INSIDE DSISD
The latest news from Dripping Springs ISD
WEEK OF APRIL 25, 2022
PARENT UNIVERSITY SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 28
Dripping Springs ISD will hold a Parent University on Cyberbullying and Cyber Safety on Thursday, April 28, from 12:30-1:30 p.m. in the Dripping Springs High School Lecture Hall. Presenter Sergeant Amy Gonzales works in the Child Exploitation Unit as part of the Criminal Investigations Division in the Office of the Texas Attorney General. A recording will also be posted on the DSISD website for those unable to attend.
CLASS OF 2022 TOP 10 SENIORS ANNOUNCED
The Dripping Springs High School list of “Top 10” students by academic rank for the Class of 2022 has been announced by Principal Angela Gamez. The top-ranked senior and valedictorian for the Class of 2022 is Karsten Bobb, and the second-ranked student and salutatorian is Sophia Fisher. All 10 students carried an overall weighted grade point average of 109 or higher.
Class of 2022 Top 10 Seniors (by academic rank)
Karsten Bobb (Valedictorian)
Sophia Fisher (Salutatorian)
Kalea Caldwell
Audrey Balsdon
Weston Kirk
Dominic Gearing
Carys Blackmon
Aysa Yadlowsky
Sydney Richard
Matthew Patrick
THREE DSHS STUDENTS WIN STATE TITLES AT TAPT SPEECH CONTEST
Three Dripping Springs High School students won state titles at the Texas Association for Pupil Transportation (TAPT) School Bus Safety Speech Contest on Monday, April 25 in Waco.
Lizzie Galassini captured her second consecutive and third overall state title at the event, winning the senior competition and being named the overall state winner. Jackie Truesdell was named the freshman class winner and Jake Broyles was selected as the junior class champion. Dripping Springs High School swept the Region 13 competition held earlier this spring with sophomore Cooper McClure also advancing to state.
The annual TAPT contest provides an opportunity for high school students to prepare and present an original oration to convey the given school bus safety topic for the year. This year’s topic was “1 Bus + 1 Driver = A Big Impact on Education”.
As the overall state winner, Galassini will present her speech at the TAPT Conference in June in Corpus Christi.
DSHS DOUBLES TEAM CLAIMS BRONZE MEDAL AT UIL STATE TOURNAMENT
Dripping Springs High School tennis players Whitney Robbins and Lexian Andrushko finished as mixed doubles state semifinalists at the UIL 5A State Tournament on Tuesday, April 26 in San Antonio.
The DSHS duo began the tournament by defeating Katy Jordan’s Rachana Hari and Vincent Rivas, 6-0, 6-1, in the quarterfinals. In their afternoon match, the Tigers fell to Hattie Berend and Steven Lee of Wichita Falls, 6-3, 6-1, to end their state title run.
Robbins and Andrushko qualified for state after winning the Region IV-5A competition. Robbins appeared in her third state tournament while Andrushko made his first showing.
The state semifinal appearance is the best finish for the DSHS tennis program since Jayci Goldsmith won the girls' singles state championship in 2018.
THREE DSHS HOSA STUDENTS ADVANCE TO INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
Three Dripping Springs High School students in the Health Science program qualified for the 2022 HOSA International Leadership Conference after placing in the top three or top 10 percent of their respective events at the Texas Leadership Conference.
Karenna Edwards captured the state title in Healthy Lifestyles while Arysta Visser placed second in Pharmacy Science to advance to the international competition. Priya Chandrani rounded out the qualifiers by placing in the top 10 percent of competitors on the Healthcare Issues Exam.
In total, eight DSHS students placed in the top 10 in their events. Three students placed in the top 10 in Medical Reading with Bailey Inglish finishing fourth, Teresa Brod placing sixth and Alyssa Stradling claiming 10th place. Rylea Bernhard was a fifth-place finisher in Research Poster, Rosalyn Brysch placed seventh in Biomedical Laboratory Science and Connor Johnson finished 10th in Health Informatics.
Brysch ($2,000) and Visser ($500) also received HOSA scholarships.
A school-record 12 DSHS students qualified for the state event for their performances at the Texas Area 1 Spring Leadership Conference in February.
The International Leadership Conference will be held June 22-25 in Nashville, Tennessee.
