CLEMENTS HS STUDENT MAKES PERFECT SAT SCORE – Lilly Shen, an 11th-grade student at Clements High School, earned a perfect score of 2400 on her SAT test. She also made a perfect score of 240 on her PSAT test.

An honor student, Lilly is a three-time USA Math Olympiad qualifier, a 2011-12 Siemens Regional Finalist, president of Mu Alpha Theta, and a member of the National Honor Society, YES (Youth Expanding Services) and the JETS (Junior Engineering Technical Society). She also takes contemporary dance classes and enjoys drawing and singing.

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LANTERN LANE STUDENTS RECEIVE ANTI-BULLYING LESSON – Lantern Lane Elementary School fourth- and fifth-graders took part in a bullying prevention discussion hosted by School Safety Specialist Dwight Stewart of the Texas School Safety Center. Stewart spoke on the issue of bullying and reminded students about the consequences they can face if they choose to bully someone. He also offered advice on having positive interaction with their peers, whether in person, on the Internet or through various forms of social media, including Facebook.

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HODGES MS BAND SUPPORTS AREA FOOD PANTRY – The Hodges Bend Middle School Band hosted a party that asked participants to donate food items as admission. Thanks to the support of Hodges Bend students, the band collected more than 400 pounds of food items, which were donated to the Second Mile Mission Center in Stafford.

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RIDGE POINT HS TEAM WINS QUIZ BOWL TITLE – The Quiz Bowl team from Ridge Point High School was named winner of Fort Bend ISD’s 2012 Quiz Bowl Competition after earning the highest score among the 11 competing high school teams. The Ridge Point team includes Duff Dean, Christopher Hamborsky, Kristen Mynes and Alexandra Ward, who competed against the Marshall High School team in the final round of the competition. James Patterson, Fort Bend County commissioner, served as commentator of the event.

Representing their schools in the Quiz Bowl were: Austin High School – Anne Wells, Joshua Ong, Abhi Rangarajan, Siri Soth and Hilaro Lumbreras (alternate); Bush High School – Nabiha Ali, Nery Aguilar, Timothy Nguyen, Evelyn Valdez and Brian Mendoza (alternate); Clements High School – Sara Bernardo, Nicole Bernardo, Madyson Muscarello, Yasmin Khalfe and Nasim Khalfe (alternate); Dulles High School – David Smith, Christian Almanza, King-Hur Wu, Anita Zee, Brinley Krantz (alternate) and Chandler Morrow (alternate); Elkins High School – Milan Doshi, Andrew Lu, Frank Li, Nidhin Sam and Cameron Hastreiter (alternate); Hightower High School – Layden Johnson, Nicholas Tripp, Dimple Joseph, Enoma Osakue, Shakira Wilson-Morris (alternate) and Shawn George (alternate); Kempner High School – Sukayna Kugshia, Jonathan Robinson, Richard Do, Jill Palmer and Lauren Delos Reyes (alternate); Marshall High School – Destiny Lockings, Alexis Kyle, Sadeshia Lawson and Ann Udenenwu; Travis High School – Andrew Timothy Conroy, Javier Penaloza, Uzma Mahmood Ali and Jene Marie Dennis; and Willowridge High School – Andrea Parada, Amber Scott, Jerry Duran, Tiara Green and Trey-cean Allen (alternate).

The Ridge Point team was presented with a trophy and announced as the District Championship winner at the High School Diversity Conference in February.

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TROOP 1424 PARTICIPATES IN FOOD DRIVE – Boy Scouts from Troop 1424 in Missouri City participated in the annual Scouting for Food Drive in association with the Houston Food Bank’s Souper Bowl of Caring. The boys distributed door hangers with information about the food drive to homes in Lake Olympia and picked up the donations a week later. All donations were delivered to the Holy Family Catholic Church Food Pantry.

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CLEMENTS STARS DANCE TEAM TAKES HOME 34 AWARDS AT CONTEST – It has been a year of serious discipline for the Clements Stars Dance Team. The big payoff came at the Champion Dance West Regional Competition at Seven Lakes HS, and at the Crowd Pleasers at Clear Springs HS.

