The Tige r Times - Gunter ISD

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District News On Monday, January 24, Rachel‟s Challenge came to Gunter ISD. For those of you who might not be familiar with this program, it is a program that features a guest speaker who comes into the school and basically kicks off a program to emphasize the importance of kindness and compassion among students in a school. The program addresses several issues ranging from cliques (exclusion) to prejudices to bullying. It is a very comprehensive program that is meant to use commitments from students, staff, parents, and community members to impact the climate of school campuses in a positive way. The whole concept of the initiative is based upon the story of Rachel Scott. Rachel was the first of thirteen victims who lost their lives in the Columbine High School tragedy in the spring of 1999. Rachel Scott was an admirer of Ann Frank who was a victim of the Holocaust under Adolf Hitler‟s Nazi regime. Like Ann Frank, Rachel kept a diary in which she expressed many of her feelings and established the basis for her code of ethics. There were stunning similarities between Rachel and Ann. Both had basically the same passion for kindness and compassion and knew the impact that those simple attributes could have on the world. Ironically, but not coincidentally, the two students that committed the murder/suicide at Columbine were admirers of Hitler and chose his birthday (April 20) to execute their plan. After her death, many things about Rachel‟s life were brought to light. She was an extraordinary young person who seemed to have a premonition of dying at a young age. She also had developed her own set of core beliefs or “code of ethics” that she was passionate about. She had a theory that people could commit simple acts of kindness and that it could start a “chain reaction of kindness” that could change the world. Students and staff are led through a very powerful and meaningful presentation in which they learn about a handful of simple, yet important, goals. These goals include: Look for the best in others: Eliminate prejudices of all kinds Dare to dream: Put your goals in writing; keep a journal. Don‟t let others determine your dreams. Choose positive influences: Input determines output. Page 2 Students, community accept Rachel’s Challenge By GHS Principal Kelly Teems Kind words: Practice simple acts of kindness each day. You‟ll be surprised at what a huge impact that can have. Start a chain reaction: Random acts of kindness by one person, then another, then another, etc., can start a chain reaction that could change the world. The presenter facilitated to two groups of students and staff. The first group included all students in grades 7 - 9 and the second group included all 10 th – 12 th Mr. Teems graders. The presenter, Cody Hodges, is a former quarterback at Texas Tech and had heard Rachel‟s father speak on this topic when he was in college. He told how it changed his life and how he used these principles to overcome adversity and to keep him focused on what his dreams and goals were. He pointed out many problems that students face in schools today and used the five goals to show how these problems could be eliminated if students made the commitment to practice these initiatives. Finally, he asked students to “Accept Rachel‟s Challenge” by making those commitments. Students accepted the challenge by signing a banner which states “I Accept Rachel‟s Challenge.” There is a banner for both the Middle School campus and the High School campus. Later that afternoon, Mr. Hodges conducted a training session for a representative group of students and staff. He offered ways to get students and staff involved and to keep the initiative going so that the enthusiasm and emotion that the day‟s events would not fade away. Finally, there was one last presentation for the parents and community that evening. Students were encouraged to go home and bring their parents back for that presentation. There were many parents and community members there. Many of these participants also accepted the challenge and signed the banner as well. I encourage anyone who doesn‟t know about Rachel‟s Challenge to visit www.rachelschallenge.org and find out more about it. Help us encourage your students to make the commitment to help start a chain reaction of kindness. Presenter Cody Hodges Before joining the team at Rachel's Challenge, Cody played professional football. Cody loves sharing Rachel's message and being a part of starting a chain reaction across America! He graduated from Texas Tech University where he was the starting quarterback. In 2005, he led the nation in passing and had the fourth best single-game performance in NCAA Division I-A history. Cody spent part of the 2006 season with the Tennessee Titans. He delivers Rachel's story with compassion and intensity to encourage students to achieve their highest potential. T HE TI GE R TIM ES
District News GIFT drive begins It seems it was just a couple of days ago and everyone was getting ready for the 2010-2011 school year. It is hard to believe it is already February 2011, and before we know it May will be here. So before too much more time gets away, GIFT„s (Gunter ISD Foundation Trust) Annual Drive has begun. The education foundation depends on your tax-deductible donation to help provide scholarships and campus grants. Watch your mailbox for a request for your help. If you don‟t get a request, please don‟t let that hold you back from making a dream come true. You can drop off your donation at the administration building any day or time. If we are not there, we have a mail slot next to the front doors and you can drop your donation in there. In order for your donation to go toward the scholarships and grants this year, we must receive your donation by March 14, 2011. For those of you that have already responded to our request we want to say “Thank You,” we couldn‟t do it without you. Many of you have been faithful to support us since the education foundation began. If you are new to the community, please check us out at www.gunterisd.org/gift to see what we are all about. If you have questions please give Connie Williams a call at 903-433-4750 ext. 405. GIFT Scholarship Applications Seniors at GHS were given an application for the GIFT Scholarships that will be awarded this April. The applications are due to Mrs. Hogan by February 18, 2011. Please encourage your student to fill out this application. If for some reason they need another copy of the application, they can go to www.gunterisd.org/gift and print off another copy. It is very important that they follow the instructions on the application. The application requires three references so encourage your student to get the reference requests out as soon as possible because the references are also due to Mrs. Hogan by February 18, 2011. If you have any questions regarding the application, the education foundation, or the awards reception, please give Connie Williams a call at 903-433-4750 ext. 405. A special thanks to Shelli Neely for the work she has done to update our website and the help she gave getting the applications available to everyone. Page 3 Gunter Safe School Survey: We need your help! The state and national emphasis on school improvement has significantly increased the importance of needs assessment and program evaluation in public education. By using objective data to make decisions, schools can more accurately determine the localized needs of a campus and integrate those needs into district planning. The Safe Schools Survey is an online database system that will collect information to assess needs as required by the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (Title IV) and the Texas Education Agency. The survey was originally designed by TEA and used by all districts in paper form. Region 18 ESC developed it as an online survey. The Safe Schools Survey provides: a comprehensive needs assessment instrument and data collection method a tool for effective program planning a benchmark for changes over time The Safe Schools Survey is designed to allow a school district to have a more complete picture of school safety, targeting serious issues such as: Vandalism Gangs Tobacco Drug use Drug sales Weapons Racial conflict Sexual assault Bullying Gunter Middle School grades 6 & 8 and Gunter High School will be administering the survey during the weeks of February 7-25. We need the help of parents, guardians, teachers, and administrators. During the weeks of February 7-25, please log on to the website: https://sdfs.esc18.net/. Choose the survey that describes your role: parent, teacher, or administrator. Type in the code: Middle School: 091-917-041 High School: 091-017-001. Complete the survey and submit. Gunter ISD then receives a report from the Education Service Center based on the results of the Safe School Survey. The results will assist the administrators and board in making decisions concerning student safety. If you have any questions, please contact Dara Arrington at 903-433-1542. Your help and participation will be greatly appreciated. T HE TI GE R TIM ES
Page 1: G U N T E R I N D E P E N D E N T S
Page 5 and 6: Extracurricular Activities Page 5 T
Page 7 and 8: Middle School Voracious Readers 3rd
Page 9 and 10: The 5 th Grade Class of Gunter Midd
Page 11 and 12: District News Elementary A Honor Ro
Page 13 and 14: Lady Tigers Varsity Lady Tigers 75
Page 15 and 16: Sports All-Texomaland Football Defe
Page 17: Date Opponent Time 2/1* Change 2/5*
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