Visual Guide Dog Gives MISD Student More Freedom

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When Mady Walker was in the eighth grade, she began losing her vision. Doctors diagnosed her with optic neuritis, an inflammation of the optic nerve that causes blurred or dimmed vision.

“With my vision, I can’t see any of my peripheral vision, which means I can’t see anything to the sides of me. It’s black,” Walker explained.

Despite her visual impairment, Walker was determined to stay active as a student. She transitioned to Legacy High School and joined the band and student council, eventually becoming the student body president in her senior year.

With special accommodations and her cane, she is able to keep up with her peers. However, Walker wanted to gain even more freedom in her final year of high school by applying for a guide dog.

The 18-year-old went to a Leader Dogs for the Blind camp in the summer for training. Within five months, she received her new companion.

When Keeper is in his harness, he knows he's on duty.

“She went to go get the guide dog in December, which was phenomenal that it happened that fast,” said Shay Utley, certified orientation and mobility specialist. “She’s the first student that I know of in Mansfield ISD that has ever had a guide dog.”

The guide dog’s name is Keeper. He’s a 20-month-old black Labrador. Walker said she is already able to do more in the short amount of time that she has had him.

“I travel a lot faster. For the most part, he is able to take me places and make me more independent as a person,” said Walker.

She said staff members and classmates have been helpful to her and are getting used to having a canine walking through the hallways.

“They’ve been super accepting. They love to learn more about him,” she said. “Both students and teachers and administration alike have been very welcoming and helpful with this process.”

Walker said although her journey has not been easy, she has finally learned that she can do just as much as someone who has perfect vision.

The senior added that caring for Keeper can be tedious, but she and her dog have been inseparable since they first met.

MISD Student Publications to be Inducted into National Hall of Fame

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The Hall of Fame is reserved for the best of the best in a particular industry, and Legacy High School’s journalism team is about to be added to the list of elite student publications in the country.

The National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) inducts a student publication into its Hall of Fame if the publication has earned 10 All-American ratings, the organization’s highest distinction, within an 11-year span.

Legacy High’s yearbook and student newspaper, titled “The Arena” and “The Rider Online” respectively, met that criterion. The Hall of Fame induction is an accomplishment that journalism adviser Leland Mallett said came sooner than he realized.

“It’s a huge honor,” said Mallett. “It just goes by fast. You’re like, ‘Really? That’s where we are? We’ve been here long enough to do that?’”

The newspaper staff prepare to cover a
football game in Oklahoma.

Students who have had a part in the success of the publications were also excited to hear the news.

“I worked on this publication for three years, and I’ve seen us get these awards all the way through,” said editor-in-chief Kathryn Pedroza. “To be part of this 10-year process, it’s been really cool to see it evolve and then us get to this point.”

Mallett said he is proud of every student who has contributed to Legacy High’s body of work and appreciates the former students who still reach out to give their feedback.

“It’s fun, their ownership in it all these years,” Mallett continued. “It’s an honor to say, ‘Hey! We’re on that list.’ Pretty proud of what the kids have done.”

Hall of Fame inductees receive a special plaque and are added to the NSPA Hall of Fame plaques, which are displayed at the semiannual national convention.

Legacy High School journalism students and staff will travel to Chicago in November to be formally recognized at the convention.

Staff members said they hope the recognition will help grow Legacy High’s journalism program and cause more students to become involved in it.

MISD Community Heads North to Support Border Brawl Football Games

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A battle over state lines kicked off the Mansfield ISD 2018-19 high school football season.

MISD football teams, bands, cheerleaders, drill teams and fans made the trip up north to celebrate the inaugural Border Brawl football competition on Aug. 31, in which five MISD teams faced five Oklahoma teams.

“This is something special for our school district and for our kids to experience,” said Legacy High School head coach Chris Melson. “It’s not just the football team. You got the bands, drill teams, cheerleaders, supporting staff… everybody gets to experience it.”

Border Brawl was brought to life by MISD Athletics Director Philip O’Neal and Superintendent Dr. Jim Vaszauskas.

Legacy High rush onto the field against Jenks.

The idea was to provide students with new opportunities while engaging in friendly competition.

