Barbara Qualls, PhD, Superintendent - LVISD
December 21, 2007

Recently, LVISD has been engaged in activities geared toward vision for the future. In late October, a group of citizens, parents, board and staff members met for a day to work with a Texas Association of School Boards consultant to craft a vision statement which describes the learning environment and student achievement that is desired. In early December, the Board and superintendent worked with another TASB consultant to explore more specific goals. While common themes emerged from both sessions, it is profitable for all interested in the future of LVISD to consider the fundamental mission of public schools. The National School Boards Association has developed a comprehensive statement intended to support ideals of freedom, diversity, and evolving society and an unflagging commitment to the success of individual children:

Liberty, democracy, domestic tranquility, economic prosperity, and all the other benefits traditionally associated with American society require an educated people. Ensuring the development of that educated populace is the bedrock purpose of public education.
In the current era, America faces immense change. Advances in transportation and communication technology make the whole world seem smaller; global troubles now increasingly beat a path to America's door. Here at home, unprecedented upheavals in social, demographic, and cultural conditions have posed such consequential challenges for public education that we have only just begun to recognize their full significance.

Rarely has any nation anywhere called on its schools first to care for and then to educate the offspring of every segment of society‹all the children of every color, race, and culture in the world; every youngster regardless of sickness or well-being or family economic status; regardless of whether the children are able-bodied or have special needs; children who speak every language heard on earth; children who worship according to every religion known to humankind.

Until well into this waning century, no one seriously expected our system of public education to do more than educate students who all were pretty much alike and whose parents largely constituted America's dominant group. But in just the last four decades, America's vision of equity in education suddenly has come alive. Our society has begun to put in practice the ethic of equality that previously had been promises. The new demands resulting from this transformation have required a period of adjustment, to be sure. But remarkably, the challenges are being met.

The evidence of success in our nation's schools is mounting steadily. And although local schools are changing to accommodate new challenges, no one should mistake the difficulty of adjustment for the absence of achievement. Indeed, the latest research makes the case: Test scores once again are rising; the gaps in achievement among diverse group are closing; parents—even those inclined to doubt the well-being of education at large—usually have positive opinions of their own local schools.

In sum, our public schools are taking on the toughest challenges conceivable, and it is the children who are the winners. This seems surprising only to those who have grown accustomed to accounts misrepresenting the fundamental data about our schools.

Of course, there is ever more to do. No one is more aware of the challenges still unmet than are citizens in individual communities. And they know providing public education sufficient to the challenge is their responsibility, acing through their local school boards.

Together, parents, religious leaders, business executives, legislators, school board members, and professional educators—indeed, committed citizens of every kind—are struggling mightily to give America's youth excellence and equity in public education. Our ultimate success will depend upon the support the public schools are accorded in each community across our nation.

Barbara Qualls, PhD, Superintendent - LVISD
December 13, 2007

Over the years, LVHS English students have been the dominant force in the annual Pedernales Electric Cooperative essay contest which sends the winners to Washington, D.C. for an educational and recreational trip. In fact, so many LVHS students historically are selected that sponsor Berniece Donnellan didn’t get to judge this year! No matter – the results were the same. LVHS posted twelve finalists and five of the six trip winners are LVHS students of Mrs. Donnellan. Those students are Jessica Dunn, Rachel Duran, Laura Febbo, Brittany Moseley, and Nathaniel Pepe. Alternates are Zac Ambrose, Courtney Cantu, Evan Molina, Krystal Rodenbeck, Kendall Shallue, and Brittany Weaver. The topic, chosen by PEC, is always connected in some way to energy production or conservation. This year, the topic was to create a proposal for reducing the carbon footprint of Lago Vista. The presentation medium selected was PowerPoint, which required the students to conduct primary and secondary research, utilize speaking skills and demonstrate facility with desktop publishing. We are all very proud for these students, both for their competitive success and because they have gained knowledge about an important social and economic subject. Congratulations to all these scholars and to Mrs. Donnellan.

