Superior Rating Overall (1,1,1)

 

Sightreading

First Division Superior Rating Overall (1, 1, 1)

Chamber Orchestra

Sweepstakes Award

 

Stage

First Division Superior Rating Overall (1,1,1)

 

Sightreading

First Division Superior Rating Overall (1,1,1)

The WSMS Choirs performed their UIL contest with great success with their concert performance and their sight-reading. The judges gave the students wonderful comments regarding their musicality and professionalism.

Concert Treble Choir

Level One Superior Rating in Sight-Reading

Tenor-Bass Choir

Level One Superior Rating in Concert Performance

A Cappella Choir

Sweepstakes Award

Level One Superior Rating in Concert Performance

Level One Superior Rating in Sight-Reading

Lovejoy students Caroline Wilkins , James Wilkins, David David , and Effe Sutton travelled to Austin to testify before the House Public Education Committee regarding HB 3. Congratulations to these young women and men for the significant role they played in creating a positive voice for education in the State of Texas.

 

The students are pictured from left to right with State Representative Candy Noble: David David, James Wilkins, Representative Noble, Caroline Wilkins, Effe Sutton and Lisa Wilkins.

Chad Collins, Board President, announced the timeline for the Superintendent search at the February 20 Board Meeting.

 

Friday, February 22, 2019 - Completed

Request for Proposal was submitted for interested search firms to apply.

 

March 8, 2019 - Completed

Deadline for interested search firms to submit their proposal.

 

March 18, 2019 - Completed

8:00 AM - Lovejoy ISD Administration Building

Special Board Meeting to select top three search firm candidates.

 

The following search firm candidates were selected to present proposals:

 

Texas Association of School Boards

JG Consulting

Bob E. Griggs & Associates

 

March 20, 2019 - Completed

2:30 PM – Lovejoy ISD Administration Building

Special Board Meeting to hear proposals from top three search firms.

 

3:00 PM – Texas Association of School Boards

4:00 PM – JG Consulting

5:00 PM - Bob E. Griggs & Associates

 

March 20, 2019 - Completed

7:30 PM – Lovejoy Elementary School Gymnasium

Board action will be taken during the regular Board Meeting to select a search firm.

 

The Board selected JG Consulting to lead the search for the next Superintendent of the Lovejoy Independent School District.

 

March 28, 2019

8:00 AM – Lovejoy ISD Administration Building

Special Board Meeting to meet with JG Consulting regarding the search for the next Superintendent of the Lovejoy Independent School District.

 

Summer 2019

The new Superintendent will be in place in preparation for the 2019-2020 school year.

 

We will continue to keep the community informed regarding the search for a new Superintendent.



Ladies Night Out

Tickets are on sale now. Click here for the reservation page and here for the Foundation’s website.

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WSMS Theatre Arts

Congratulations to the 7th and 8th grade Intro to Theatre students on seven outstanding shows.  

 

Upcoming Events

 

LHS Choir Pre-UIL Concert

March 25

The LHS choir will perform its Pre UIL concert on Monday, March 25 at 7:00 PM in the LHS Auditorium.

SCIS Sixth Grade Choir Presents Disney Spectacular

March 26

Sixth Grade Choir students will present Disney Spectacular on Tuesday, March 26. Stop by Willow Springs Middle School at 6:30 PM to hear your favorite Disney tunes.

Special Mini Majestics Camp and Spring Show

April 4 – 6

The Majestics Dance Team is getting ready for their annual Spring Show scheduled for April 4 – 6. This year, their show is called "Making a Difference" which represents a reflection of their year....giving back and being servant leaders of our community. Tickets are available now through the Majestics website:

www.majesticsdance.org

Would you like to perform with the Majestics in their Spring Show?

All Lovejoy ISD girls in grades K-6 are invited to be a part of the Majestics Spring Show in April. You will spend a morning in March learning a fun routine from the Majestics and perform your new routine during opening night of Spring Show, Thursday, April 4. The Majestic team is so excited to share the stage with the Mini Majestics! Click here for an information flier and registration.

LHS Jazz Ensemble

May 6 – Save the Date!

The LHS Jazz Ensemble will perform with the Texas Instruments Jazz Band and Sal Lozano on Monday, May 6. Additional details will be shared in a future addition of Email Express.

 

Fine Arts News

 

Band Hosts Car Wash

March 23

Come out and support the Lovejoy Band! Get your car washed on Saturday, March 23 from 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM at Creekwood United Methodist Church, 261 Country Club Road. 

