Dear Parents and Guardians:

Wasn’t the snow grand! Of course, we who don’t often experience snow found the day exciting! Undoubtedly, we might be singing a different tune if we lived through days and days of inclement weather. The recent climate challenges reminds us once again of the availability of immediate communication via Flash Alert. This service allows you to receive important school closure updates via cell phone or email. If you have not yet signed up click here to add your information.

We are entering a crucial time of the school year, and it is our hope that every student is working to his/her potential. The mandated tests that take place in the spring are ways we can demonstrate mastery of key concepts and strategies. Attached to this brief newsletter is your child’s progress report for the sixth week of the third nine weeks. If your child is experiencing difficulty in any class, there are several opportunities for help:

Tutorials are held each morning from 7:30 – 7:55. Students are expected to make prior arrangements to meet with teachers to ensure that they are available and in order to make preparations.

Upon request, teachers are accessible for conferences, which can be arranged through the middle school counselor, Rebecca Ford.

Students are encouraged to record assignments in a notebook, such as a planner.

If scheduled, students have an opportunity to receive assistance through advisory classes.

Lastly, study skills are arranged for small groups of students

For the safety of your child and all students, please follow these guidelines for dropping off and picking up your child. Students should be dropped off directly in front of the school or Viking Hall. Students who arrive before 7:55 AM, are required to wait in the cafeteria (unless tutorial arrangements have been made). Please be aware that cafeteria supervision begins at 7:30 AM. When students are dismissed at 3:30 PM, please pick them up in front of the main building. Students should not be picked up in the high school area. Additionally, students should not walk across the parking lot. At no time should cars be stopped along Highway 1431.Your assistance is most appreciated.

Many important events, such as course scheduling, cheerleader tryouts, and field trips are being planned for the spring semester. Stay tuned!

Sincerely,
Trisha Upchurch

Dear Parents and Guardians:

January has been a busy month of activity as students and teachers prepared for the district UIL Academic Competition. LVMS hosted this event Friday, January 29. Many judges and volunteers commented how well-prepared and well-behaved our students were at this competition. It was quite evident that our students rose to the challenge of reaching high expectations. I am very pleased to announce that LVMS won first place at this district competition. The results are not yet official, so in a future newsletter, I will publish a list of awards and honors. Additionally, students’ names will be published in the North Lake Travis Log.

In the meantime, I have planned two more immediate ways to recognize our students. First of all, students’ names will be read during the morning announcements. Secondly, students will be recognized at an awards assembly. A special recognition program will be held for each grade level – sixth grade at 1:40 on Thursday, February 18, seventh grade at 1:40 on Friday, February 19, and eighth grade at 2:40 on Friday, February 19. At these assemblies, students will also be recognized for other achievements, such as semester honor roll and commended achievement on benchmark tests. Parents and visitors are welcome to attend the assemblies, which will be held in the cafeteria.

Parents and volunteers played a huge role in making the UIL competition a success. So many of you helped, and we are very appreciative for your help. First of all, a tremendous thank you to Jackie Tyllick for coordinating parent volunteers for the event. Next, I appreciate the following parents for devoting your time to help with the concession: Luisa Lopez, Rhonda Gherke, Teresa Stamper, Amy Wotipka, Phillip Agilar, Lori Polk, Jacque Gray, Lisa Wylie, Laura Politkatis, Jaynie McCaleb, Julia Stewart, and Melissa Ballard. Next, thank you to Melissa Callan for coordinating the hospitality suite and the following parents for bring food: Angie Haire, Lisa Driebodt, Chris Low, Paula Hendricks, Mary Wolff, Carol Wane, Adrienne Tapia, Debbi Gracy, Gloria Salinas, Cathy Schryer, Cindy Neiland, Judi Flores, Scottie Johnson, Julia Stewart, Tammy McKinney, Jacque Waddle, and Cathy Hall. Lastly, thank you to parents who served as graders and judges for the events: Judi Flores, John Schoolfied, Angela Rodenbeck, and Mary Feagin-Phillips. Parents, your generous help with time and food are a true demonstration of the saying, "It takes a village to raise a child." If I have left off any name, I sincerely apologize because I am truly grateful for the contributions and dedications of our parents and community volunteers.

I would be remiss if I didn’t thank sixth grade parents for providing us with food on January 22. Your good cooking has made it extremely difficult for any staff members who have goals of losing weight this year, but who’s complaining! Thank you, sixth grade parents!

