Superintendent Update - December 2013

Watch the December Superintendent Update on YouTube:

Dr. V discusses the latest on the December 11 2013 MISD Toys For Tots community event, holiday concerts and events throughout the district in addition to winter weather notification procedures.

Superintendent Update - November 2013

Watch Dr. V's November Superintendent Update on YouTube:

Dr. V shares the latest on the MISD Staff Clinic, DSO On The Go concert, the upcoming College and Career Night event and the District's involvement with Restore West ISD efforts.

Superintendent Update - October 2013

Watch the Superintendent Update - October 2013 on YouTube:

MISD Superintendent, Dr. Jim Vaszauskas, discusses the upcoming October Parent/Teacher Conference dates, another DSO on the Go event at The Center (November 10) benefiting the MISD Education Foundation, and the JROTC competition (October 5) that will take place at Newsom Stadium.

Superintendent Update - August 2013

New Mansfield ISD Superintendent, Dr. Jim Vaszauskas, discusses the latest on district preparations to welcome returning students, new school construction, the new semester exam pilot program at Lake Ridge High School and an update on the budget.

Watch the August Superintendent Update:

Photo Galleries:

• Tarver-Rendon Elementary Construction 
• Judy K. Miller Elementary Construction
• J.L. Boren Elementary Demolition

As a reminder, the new Judy K. Miller Elementary is the temporary staging campus for J.L. Boren Elementary starting in the 2013-14 school year. Read more: bit.ly/MISDBigMove

Superintendent Update - June 2013

Dr. Jim Vaszauskas shares the latest on The Big Move involving three elementary campuses that will start school in new locations next year, last week's summer curriculum conference, a legislative update, the recent high school graduations in the MISD Center for the Performing Arts in this month's Superintendent Update video:

More information on The Big Move: A 2011 bond election was called and approved to completely rebuild the following schools to provide equity across the district.

• Tarver-Rendon Elementary
• J.L. Boren Elementary
• Alice Ponder Elementary
• Glenn Harmon Elementary
• Charlotte Anderson Elementary

Summer 2013

• Tarver-Rendon Elementary students and staff will move into their new building located at 6065 Retta Mansfield Road, Burleson, TX 76028.
• Alice Ponder Elementary students and staff will move into the old Tarver-Rendon building while their new facility is being demolished and rebuilt.
• J.L. Boren Elementary students and staff will move into Judy K. Miller Elementary (403 N. Holland Road, Mansfield, TX 76063) while their new facility is being demolished and rebuilt.

Superintendent Update - April 2013

Mansfield ISD Interim Superintendent, Dr. Jim Vaszauskas, discusses new developments in the Texas Legislature, the MISD superintendent search, Passport to Kindergarten and upcoming improvements to MISD staffing and classroom sizes.

Superintendent Update - April 2013 watch on YouTube or the Video Portal (inside the MISD network).

Zombie Teachers make Talent Show a 'Thriller'

Last Friday, Mary Orr Intermediate School teachers performed Michael Jackson's Thriller during the annual PTA Talent Show. Yes, the teachers dressed as zombies and had some well-choreographed fun. Thanks to Donna Crose, Mary Orr 6th Grade Mathematics teacher, for sharing the YouTube video.

From the looks of it, the faculty entry in the Orr Intermediate PTA Talent Show was a hit:

Superintendent Update - January 2013

Dr. Bob Morrison discusses the upcoming Celebration Rally for Texas Public Schools, campus safety and the district calendar approval process in this month's Superintendent Update video.

Superintendent Update - December 2012

Watch the Superintendent Update on our YouTube channel or the MISD Video Portal (inside the district network).

Dr. Bob Morrison discusses the latest on the new Student Nutrition online meal payment system, recent grant awards by the MISD Education Foundation and the district-wide Toys For Tots program that will be held at the Center for the Performing Arts.

Impact Award: Career Tech Instructors Soar with Solar Power

When Jackie Bishop was researching home solar panels online last spring, he came across a project that would soon make Mansfield ISD history.