Band Boosters Host Mattress Fundraiser

March 30

The Lovejoy Band Boosters will host their second annual Mattress Fundraiser on Saturday, March 30. Click here for more information.

 

 

Choir Boosters Host Spirit Night

April 9

The Lovejoy Choir Booster Club is hosting a spirit night on Tuesday, April 9 between 4-8 PM at the Chipotle located on 103 Central Expressway North. Please let the cashier know you are supporting the Lovejoy Choir Booster Club when you place your order.  

Click here for detailed information regarding summer athletic camps and Performance Course.

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Lovejoy Athletic Department

Multi-Sport Athletes of the Week

Lovejoy Baseball

Lovejoy Golf

Lovejoy Boys Soccer

Lovejoy Girls Soccer

Lovejoy Softball

Lovejoy Tennis

Lovejoy Track

Upcoming Events

LHS Varsity Baseball Little Leopard Night

March 22

The Lovejoy Varsity baseball team will host Little Leopard Night on Friday, March 22.

LHS Softball Presents WSMS and SCIS Night

March 22

The Lady Leopards Softball Team invites SCIS and WSMS students to their game on Friday, March 22.

 

LHS Softball Presents Future Leopards Night

March 26

The Lady Leopards Softball Team will host Future Leopard Night on Tuesday, March 26.

 

Grand Slam Softball Booster Napoli’s

March 26 and April 16

The Lady Leopard Booster club will be hosting Leopard Softball days at Napoli’s in Allen on March 26 and April 16. 

BYOP® Volleyball Winter and Spring Sessions

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. Early BYOP® - registration for Session 2 ends March 25, 2019

This section of Email Express highlights news reports/articles featuring Lovejoy over the previous week.

 

SportsDayHS: Boys Soccer

 

Allen American: Baseball

 

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Kindergarten Round-Up

March 25-29

Hop Into Spring Chess Tournament

March 30

This annual Lovejoy Tournament continues to be a hit around the metroplex. Come join your fellow chess players on March 30 at Sloan Creek for a wonderful day of chess play.

 

City of Lucas Hosts Spring Cleanup

April 6

This Spring’s cleanup event “Don’t Mess with Texas Trash-Off” is scheduled for Saturday, April 6 from 8 am to 12 pm. As an affiliate member of Keep Texas Beautiful, the City of Lucas participates in this annual cleanup to support efforts in clearing City-maintained areas and roadsides of trash. We invite the community to participate in this cleanup.

 

Mark Your Calendars for the Elementary Campouts!

The Elementary Campouts are a fun and memorable experience for our kids and their families. They offer a wide variety of activities including bounce houses, glow parties, movies under the stars, and much more. The grand finale of each event is a campout on the playgrounds. Funds raised from the campouts provide revenue for the campus and the school district to help offset the loss of state funding.

 

Campout dates are:

 

Lovejoy Elementary School

April 12

 

Puster Elementary School

April 26

 

Hart Elementary School

April 27

Summer Sewing Camp

June and July Offerings

Join the 12th year of summer sewing fun at a new location: Lovejoy High School! Click  SEWING  for details about the camp as well as details about a special project option: T-shirt quilt.

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Share the News!

Lovejoy Scholars

Lovejoy Scholars, our K – 12 tuition-based enrollment program, is a great opportunity for families who live outside of our district boundaries, but want their children to experience a Lovejoy education. Will you help us share the news?

 

 

Pre-K Now Enrolling

Excellence Begins Early

Call Today!

Little Lovejoy Scholars is accepting applications for tuition-based Pre-Kindergarten.

 

 

SafeSchools App

SafeSchools has launched their new mobile application for anonymous reporting. You may click here for the SafeSchools Alert Mobile Application Download Instructions.

 

Lovejoy High School Store Announces Sale

The Lovejoy High School and Willow Springs Middle School stores will host a sale beginning on March 18. The entire stores will offer items at 50% off. Some exclusions may apply.

 

Lovejoy High School School Store Hours

8:30 AM – 4:15 PM

 

Willow Springs Middle School Store Hours

Monday, Tuesday and Thursday

During Lunch

Emilee Gant – Class of 2017

Emilee attends Abilene Christian University where she is a Cheerleader. She will be cheering in the NCAA tournament to support ACU men’s and women’s teams. The men’s team played Kentucky last night. The women play Baylor in Waco this Saturday.