The students are looking forward to the next school dance, which is scheduled for Friday, January 19, from 7:30 – 10:00. Here are a few reminders about the dance:

• Students must be a LVMS 6th, 7th, or 8th grade student. No other students and/or siblings will be allowed to attend.
• Students must not be scheduled to attend detention or In-School Suspension the week of February 8-19.
• Parents should drop off students in front of Viking Hall. Students are not admitted into the dance until 7:30.
• Students must make prior arrangements to be picked up by or before 10:00 P.M.
• The district dress code requirements and the district code of conduct are followed.
• Price of admission is $4.00 per student. Tickets will be sold at the door. No refunds will be given for students who are removed from the dance for violation of district guidelines.
• Students who leave the dance before 10:00 P.M. will not be allowed re-entry.
• Students will be chaperoned by LVMS staff members.
• Parents who are interested in helping with the concession should contact one of the following parents: sixth grade – Katie Coffee, seventh grade – Mary Feagin-Phillips, eighth grade – Jacque Tyllick.

As always, I appreciate everything you do for our school. Lago Vista Middle School is a great place to be!
Sincerely,
Trisha Upchurch

January 18, 2010

Dear Parents and Guardians:

We’re at the halfway point! One more semester to go, and this school year is history! The spring semester is an exhilarating time as we prepare for important state assessments, make scheduling choices, and participate in many exciting spring events. Among the important spring events are Destination Imagination and the district UIL Academic competition. Many students have been busily preparing for both endeavors. In the next newsletter I hope to share with you a lengthy list of winners! This past nine weeks has been an exciting one. In November, about fifty students and teachers participated in Safe Schools Ambassadors training. Through this program, "families" of students and teachers meet regularly to share ways to promote school safety among their peers. The Safe Schools Ambassadors initiative provides an excellent demonstration of positive peer pressure. During the nine weeks, students answered the call to community service by donating coats to Coats for Kids and contributing food items to the Student Council canned food drive. Other meaningful service projects are sure to follow. On January 13, LVMS hosted a special meeting attended by about fifty educators from area districts. This meeting gave us a chance to "show off" some remarkable classroom instruction and programs. Special thanks to students and teachers, Ms. Whitton, Ms. Yonnone, Ms. Falk, and Ms. Weiler for participating in this event.

LVMS is especially proud of recognitions achieved by students and staff. Among them are: Gold performance Acknowledgments: Commended on Reading, Commended on Writing, Commended on Science, Commended on Social Studies, and Comparable Improvement on Reading Just for Kids Writing Award One of Ten Best Middle Schools in Central Texas Eighth Grade Volleyball District Champs Eighth Grade Football District Champs Carly Chester, 8th grade, won first place in the state Lions Club Peace Poster contest. Seventh grade girls “Blue” team claimed first place in the January 9th Lago Vista basketball tournament. Eighth grade girls basketball team captured the championship of the Lago Vista basketball tournament on January 9. Team members are: Megan Kelley, Allie McKinney, Kayla Outlaw, Liana Polikaitis, Remi Jackson, Haley Polk, Lauren Guillaume, Katy Hall, and Piper Sisemore. Lastly, the LVMS staff and I appreciate the Christmas cookies that parents provided us. What a wonderful treat and a fun way to begin the holidays! Of course, many of us have gained a few pounds, but the cookies were worth it. Thank you for your support! Sincerely, Trisha Upchurch

Student Council Update:

During the month of December, Student Council members sold Santa Grams. These merry notes brought messages of cheer to many individuals. The Student Council will be selling chocolate roses and chocolate hearts for Valentine's Day. Each one costs $1.00 and will be delivered on Friday, February 12. Orders will be taken each morning in the cafeteria the week of February 8-11. You can also email orders to Mrs. Bortolussi, Student Council Sponsor. The Student Council is also selling royal blue drawstring backpacks for $5 each. They are convenient for carrying gym clothes and other items. See Mrs. Bortolussi or come by the front office to purchase one.

Just a few reminders…

Early Release Day on January 29 LVMS is hosting the district UIL academic competition on Friday, January 29. Students will be served lunch from 11:30–12:00. School dismissal will be at 12:00. Students who are not competing in an UIL event are expected to leave campus by their usual means of transportation. Regular School Day Dismissal LVMS ends the regular school day at 3:30. At that time all students are expected to clear the building. Since the front door is locked everyday at 3:45, it is important that students collect their homework assignments and books from their lockers before leaving the building. Dress Code All LVMS students are expected to follow the district dress code. Outer garments (skirts, shorts, dresses, shirts worn over tights) are required to be no shorter than fingertip length. Clothing that is frayed, torn, or with holes is prohibited.