With the beginning of winter weather, I’d like to introduce you to a new service that we hope will help make communication between the schools and parents easier and faster concerning school closings. LVISD has recently joined a consortium of area school districts in use of a product named FlashNews. This is a computer-based system that relays information about school closings (or other emergency information) to all media at the same time and with the same message. In the past, when the decision to close or start late was made, separate calls with separate passwords to each radio and television were necessary. Frequently, LVISD notices were late being posted or were sometimes confused with other area schools with similar names. FlashNews should eliminate whose problems and make information posted on television or radio more reliable. Staff members who live outside Lago Vista can also use FlashNews information to gauge weather conditions in their home districts or those they must travel across. In addition, parents and staff members can subscribe to FlashNews at no charge and be notified by email when an emergency message has been posted. Messages might include non-urgent news releases. More information about FlashNews and how to subscribe will be sent to parents through the campus newsletters.

A third bit of news is an invitation to attend the December 17 meeting of the LVISD Board of Trustees. Two important annual reports will be presented. One is the annual financial audit which is the product of an examination of the district’s financial management and compliance with standard accounting practices as well as compliance with many legal requirements. The district’s auditor will be present the material to the trustees through a live audio connection. After the Board has reviewed the audit report, it will be filed with the Texas Education Agency and other archives as required by law. The second annual report will be the district’s AEIS (Academic Excellence Indicator System) data. Each campus will also review the campus-level reports but the December 17 meeting will serve as the required public hearing for the district report. In addition, most of the components listed above will be reported by subpopulations for race, special education designation and economic disadvantage. LVISD has eight areas of Gold Performance Acknowledgement: Attendance, AP/IB results, Recommended High School Program, Texas Success Initiative in ELA, Texas Success Initiative in Mathematics, Commended in Reading/ELA, Commended in Writing, and Commended in Social Studies.

Paul Bixler, Principal, Lago Vista Middle School
December 5, 2007

Congratulations go out to the Lago Vista Middle School family. The December 2007 edition of the Texas Monthly lists the “Best Public Schools” in Texas. It’s no surprise to us, that Lago Vista Middle School is recognized as one of the best.

Texas Monthly has published a list of the top public schools in Texas for the last four years. This is the second year in row that the magazine has presented the higher-performing school ranked according to the number of subjects in which they excel. Lago Vista Middle School was recognized for exceeding the predicted students’ academic growth on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS).

The accounting of the schools’ performance was accomplished by the National Center for Educational Accountability (NCEA). The NCEA is a non-profit organization and the national sponsor of “Just for the Kids.” Lago Vista Middle School is a long time participant with the Texas “Just for the Kids.” Like Lago Vista Middle School, the “Just for the Kids” focus on student performance is not just the number of students passing, but the number of students achieving commended performance. The published goal and effort of the NCEA is to support efforts to reach excellence in education, to raise academic expectations and to promote the practices that will help more students reach college and career readiness. NCEA has been working for the last decade to build a continuous cycle for improvement based on an honest and diligent focus on student performance, the careful examination of effective practices of proven high-performers, and using what is learned to support targeted improvement planning and implementation.

The National Center for Educational Accountability looked at the Texas students’ test results from spring 2005, 2006, and 2007. For the Texas middle schools, NCEA used an academic growth analysis to examine whether the students in each school performed above the predicted level based upon the students’ prior year’s scores. NCEA used the “Hierarchical Linear Modeling” to perform the analysis. The HLM is a commonly used statistical technique utilizing a statistical adjustment to take into account the greater uncertainty of school results measured for smaller groups of students. The analysis was conducted separately for each subject, so that schools were ranked separately for reading, mathematics, writing, science, and social studies.

In addition to exceeding predicted student performance, Lago Vista Middle School was recognized for also meeting all of the following criteria:

• Being in the top 10% of schools in its low-income group based on the combined school effect across grades and years.
• Being in the top half of its low-income group based on consistency (low variation in performance across grades and years).
• At least 85% of the students enrolled in each tested grade in 2007 took the TAKS test.
• Lago Vista Middle School is “Recognized” on the state accountability system.

Of the 74 middle schools in Travis, Williamson, Hays, and Burnet counties, Lago Vista Middle School is one of only eleven middle schools that achieved this accomplishment. Again, Lago Vista Middle School compares favorably with our friendly rivals in Leander, Round Rock, Lake Travis, and Eanes.

As with any accomplishment, this was not done alone. Lago Vista Middle School benefits greatly from the dedicated and inspiring effort made by the outstanding professional educators at Lago Vista Elementary School and Lago Vista High School. We at Lago Vista Middle School are proud of the recognition awarded our students and we are grateful for the contributions made by our parents, community, and educators in the Lago Vista family. Thank you for all your help. Together, we will make this an exemplary year.

