Several members of the Montgomery High School Choir have earned spots on the Texas All-State Choir by the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA). The distinction is a culmination of an audition process that began last fall, including District, Region and Area levels of competition. All-State is the highest honor a music student can receive in the state of Texas.
The performers named to the TMEA All-State Choir are Nick Craddock, Quinn McClendon, Anna McKaughan and Landon Pate. For Landon and Quinn, this is the second time to receive the distinction.
McClendon, a senior, auditioned every year of his high school career. Each time it became more important for him to make the All-State Choir. “I have worked so hard, practiced the details, and really put myself out there,” McClendon said. “I know it’s said several times, but hard work really does pay off.”
Competition aside, this school year proved even more challenging in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’m so proud of these outstanding students being named to the Texas All-State Choir,” MHS Choir Director Heather Orr said. “Despite the many challenges we’ve faced throughout this school year, they remained committed to their personal musical development and demonstrated the very perseverance and dedication that ongoing participation in a choir program fosters.”
Over 50,000 choir students from across Texas began the journey to All-State last fall. As part of regional competition, they perform musical selections for a panel of judges who rank each student based on beauty of sound, musicality and over all nuance. Those selected to advance move on to the TMEA Area level of competition in the hopes of qualifying for the TMEA All-State honor.
“Ms. Orr and her students continue to amaze me,” Montgomery ISD Superintendent Dr. Heath Morrison said. “To be recognized as one of the top performers in the state of Texas is an incredible accomplishment for these talented students. Our MHS Choir’s tradition of excellence is a point a pride for our school district community.”
First graders at Keenan showed up at school looking quite a bit older. They were all dressed as if they were 100 years old! They may have required canes, or complained of aches and pains, but they continued to work to become even smarter!
Kindergarteners at Keenan decided to celebrate 101 days of learning by dressing up as the 101 Dalmatians!
It was an exciting day at both Montgomery ISD high schools as Bears and Lions made their higher education intentions known as part of National Signing Day. In total, 20 MISD athletes, nine from Montgomery High School and 11 from Lake Creek High School, signed letters of intent to the college of their choice.
“National Signing Day is very exciting not only for the athletes, but their families, teachers and coaches,” MISD Athletic Director Clint Heard said. “This is the reward of years of hard work and dedication in their chosen sport while excelling in their academic studies, as well. We’re incredibly proud.”
Montgomery Junior High choir students competed at the MISD Solo Contest on Friday, January 22. Students learned a folk song and performed for two guest judges, Abigail and Carolyn Orr. Abigail is a graduate of Oberlin Conservatory and Carolyn is a graduate of Baylor University.
37 students earned a first division rating.
10 students chosen as Overall Outstanding Performers.
3 have now received the Overall Outstanding Performer award 2 years in a row.
22 competed for the first time.
Mr. Bansuelo, Mrs. Smith and all of Montgomery JH are immensely proud of these students for their accomplishments in such a trying year. #TogetherWeWill
The Lincoln ES Library has started a Little Free Library for the community.
Patty Barfield, the librarian at Lincoln Elementary, wants children to have access to books in multiple ways.
“During quarantine, I kept worrying about students at home in need of books,” Barfield said. “My hope is this will help all students get the access to books they need.”
The Lincoln Free Library is located at Lincoln Elementary School’s main entrance.
In the photos, Ayden and Madelynn Ward donate books to the library.
This week, Mrs. Wunderlich, Keenan School Counselor, challenged the entire campus to spread kindness like confetti. As usual, Keenan Lions found some very creative ways to show their kindness.
Mrs. Bagwell’s 4th grade class starts each morning with a “Peace Circle” and the theme for this week was “Glorious Kindness”. Each student has the opportunity to share an act of kindness they witnessed the day before. For example they might say, “Tyler showed kindness when he helped Mrs. Bagwell pick up the scoot cards at the end of the activity.”
The fabulous 5th grade Student Council shared fun ideas for spreading kindness on the morning announcements. They suggested things such as leave a kind note, read to a friend, or even share a fun chant or dance!
Mrs. Taylor, Keenan librarian, took this opportunity to teach the Lions about kindness, and compassion.
K-2 students read Charlie the Caterpillar by Dom De Luise, which is about a caterpillar that gets left out because he’s ugly. Animals only want to be his friend when he turns into a beautiful butterfly. We discussed that beauty comes from within and then decorated butterflies.
Grades 3-5 read The Butterfly by Patricia Polacco, which is set during WWII. We lightly discussed this sad time in our history and then the students decorated their butterflies to symbolize hope, kindness, and freedom.
Thank you to all who attended our first Strategic Plan Town Hall meeting at Montgomery High School on Thursday evening. The excitement behind the work to develop our Strategic Plan is a testament to this community’s desire to elevate and position our school district as the “Premier” district in Texas. The Strategic Plan will serve as a roadmap to how we get to “Premier”.
The feedback from the Town Hall meeting has been very positive. During the breakout session portion of the meeting, there was active listening and authentic conversations occurring throughout the five groups. It was exciting to see a diverse group of stakeholders come together to discuss how we can further improve our district through the Strategic Plan.