Avoid Tardies The first period class begins promptly at 8:00am. Students are able to enter the building each morning at 7:55am. Students who are late to classes miss valuable instruction; therefore, LVMS adheres to a tardy policy. Students who are late to school are given two warnings. Upon the third tardy, students will be assigned one day of afternoon detention for each tardy. Tutorials Teachers are available for tutorials and instruction each morning from 7:30–7:55am. Since teachers sometimes have morning duty, meetings, and other obligations, students are required to make arrangements ahead of time. This better ensures that the teacher is accessible for assistance. Students who need teacher assistance during the morning tutorial time must arrive to school before 7:45am.

Technology in Action

Ms. Lori Lind reports that students have gained valuable experience working with Microsoft word in making reports, multi-column documents, and merging data from tables to form letters. Students will soon embark upon a project in which they will select a job and create a budget for housing, utilities, transportation, and grocery using data from the internet. Many students are about to be surprised to see how much living expenses can be! Students’ experiences with Excel and other projects are providing them with multiple opportunities to develop and refine technology skills.

Upcoming Registration

LVMS students will be pre-registering for the 2010-2011 school year in February and March. Elementary school fifth graders will pre-register for middle school in May. The high school counselor will make classroom orientation presentations to the eighth grade students on February 19th. There will be an eighth grade parent meeting on the evening of Tuesday, February 23rd, at 6:30 in the LVISD Board Room for the purpose of discussing high school graduation plans, elective options, and answering questions about the pre-registration card and the pre-registration process. Sixth and seventh grade students will go through the pre-registration process the week of March 29th.

In preparation for high school pre-registration, eighth grade students have been shown how to create a four-year plan which would include all the components required for a high school diploma. Also included in the preparation for high school guidance lesson was the opportunity for eighth graders to take an online career interest inventory. Through this program students will be able to do research on careers of interest (job description, working conditions, earnings, education and training, etc.), explore schools and financial aid, and build their own portfolio. Parents are encouraged to explore along with their students the various components of the Career Cruising program which can be accessed from home. Students were given a personal ID card with their username and passwords.

Reading and Math Support

Lago Vista Middle School is dedicated to the academic and behavioral success of each of its students. One of the many ways in which we help students achieve that success is by administering benchmark tests. This year we used new software program called AIMSweb. These tests provide valuable information and indicate how well your student is progressing in reading and math. Students who were identified as needing extra remediation will be provided with appropriate interventions and progress monitoring during 6th or 7th period. It is our sincere desire that this additional support will benefit your student and help them be prepared for the upcoming TAKs test.