Lovejoy ISD is focused on generating new sources of revenue to offset our loss of state funding. Our goal is to protect our programs and avoid charging fees for items such as riding the bus. If you have a need for any of the following services, you can help generate revenue for the district by choosing members of the Circle of Partners . Our partners have pledged a charitable giveback (10% or more) to Lovejoy ISD for any business within the district. 

Lovejoy ISD is pleased to announce the newest member of the Circle of Partners :

C2XCEL is a professional technology advisory firm, owned by Jim McNeese that provides strategic technology solutions for small and mid-size businesses and enterprise-level companies. Jim is the proud father of Cale McNeese, 8th grader at Willow Springs Middle School.

Tutoring 101 and Lovejoy ISD have formed a revenue generating/sharing partnership to bring their services to Lovejoy families. Please see below for several offerings.

Private tutoring is available for students in grades K-12 in all subjects. Tutoring 101 recommends once a week tutoring for an hour to increase grades and learn subject matter more deeply. A once a week appointment usually results in an increase of 1 letter grade or more. Turn those C's into B's.

What's your SAT/ACT score? Want a better one? What do you need it to be?

Invest in a PSAT/SAT/ACT Prep program not just a class. Tutoring 101 helps high scorers get top scores, average students raise their scores and poor test takers achieve the scores colleges want. Tutoring 101 students have earned admissions and scholarships, and have saved thousands of tuition dollars every year. 

 

Classes are conveniently located at Lovejoy High School. Call 972.359.0222 or email [email protected] for additional information.

Reinhard Real Estate pledges 10% of gross commission to several non-profits including Lovejoy ISD. Their website can be found at Reinhard Real Estate . Jeff and Terri Reinhard own Reinhard Real Estate. They are proud Puster parents to fourth grader Ben, and second grader Max.

The Cave Realty Team (   www.CaveRealty.com   ) joins the Circle of Partners, pledging 15% of gross commission on homes they help sell or buy within Lovejoy ISD. Team owners Ryan and Sarah Cave are proud parents of Lovejoy Elementary School first grader Adelaide (Addie), with 5-year-old Anders soon to follow.

Savvy Realty pledges 10% of gross commissions on all closings within Lovejoy ISD combined with a fixed fee program, which saves their home-sellers thousands of dollars. Check out SavvyRealtyLovejoy.com for details. Company founders Jeff and Sharon Kofahl are proud parents of Lovejoy High School Juniors Bradley and Brandon and Willow Springs 7th grader, Brady.  

The Walker Group Coldwell Banker APEX, Realtors pledges 10% of gross commission on homes they help sell or buy within Lovejoy ISD. Tonya Walker lives in Lovejoy ISD and specializes in this area. She and her team are excited to partner with Lovejoy ISD. Tonya’s website may be found here . 

For your landscaping needs we hope you will consider Accent Landscape Management. Accent Landscape Management pledges 10% of gross revenues on work performed within Lovejoy ISD. Accent provides landscaping, irrigation and lawn maintenance services for commercial and residential properties. Their website may be found at Accent Landscape Management . Owners, Phillip and April Sheppard, are proud Hart parents of second grader, Kaiser, and Kindergartener, Sebastian, with two-year-old Charlotte soon to follow. 

For your roofing and solar work we hope you will consider Jones Solar and Roofing. Chadd Jones of Jones Solar and Roofing is pledging 10% of their profits on roofing and solar work completed in the Lovejoy ISD. Jones Solar and Roofing provides free inspections of your residential or commercial roof and property. They also offer free estimates on Solar/ Battery and Energy Efficiency upgrades to your home or business. Their website is: https://jonessolar.com/ or you may reach them by phone at 214.412.7444 for residential or commercial properties. Members of his family have been supporters of the Lovejoy ISD since 1979. Chadd and Liesl Thompson Jones are the proud parents of Puster Elementary 1st grader Maxwell.

For your mortgage needs we hope you will consider Black Swan Mortgage Pro. Stephanie Cigainero, owner of Black Swan Mortgage Pro is pledging 10% of her pay on Circle of Partners transactions, which will be matched by her employer Movement Mortgage. Stephanie has been in the home loan mortgage business since 2006 and may be reached at 469.531.0257 or at https://movement.com/lo/stephanie-cigainero/ . She is married to her best friend and Australian native, Josh. They have two daughters, Aspen a 5th grader at Sloan Creek and Maia. They are a host family to foreign exchange student Alessia Bellometti.