Dr. Morrison’s Strategic Plan Town Hall Introduction – Jan. 28, 2021
Development of the Strategic Plan is being led by a Task Force of district leaders in conjunction with district parents, staff, students and community members. The plan will align with the MISD Board of Trustees’ adopted goals for the district. The five district goals, which were finalized in October 2020, are as follow:
Goal 1: Academic Achievement: MISD will provide a challenging curriculum, assess individual student achievement and support efforts to ensure excellent academic performance.
Goal 2: School Safety: MISD will vigorously enforce policies and procedures that promote a safe and orderly environment.
Goal 3: Operations and Finance: MISD will responsibly manage the use of financial and operational resources in order to sustain equitable funding to support academic excellence and to provide safe, efficient operations of the district.
Goal 4: Human Capital: MISD will recruit, support, develop and retain highly qualified and effective personnel.
Goal 5: Communications and Customer Service: MISD will provide proactive and frequent engagement with employees, parents, and community to ensure effective communication, superior customer service, and a strong culture within the district.
I entered Montgomery ISD as Superintendent with an intentional commitment to listen and learn from students, parents, staff and community stakeholders. That’s why it’s important to me that all who want to participate in the development of the strategic plan are provided the opportunity to have a voice. We plan to host two more Strategic Plan Town Hall meetings before it’s adopted by the Board in May.
Please mark your calendars for our next Strategic Plan Town Hall meeting on Thursday, Feb. 25 at 6 p.m. at Lake Creek High School.
With appreciation,
Dr. Heath Morrison
MISD Budget Town Hall Meeting – Tuesday Feb. 9
On Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 6:00 p.m., we will host a Budget Town Hall meeting in the Board Auditorium of the MISD Education Support Center. This Town Hall will provide an overview of the district’s annual budget and our process for the 2021-22 school year.
As we work on a budget for 2021-22, and beyond, we are committed to complete transparency in how we develop and ultimately approve a district budget. As I have shared previously, continuing to focus on employee compensation is one of my top priorities.
Additionally, it’s important that our budget process is in alignment with the development of our Strategic Plan. I encourage all who are interested to remain engaged and informed as we work on our 2021-22 district budget. Please join us and share your thoughts and priorities for the district’s budget.
COVID Rapid Testing Initiative
Our voluntary COVID Rapid Testing program has been a success and has received extremely positive feedback. We’re pleased to continue to offer this cost and time saving benefit to staff and families. To date, we have provided nearly 200 rapid tests – at no charge – to students and staff. This program would not be successful without the dedication of our outstanding school nurses. I want to thank our Director of Special Programs Dr. Amy Busby and all of our dedicated nurses who have made this testing initiative possible.
As a reminder, the voluntary tests are available for employees on campus and by appointment at the District’s Education Support Center. Testing for students is only available by appointment at the District ESC.
You can learn more about the voluntary COVID Rapid Testing program and schedule an appointment for a test on our website by clicking here.
A Retirement Reception for the “Grand Bear”
A special thanks go out to all who attended Bobby Morris’ retirement reception on Tuesday at MHS. Bobby leaves an impressive legacy in MISD, having worked in the district for over 22 years. He joined MISD as Principal of Montgomery High School in 1998 and went on to join district administration in 2009 as Assistant Superintendent for Administrative Services and eventually our Chief Operating Officer in 2015. Bobby’s accomplishments throughout his remarkable career have had a positive impact on thousands of students and their families.
Coming into MISD, Bobby became a trusted voice for me. Bobby’s input and wisdom were always in the best interest of our district, and I learned so much from him in a short period of time. Bobby will be forever missed in the MISD family. His impact on our students, families, and this community will be felt for many years ahead.
At the reception, I especially enjoyed the MHS Madrigals performance singing the MHS Alma Mater.
A Farewell and Congratulations to Teresa Tipton
It is with excitement, but also great regret, that I announce Teresa Tipton has accepted a career advancement opportunity and will be departing MISD in February.
Teresa has spent the last 13 years as a dedicated member of our Finance Department, where she served as the district’s Benefits, Leave and Worker’s Compensation Specialist. Many recognize Teresa for her strong dedication to Team MISD. Those who worked closely with her would tell you that Teresa always had a genuine passion to serve MISD staff and improving our district. What makes Teresa special is not only her vast knowledge in all areas of employee benefits and leave, but also her ability to provide the employees of MISD outstanding customer service.
While she was not seeking another opportunity, Teresa’s hard work in MISD positioned herself as a sought after candidate for an Account Executive role with FBS. FBS is our Third Party Administrator that assists us with creation, compliance and maintenance of all health and supplemental employee benefits.
Teresa’s departure is a huge loss for us, but she will always be a member of the Montgomery Family. Please join me in thanking Teresa for her contributions to our district and wishing her the best as she moves into the next stage of her career.
The Montgomery ISD Police Department was recently showered with awesome handmade cards as a show of appreciation from students and staff at Montgomery ES, Keenan ES, and Lincoln ES. The much appreciated cards and posters will be framed and used to help decorate department’s offices.
Ms. Petty’s fourth grade art classes are having a blast painting ceramic coil pots. Mrs. Stevenson’s students are shown below smiling big with their clay creations. While 4th graders are painting clay, first grade art classes are learning about symmetry by painting mixed media hearts; Mrs. Casey’s class is pictured below. Third grade is enjoying weaving their art skills all together by creating woven animals. It was fun to see Mrs. Rodriguez’s class working hard to bring their weavings to life.
The MISD Premier Blog 