“I think it’s important for us to create experiences for them,” said O’Neal. “The connections and lessons they learn from going beyond their region will help them in college and in life.”

“Our kids have never gotten to do something like this,” said Daniel Maberry, head coach at Mansfield High School. “You get to see games on T.V. all the time where teams sometimes travel to Florida or Nevada to play some of the private schools, but these are two quality programs coming together to experience something they never have before.”

The Oklahoma competition included teams from Union, Jenks, Broken Arrow, Bixby and Sand Springs.

Even though the games took place hours away, there was no shortage of MISD fans. Hundreds of people filled the stands to show their support.

“To be here at the Border Brawl is just showing that Texas and Oklahoma can come together and make something like this possible,” said Brandon Jones, junior at Summit High School.

O’Neal said that apart from the competition, Mansfield ISD being able to come together as a unit was priceless.

“This is an opportunity for Mansfield ISD to be unified in their effort to come to Oklahoma and compete against the Tulsa-area schools as one,” he said. “The benefits of that go way beyond the sports field.”

The same schools will face each other again in the Border Brawl track meet, which will take place at the start of the 2019 track season.

Inaugural Texas/Oklahoma Border Brawl Creates New Competition

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There will be a battle over state lines in the upcoming track and football seasons. Five high schools from Texas and five high schools from Oklahoma will be competing with each other to see which teams are the best.

It was an idea that formed after a brainstorming session between Athletics Director Philip O’Neal and Superintendent Dr. Jim Vaszauskas.

“I wanted to find a new way to bring attention to our student-athletes,” O’Neal said. “After tossing some concepts around, Dr. V said that we should try to contact schools in Oklahoma to play against.”

The athletics director put in a few calls and knew he had made the right connection when the voice on the other line was just as excited as he was.

Steve Dunlap, assistant athletics director for Union Public Schools, accepted the challenge for the Sooner state. He is enthusiastic about this new relationship and friendly rivalry.

The competitors met each other for the first time on Feb. 27.

“I have no doubt it’s going to be a great event,” said Dunlap. “We start March 10 with the track meet, so I’m excited about that.”

The Border Brawl track meet will feature athletes from all of the Mansfield ISD high schools, along with Oklahoma high school athletes from Union, Jenks, Broken Arrow, Bixby and Sand Springs. It will take place at MISD’s Legacy High School.

The same schools will then compete throughout the 2018-19 school year in football and track.

Each region has a tradition of excellence; and although O’Neal said he looks forward to the intense competition, his favorite part of the Border Brawl is the experiences it will give students.

“I think it’s important for us to create experiences for them,” he continued. “The connections and lessons they learn from going beyond their region will help them in college and in life.”

The announcement of the inaugural Border Brawl was officially made Feb. 27 in Tulsa. Coaches and student-athletes from all participating schools attended the press conference.

MISD High School Students Unite to Help Hurricane-Devastated School District

Hurricane Harvey made landfall on the shores of Texas in August, and the effects of the devastation will take years to mend.

Bloomington Independent School District is one of the communities that was hit hard by the storm. The area has 85 percent of its homes still damaged, and rebuilding has been a challenge—even for its schools.

When MISD high school students heard that Bloomington ISD students and their families were still struggling to recover, they decided to put their rivalries aside and join forces to make the holiday season a little more joyful.

“What we’re doing is raising this money to give back to the kids in time for the holidays so they can have the stuff they want,” said Dejardin Moffett, a junior at Timberview High School. “Their families may not be able to pay for the toys because it’s not a necessity.”

The community fundraiser was held Nov. 28 at El Primo's in Mansfield.

The students held a silent auction fundraiser and invited the community to come out and bid on several baskets full of goodies. Their goal was $10,000, but they ended up raising $15,000.

Other community members also pitched in so that Bloomington ISD students could have books, a gift card and a t-shirt.

“I know a book isn’t everything they want, but I hope they appreciate it,” said senior Sadie Johnson of Legacy High School. “I hope they feel loved, and I’m really excited.”

MISD staff and a few of the students will deliver the presents to Bloomington ISD on Dec. 13. Moffett said he hopes high school students all across the district will continue to unite for the greater good.