Winnings at Champion West Regional included: Judge’s Award for both Team and Officer Routines, Award of Excellence for both Team and Officer Routines, Best in Category for both Officer, and Team. Best in class overall for Large Size Team first place, and second place for Best in Class in Officer Large Size Team. There were also first-place honors for Officer Contemporary, and Officer Lyrical.

Out of all the teams competing, Stars received first in Modern, Contemporary and second Military, giving them the Reserve Grand Champion spot. That is second-place Overall just behind Dulles HS.  In Large Division, Stars took first place in Team Military, Team Modern, and Team Contemporary.

The Crowd Pleasers Contest was more groundbreaking territory as the Stars received Super Sweepstakes Award, Choreography Award, Technique Award, Best in class Medium Team Military and Team Modern, 1st Runner-up Medium Team Contemporary, The Crowd Pleaser’s Judges Award for Team Military and Judge’s Choreography Award for Team Modern. The officers also took Super Sweepstakes Award, Choreography Award, and Technique Award. Solo finalists were Christina Triggs and Anna Busier, who placed third overall.

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THUNDER WOLF DISTRICT OF BOY SCOUTS HOSTS DISTRICT DINNER – The Thunder Wolf District of the Sam Houston Area Council of Boy Scouts of America held its 2012 District Dinner where a number of awards were presented. Vince Donart, Thunder Wolf District chairman, announced that the district achieved Silver Level in Scouting’s “Journey to Excellence.” David Van Kleeck, immediate past chairman of the district, was presented with two plaques from the district and the Sam Houston Area Council as an appreciation for his three years of service as district chairman.

Carey Snyder made a short presentation in remembrance of Scout leaders lost during the year — Will Gawlik, Pat Moore and Pat Thornton. Unit Awards of Excellence were presented to Cub Scout Pack 828, Boy Scout Troops 659, 441, 731, 1631, 1845, and Venturing Crew 1316.

Thunder Wolf Awards were presented to Roger Hoover, Troop 103; Len Kutz, Troop 441; Don Rakoski and Sarah Ryan, Troop 731; Doug Acker, Troop 1631; Andy Friedman, Troop 1852; Steffany Leach and Robert Goodspeed, Troop 441. District Awards of Merit were presented to David Rudzinski, Troop 1852; and Veniece Griffin.

The Chartered Partner of the Year Award was presented to The Exchange Club of Sugar Land, which charters both Pack 1133 and Troop 731. The District Family of the Year Award was presented to The Frazier Family.  Denise Frazier is a committee member of both Boy Scout Troop 731 and Venturing Crew 1003.

Currently, there are almost 1,900 Tiger Scouts, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Venture Crew members served by the district, supported by more than 1,000 adult Scouters.

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LAMAR BASEBALL CLUB WINS TOURNAMENT IN WESTBURY – The Lamar Baseball Club went 4-0 in the Westbury Hearts and Homers 7u Classic, defeating the Bellaire Cardinals 16-2, Orwal Woodlands Thunder 12-2, and Westbury Storm 15-0. The team faced the Thunder again in the championship game and defeated them to earn first-place honors in the tournament.

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FOUR LAMAR CISD STUDENTS NAMED NATIONAL MERIT FINALISTS – Four Lamar CISD students are among only 15,000 high school seniors in the United States who have been selected as National Merit Finalists by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation for their high academic performance on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

Foster High’s Stephanie Tsai and Michael Duncan and Conor Danaher and Nicholas Harvey at Lamar are now in the running to earn National Merit Scholarships. The selection process for becoming a National Merit Scholarship winner involves a competitive selection from the finalist group process, which involves evaluating a substantial amount of information obtained from the students and their high schools.

Finalists are evaluated according to their academic record (course load and difficulty level, depth and breadth of subjects studied, and grades earned), standardized test scores, a student essay, contributions to school and community, and the school official’s written recommendation with a distinct characterization of the student’s activities and demonstrated leadership.