The Solar Car Challenge was founded to motivate students in science, engineering, technology and alternative energy – plus, it involves some pretty cool race cars!

After discovering the challenge, Bishop, an Auto Tech teacher at Ben Barber Career Tech Academy, quickly enlisted the help of Rob Goodson, an Engineering teacher on campus. The enthusiastic duo recruited a group of about twenty-five students to form “The Shine Runners,” MISD’s first ever solar car team.

Their mission was to design and construct a solar car to compete in the Solar Car Challenge, which is held at Texas Motor Speedway each summer. Since forming in 1993, the competition has grown from a high school extracurricular activity to a national event drawing over 65 schools from 20 states.

As construction on the car kicked off at the end of the school year, Bishop and Goodson enlisted the help of students from auto tech, engineering, media tech, graphic design, welding and construction; each of whom offered a level of expertise in their area.

In addition to uniting students from across the campus, the solar car project drew interest and support from several community businesses, including Mouser Electronics, The Power Store, ExelTech and Lockheed Martin. These sponsors contributed to the success of the project through donations of funds, equipment and even brain power.

A senior electrical engineer from ExelTech logged about 300 hours working closely with the students.

“It was a huge benefit to work with industry professionals,” said Bishop. “They learned about technology we wouldn’t typically learn in class. The experience they gained from this is something they will never forget.”

The team worked long hours throughout the summer, to ensure the car would be ready for its debut at Texas Motor Speedway.

The Shine Runners emerged victorious from their first race, with the 6th place title and the prestigious William Shih Award, presented to the solar car team with the highest level of technological achievement.

“It was probably the safest one out there,” said Goodson of the solar car. “It may not be the fastest, but it was most structurally sounds and had the best overall features. We are very proud of them for that.”

Following the success of their first race, the Shine Runners are already looking forward to their next challenge. They plan to take part in an eight-day cross-country race from Dallas to Los Angeles in July of 2013.

On behalf of the Mansfield ISD Administration, we wish the Shine Runnners the best of luck in their future challenges and we congratulate their fearless leaders, Jackie Bishop and Rob Goodson, for receiving our latest MISD Impact Award! They have truly earned their place in the sun.

Superintendent Update - November 2012

Dr. Bob Morrison shares information on the iPad Program and upcoming special events including Veterans Day campus observances, Toys for Tots, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and a MISD Education Rally event next February.

Watch the video on YouTube or on the Video Portal from inside the MISD network.)

District Energy Champion Recognition

Timberview High School teacher, Tim Maschal, was recently named Mansfield ISD's Energy Champion for his efforts in organizing an efficient and energy-saving campus. Mr. Maschal was commended during the October, 2012 School Board meeting. Due to the buy-in from staff and students during the 2011-12 school year, Timberview High School realized a savings of over 38% in energy costs!

Congratulations, Mr. Tim Maschal.



Read more about the District Wide Utility Management Standards.

Frontier Students Display Digital Skills at State Convention

Four Frontier High School students participated in a display of digital learning prowess at last month's TASA/TASB Convention. The Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) and the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) partner each year to bring Texas school board members and school administrators a premier education-related convention. This year's convention was held September 28-30 in Austin. Among the convention speakers and exhibits was a Digital Learning Pavilion (DLP).

Secondary students from across the state were invited to the convention's DLP to display their ingenuity and collaboration skills in a project-based learning environment. Using technology and social media to accelerate their problem-solving skills, students teamed up to create innovative solutions to real-world problems.

The Frontier High School students at the TASA/TASB Convention DLP were provided questions and then they were to use technology to answer and create a presentation. This was not a competition, rather a display of students' technological learning skills in action.

Students completed two different tasks, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The kids were given a SMART board, two iPads, a Macbook, and a Dell laptop and that was it. The morning question was, Childhood obesity rates are climbing. Is our appetite for sugar killing us? and the afternoon question was, Electronic resources drive learning, even textbooks are available online. How does this change affect you?

