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Vol. 2, Issue 1 September 2015
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FBISD will be Closed on September 7 for Labor Day
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Fort Bend ISD schools and offices will be closed Monday, September 7 for Labor Day. The District will resume regular business hours and students will return to class Tuesday, September 8.
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Bond Oversight Committee Meeting
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The Fort Bend ISD community is invited to the Bond Oversight Committee Meeting - Thursday, October 8, beginning at 4:00 p.m. in the Board Room of the FBISD Admin. Building (16431 Lexington Blvd., Sugar Land 77479).
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Got Drugs?
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Fort Bend ISD's Police Department, in conjunction with the District's Safe and Drug Free Schools and the Fort Bend Community Prevention Coalition, will host its annual Drug Take-Back event that gives employees and the community a safe way to dispose of unused or expired medication they may have in their homes. The event will be held on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in FBISD's Mercer Stadium parking lot (16403 Lexington Blvd., Sugar Land, 77479). For more information, visit www.dea.gov.
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Mark Your Calendars!
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September Events and Observations:
Sept. 10 - Middle School Open House
Sept. 11 - Patriot Day
Sept. 13 - National Grandparents Day
Sept. 13-19 - Arts in Education Week
Sept. 15-Oct. 15 - National Hispanic Heritage Month
Sept. 16 and 17 - Elementary School Open House
Sept. 26 - Fort Bend County Fair Day Holiday
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If you want to keep up with the latest happenings regarding our school district, Superintendent, Fine Arts, Athletics and Police Department, follow us on Twitter!
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Fort Bend ISD kicks off 2015-16 school year with District-wide rallies
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Employees confirm commitment to District and team by proclaiming, "I Am Fort Bend ISD!"
 Excitement was felt throughout Fort Bend ISD as employees gathered for the 2015-16 back-to-school rallies to kick off the new school year. The District hosted 14 mini events August 14 - 20 to welcome more than 10,000 employees represented at each FBISD campus and facility. Employees enjoyed inspirational messages, spectacular student and staff performances, video presentations, roll calls of participating campuses, dance-offs, and lots of laughter and cheer.
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FBISD launches Attendance Counts
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 To coincide with Attendance Awareness Month, Fort Bend ISD is launching Attendance Counts - a campaign to educate and engage parents, teachers and students about the importance of good attendance. The District will be participating in this ongoing effort by encouraging good attendance at all of our 75 campuses throughout the school year. Our aim is to help students build a habit of good attendance early in their school careers so that they learn right away that going to school on time, every day is important. For ideas on how to improve attendance at your campus, visit the Attendance Counts webpage.
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September Board of Trustees Meetings
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The September FBISD Board of Trustees meetings will be held on the following dates:
- September 14 - Called Meeting and Agenda Review Workshop, 6:00 p.m.
- September 21 - Regular Board Meeting, 6:00 p.m.
- September 28 - Board Workshop, 6:00 p.m.
All Board of Trustees meetings are held in the Board Room of the FBISD Administration Building (16431 Lexington Blvd., Sugar Land 77479). Additional information, including meeting agendas and agenda packets, can be viewed on the Board of Trustees webpage.
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What's New in Fort Bend ISD?
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With a new school year comes changes in leadership, school policy, and business and school partnerships. Read on to learn about some of the changes that have taken place in our school district. more ...
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2014 Bond Program Update:
Technology Upgrade Underway
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Work is already underway on District-wide technology upgrades that were included in the November 2014 Bond. Tremendous accomplishments have been achieved over the summer by the Information Technology Division, not only for the Bond Projects, but for overall improvement of the District's technology capabilities. more ...
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Employees invited to communicate through
Let's Talk
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 Fort Bend ISD is making it easier for you to ask a question, make a comment or submit a suggestion. Last year, the District piloted Let's Talk!, an online communication software designed to assist parents, students and staff in engaging with District leaders 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This summer, the District expanded this tool to the campus level, allowing individuals to communicate directly with the principal at their campus.
Let's Talk! helps our District ensure that everyone has the opportunity to be involved in important education and District discussions. Through Let's Talk!, District leaders can determine which issues are most important to you and tailor our actions to address those items.
Let's Talk! is accessible from any computer, tablet or mobile device any time of day. You can access the software by clicking the Let's Talk! icon at the top of every District website page. Links are also available on campus websites.
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Want to earn a Master's Degree to become a school counselor?
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Apply now to join HBU/FBISD Spring 2016 Cohort
Fort Bend ISD is partnering with Houston Baptist University to offer employees a Master's Degree program for individuals wanting to become a school counselor. The program is designed to help counselors guide students through the educational process, while helping them become the well-adjusted adults of tomorrow.
Program features include (1) tuition reduced from $1,650 to $975 per course, (2) hybrid classes that meet once a week and no GRE, and (3) 37-hour program completion in two years.