Honor Roll Lago Vista Middle School is proud to announce the honor roll for the second nine weeks
All "A" Honor Roll
Eighth Grade - Isabella Bortolussi, Joseph Flores, Lauren Guillaume, Christi Hudgins, Megan Kelley, Liana Polikaitis, Skyler Schoolfield, Alexander Schryer, Colton Schwartz, Sheridan Skurupey, Caelen Tapia, and Scott Zufelt.	Seventh Grade - Breanna Aaron, Madeline Ambrose, Delana Arme, Matthew Babyak, Britney Berlin, Sarah Brooks, Eric Brown, Siri Deaton, Preston Fusse-Durham, Dylan Gehrke, Brooke Imirie, Lauren Knight, Laven Low, Yarissa Martinez, Jocelynn McCaleb, Emily Moseley, Kelsey Mumford, Samuel Tiona, Mallory Vinson, and Emily Wheeler.	Sixth Grade - Jordan Bell, Nina Bortolussi, Anna-Michelle Chan, Faith Dreibrodt, Peyton Fussee-Durham, Destiny Gallagher, Allison Goins, Bailey Haire, Harley Hurosky, Lily Jameson, Kendall Kannmacher, Monica Lash, Kian Lind, Jordan Orbin, Leslie Orta, Kennedy Smith, Bryce Vogel, Jacob Ward, Abigail Wernsman, and River Wylie.
"A/B" Honor Roll
Eighth Grade - Christopher Bogart, Stephen Canizales, Katelend Carl, Delainey Derrick, Kieran Docker, Jonathan Donahue, Matthew Donahue, Dana Drake, Maddison Elliott, Elyssa Gant, Leah Gillham, Adam Gloris, Grant Guerra, Katelyn Hall, Blake Hendricks, Cole Kannmacher, Kathryn Love, Giorgie McCreary, Alexandra McKinney, Kristen Meyer, Shanley Mullen, Kayla Outlaw, Alec Pedigo, Issac Pedigo, Jorge Perez, Owen Platz, Haley Polk, Rachel Robinson, Piper Sisemore, Miles Thomas, Juan Tonche, Grayson Williams and Evan Wotipka.	Seventh Grade - Jordan Aten, Brandon Berkel, Alex Brace, Jacob Buckley, Natalie Burke-Cairl, Thomas Coffey, Tia Culbreth, Angel Gonzalez, Dylan Gracy, Destiny Greene, Justin Hudgins, Mariah Hughes, Alexis Hutchins, Collin Kurio, Alissa Leichty, Alexandra Lofton, Cindy Metcalf, Victoria Mills, Abigayle Pogue, Braxton Ridgeway, Kaelyn Ritchie, Cailee Rodenbeck, Gavin Snider, Samuel Spangler, Connor Sullivan, Lana Waddle, Noah Whitehead, and Zachary Zufelt.	Sixth Grade - Sarah Arnold, Eva Beebe, Natalie Burke-Cairl, Rylee Cline, Ryan Coleman, Jessica Collins, Ethan Crawford, Robert D’Lorm, Darby Derrick, John-Michael Didonato, Cooper Gamblin, Salvador Guillen, Brenna Hassin, Jacob Hernandez, Stephanie Knab, Hannah Knaggs, Nicholas Luckie, Jacqueline Martinez, Alicia Mendoza-Guajardo, Isabel Padilla, Shawn Polk, Savannah Powers, Peyton Price, Presley Puschman, Taylor Saucedo, Ashley Seib, Tyson Smith, Jordan Smith, Gabriel Spikes, Clayton Stamper, Savannah Sullivan, Iris Tate-Looney, Janie Waddle, Madison Walden, and Bradley Wiechman.

---

Student Council

Student Council is collecting new, unwrapped toys for the LVPD Blue Santa Toy Drive through Dec. 15.

Members will be selling Santa Grams for 50 cents every morning before school in the cafeteria Dec. 14-18. Each Santa Gram comes with a candy cane and a holiday greeting.

LVMS Student Council is having a canned food drive November 16-20, 2009.

We are collecting canned food, pasta and rice to donate to the Jonestown office of the Travis County Health & Human Services Dept.

"Nobody can do everything, but everyone can do something."