According to their teacher, Elise Buchhorn from Ben Barber Career Tech Academy/Frontier High School, the students conducted all of the project work and then gave a presentation of their response at the end of the session.

"They researched and gathered data online and used web tools for their first presentation," said Buchhorn. "Their afternoon session, they wanted to survey some of their classmates, so they Skyped them and then screen recorded their conversations and made video clips to insert into their Keynote software presentation. It was very impressive on what they did and how they did it."

Buchhorn made the following video to highlight their day mostly for the parents to see their kids in action, but really, it's too cool and worth sharing.

Enjoy.

Superintendent Update - October 2012

Dr. Bob Morrison shares the latest on the district's high school iPad initiative including preliminary plans for an expanded parent information night on Monday, October 29. He also mentions other items of interest in the month of October: Red Ribbon Week, College and Career Night (October 17), and the upcoming Parent/Teacher Conference Day (October 8). Reminder: No school Monday, October 8.

Legacy HS embraces Pink Glove Dance opportunity

Mansfield ISD coordinated with Methodist Mansfield Medical Center to help spread the word about breast cancer awareness and prevention through The Pink Glove Dance. The MISD community was invited to join us in starring in a Pink Glove Dance video at the Legacy HS vs. Bryan Adams HS football game on September 13 at Vernon Newsom Stadium. Breast cancer survivors were also encouraged to attend and dance on the field at halftime.

As part of the Pink Glove Dance 2012 competition, Methodist Mansfield’s video will be posted on www.pinkglovedance.com on October 12 along with the videos of the other participants to be viewed by the public. Viewers can vote on their favorite video (voting requires a Facebook® account). The top three winners receive a donation in their name to the breast cancer charity of their choice, such as the National Breast Cancer Foundation. The winners will be announced November 2 on pinkglovedance.com.

Special thanks to the Legacy HS teen leadership and student council students, cheerleaders, drill team, band, staff and game attendees who all put on pink gloves to join in on the fun. Many of the students wore the LHS Pink Fest t-shirts as a sign of solidarity and spirit for the breast cancer survivors and halftime video event. (Each year, LHS students in Teen Leadership classes and Student Council rally the school and community to raise money for breast cancer research and share awareness through Pink Fest programming and events. Tens of thousands of dollars have been raised during activities for the cause.)

Superintendent Update - September 2012

Dr. Bob Morrison discusses the latest on the district's new high school iPad initiative, new construction and the MISD transition from Infinite Campus to the Skyward Family Access system.

Watch Dr. Morrison's update on YouTube or on the District's Video Portal (inside the district network).

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Note: The video references a status on the iPad deployment schedule. The High School iPad program for teachers and students is currently in the deployment phase. Devices have been distributed to students at Frontier HS, Lake Ridge HS, Mansfield HS, and Legacy HS. This week, students at Timberview HS will start the process followed by Summit HS during the week of September 24. (As a reminder, Frontier was first to receive the devices because it is a smaller number of students and technicians used it to test the process. A random drawing by the high school principals determined the order of deployment for the other schools.)

Patriot Day: Remembering September 11

September 11 is a day forever changed in the history of the United States of America.

"On September 11, 2001, a bright autumn day was darkened by the worst attack on the American people in our history. Thousands of innocent men, women, and children perished when mighty towers collapsed in the heart of New York City and wreckage burned in Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon. They were family and friends, service members and first responders -- and the tragedy of their loss left pain that will never fade and scars our country will never forget.

More than a decade later, the world we live in is forever changed. But as we mark the anniversary of September 11, we remember what remains the same: our character as a Nation, our faith in one another, and our legacy as a country strengthened by service and selflessness." - Presidential Proclamation -- Patriot Day and National Day of Service and Remembrance, 2012

Several Mansfield ISD campuses held Patriot Day events to mark the anniversary of September 11.

