Four others named Commended Students

Montgomery High School senior Brody Grochett has been named a Semifinalist for the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program.

Grochett is one of more than 16,000 high school seniors moving forward in the competition. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state.

Semifinalists must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT® or ACT® scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test. From over 16,000 Semifinalists, about 95 percent are expected to advance to the Finalist level, and in February they will be notified of this designation.

Additionally, Richard Orduna-Garcia from Montgomery High School and three Lake Creek High School students – Brett Harrington, Marshall Anderson and Keaton Anderson – have been named Commended Students in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program.

Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 students across the nation who entered the 2025 National Merit competition by taking the 2023 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) recognizes these students for their academic promise based on their PSAT/NMSQT scores. While Commended Scholars do not continue in the competition for National Merit Scholarships, their recognition places them in the top 3-4% of test-takers nationwide. This commendation is an academic achievement that can enhance college applications and open many doors for scholarship opportunities.

“We are incredibly proud of these students,” Superintendent Dr. Mark Ruffin said.  “Each of them have demonstrated excellence in a rigorous academic courseload, resulting in highly successful performances earning nationally recognized distinction. This achievement is a direct reflection of their hard work, and an incredibly proud moment for their families and the educators who have supported them throughout their academic journey. We are so honored to have students like them represent Montgomery ISD.”

Montgomery HS, Lake Creek HS students excel in College Board assessments and schoolwork to earn these awards

Montgomery ISD students have earned academic honors from the College Board National Recognition Programs.

These National Recognition Programs grant students with academic honors that can be included on college and scholarship applications to distinguish students to universities across the country, helping them meaningfully connect with colleges and stand out during the admissions process. Colleges and scholarship programs identify students awarded African American, Hispanic/Latino, Rural Area/Small Town, Indigenous/Native American and First-Generation Recognitions through College Board’s Student Search Service.

“We’re thrilled for these outstanding MISD students for earning these prestigious recognitions! It is a testament to their personal dedication to academic success and our teachers’ ability to provide high level, engaging instruction. We are so proud of the accomplishments in their classrooms and on College Board assessments,” Montgomery ISD Superintendent Dr. Mark Ruffin said. “These programs recognize hard work and help our students stand out during the college admissions process, and we are so excited to see the doors that will open as a result of their efforts.”

According to College Board information, students can submit based on these eligibility criteria:

• Take the Fall 2023 PSAT/NMSQT or Spring PSAT 10 and score in the top 10% of test takers from their award program in their state. 
• Or earn a 3+ on 2 or more distinct AP exams in the 9th and/or 10th grade
• And earn a cumulative GPA of B+ or higher (at least 3.3 or 87-89%) by the time of submission.
• And identify as First Generation, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Indigenous or Native and/or attend school in a rural area or small town.

Eligible students are invited to apply during their sophomore or junior year and are awarded at the beginning of the following school year. Students receive their awards in time to include them in their college and scholarship applications.

Congratulations to these Montgomery ISD honorees!

Montgomery High School:

Riley Aikin: Rural                          

Matthew Binkley: Hispanic, Rural            

Noah Bouley: First Generation, Rural

Landen Brown: First Generation, Hispanic, Rural

Lilly Brown: Rural                         

Owen Brown: Rural                      

Maile Burman: Hispanic

Santiago Bustillos: Hispanic, Rural

Jackson Carver: Rural    

Luke Chang: Rural                        

Broden Clark: Rural                      

Wyatt Clewett: Rural                   

Carter Cutright: Rural                  

Caroline Davis: Indigenous, Rural

Michael Dickens:  First Generation

Braylee Dyer: Rural                      

Brandon Eng: Rural                      

Jacob Feick: Rural                         

Clara Finch: Rural                         

Charlotte Franco: First Generation, Rural

John Freed: Rural                         

William Gaspard: Rural 

Tyler Graziano: Indigenous, Rural

Brody Grochett: Rural   

Emery Harrison: Rural   

John Hart: Indigenous, Rural      

Ava Harvey: Rural                         

Laurel Hereford: Rural  

Jake Hutchinson: Rural 

Shaylee Lane: First Generation  

Sonora Lilly: Rural                        

Garrett Mock: Rural                     

Joel Morgan: First Generation   

Reagan Mosier: First Generation, Rural

Adam Nunez: Hispanic, Rural     

Richard Orduna-Garcia: First Generation

Jarod Peschl: Rural                       

Brooke Peterson: Rural 

Morgan Pool: Rural                      

John Reynolds: Rural                   

Isela Rivera: Hispanic, Rural       

Braeley Schneider: First Generation, Rural

Eyan Staels: Rural                         

Averi Szynal: Rural                       

Henry Thomas: Hispanic, Rural  

Richard Trevino: Rural  

David Troyer: Rural                      

Nicholas Vaca De La Torre: Hispanic, Rural

Makaylee Van Bergen: Rural      

Luke Vinyard: First Generation, Hispanic, Rural

Alana Wheeler: First Generation, Hispanic, Indigenous

Lake Creek High School:

Maa Adodoadji: First Generation, Rural

Marshall Anderson: Rural

Maria Ceballos: Hispanic, Rural

Isabella Jade Dillay: Indigenous, Rural

Glory Eyiba: African American

Logan Grace: Rural

Anne Guarda: Hispanic

Renee Hanson: First Generation

Brett Harrington: Hispanic, Rural

Regan Krahn: Rural

Julia Louwerens: Rural

Andrew Ronsman: Rural

Ivy’ance Ruiz: African American, First Generation, Hispanic, Rural

Owen Stephens: Rural

Avery Waida: Rural

Carson Williams: Rural

Rylee Wright: First Generation, Rural

Grady Yeager: Rural

District Leaders recognized for National Principal Appreciation Month

During the October meeting of the Montgomery ISD school board, trustees approved the guaranteed maximum price of $14.6M for renovations at the MISD Athletic Complex. Prop B, approved in the 2022 bond, will fund the scope of work on the football stadium including flipping the home and visitors sides while adding 2,838 seats and a press box to the new home side. Prop B also adds new concession stands, restrooms, ticket areas, fencing, and an elevator to the home side and replaces the field turf.  