“We are MISD, meaning we are all one district,” he added. “Projects such as this are an example of #WeAreMISD because we’re all coming together and using our power, our great student leaders that we have at every school, and putting it together to do something great—not only for our community, but for other communities outside of us.”

“Sciyonce” Teaches Students Biology Through Popular Tunes

With her cordless mic on, classroom lights dimmed and disco lights spinning, biology teacher Arlevia Davis is all set to do her lesson review.

To the tune of a popular hip-hop song, she starts singing one of her latest creations, which teaches about DNA.

“With the expenses of materials, you can’t always get the hands-on labs,” said Davis, who is in her third year of teaching at Legacy High School. “So I decided that I should start writing songs for the large amount of vocabulary that exists in the content area just to keep it fun and exciting and interesting.”

When she performs in front of her class, she said she turns into her alter ego, Sciyonce, to shake away her nerves and become as engaging as possible.

Davis tells her class to recall her song lyrics as they answer science questions.

Davis has biology renditions of songs from various artists and genres. She said she likes to keep it different to appeal to a majority of her class.

“Students love it,” she explained. “They know class is about to get a little more upbeat when I have my Britney Spears mic on. Some of them have even told me that they appreciate the time I take to write the songs, so that was very encouraging to hear.”

Most importantly, the 15-year educator has found that the songs help her students retain the information. To her, the more annoying the song is, the better.

“I tell them, ‘I want this to be irritatingly stuck in your brain whether you like the songs or not,’” Davis continued. “I feel accomplished when they say, ‘Oh no. That song is going to be stuck in my head for the rest of the day.’”

Davis is currently working on a song about genetics. She said she hopes her performances will teach her students to be fearless in life.

MISD High Schools Give Back in Big Ways

Timberview High raised money for more inclusion in advertising.

Whoever said that kids these days don’t care about others obviously has never heard about the charity weeks that happen each year on the Mansfield ISD high school campuses.

Timberview High, Summit High, Legacy High, Mansfield High, and Lake Ridge High all get the entire campus to rally around a noble cause for a week-long fundraiser filled with pep rallies, contests, product sales, and dress-up days.

This year, students from Frontier High School—a school solely for juniors and seniors that focuses on post-graduation preparatory programs—decided they wanted to join their fellow campuses and give back to the community in a big way too.

“Our student council met over the summer and said they wanted to serve the community and create those unique experiences like the rest of the high schools in the district,” said Catherine Dearing, student council sponsor at Frontier High School.

The planning then began for Students Performing Acts of Random Kindness (SPARK) Week. Dearing said the kids chose to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Association because a number of people, including herself, have had loved ones struggle with Alzheimer’s. The goal was to create support and awareness for the disease.

"There are a lot of misconceptions about Alzheimer’s,” said the English teacher. “We were able to have an Alzheimer’s Association representative do a Q & A at our campus. I was really proud of the students and was excited to see some of the light bulbs coming on as questions were answered.”

At the end of SPARK Week, students created a promise garden to represent how each person is connected to someone with Alzheimer’s.

“It brought people together to see others going through the same thing,” said Dearing. “It certainly increased everyone’s morale and buy-in into our mission.”

She said the total amount of funds raised is still being calculated, but it was not about the money. She was happy that the week allowed students to serve the community in a way that was meaningful to them.

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Take a look at what other MISD high schools did for their charity weeks:

• Timberview High’s Helping Others Through Giving (H.O.G) Week raised more than $19,000 for Changing the Face of Beauty to drive home the need for more inclusion in advertising.

• Summit High’s Friends Reaching Out and Giving (F.R.O.G.) Week made a dream come true for a child in the Make-a-Wish Foundation who desired to go to a Manchester United soccer game.

• Legacy High’s Legacy United through Caring and Kindness (L.U.C.K.) Week contributed to the medical bills of an eight-year-old named Christian who has health complications and has undergone multiple surgeries.

• Mansfield High’s People Encouraging And Caring for Each other (P.E.A.C.E.) Week will be May 14-20. The campus will raise money for a little boy who has ganglioneuroblastoma, an intermediate tumor that grows nerve tissue.

• Lake Ridge High’s Boldly Embracing Acts of Kindness (B.E.A.K.) Week will be May 13-20. Students and staff will raise money to support a suicide prevention agency.