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FUTURE CHIEFS BOYS CLUB HONORS MOTHERS – Members of the Hodges Bend Middle School Future Chiefs Boys Club celebrated their mothers with a special dinner in the school library for Valentine’s Day. Club members planned every detail of the event including the menu, decorations, gifts and spoken tributes.

Upon their arrival, the chiefs escorted their mothers to their tables where they were seated and served a traditional Italian meal.  As a special tribute, club members presented mothers with a single rose and shared reasons why their mothers are an important part of their lives. The mothers and sons also had their photos taken to commemorate the occasion.

Future Chiefs Club members are boys in grades 6-8 who focus on making positive choices and decisions in life. Club sponsors are Silas Garcia and Michael Tufariello.

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SIENNA PLANTATION AQUATICS PARTICIPATES IN MEET – Sienna Plantation Aquatics traveled to Austin for the New Year’s Classic Meet. Chris Bready received his first sectional cut in the 1650 Free, while Kamren McKinney-Lyons received his first TAGS cut of the season in 50 breast.

Swimmers who made it to finals at the meet are Jacey Hinton, Justin Mercier, Chrissy Byler, Chris Bready, Zach Ortiz, Juan Tapia, Jose Tapia, Kenedy Thaman, Anthony Aranda, Darrin Asphall, Brandon Ewer, Brynna Hamm, Savannah Maier and Carley Wood.

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GIRL SCOUTS LEARN ABOUT ARCHAEOLOGY – Members of Girl Scout Troop 724 went on a field trip to the Yates Community Archaeology Project. The girls learned about bridging the past and present through historical archaeological research. In addition, they also had the unique opportunity to work with students from the Field Study class at Rice to excavate and analyze artifacts from Freedmen’s Town in Houston.

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KEMPNER BAND HOSTS FOOD DRIVE – Students with the Kempner High School Marching Band held a food drive to benefit people in the Sugar Land community. The group collected more than 1,500 canned goods, with the symphonic ensemble alone accumulating more than 650 cans. The canned food items were donated to the Sugar Land United Methodist Church food pantry.

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LADY MUSTANG SIGNS LETTER OF INTENT – Lamar Consolidated High’s Lauren Hodgdon has signed a letter of intent to play soccer at the University of Houston.

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NJROTC NAMES CADET OF MONTH – The William P. Clements NJROTC/NNDCC Unit selected Cadet Kiana Farokhpour as the January Cadet of the Month. Cadet Farokhpour is a ninth-grade student, which classifies her as a Naval Science I student.

Kiana was recognized because she possesses characteristics exceptional to her peer group including her drive and determination. She has also learned all the required knowledge (chain of command, orders to the sentry, etc.), and when in uniform emulates a recruiting poster picture. Additionally, Cadet Farokhpour is the only female on the Armed Drill Team.

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FOSTER HS STUDENT AUDITIONS FOR AMERICAN IDOL – Foster High School student Arielle Deguere auditioned in August for American Idol and was one of less than 50 singers who were asked to audition for the judges in Galveston. She was given a ticket to go to Hollywood to see if she could continue her quest to become the next American Idol. However, she was cut from the competition during Hollywood week.

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LEADERSHIP IN JUDICIAL SYSTEM WAS FOCUS OF JUNIOR STUDENT LEADERSHIP SESSION – Fort Bend ISD Board President Susan Hohnbaum sponsored a day-long leadership seminar as part of the FBISD Junior Student Leadership Program. The seminar was the third in a series of six that will be offered to the leadership class this school year. The session gave students the opportunity to meet with leaders of the Fort Bend County Juvenile Detention Center and the Fort Bend County Justice Center to learn about their roles in the community.

During their visit to the Fort Bend County Juvenile Detention Center, the leadership class met with Brian Fraser, detention superintendent; and Frankie Hill, assistant superintendent, who explained their roles at the center and shared details on how the center operates. The students also toured the facilities.

Following their tour, the student leaders visited the Fort Bend County Justice Center to meet with County Court at Law Judge Susan Lowery and her staff. Judge Lowery explained the role of the court and the types of cases she handles. She reminded the students of the consequences of shoplifting and other misdemeanors.