Willie Brown Elementary prepared a morning tribute to those who lost their lives and the heroes of 9/11. Students prepared patriotic songs to sing and Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts from the school helped with the flag-raising ceremony. Parents and family members who served or are serving in the military, as well as firefighters, police officers and paramedics were all invited to attend and participate in the tribute.
[Brown Elementary Patriot Day 2012 Photo Gallery]

Other campuses encouraged students and staff to wear red, white, and blue and held patroit music, flag-raising ceremonies, or had classroom activities as well as moments of silence and reflection.

D.P. Morris Elementary Pre-K students cerebrate Patriot Day

Video Tribute

Frontier HS senior Savannah Vasquez shot and produced a documentary project in her Video Production class last year as a junior. The project was completed earlier in 2012 during student preparations for SkillsUSA conference. Savannah conducted a phone interview with the widow of a police officer who perished in the World Trade Center collapse during has rescue efforts. She also interviewed Mansfield Police officers for this production. Savannah wanted to do something special for that project and obviously went above and beyond the class 'prompt'.

From the video decription by Savannah Vasquez: "America was moved by the events that took place on September 11, 2001. We all know the story, but many don't know this story. "Chances" is a documentary about a miraculous event that took place among the tragedy."


"Chances": A 9/11 Story from Savannah Vasquez on Vimeo.
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Update: Photos from the Willie Brown Elementary Patriot Day morning event were used in the WFAA news' feature, Remembering 911: A Photojournal

 

Solar Car Team Takes the Challenge

Students from the Ben Barber Career Tech Academy are voluntarily working through their summer vacation to compete in the Solar Car Challenge which will be held later this month at the Texas Motor Speedway.

Thanks to team advisors Jackie Bishop (auto tech teacher) and Rob Goodson (engineering teacher) along with a lot of help from generous sponsors, the students are building the District's first solar car for competition while learning some valuable skills. Approximately 25 students have been busy working on weekdays and a few Saturdays here and there in the BBCTA automotive garage to finish the solar car in time for the race week, July 15-19. The solar car team is primarily for engineering and auto tech students, but anyone can help according to advisor, Jackie Bishop.

While the car will sport large solar panels on its top for power, it has some some simple automotive roots. The chassis is from an old Legends Car that was donated. It has a four-wheeler front-end suspension and a motorcycle rear-suspension. In order to make this solar car and race a reality, students had to learn a lot about solar power, electronics, steel, construction, welding, and even amateur radio skills (and licenses) for track communication.

Check out the MISD Minutes video feature on the Solar Car Challenge (YouTube or MISD Video Portal).

Superintendent Update - May 2012

[Watch the video from inside the Mansfield ISD network using the Video Portal.]

Dr. Bob Morrison discusses the proposed 1:1 iPad program for high school campuses next year, updates on the new Center for the Performing Arts, the upcoming Senior Tour and graduation info for our students and parents.

Asa Low Intermediate - International Space Station Q&A Video

Students at Mansfield ISD's Asa Low Intermediate School had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to talk live with NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday, January 31. The students took part in a NASA in-flight education downlink with the Expedition 30 crew aboard the International Space Station as it orbits Earth at an altitude ranging from 230-286 miles and a speed of approximately 17,500 miles per hour.



Editor's Note: To view the video inside the MISD network, please use the Video Portal.

To prepare for the downlink, students took part in over 100 space-related lessons and curriculum projects, including a school community Space Night event on January 27. Attractions at Space Night will included genuine moon rocks and a NASA space suit.

In honor of the event, the Mansfield ISD School Board adopted a resolution to ceremonially renamed the campus NASA Low Intermediate School for month of January, 2012.

Asa Low Intermediate teacher, Patricia Londono, worked over two years on the submission with NASA's Teaching from Space team. On July 1, 2011, NASA awarded Asa Low Intermediate School with an In-Flight Education Downlink that was held on January 31, 2012.

NASA Downlink Photo Gallery

Media Coverage:

Mansfield ISD students chat with astronauts in orbit
Astronauts In Orbit Chat With Eager Mansfield ISD Students