IISD Partners Win TAPE Gold Awards

Five Irving ISD partners received Gold Awards for their volunteer work from the Texas Association of Partners in Education (TAPE). The awards were presented January 30 during TAPE’s annual convention in Austin.

The honorees were Baylor Medical Center at Irving, Irving Bible Church, Irving Rotary Club, Michael Malone and Laura Mitchell. All won in the division for medium school districts.

Baylor, which received the Texas Business Partnership Gold Award, has played a crucial role in the medical program at The Academy of IISD since the school’s inception in 2001.

Irving Bible Church, which received the Texas Community Partnership Gold Award, has been active partner with Houston Middle School for the past two years.

Irving Rotary Club, which also received the Texas Community Partnership Gold Award, has participated in a literacy program at Schulze Elementary School for the past decade.

Michael Malone, who received the Texas Top Adult Volunteer Gold Award, is an active volunteer at Thomas Haley Elementary School with a focus on mathematics. He is solutions development manager for Verizon Business in Irving.

Laura Mitchell, who received the Texas Senior Volunteer Gold Award, is a retiree who volunteers weekly as a tutor at Austin Middle School.

Michael Malone

Laura Mitchell

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Trustee Election Dates Set

The schedule of important dates for the May 12 IISD Board of Trustees election has been announced.

February 10 is the first day applications can be filed by those interested in running for a board seat. The application deadline for filing is 5 p.m. March 12. Applications must be filed in the IISD Tax Office located at 2621 W. Airport Freeway. Early voting will be April 30-May 8.

The Place 5, 6 and 7 seats are up for election this year. Place 5 incumbent Nita Patrick and Place 6 incumbent Jerry Christian have announced they will seek re-election. Place 7 incumbent Ken Murray, who serves as board secretary, previously announced he will not seek re-election.

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Ochoa Honored by ATPE

Ernie Ochoa, administrative assistant to the vice principal at The Academy of IISD, has been chosen by the Association of Texas Professional Educators (ATPE) as Associate of the Year for Region 10.

Ochoa will be recognized at the Region 10 convention February 24 in Mesquite.

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Athletes of the Month

The Irving ISD Athletes of the Month for February are Kristen Masters of MacArthur High School and Jeff Thorn of Nimitz High School.

Masters, a senior on the swimming team, has broken several school records during her high school career, helped the team earn second place in the district championships, and was named 7-5A Female Swimmer of the Year for 2007.

Thorn, a senior on the varsity basketball team, is a team captain and averages 16 points per game this season. His coaches praise him for his practice habits and preparing himself for the next level of competition.

Kristen Masters

Jeff Thorn

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MacArthur to Present Pippin Musical

MacArthur High School’s Performing Arts Department will present the tongue-in-cheek musical Pippin at 7:30 p.m. February 8-10 at the auditorium. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students.

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ISF Awards $1,288 in Teacher Enrichment Grants

Irving Schools Foundation (ISF) has awarded $1,288 in Teacher Enrichment Grants to seven teachers. The grants provide teachers with professional development opportunities to attend seminars and workshops. Applications from teachers are due by the 10th of each month. Grants are awarded up to $500 each.

Recipients for the month of January were as follows (including topics to be covered by grant): Melita Watts, Schulze, Current, Best Strategies to Help Speech-Language Pathologists Enhance Student Literacy Skills (grades K-12); Marisa Guzman, Schulze, Kindergarten Conference for Texas Kindergarten Teachers; Renee Newry, Farine, Texas Computer Education Association Conference; Kim Duren, MacArthur, Read Right National Conference; Suzanne Cahill,  Brandenburg, What’s NEW in Children’s Literature and How to Use it in Your Program; Jodie McConnell, Good, What’s NEW in Children’s Literature and How to Use it in Your Program; and Richard Kent Piacenti, Farine, Texas Music Educators Conference.

For more information about ISF or Teacher Enrichment Grants, please visit www.irvingisd.net/foundation.

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Grants-to-Teachers Applications Due Next Week

Grants-to-Teachers applications are due to the Irving Schools Foundation (ISF) office by Thursday, February 15.

Applications can be downloaded from the ISF website at www.irvingisd.net/foundation/teachoverview.html.

The Grants-to-Teachers program encourages teachers to develop innovative programs that stimulate thought and advance new approaches to teaching.

For more information about the program, contact the ISF office at 972-215-5018.

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Benefits Update

The IISD Benefits Office reminds employees there is a wealth of information available on the community resources page of the benefits websites: www.irvingisd.net/benefits/resources.htm.

The site provides contact information for counselors and community organizations that support work/life issues. Multiple resources are available for elderly care, while other resources are available by linking directly to the City of Irving website.

In other benefits news, Cigna offers a Healthy Rewards program that is separate from the employee health plan. The program offers discounted rates and services for areas such as weight management, tobacco cessation, hearing and eye care, and much more.

To locate a provider, call 1-800-870-3470 or visit myCIGNA.com.