Barbara Qualls, PhD, Superintendent - LVISD
November 28, 2007

The 2007 season for Head Coach Alan Haire, his staff, and the Vikings football team was a major success. In August, a record number of players came out for football – more than enough for a robust freshman team and a full junior varsity, as well as a varsity team with a deep bench. Not so very long ago, LVHS fielded only one team and worried about keeping that group healthy, eligible, and with morale to keep going in the face of overwhelming losses. That’s why the 2007 season, with the terrific showing of the freshmen and junior varsity players, plus the two-deep playoff game round for the varsity, is a well-deserved arrival at respect. But that is only measuring concrete numbers like player participation and win record. There are several other areas where the 2007 Vikings are winners.

Each home football game was way beyond a sellout – literally hundreds of Lago Vistans came together for evenings of entertainment at Sisemore Field. The crowds included band musicians, cheerleaders, Pop Warner cheerleaders, Boy Scouts, athletes from other LVISD teams, plus proud parents of all those students previously named, neighbors, grandparents, and many citizens who just enjoy football and others who wanted to show support for the effort of the young athletes. There even may have been a fan or two who preferred good stadium food! On Fridays of home football games, local residents ‘staked out’ their seating area with lawn chairs, blankets, and other markers as early at 8:00 am. An actual seat in the stands was a rare commodity. Most people who did not bring their own chair considered a large rock a good deal. The weather for each home game was excellent, which contributed to the comfort of the fans, but it was the Vikings themselves who created those fans.

For all those who laid the groundwork for the LVISD football program nine years ago and gave countless hours and not a few out-of-pocket dollars, your work has yielded rich rewards this year. An activity that involves as many kids as high school football also has an incredible number of parent, faculty and fan volunteers who make everything come together. An attempt to list names of the many people who have earned the gratitude of LVISD during this season would almost certainly omit some key individual, so please note the long list of tasks that are performed. These tasks are performed by volunteers who purchase supplies, set up equipment, cook food, sell it and clean up afterward. Some sell tickets while others roam the grounds insuring safety and security. Other parents sew, pin, nip and tuck band uniforms, haul musical equipment up/down/around, get cheerleader gear to the right place at the right time, gather and serve meals to the athletes and clean up afterward, and get Victor into and out of costume. Another whole volunteer crew transports, inflates, deflates, and stores the Viking entrance tunnel. Each game day is also a challenge for working parents to get their student athlete/musician/performer to the correct place, and then shuffle the remainder of the family around to get to the game on time. The logistics of the activity of football require massive cooperation and planning. Thank you to everyone who played a role in this year's memorable and history-making season.

Most of all, though, recognition goes to the 2007 Vikings themselves and their dedicated coaching staff. All those early mornings and late nights culminated in a happy event and effort that the entire community shared. Thank you all, players and coaches, accept our sincerest congratulations – and let's get ready for 2008!

Sandy Apperley, Ph.D. – LVISD Assistant Superintendent
November 19, 2007

Often times when people think of libraries, they visualize shelves and shelves of books, “no talking” signs and very studious people pouring over volumes of research and technical journals. While you might see some of those things if you visited one of our school libraries, you would definitely see much more. No longer just libraries with shelves of books, traditional libraries have been transformed into media centers that use a variety of tools to actively support student, staff and community learning and reading.

Our media centers still house many books and our librarians still work diligently to help our students locate the perfect book or reading material for pleasure reading or a book report that must be completed as part of a class assignment. In fact, each year the district buys new books so we can update our collections with current award-winning books and books by favorite authors. And just like in past years, our librarians work hard to foster a love of reading in students to encourage students to read a variety of books. Students at the elementary school participate in the Texas Bluebonnet Program. Sponsored by the Texas Library Association for students in grades 3-6, students read from a list of 20 nominated titles each year. In January, students at the elementary school who have read a certain number of books get to vote for their favorite book. In April when the winning book is announced, students who voted are invited to a celebration. Last year, 163 elementary students read at least 5 books—and four students read all 20 books. Click here to see the list of Bluebonnets books at the elementary library web site.