For more information, visit www.hbu.edu/MED-Apply. For questions, email dwilson@hbu.edu.
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Fort Bend Education Foundation News
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Employees invited to Education Foundation's Sugar Shindig, Oct. 9
Grab your coworkers and neighbors for a casual evening of fun and frolic at the Fort Bend Education Foundation's Sugar Shindig. The event will be held October 9 at Safari Texas (11627 FM 1464, Richmond 77407) and includes dinner, dancing and a cake auction. This is camaraderie at its finest as staff from our schools and neighbors from the community vie for the best cakes made by prominent Sugar Land bakers, including our Superintendent of Schools Dr. Charles Dupre and his wife, Seeju. Attend the shindig to have your cake and eat it too. Tickets are on sale now.
Shown promoting the Sugar Shindig are (from left) Max Cleaver, Chief Operations Officer; Kermit Spears, Chief Human Resources Officer; Dr. Christie Whitbeck, Deputy Superintendent; Dr. Phillys Hill, Chief Academic Officer; Seeju Dupre, wife of Superintendent of Schools; Dr. Charles Dupre, Superintendent of Schools; Brenna Cosby, Education Foundation Executive Director; Steven Bassett, Chief Financial Officer; Nancy Porter, Chief Communications Officer; Long Pham, Chief Information Officer; and Beth Martinez, Chief of Staff and Strategic Planning.
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Take Me Out Tuesdays at Fish City Grill
Support the Education Foundation while enjoying a good meal. Employees are invited to join the Fort Bend Education Foundation at Fish City Grill for "Take Me Out Tuesdays" on September 8. The restaurant will donate 15% of the day's sales to the Foundation.
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KUDOS: Recognizing Employees for a Job Well Done!
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 Fort Bend ISD's 2015 Secondary and Elementary Principals of the Year - Thomas Graham of Crockett Middle School (pictured left) and Lavanta Williams of Heritage Rose Elementary School (right) - were honored at Region 4's Principal Recognition Banquet this summer, joining outstanding principals from 50 school districts across seven counties in vying for the Region 4 Principal of the Year title. Both men were selected for the honor of FBISD Principal of the Year by their peers based on leadership, service and dedication to students, faculty and staff. More ...
Thirty-eight (38) Fort Bend ISD educators representing 22 campuses received grants from Nalco Champion, an Ecolab company, to support their instructional needs during the 2015-2016 school year. Nalco Champion has a long-standing tradition of supporting public education through the Ecolab Foundation's Visions of Learning grant program. This year, the company awarded FBISD educators with $68,184 of the $100,000 designated for Houston area schools. The grants fund projects that support teachers' efforts in engaging students in the classroom, augmenting basic skills instruction and enriching the overall classroom experience. More ...
Theresa Grayson (left), music teacher at Hunters Glen Elementary School, was recently spotlighted in the Summer 2015 issue of CoffeeTalk Jazz Magazine. The accomplished saxophonist has toured and worked with many renowned artists, including Michael Bolton, Marlon Meadows, Joe Sample, Peter White, Ronnie Laws and harpist Jeff Majors. The multi-talented artist is versatile on soprano and tenor sax, as well as flute and vocals.
Congratulations to Kempner High School's Air Force JROTC Unit, led by Lieutenant Colonel David Graham and Chief Master Sergeant Lionel Jackson, on earning the Silver Star Community Service with Excellence Award, presented by the United States Air Force. Kempner's unit is ranked among the top five percent of JROTC units worldwide, and among only 10 Texas units, to receive the award based on their average community service hours of cadets' service to their community during the 2014-2015 school year.
 Eddie Damian, Talent Management Senior Consultant in the Human Resources Department (shown on right), will serve as President for the Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association. Damian and his fellow officers on the Executive Committee were installed at the association's summer conference. Damian, whose career spans more than 24 years, has served members on the TEPSA Board and numerous committees for more than 10 years. more ...
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 Our cameras caught Heritage Rose Elementary School administrators dressed as clowns during their back to school "Meet and Greet" event. The carnival-themed event gave new and returning students, and their families, an opportunity to meet faculty and staff, learn about student expectations and curriculum. Heritage Rose Elementary School Principal Lavanta Williams (left) and Assistant Principal Tommy Bellard (right) are shown with the Swift family (including student Richie Swift III, his father, Richie Swift, Jr. and mother, Suntara Swift).
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How big is your Badge Ball?
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Let's get the competition started!
  Many of our school receptionists have come up with a creative idea to showcase the number of visitors they receive throughout the school year. They are creating "badge balls" using the visitor tags they collect from guests. Join in the fun. Grow your "badge ball" and in mid-May we'll showcase the three largest balls with their owners. Ready, set, grow your badge ball! Pictured are Linda Stoeltje of Clements High School (left) and Simi Shulz of Ridge Point High School (right).
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