To address other needs outside of the football stadium such as parking and traffic flow, work will be completed to add almost 400 parking spaces while widening and paving the exit road to Lone Star Parkway. Additionally, student-athletes will benefit from renovations to the existing locker rooms and the construction of a new locker room. Safety net upgrades will also be completed at the MHS baseball and softball fields.  

Montgomery ISD Chief Operations Officer Brad Mansfield shared that work at the Athletic Complex will begin at the conclusion of football season and is expected to be complete by the opening of the 2025 football season. PBK Architects created the design for the project, and Stewart Builders will oversee the construction.      

 “We are thrilled that our team was able to develop a plan that is reasonable and conservative while meeting the current and growing needs of our student programs and community,” Board President Matt Fuller said. “The continued emphasis placed on sound fiscal management and scope of work, has continued to allow us to deliver on the projects in the 2022 bond.”  

Mansfield also provided an update on other projects funded by the district’s 2022 bond program. The Phase Two addition at Lake Creek High School and construction of Creekside Elementary are complete with the exception of a few punch list items.  “We are grateful to our partners at Huckabee Architects and Pogue Construction for the thoughtful design and construction of these projects, and to our community for their patience during the construction period,” Mansfield said. “We recognize that this work brought about some temporary challenges and inconvenience, so we appreciate the Creekside and Lake Creek communities for their understanding and flexibility while construction was taking place.” 

Progress at the district’s Career & Technical Education and Ag-Science Center and renovations at Montgomery High School are proceeding on schedule.  Work to modernize the fueling station at Liberty Transportation Center is set to begin this fall.    

Trustees also voted to authorize the purchase of attendance credits should the district be required to pay recapture dollars for the 2024-2025 school year. Each fall, school districts receive notice of whether they owe recapture dollars to the state for the previous school year.  Purchasing attendance credits from the state serves as the mechanism for making a recapture payment. 

School districts that choose not to pay their recapture obligation are subject to the state detaching commercial properties from the district and annexing those properties to neighboring districts, effectively lowering the tax base for a district subject to recapture.   

“Even though the district was not assessed a recapture payment for the 2023-24 school year, discussions around recapture and public school funding are alive and well in Montgomery ISD,” Matt Fuller said.  “In addition to asking our MISD community to consider Prop A to increase our Maintenance & Operations budget on the November ballot, our state lawmakers are returning to Austin for the 89^th Legislative Session in January 2025. We are doing everything in our power to encourage legislative action that will impact school funding. This includes addressing the significant disparity in funding MISD receives per-student versus the state average and increasing the basic per-student allotment to match the current rate of inflation. Our MISD families are dealing with rising costs at every turn, yet the state has not increased the per-student basic allotment since 2019, with a more than $30B state budget surplus.” 

 Trustees also heard a report from MISD Bilingual/ESL Specialist Jennifer DeHart, regarding MISD Limited English Proficiency (LEP) students in 2023-2024. The number of emergent bilingual students enrolled in MISD increased by 14 percent during the 23-24 school year. Emergent bilingual students in MISD continue to make progress in developing English language proficiency, with more students eligible to transition out of the LEP program at the end of the 23-24 school year, compared to years prior. 

“The increase in the number of students able to exit our growing LEP program is a credit to our people, Superintendent Dr. Mark Ruffin said. “We are fortunate to have remarkable ESL educators who are committed to developing a student’s understanding of English in speaking, reading and writing.”   

Trustees also recognized National Principals Month, thanking MISD’s campus principals for their leadership on campuses and commitment to the district.  

 “As a school board, we love to celebrate our principals,” Trustee Eddie Winn said.  “We are grateful to each of them, for being such impactful leaders, and motivating our students to strive for success. They set a positive tone on every MISD campus, and create a great example for our students, families, teachers and staff members.” 

Montgomery and Lake Creek High Schools recognized for student success

College Board has announced that both Montgomery ISD high schools have been named to the Advanced Placement® Program (AP®) School Honor Roll for 2024. 

Montgomery High School earned a bronze distinction, with 43% of students taking at least one AP Exam during high school, 26% of students scoring a 3 or higher on at least one AP Exam, and 10% of students who took five or more AP Exams. Additionally, Montgomery High School earned the AP Access Award which honors schools that encourage underrepresented minority students to take AP courses.  The AP Access Award demonstrates a clear and effective commitment to ensuring AP coursework is equally available to all students.   

Lake Creek High School earned a silver distinction, with 50% of students taking at least one AP Exam during high school, 36% of students earning college credit by scoring a 3 or higher on at least one AP Exam, and 17% of students who took five or more AP Exams.

“We are so proud of our students who take advantage of AP course offerings in Montgomery ISD and for putting in the work to succeed in this impactful program,” Superintendent Dr. Mark Ruffin said.  “Having both of our high schools named to the College Board’s AP School Honor Roll acknowledges the outstanding work by our AP kids and the educators who encourage students to participate in our AP programs and support them on their pathway beyond MISD and into college.”

Research shows students who take AP courses and exams are more likely to attend college and graduate on time. And even for those who don’t earn college credit, advanced coursework provides early exposure to college-level work and contributes to a college-going school culture.

The AP School Honor Roll recognizes schools whose AP programs are delivering results for students while broadening access. Schools can earn this recognition annually based on criteria that reflect a commitment to providing opportunities for students to earn college credit and maximizing college readiness.