At the secondary level, the reading material of choice often becomes magazines. Because magazines are so popular with our middle and high school students, the library subscribes to over eighty magazines. Also, to promote pleasure reading at each campus and in the home, our libraries host book fairs. Our secondary school library recently held a book fair in honor of National Teen Read Week and our elementary school will host a book fair in early December.

In addition to print resources, our libraries offer electronic resources. Computers, with printing capability, are available for student use before, during, and after school each day Monday through Friday. A new tool available to all students in LVISD this year is an extensive selection of databases. During the last session, the legislature added Rider 88 to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) budget. Rider 88 gave the Commissioner of Education the authority to transfer funds during the 2008-2009 biennium to the Texas State Library and Archives Commission for the purpose of acquiring online research and information resources for libraries in public schools. Known as the TexShare Databases, these databases are available to all Texas public schools free of charge. Districts are also able to purchase additional database subscriptions at a discounted rate.

These databases enable LVISD students and staff to access a variety of resources twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week from any computer with internet access. Accessible resources include newspaper and magazine articles with full graphics, radio and TV news transcripts, reference books and encyclopedias, biographies, primary source documents, country, state/province reports, photos, maps, flags, film and videos. Any community member who is associated with a public school student can access these databases. For information on usernames and passwords, contact your student's librarian.

Check out LVISD libraries soon to see for yourself what's the same and what has changed!

Barbara Qualls, PhD, Superintendent - LVISD
November 15, 2007

Last Tuesday was a uniform election date and to many, it may have appeared that Texas voters didn’t have a lot to decide. All the constitutional amendments were approved, even though a few of the proposed amendments drew sharp criticism in the final days before the election. On closer examination, though, at least two very important results came out of the Tuesday election. One has to do with a voter referendum in Utah and the other is about more than 100 local elections in Texas.

Earlier this year, the Utah legislature passed a school voucher law by a margin of one vote. The effort was bankrolled by Overstock.com chief executive Patrick Byrne and supported by Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. The Utah law attracted national attention because it would have provided tax-funded subsidies to any student, rich or poor, to enroll in a private school. Voucher opponents, led by the Utah Education Association, gathered more than 124,000 signatures to force the new law into a voter referendum. Last Tuesday, more than 60% of the voters rejected the voucher bill. The referendum failed in every county, including the traditionally conservative bastion of Utah County. The Utah election has national implications in that it will most likely be more difficult to resurrect legislative interest in an issue that is unpopular with voters. Voucher proposals have consistently been rejected by the Texas legislature.

The other issue of interest from Tuesday’s election is the large proportion of school districts that passed TREs (Tax Rate Elections) and bond packages. Forced by the Texas Supreme Court to create a new school-funding system, state lawmakers 18 months ago reduced maximum property tax rates and generally restricted school tax rate increases to 4 cents per $100 valuation without voter approval. A total of 92 school districts convinced voters that their schools’ financial needs outweighed a big chunk of the property tax relief approved by the Legislature and Gov. Rick Perry last year.
Rep. Dan Branch, R-Dallas, chairman of a special House committee on school finance, said he expects more districts to hold tax elections next year based on Tuesday’s results.
Although his committee is working on school finance options for the next legislative session in 2009, Mr. Branch said, “Some districts will choose not to wait for the session and instead take the political risk of asking their voters for a tax increase next year.”
State lawmakers, citing demands from homeowners and businesses for property tax relief, voted last year to cut the maximum school property tax rate for operating expenses in all districts a third, from $1.50 to $1, by the current school year. Local school boards were given the option to add four cents to the $1 tax rate without voter approval—the last time that will be allowed—and more than 90 percent of Texas districts took advantage of the option. Voters in nearly eight of every 10 Texas school districts seeking higher property tax rates Tuesday approved them.

In addition to the 119 Tax Rate Elections, 66 school districts across Texas held bond elections. There were several Central Texas area school bond elections. Wimberley ISD, after several failed bonds in recent years, passed a $34,000,000 package by a more than 2 to 1 margin. Pflugerville ISD passed a $125,000,000 bond package with 60% approval, and Dripping Springs ISD narrowly approved a $96,000,000 package. The largest bond package in the area and one of the largest in the state was neighboring Leander ISD, which approved $559,000,000 with 56% approval.

Most observers of the Tuesday elections for TREs and bonds agree that Texas voters have expressed a strong level of support for public schools.