~Author Unknown

October 29, 2009

Dear Parents and Guardians:
Someone once told me that as you grow older, life seems to move much more quickly. I must be growing really old because as I write this, we’ve just completed the first nine weeks, and I wonder at how fast the time is passing. Before long, we’ll be saying good-bye to the school year, and our eighth graders will be heading to high school. I continue to be impressed with the positive attitudes and actions of our LVMS students. Perhaps I’m echoing what you as parents already know: This year’s eighth graders are excellent role models; their leadership is second to none. Our seventh grade students are energetic and have demonstrated great study habits. Our sixth graders	have adjusted well to middle school. They can find their lockers, their seven classes, and most of them can sit still for long periods of time. Our school year is off to a terrific start. Our first nine weeks was filled with memorable events. We held Curriculum Night which gave you a brief opportunity to experience middle school and meet your child’s teachers. Volleyball season has ended, and two football games remain. Our cheerleaders have led us through pep rallies in support of our athletic teams. The Varsity band members have participated in high school games and have begun competitions of their own. Destination Imagination	teams have been formed, and they are looking forward to their big day in November. Our student council is in full-swing and sponsored this week’s Red Ribbon Week. We’ve held our first dance, and the student participation was phenomenal. I could hardly keep up with their energy! We’re excited to be selected as a top ten Central Texas middle school. Many more exciting events and awards are sure to follow. I cherish the opportunities to work with your child, and I appreciate your support. Lago Vista Middle School is truly a great place to be! Sincerely, Trisha Upchurch
Student Council Update:
The Student Council sponsored Red Ribbon Week, a national anti-drug campaign for October 26-October 30. Students were given the opportunity to pledge to live a drug-free live by participating in a designated theme each day.	Members and officers of the 2009-10 Student Council are: President – Matthew Donahue Vice-President – John Beebe Secretary – Alexandra Lofton Treasurer – Breanna Aaron Reporter – Jocelynn McCaleb Eighth Grade Representatives: Maddi Elliott, Leah Gillham, Sheridan Skurupey Seventh Grade Representatives: Madeline Ambrose, Laven Low, Kelsey Mumford Sixth Grade Representatives: Nina Bortolussi, Kennedy Smith, Iris Tate-Looney Student Council Sponsor: Ms. Denise Bortolussi
Just a few reminders…
Absent from school Please notify the school of your child’s absence by calling the school office at 267-8300, extension 3500 or email the school secretary - joyce_rutherford@lagovista.txed.net. Make-Up Daily Work/Tests Students are responsible to make up any assignments missed when absent from school. Generally, three days are given for each absence. In cases where a student will miss three or more days, parents can request assignments through the school office. Late Work Policy The first day an assignment (homework included) is due, it will be evaluated on the basis of 100% of its value. On the second day, the assignment will be evaluated on the basis of 80% of its value, and on the third day, the assignment is worth a maximum of 50 points. Daily assignments/homework received after the third day will receive a zero. Tutorials Teachers are available for tutorials and make-up work assistance each morning from 7:30–7:55am. Since teachers have morning duty, meetings, or other obligations, students are asked to make an appointment ahead of time if possible. This better ensures that the teacher is accessible for assistance. Car Riders Parents, please pick up students in front of the main building. For each child’s safety, students are required to wait in front of the main building and are forbidden to cross the parking lot. Bus Riders Any time your child needs to ride another bus than his/her usual route, he/she must have a written note signed by the parent or guardian. The note must be brought to the front office for approval. It is the student’s responsibility to have the note approved and present the note to the bus driver. The written note with a signature of approval is the only guarantee that the student can ride a different bus. Approvals to change buses must be made prior to afternoon dismissal. Grades Online It is possible to check grades for your child online. Email to Parents Many of our parents have noticed they are not getting the e-mails we've sent out as group notices from the school. This can happen if our email is recognized as a large bulk mailing or if the email appears to be unknown or new. We previously sent two group mailings, on October 16 (school dance) and October 19 (T-shirt sales). Both mailings were sent by regina_carmichael@lagovista.txed.net as Mrs. Carmichael is the staff member who sends middle school group messages. To adjust this, go to your SPAM/BULK/JUNK mail folder, look for any names or addresses you recognize, and add them to your accepted contacts list. The next time you receive something from that address, you should receive in your in-box. Not all e-mail services call it specifically SPAM, BULK or JUNK. Yours may have another name. Hopefully, this will make it easier to find blocked messages in your JUNK folder.
Volleyball Highlights:
The volleyball season has ended. The 8th grade “Blue” team had an overall record of eleven wins and two losses. Additionally, the Blue team was the Robinson “white bracket” tournament champion and placed second in the Jarrell tournament. The 8th grade Gold team finished the season with five wins, four losses, and two ties. The Gold team placed fourth in the Blanco tournament. According to Coach Standiford, “Both teams	have improved so much this season. They put in a lot of hard work and effort. Congratulations to both teams for a great WINNING season.” The 7th grade Gold team finished the season with a overall record of four wins, four losses, and one tie. In district play, the Gold team tallied four wins with only one loss. The girls took third place in the Blanco 7th grade volleyball tournament. The 7th grade Blue team finished the	season with an overall record of seven wins and six losses. In district play the Blue team finished with three wins and three losses. The Blue team took third place in both the Robinson and Jarrell tournaments. Both teams worked very hard all season and showed tremendous improvement. Coach Thailing appreciates all the girls’ hard work and dedication and looks forward to continued success in the basketball season already underway.
Football Highlights:
The football teams have two more games this season. To date, the 7th grade team has won four games and lost two. The 8th grade team has won six and lost one. Each week, Coach Rogers compiles the football results in newsworthy fashion. He truly demonstrated his “sports-writing ability.” Here are some of the most memorable plays of this football season: 7th grade offense: JT Buckley scored the first	touchdown of the season on a 55 yard scamper and the only touchdown against Thrall. The offensive line put up 20 points against Lexington. 7th grade defense: Chayseland Taylor served as middle linebacker against Lexington. The defensive line performed admirably against Bartlett. 8th grade offense: Grayson Williams made the 318 throwback to Nick Lash for a touchdown against Rogers. Colton Schwartz	made a 65 yard run for a touchdown against Salado. 8th grade defense: 8th grade defense stood against Salado to prevent the 2-point conversion that would have tied the game for Salado. 8th grade special teams: punted 64 yards against Salado putting them on their 10-yard line with two minutes left in the game on their last possession of the ball game.
Cheerleader Report:
The LVMS cheerleaders have supported our football teams well at games and conducted two incredible pep rallies this year. The girls will continue to support our programs through basketball, promoting goodwill messages, and planning a pep rally. The cheerleaders have also represented Lago Vista well at the Varsity home games selling programs for the Booster Club.	The 2009-10 cheerleaders are: Seventh grade – Delana Arme, Sarah Brooks, Serena Farries, Alexandra Lofton, Laven Low, Kelsey Mumford, Haley Pace and Cailee Rodenbeck. Eighth grade – Bella Bortolussi, Leah Gillham, Katy Hall, Remi Jackson, Allie McKinney, Kayla Outlaw, Haley Polk and Piper Sisemore. The cheer sponsor is Mrs. Tracy Burke.
Honor Roll for First Quarter–2009-2010 Lago Vista Middle School is proud to announce the first quarter honor roll for the 2009-2010 school year.
All "A" Honor Roll
Eighth Grade - Joseph Flores, Lauren Guillaume, Katy Hall, Blake Hendricks, Christi Hudgins, Alexandra McKinney, Kristen Meyer, Kayla Outlaw, Liana Polikaitis, Skyler Schoolfield, Alexander Schryer, Colton Schwartz, Sheridan Skurupey, Caelen Tapia, and Scott Zufelt.	Seventh Grade - Breanna Aaron, Kameron Alderman, Madeline Ambrose, Delana Arme, Jordan Aten, Matthew Babyak, Britney Berlin, Sarah Brooks, Thomas Coffey, Tia Culbreth, Preston Fussee-Durham, Dylan Gehrke, Dylan Gracy, Mariah Hughes, Alexis Hutchins, Brooke Imirie, Lauren Knight, Marlen Lopez, Laven Low, Yarissa Martinez, Jocelynn McCaleb, Cindy Metcalf, Emily Moseley, Kelsey Mumford, Abigayle Pogue, Mallory Vinson, Lana Waddle, Emily Wheeler, and Noah Whitehead.	Sixth Grade - Nina Bortolussi, Michelle Chan, Robert D’Lorm, Joseph Didonato, Faith Dreibrodt, Peyton Fussee-Durham, Cooper Gamblin, Allison Goins, Bailey Haire, Harley Hurosky, Lily Jameson, Kendall Kannmacher, Hannah Knaggs, Monica Lash, Nicholas Luckie, Jordan Orbin, Kayden Pierce-Hubbard, Austin Polk, Kennedy Smith, Iris Tate-Looney, Abigail Wernsman, and Robert Wylie.
"A/B" Honor Roll
Eighth Grade - Christopher Bogart, Isabella Bortolussi, Stephen Canazales, Kateland Carl, Christopher Chan, Delainey Derrick, Kieran Docker, Matthew Donahue, Maddison Elliott, Elyssa Gant, Grant Guerra, Cole Kannmacher, Megan Kelley, Nicholas Lash, Kathryn Love, Taylor Loyd, Giorgie McCreary, Shanely Mullen, Owen Platz, Haley Polk, Maximino Rios-Guevarra, Rachel Robinson, Miles Thomas, Juan Tonche, Grayson Williams, and Evan Wotipka.	Seventh Grade - Troy Ballard, Brandon Berkel, Alex Brace, Jacob Buckley, Madison Calhoun, Michael Carpeno, Siri Deaton, Jonathan Donahue, Serena Farries, Angel Gonzalez-Valero, Jerry Hatfield, Justin Hudgins, Maxwell Jackson, Jon-Michael Kirksey, Collin Kurio, Alissa Leichty, Alexandra Lofton, Thomas Lopez-Hipolito, Levi Michael, Victor Ray Polk, Braxton Ridgeway, Kaelyn Ritchie, Cailee Rodenbeck, Gavin Snider, Samuel Spangler, Jacob Standiford, Zachary Teagle, Jameson Tidwell, Samuel Tiona, and Zachary Zufelt.	Sixth Grade - Berenice Alvarado, Sarah Arnold, Jordan Bell, Andrew Callan, Cullen Coffey, Ryan Coleman, Jessica Collins, Ethan Crawford, Darby Derrick, Destiny Gallagher, Devin Gracy, Salvador Guillen, Derek Haines, Brenna Hassin, Jacob Hernandez, Brendan Leichty, Kian Lind, Alicia Mendoza-Guajardo, Leslie Orta, Isabel Padilla, Colin Platz, Savannah Powers, Peyton Price, Presley Puschman, Ashley Seib, Daniel Smith, Jordan Smith, Gabriel Spikes, Clayton Stamper, Bryce Vogel, Madison Walden, Jacob Ward, and Bradley Wiechman.