Students also heard from John Harrity, chief appellate prosecutor, District Attorney’s Office; Robin Rosen, court reporter; Kyle Dobbs, Juvenile Detention Center probation officer; and Daniel Limas, bailiff.

The leadership seminar also included a “Lead with your Strengths” lesson taught by Yolanda Young, coordinator in the Organizational Development department. Young reminded students that they can bring fulfillment to their lives and to those around them by focusing on their strengths each day.

At the conclusion of the session, Fort Bend ISD Board member Sonal Bhuchar joined Hohnbaum in explaining their leadership roles as members of the Fort Bend ISD Board of Trustees as well as in their professions.

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HURRICANES RECOGNIZED BY MISSOURI CITY – Missouri City recognized Hightower High School’s football team, the Hurricanes, for reaching the Class 5A Division I Finals at the City Council meeting in January.

Following a winning regular season, Southlake Carroll came from behind three times to edge Hightower 36-29 in the Class 5A Division I state championship game played in front of nearly 43,000 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington on Dec. 17. Mayor Allen Owen told the team, “That was a fantastic game and you represented us well.”

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ST. LAURENCE STUDENTS SHARE THEIR SMILES – During Catholic Schools Week, St. Laurence School students participated in a “Sharing Smiles Drive” that benefited Star of Hope in Houston. A one-day drive was held to collect much-needed toothbrushes and toothpaste. Students collected 637 toothbrushes and 741 tubes of toothpaste.

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LCISD’S PROJECT L.E.A.R.N. A FINALIST FOR H-E-B EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION AWARD – Lamar CISD’s Project L.E.A.R.N is one of five finalists for the first-ever H-E-B Early Childhood Award, part of the grocery chain’s Excellence in Education Awards program.

Project L.E.A.R.N. (Let’s Eliminate At-Risk Needs) helps parents become involved in their children’s education and provides homework assistance, tutoring or developmental childcare for children.

Project L.E.A.R.N. and the other regional finalists will receive a $5,000 check to help enhance or create new Kinder-Readiness programs that prepare children to enter kindergarten socially and academically ready to learn.

For 10 years, H-E-B has rewarded teachers, principals, superintendents and campuses for outstanding leadership and teaching through Excellence in Education. This year, H-E-B added a new category to support public or private schools or not-for-profit learning agencies that focus on the care and education of children under age 5.

The overall statewide winner will be announced at the H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards ceremony on May 6 at the InterContinental Hotel in Houston, and awarded an additional $25,000 grant.

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EXCHANGE CLUB PRESENTS YOUNG CITIZENSHIP AWARDS – The Exchange Club of Fort Bend presented the Young Citizenship Award and a $50 Barnes & Noble gift card donated by Fort Bend Driving School. The students who were recognized are Caitlyn Wingerson, Marcario Garcia Middle School; Katie Adell, Lake Olympia Middle School; and Shiv Pandya, Fort Settlement Middle School.

The students who were honored were chosen by the teachers and faculty at their school because they have demonstrated excellence in leadership, community service, academics and work hard at being good citizens at home, at school and in the community.

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JONES ELEMENTARY CELEBRATES 100TH DAY OF SCHOOL – Students at Jones Elementary School celebrated the 100th day of school by taking part in various activities to benefit students as well as the community. Students celebrated with a 100th Day Parade, an appearance by Zero the Hero, and various classroom activities.

The school also set a goal of raising $100 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital; however, the donations of students, staff and parents amounted to an impressive $750. The school also collected more than 100 pounds of food items to benefit the East Fort Bend Human Needs Ministry. The event was coordinated by Reginald Taylor, math specialist.

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HUNTERS GLEN RECEIVES BAND STORAGE ROOM – Employees from Home Depot in Missouri City volunteered their time and supplies to help prepare a band storage room at Hunters Glen Elementary School.

The Home Depot team constructed and hung shelving units in the room so that the band students can have a designated area to store instruments instead of carrying them back and forth to class each day.