Barbara Qualls, PhD, Superintendent - LVISD
November 7, 2007

Without courage, all other virtues lose their meaning. Courage is, rightly esteemed, the first of human qualities, because it is the quality what guarantees all others.
Sir Winston Churchill

Courage may be the most important of all virtues, because without it one cannot practice any other virtue with consistency.
Maya Angelou

Courage, the footstool of the virtues, upon which they stand.
Robert Louis Stevenson

Different perspectives, same thought – that courage is a necessary characteristic. The root of the word courage is from the French coeur, or “heart.” Over the last few weeks, we have seen an unusual number of LVISD student competitors exhibit heart in their efforts. As the fall semester begins its downhill slope, the student activities specifically designed for the fall are also entering their final stages. A number of LVISD students groups have had landmark experiences in the 2007 season. The Varsity volleyball Lady Vikings finished the season last Tuesday in playoffs in Cameron with a hard-fought loss to a team consistently state-ranked. Many others might have given up before the battle began, but the Lady Vikings were in the game until the final moment. In addition, the Lago Vista Middle School volleyball teams had a grand season – 7th grade won District and the 8th grade won Consolation. There is still another week of football games to be played, but the LVHS Ninth Grade has the best record in District 25AA and the Varsity Vikings have had a great comeback and go into the final week with a shot at a playoff berth. This year marks a record number of young men in the football program – five teams! Two Viking cross country runners made it past District and to the Regional meet. The Viking Marching Band had an extremely competitive drill and show that earned an excellent UIL rating. Plus, community support for Victor the Viking earned Victor the Favorite Mascot designation for Central Texas, over 4A and 5A competition. Anyone who needs a reason to be proud of our kids has hundreds of them – just from the fall of 2007!

Our kids’ competitive success has been well-documented, however. Another equally important aspect of the high level of competitive activity in LVISD is the development of the character trait of heart or courage that comes hand in hand with competition. Loss and disappointment are built-in components of competition and offers one type of character development – grace under the pressure of loss. Grace under the pressure of victory is a character development opportunity, too, and one that Vikings have enjoyed in abundance so far this year. Competition, with its exposure to the risk of heartbreak, is one way to practice and strengthen the characteristic of heart. When you next meet a student competitor, share with them your pride in their excellent representation of their school and our community.

LVISD has hosted three Parent Chat programs already this year and will have several more over the course of the school year. Parents have shared with us their thoughts on campus-level involvement, what kinds of programs they think need more support, and ways they can help. A whole new parent support group has formed at Lago Vista High School. We’ve listened to parent opinion on the value of homework, its use, challenges it brings, and how to improve the whole concept of homework to get better home/school partnership. If you have specific topics that you would like to have considered for future Parent Chats, please use the link on the LVISD homepage to send in your idea. We appreciate the support of all the parents and patrons of LVISD.

Barbara Qualls, LVISD Superintendent
October 31, 2007

An old adage concerning measurement is “You don’t fatten a pig by weighing it.” Critics of state and national testing trends in education sometimes use that argument when protesting the amount of testing given in schools – No Child Left Behind, TAKS, benchmark testing, SAT, PSAT, ACT, NAEP – as well as all the locally developed testing for units, nine-weeks and semester endings. A solid argument can be crafted that the time spent testing could be better used, but an equally compelling case can be argued that a well-constructed measurement instrument is, in itself, a learning experience.

Certainly, a good test is a very helpful tool for teachers and educators in determining scope, sequence, and rate for instruction. We also use test results as a way to help individualize instruction and expectations. As the nation and state’s political life gains momentum leading toward the 2008 elections, much more attention will be focused on test results and interpretations of those results. Among the many areas of interest in public education will be whether to abandon, improve, or dilute the No Child Left Behind Act; how to define and acquire adequate funding streams; whether to use public money for private enterprise through tuition vouchers; whether and how to use student achievement results in calculating teacher performance; and a host of other education issues.

Student achievement testing and its results will provide much of the data for those debates. Texas student performance is of special interest because the state testing system and TAKS are the prototype structures for No Child Left Behind. The chief engineer for NCLB is from Texas, as are both of the Secretaries of Education who have served as appointees of President Bush.

Last month, results from the 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)—also referred to as the Nation’s Report Card—were released. The NAEP results allow us to compare how Texas students measure up to children in public schools across the United States. Texas students ranked among the top tier in math and fared extremely well in reading when compared to students in other states. Texas was one of only six states (including the District of Columbia) that posted improved performance in 8th-grade reading when measured with results from two years ago.