DSMS STUDENT ADVANCES TO NATIONAL HISTORY DAY COMPETITION
Dripping Springs Middle School student Grant Gillum won the Texas History Day Junior Division competition for the second consecutive year on Saturday, April 23 for his website, “The 1959 Soviet-American Exhibitions: Cultural Diplomacy Sparks a Debate in the Kitchen".
In February, Gillum won the regional competition to qualify for the state event. He was a third-place finisher at the national competition in 2021. Gillum will compete virtually in the national event from June 12-16. This is the third-straight year a DSISD student has advanced to nationals.
Sycamore Springs Middle School student Blaine Lovett was a state finalist for his individual performance, “Chernobyl: Through the Eyes of an Old Man”, to place among the top 10 projects in the state.
SSMS students Landon Treague and Diego Barreto were awarded two special prizes for their documentary, “Pearl Harbor”. They were honored with the Maritime Projects prize by the National Maritime Historical Society, awarded to the top two maritime entries. They also received the Naval Order of the United States recognition from the Texas Commandery of the Naval Order of the United States, awarded to entries that have researched and prepared projects relating to naval and maritime subjects.
SSMS students Amir Banky and Cooper Gray were also state qualifiers with their exhibit, “Why Normandy? The Allies Debate Where to Land”.
The National History Day® contest encourages students to conduct historical research on a topic of their choice. Each year, a theme is chosen for broad application to world, national, or state history and its relevance to ancient history or to the more recent past. The 2021-2022 theme is “Debate & Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, Consequences”.
DSHS SPEECH & DEBATE STUDENTS QUALIFY FOR STATE
Two Dripping Springs High School speech and debate students placed in the top three at the Region IV-5A Academic Meet to qualify for the UIL State Meet in their respective events.
Lizzie Galassini placed third in Persuasive Extemporaneous Speaking to advance to state for the second consecutive year. In Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Brett Banks qualified for state with a third-place finish.
Weston Kirk placed fourth in Ready Writing to medal and will serve as a state alternate. Daniel Hearne and Jake Broyles also medaled with fifth-place finishes in Lincoln-Douglas Debate and Prose Interpretation, respectively.
Banks and Galassini will compete at the UIL State Meet on May 24-25 in Austin.
DSHS TRACK & FIELD ATHLETES QUALIFY FOR REGIONALS
Fifteen members of the Dripping Springs High School track and field team qualified for the Region V-5A Meet after placing in the top four of their respective events at the District 25/26 Area Meet on Wednesday, April 20 at Canyon High School in New Braunfels.
For the boys, Brant Melton (pictured) captured area titles in the 800 and 1600 meters. He timed 1:57.19 in the 800 and 4:21.72 in the mile to total 20 points for the Tigers.
The 4x100-meter relay team of Luke Hudson, Garon Duncan, Chase Whisenant and Gunnar Betts recorded a second-place finish with a school-record time of 42.227. Duncan, Whisenant and Betts joined Boston Papp in the 4x200-meter relay to place second in a time of 1:28.36.
Rounding out the regional qualifiers for the boys was Gage Groce, who timed 14.91 in the 110-meter hurdles for third place, and Betts in the 100 meters with 10.95 for third.
The boys’ team placed fourth in the 16-team field with 69 points.
On the girls' side, Ava Williamson placed second in the high jump with a leap of five feet, four inches. On the track, Kaleigh Howell recorded a second-place finish in the 400 meters with 56.76 and Sophia Farris took second in the 300-meter hurdles with 44.05.
Karsten Bobb advanced to regionals in two events, placing third in both the mile and two mile with times of 5:08.51 and 11:20.62, respectively. Kate Ginther also qualified in two events with fourth-place finishes in the 800 meters and mile, timing 2:17.40 and 5:12.01.
The 4x100-meter relay team of Chloe Fredenburg, Howell, Taliyah Spain and Ellie Hodsden set a school record with 48.29 to finish fourth and round out the regional qualifiers for the Tigers.
The girls team placed sixth as a team at area with 53 points.
The Region IV-5A Meet will be held April 29-30 at Heroes Stadium in San Antonio.
DSHS SOFTBALL TEAM WINS DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP
The Dripping Springs High School softball team won the District 26-5A Championship for the second consecutive year with a 14-2 record against district opponents. The Tigers will face Georgetown East View in a best-of-three series to begin the playoffs. The series opener will take place Thursday, April 28 at 7 p.m. at East View High School and DSHS will host game two on Friday at 5 p.m. If necessary, game three will take place 30 minutes after the conclusion of game two. Tickets for Thursday's game can be purchased here.