---

LVMS 7th & 8th grade football teams traveled to Lexington on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009 for their first district game. Both teams took to the field with scoring on their mind. Devoted fans - who sat through the games, sheltering themselves with umbrellas, coats, plastic bags and blankets - were not let down!

7th grade - 14-20

8th grade - 34-6
Way to go Vikings!

Congratulations to the twenty-four LVMS students who were invited to participate in the Duke Talent Identification Program (TIP) this year. Students are identified using the state accountability test-TAKS. These students made perfect scores on either the Mathematics or Reading test, or both!

September 10, 2009

LVMS was ready for some football! 7th & 8th Grade football started the season at home September 10th. Cheerleaders were in the cafeteria bright and early to paint faces. The afternoon pep rally made us scream, scream louder, stomp, clap, laugh...and attempt to see who was "the cheesiest."

A little rain didn't keep Viking fans from rooting for their boys.

7th grade played a great first game, holding Bartlett until the bitter end when they scored a touchdown in the last few minutes of the game.

8th grade came out "Viking tough" and stomped St. Andrews 28-0!

Looks like it will be a great season...

September 3, 2009
7th & 8th grade girls came out strong and ready to go - kicking off the season at home September 3.

7th Gold was defeated by Manor 25-18, 25-22
7th Blue defeated Manor 26-24,15-25,25-23

8th Gold defeated Manor 20-25, 25-7, 25-17
8th Blue defeated Manor 25-20, 25-12
Come watch a game and show that Viking Spirit!

Want to know what's happening on other campuses in the district? Sign up to receive the LVISD Family Calendar. You can check out the current calendar, then click Sign Up Here to add your email address to the list. Each Friday, you will receive a calendar for the week ahead.

On behalf of the Lago Vista Middle School faculty and staff, I welcome you to what promises to be an exciting, productive school year. LVMS has achieved the rating of Recognized campus by the Texas Education Agency. We celebrate many accomplishments from the past school year, and I look forward to many more fantastic achievements for the 2009-10 school year. Hold on to your seat!

The first day of school often brings some nervous jitters, excitement, and anticipation. If your child is a car rider, please plan to deliver and/or pick up your child directly in front of the main building. For everyone’s safety, students will not be allowed to walk across the parking lot to accept rides. Additionally, please be reminded that students are not allowed to enter the building until 7:30am; consequently, students who arrive to campus before 7:30am are not supervised.

Please make sure that your child has lunch money on the first day of school. Breakfast is $1.40 and is served from 7:30 to 7:55am. The meal price for lunch is $2.25. Meals can be purchased online at MealTime Online. For more information about this service, see "MealTime" on the district web site.

LVMS boasts of a fantastic returning staff. Only a few personnel changes have been made this year. As you know, Paul Bixler retired after serving in the district for thirteen years. I am excited about my new role as LVMS principal and have been busy all summer making plans for the new school year. Our two new staff members are familiar faces to us, and we're happy to have them in full-time teaching roles. Bethany Pickard, who worked with math students last year, is our new sixth grade math teacher. Secondly, Andrew Stehn has assumed the position as assistant band director.

Whether as a participant or spectator, middle school offers many ways for students to become actively involved. We appreciate the support of our parents and community members in our middle school classroom activities and after-school programs. One of our first events will be Open House/Curriculum Night on Tuesday, September 29, from 5:30–7:30pm. This event is a special opportunity to meet your child’s teachers and become acquainted with curriculum expectations. I hope you are able to attend.

For additional information regarding LVMS activities and announcements, please check our website or call 267-8300.

Again, I welcome you to the new school year, and I eagerly anticipate a year of celebrating success at Lago Vista Middle School.

Trisha Upchurch
Principal, Lago Vista Middle School