The outstanding performance of our students is even more impressive considering Texas ranked 38th in the nation in expenditures per student during the 2003-2004 school year, the most recent data reported by the National Center for Education Statistics.

2007 NAEP Highlights

Texas 4th-grade math rankings

African-American students ranked 3rd in the country

Anglo students ranked 4th in the country

Hispanic students ranked 3rd in the country

Texas 8th-grade math rankings

African-American students ranked 5th in the country

Anglo students ranked 3rd in the country

Hispanic students ranked 2nd in the country

Texas 4th-grade reading rankings

African-American students ranked 14th in the country

Anglo students ranked 12th in the country

Hispanic students ranked 12th in the country

Texas 8th-grade reading rankings

African-American students ranked 11th in the country

Anglo students ranked 6th in the country

Hispanic students ranked 13th in the country

The Nation’s Report Card was created by Congress in 1969 to periodically monitor the academic performance of U.S. students. Since the early 1990s, representative samples of students have taken the NAEP assessments to provide comparisons across the 50 states and other jurisdictions (i.e., District of Columbia, U.S. territories and Department of Defense schools). To view the entire NAEP report, please visit the National Center of Education Statistics website.

Barbara Qualls, LVISD Superintendent
October 22, 2007

On Saturday, October 20, more than 25 Lago Vista school personnel, Board members, community members, and parents met for a daylong session exploring ways to articulate their vision for the future of the district. The facilitator for the exercise was David Koempel, senior consultant from the Leadership Team Services of the Texas Association of School Boards. Participants in the Vision Team session met together for discussion of general format for the final product and to engage in some introductory exercises. Much of the discussion was held in smaller groups with a mix of membership where descriptions were forged for the three major areas of focus: students, learning environment, and community and district. The term ‘learning environment’ certainly means the schools themselves, but also encompasses those programs and experiences outside of the school building or the school day, which contribute to student learning. The terms ‘community and district’ mean City of Lago Vista, the property owners associations, police, emergency services, civic organizations, churches, businesses, children’s organizations such as Little League and Pop Warner, parent organizations, service providers, retirees, and all other groups within the sphere of Lago Vista that impact students or that are impacted by students. What a rich and varied group that is! LVISD enjoys many advantages and the complexity and potential of its support community is certainly one of those advantages. The material at the conclusion of this article is the rough draft of the product of Saturday’s work. Over the next few weeks, after some refining, the LVISD Board of Trustees will approve a final version. After that approval, the Vision Statement will provide a guide for priorities and goals for the Board as well as the campus and district improvement councils. The LVISD Board and superintendent thank all the parents, educators, and other citizens who generously gave their time and ideas for the formulation of the new Vision.

Our Students:

Are inquisitive, self-motivated, intellectual risk-takers capable of setting and meeting goals.

Are self-confident, responsible decision-makers who are accountable for their actions.

Have an understanding of personal strengths and weaknesses and make healthy lifestyle choices.

Transform their learning experience with technological, cultural, and global perspectives.

Are multilingual.

Are academically challenged to reach new heights and embrace lifelong learning.

Graduate prepared to meet the challenges of post-high school education and/or the workforce.

Our Learning Environment:

Provides quality instruction in a stimulating environment that meets the needs of diverse student populations.

Welcomes and encourages active communication and participation between and among campuses, parents, and students.

Stimulates effective collaboration among professional staff, parents, and students where all take responsibility for student learning.

Is positive, supportive, and safe for all students.

Provides high performing, highly skilled staff qualified (above minimum requirements) that is dedicated to furthering their professional growth to meet a changing classroom demographic.

Effectively and seamlessly incorporates technology into student learning.

Consists of facilities that meet the needs of all students and provide the best opportunities to thrive and achieve their greatest potential.

Offers the most rigorous academic programs.

Our Community and District:

Inspire an increase in volunteerism, mentoring, and general participation in the school system by persons and businesses in the community with expertise in various areas.

Encourage LVISD students to be involved in and act as responsible members of the community.

Maintain consistent, open communication in a respectful manner with all stakeholders.

Effectively communicate to taxpayers and citizens so that they may understand and financially support the needs and goals of the district.

Maintain the financial stability of the district.

