February 8, 2024
A Publication of The Westview School
Hello, Westview families,

We are happy to present the Winter edition of our school magazine, the Wildcat Chronicle. This issue includes several great articles highlighting events of last fall. As always, the publication of our magazine is a collaborative effort, and we are thankful to our teachers, staff, and community members who contributed to this issue.

Inside, you will find a focus on our year's theme, "Our Time to Shine." During this reaccreditation year for Westview, we are excited to share some key takeaways from our process thus far. Spoiler alert: We are doing an excellent job! The Stewart Center contributed several articles about how our therapists work in various ways to support our students. Christine Reilly, Lower Elementary teacher, shared some of the changes in our Elementary program and how our students and teachers are reaping the benefits. Westview has grown its community involvement, and this issue shares many ways Westview was fortunate to give and receive support from organizations throughout Houston. As always, we catch up with some of our Westview alumni who are doing wonderful things!

Each issue of the Wildcat Chronicle provides a wonderful opportunity for us to share the accomplishments of the students and staff of The Westview School and showcase all the exciting things that make Westview so special. We hope you enjoy it!

Today, our staff enjoyed a delicious soup and sandwich lunch courtesy of POW. Thank you so much, POW, for always keeping us well-fed and well-loved. We appreciate you!

Happy Reading!




Head of School
The Westview School
TAKE A LOOK INSIDE OUR LATEST ISSUE OF THE WILDCAT CHRONICLE
Calendar at a Glance

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2024
  • Westview Staff Development Day | Student Holiday (No School)

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2024
  • Presidents’ Day (No School)

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2024

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2024

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2024
  • Upper School Talent Show
2024-2025 Academic Year Calendar
January Wonder Wall Winners
Woo hoo! Congratulations to our Lower Elementary friend, Conrad for being a Wonder Wall Winner for COOPERATION. Conrad has shown cooperation in the classroom by showing a positive attitude to his classmates and teachers. His kindness shows through his willingness to offer support to his peers. He often writes down the classroom rules to remind his class of the expectations. Conrad contributes to the classroom on a daily basis telling his friends, “ You can do this!” Conrad has a desire to work together with his classmates to help them succeed. His teachers are very proud of him! Nice job, Conrad!
We are so proud of Willie in Upper Elementary for being a Wonder Wall Winner for RESPONSIBILITY. Willie sets high expectations for himself and works diligently to meet his goals. He comes to school each day motivated, ready to learn, and maintains a positive attitude about school. Willie has a lot of friends and always works cooperatively with others. He is considerate of others’ feelings, and he is aware of how his actions affect others. He is organized and works hard to solve problems. An area that Willie has grown in this year is his ability to stop and think about dilemmas and then choose the best solution for them. He is an exemplary student who takes responsibility for his actions. We are so proud of Willie and all his progress. Way to go, Willie!
Westview EDU: Creating a Climate of High Expectations
What kind of expectations are you setting for your special needs child? Are they high enough? Sometimes, when we set high expectations, our children will step up to meet them. Join us for our February Westview EDU: Creating a Climate of High Expectations on Thursday, February 22 at 9:15 AM in Largent Hall. Brandi Timmons, M.Ed., BCBA, LBA, Educational Consultant for Social Motion Skills, will share tips and tools with families to create a plan for their children to meet and reach their fullest potential.  We all want our kids to be successful, and it is up to give them an environment that helps them to succeed.

 
Any questions? Having an issue with the online registration form? Email Sarah Chauvin for assistance.
Save the Date for Music for Autism | Saturday, February 24
The Westview School is looking forward to welcoming Music for Autism back to campus at the end of February. Join us for Saturday, February 24, 2024 at 11:00 AM in Largent Hall. Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) will be our guests! Members from the TUTS pre-professional program, as well cast members from The River will be performing. The River is a special program through TUTS that provides accessible arts education to individuals with disabilities and their siblings. This will be a not to miss visit!

This event is open to the community, and registration is required. If you are interested in volunteering for the event, please complete this form.
REGISTER NOW for an Out of this World Summer at The Westview School
Registration is OPEN for Westview Summer Camp. We will have two sessions available for the summer of 2024: June 3-21 and July 8-26

Westview Summer Camp is an excellent opportunity to give your student a fun, structured summer filled with activities that help maintain the academic and social skills learned throughout the school year. Westview Summer Camp is open to current students and their siblings. Recent former and incoming students may also apply. The camp fee is $1650 per session, and there will be a 10% early bird registration discount available for camp sessions through March 29. We are excited to be once again able to offer several options for students over the summer break. 
Ensuring that each camper's needs are met while they're at Summer Camp, additional programs include: General Tutoring, Intensive Summer Reading, Writing and Math Clinics, Speech, Occupational, and Feeding Therapy (available through The Stewart Center).
RSVP Now for the Fundraising Luncheon | Wednesday, March 27
Join us at The Westview School Fundraising Luncheon. on Wednesday, March 27th from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM at Junior League of Houston in support of The Westview School. Our Fundraising Luncheon is an annual event and is our largest fundraiser of the year.

We are looking for table hosts for this year's event. Hosting a table is easy: simply register online, invite ten or more of your friends, family, and neighbors to join you. If you have friends interested in supporting The Westview School and helping us continue to make a positive impact on children with autism, please consider hosting a table and extending this invitation to them.

Questions? Email Roger Browning, Director of Development.
Help Us Grow Our Substitute Teacher List
The Westview School is looking to increase our substitute teacher list. We have found that Westview families are a perfect fit for this role. As a Westview substitute, you will primarily work as the class assistant for the day. We are so appreciative of all our parents and grandparents who have dedicated time to support our school by being a part of our sub-list. We would love to include YOU too! The pay is $15 per hour. If you are interested in substitute teaching on a preschool, elementary, or middle school level or if you know someone who would be, please contact Michelle Chapa to complete the necessary paperwork and background check to be added to our list.
Survey Request from Former Westview Sibling
We recevied survey request from a former Westview sibling. Amelia Yung-Faulkner is the twin sister of former Wildcat, Brighton who completed Middle School in 2022. Amelia is working on research study for her AP Research class at Energy Institute High School. She is looking for help from autism families, so if you are interested in participating, please complete the survey here. More details are below:

My name is Amelia Yung-Faulkner and I am a student at Energy Institute High School. I'm in AP Research, which is a class that requires me to complete a research study. My project is studying how the culture of different races/ethnicities in America impact autism diagnosis, and how effective the DSM-5 is at considering those factors. The reason I chose this topic is because I have a twin autistic brother who was diagnosed very late compared to his peers. Based on this, I wanted to see if there were patterns that determined the outcome of autism diagnosis.

Any questions about the survey, you can reach out to Amelia via email.
Message from POW - Family Fun Day
FAMILY FUN DAY 2024
POW preparations are under way for our 2024 Family Fun Day! Save the date for Saturday, April 6th from 10am-12pm. At this time we are trying to get as many donations as possible from companies and families in our community for our Spring Raffle. I have donation request letters with our tax ID ready to go that can be emailed or mailed! If you know of any company that may be a potential donor, please contact Stefanie Rugaard. 

Check out the companies who have already generous donated to our special day!