Cindy Slaughter, LVHS Counselor
October 15, 2007

Thirteen students at Lago Vista High School have earned the designation of AP Scholar by the College Board in recognition of their exceptional achievement on the college-level Advanced Placement Program (AP) Exams.

The College Board's Advanced Placement Program offers students the opportunity to take challenging college-level courses while still in high school, and to receive college credit, advanced placement or both for successful performance on the AP Exams. About 18 percent of the more than 1.4 million high school students in more than 16,000 secondary schools worldwide who took AP Exams performed at a sufficiently high level to merit the recognition of AP Scholar.

Students took AP Exams in May 2007 after completing challenging college-level courses at their high schools. The College Board recognizes several levels of achievement based on students' performance on AP Exams.

At Lago Vista High School:

Two students qualified for the AP Scholar with Distinction Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams. These students are Siree Allers and Kathryn Popham.

One student, Elizabeth Joslin, qualified for the AP Scholar with Honor Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and grades of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams.

Ten students qualified for the AP Scholar Award by completing three or more AP Exams, with grades of 3 or higher. The AP Scholars are: Mariel Ambrose, Alicia Gerte, Alice Hilgart, Lincoln Jones, George Karr, Stassney Lenertz, Nathaniel Pepe, Rochelle Stewart, Christopher Wallace, and Alaina Woodhull.

Of this year's award recipients, three qualified as juniors: Elizabeth Joslin, George Karr, and Nathaniel Pepe. These students have at least one more year in which to complete college-level work and possibly earn another AP Scholar Award.

Most of the nation's colleges and universities award credit, advanced placement, or both based on successful performance on the AP Exams. More than 1,400 institutions award a full year's credit (sophomore standing) to students presenting sufficient number of qualifying grades. In 2007, thirty-seven AP Exams were offered in a wide variety of subject areas, each consisting of multiple-choice and free-response (essay or problem-solving or oral response) questions.

The College Board is a not-for-profit membership organization whose mission is to connect students to college success and opportunity. Founded in 1900, the association is composed of more than 5,200 schools, colleges, universities, and other educational organizations. Each year, the College Board serves seven million students and their parents, 23,000 high schools, and 3,500 colleges through major programs and services in college admissions, guidance, assessment, financial aid, enrollment, and teaching and learning. Among its best-known programs are the SAT, the PSAT/NMSQT, and the Advanced Placement Program (AP). The College Board is committed to the principles of excellence and equity, and that commitment is embodied in all its programs, services, activities, and concerns.

Frequently Asked Questions for your high school counselor:

1. Which AP® courses are available?
2. When is the PSAT/NMSQT® going to be given?
3. Is this school a testing center for the SAT®, or will I need to go somewhere nearby?
4. Do you have college handbooks or other guides that I can browse or borrow?
5. Are there any college fairs nearby?
6. Where do other students from this school attend college?
7. What are the requirements or standards for the honor society?
8. Can I see my transcript as it stands now, to see if everything is as I think it should be?

Barbara Qualls, PhD, Superintendent - LVISD
October 10, 2007

On October 20, LVISD Board members, staff and a large collection of members of the community will meet for a day to craft revisions to the District Vision Statement. In early 2003, a comprehensive vision statement was built over two day-long sessions with 35 participants.
In each succeeding year, the Board has constructed goals and priorities with the original vision statement as a foundation. The October 2007 effort will focus on revisiting the identified elements of the 2003 vision and making revisions that reflect the changes in the demographics of the district as well as changes in district needs.
The original vision contains a description of each of three components: students, community and district, and learning environment. The vision description for students includes:

• Possess the resources and experiences to ensure they have the opportunity to develop their full potential to succeed.
  
• All graduate.
  
• Support a positive culture that promotes a healthy lifestyle, responsible decision-making, and respect for themselves and their community.
  
• Envision their future through goals and plans to graduate, aware of the full range of educational and career choices.
  
• Are well-rounded, life-long learners.

The vision description for the community and district includes:

• Dedicated to lifelong learning.
  
• Encourages and sustains a high level of volunteerism, mentoring and tutoring.
  
• Obtain and effectively use all available local, state and national resources to support the district’s vision.
  
• Will always take pride in having and supporting first class facilities and curriculum.
  
• Maintain consistent, open communication and collaboration with all stakeholders to meet educational and social needs of students.

The vision description for the learning environment includes:

• Promotes a positive, supportive, and safe atmosphere for all students.
  
• Welcomes and encourages active participation between and among campuses, parents, and students.
  
• Our students have access to and utilize technology.
  
• Provides students with access to career and technology resources and instruction.
  
• Campuses work together to ensure a seamless curriculum.
  
• Provides a fully certified staff and includes support and delivery of quality professional growth activities.

Clearly, all the identified descriptors from 2003 are still valid goals, with varying degrees of success in having met them. The most recent set of Board-identified goals are similar. A high-ranking Board goal is that "Lago Vista ISD will maintain full realization of student growth patterns and develop a long range facility plan." Other important and consensus goals include a clean financial audit each year, a climate of responsibility and ownership at the campus level, and provision of a quality, well-planned staff development program. There is also a strong commitment to continuation of a low student-teacher ratio. The Board-identified description of an ideal LVISD student is quite similar to the 2003 Vision Team statement:

• The Strategic Instruction Model (SIM) process of reading instruction will be implemented district-wide, where appropriate.
  
• There will be implementation of effective instructional technology strategies in each classroom.
  
• Student will develop 21st century, flexible language skills, such as Spanish, at appropriate grade levels.
  
• There will be celebrations of student achievement success at appropriate opportunities.

The October 20 meeting will include parents, people from the Lago Vista business community, retirees, clergy, City of Lago Vista, and other groups that have a strong connection to the development of the school district. The facilitator for the day’s activities will be from the Texas Association of School Boards. It is expected that lively discussion will take place and is hoped that the outcome will be a new and vibrant statement of the vision and aspiration for Lago Vista ISD.

Steve Elder, LVHS Assistant Principal
October 2, 2007

Education is critical to the foundational maintenance of free societies. Without it, stagnation and eventual erosion will result. In the American nation, it is expected that an educated populace will dictate, and control the progress of society. The educational system must continually improve to ensure our success among the nations of the world. I am reminded of the words of President John F. Kennedy when he stated that, “Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education”. Therefore, it is essential that all Lago Vista Independent School District students receive a general education that will allow participation at its greatest extent in the future of our nation.

Inherent in this statement is the belief that all of our students have the right, the ability, and the responsibility to learn and succeed. There can be no discrimination due to disability, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, or any other factor. Otherwise, we must question our claim to be a nation of equal opportunity. To prevent such questioning, we must strive to empower students to express their equality while protecting their individuality. We must remove inherent barriers to success by offering the greatest opportunity for valuable learning. In doing so, the Lago Vista High School faculty, and the faculty throughout district schools, provides a safe, comfortable, respectful learning environment, incorporates the most effective teaching methods and tools identified by good, quality research, and allows students to develop their innate curiosity about the subject matter they are to be taught. Our teachers go to great efforts to urge students to internalize the value of education itself, and to develop the feelings of responsibility necessary to participate in the future guidance of our nation. It has been my experience that students who feel as though their learning tasks have some applicable value to their lives will develop an interest in both the specific subject matter under study, and, more importantly, its application to their future endeavors.

At Lago Vista High School, and the other schools of the Lago Vista Independent School District, we strive to create curricular experiences that allow our students to apply new, challenging content to real problems and situations. At the elementary school students are introduced to the ecosystem of the ocean and then apply the learning during “Ocean Week” activities that culminate in the Port Aransas trip to see their subject through educated eyes. Likewise, 7th grade students at Lago Vista Middle School experience a trip into Texas history while researching their own heritage and unique connections to the events discussed in class. Students in high school build and fire rockets in physics, design and operate businesses in economics, experience the joys (and challenges) of parenthood in health, and participate in myriad other experiential learning opportunities designed to prepare them for their future.

Finally, a close-knit relationship between a school system and its surrounding community is essential. Schools do not exist in a vacuum. The goals and values of the community in which schools exist must be integrated into the goals and values of the school. At Lago Vista Independent School District the value of community and parent partnership is clear in the existing, and new programs implemented with the idea of continuous improvement. Parents and community members have been involved in campus improvement committees for years. However, other opportunities for community involvement exist in the district’s “Parent Chat” program, booster club membership, school board meetings, and other informational programs. These opportunities for communication and cooperation will aid in creating an environment in which our students can continue to be successful in their educational careers and future endeavors.



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