LIONS ROAR
September 2018 (Volume 1, Number 5)
Off to a Great Start, LPS Families!
LPS students are settled into their new classrooms. College football has begun. And, pretty soon, pumpkins will arrive at neighborhood grocers, nurseries, and pumpkin patches all around town. Yup, fall is just around the corner.
In this month's newsletter, we have put together a list of family-friendly activities for you to enjoy the (hopefully) cooler weather. You will also find information about programs and activities at LPS and of course our Student Spotlight. Enjoy!
What's Going on Around Town?
Looking for family-friendly activities? Here is a list of free and low-cost activities happening around town.
Sept. 17: Free Python Coding Class at the Frisco Library at 7 PM (ages 13+) - This group is designed for individuals with no Python coding experience who are interested in learning the language. For more information, go to https://friscolibrary.com/event/coding-python.
Sept. 22 from 3 PM - 4PM: Read to Rover at the Frisco Library - This event allows children in grades K-5 to read aloud to a therapy dog at the library. For more information, go to https://friscolibrary.com/event/read-rover.
Sept. 28 from 4:30 PM - 7:30 PM: LPS Carnival at our secondary campus hosted by the PTO - There is no cost to attend this event, but there will be tickets for purchase to play games and buy food.
Sept. 28 from 12 PM - 7 PM: Frisco Heritage Association Shawnee Trail Cowboy Day - Admission to this event is free, and there will be bounce houses, a petting zoo, pony rides, a mechanical bull, steer roping, armadillo races, arts and crafts, mock gunfights, live music, and stagecoach rides. For more information, visit http://www.friscoheritage.org/heritage-center/.
Sept. 29 - Oct. 31: Pumpkins on the Prairie - Less than a mile from LPS, Grace Avenue United Methodist Church hosts a local pumpkin patch every year that offers free hayrides, a maze, and bounce houses with special weekend activities (face painting and pumpkin launches). Pumpkins of all shapes and sizes are also available for purchase. For more information, visit https://www.graceavenue.org/pumpkins-on-the-prairie/.
Oct. 6: Fall Festival & Farmers Market - Shades of Green Nursery in Frisco will offer free hayrides, pumpkin decorating, and a petting zoo as well as gardening clinics and tips for building a fall garden. Local artists and merchants will also be there selling their goods. For more information and a coupon for a free one gallon perennial, visit https://communityimpact.com/ci-events/dallas-fort-worth/frisco/fall-festival-at-shades-of-green/.
Oct. 6 from 8:30 AM - 2 PM: Frisco Arts Walk - The Frisco Association for the Arts is hosting an arts walk, which is a free, family-friendly immersive arts experience. Participants will experience interactive street performances, street musicians, artists at work, a pop-up food truck park, and children's activities. The day will begin at 8:30 AM with a 5K (there is a registration fee for the run). For more information, visit http://friscoarts.org/frisco-arts-walk-and-run/.
Celebrate National Read a Book Day
Happy Birthday to You!
We celebrate our teachers and staff who have birthdays in September and October!
September
Hope Angell (Sept. 2)
Frederick Nickens (Sept. 2)
Shanda Trees (Sept. 5)
Jennifer Griffin (Sept. 10)
Nancy Jones (Sept. 13)
Cindy Anderson (Sept. 17)
Jammie Hoyt (Sept. 20)
Jeanne Spradling (Sept.23)
Josh Wessner (Sept. 30)
October
Priscilla Lara-Palmer (Oct. 3)
Amanda Crawford (Oct. 5)
Carrie Honaker (Oct. 6)
Audra Floyd (Oct. 7)
Danielle Standifer (Oct. 13)
Hillary Yowell (Oct. 16)
Rainie Jacks (Oct. 19)
Ericka Allen (Oct. 23)
Bobbie Goins (Oct. 23)
Angela Estrada (Oct. 29)
Tracy Kennedy (Oct. 30)
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: LEONARDO QUEVEDO
LEONARDO QUEVEDO GAINS REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCE WORKING IN FRISCO MAYOR JEFF CHENEY'S OFFICE
Eleventh-grade student, Leonardo Quevedo, has a passion for politics, and thanks to his powers of persuasion (a useful trait in politics), he was recently offered an internship in the Frisco Mayor’s office. Leonardo reached out to Mayor Cheney’s Chief of Staff, Lorie Medina, in an effort to land his first summer job. Lorie was impressed with his resume, his knowledge of our City’s government, and his willingness to contact her directly. After meeting her at the Star Center for an interview, Leonardo was offered the internship.
Leonardo started attending LPS in 2012 when he was in 5th grade. Out of all of his years at school, his two favorite classes were Principles of AV Tech and 9th grade Humanities. Leonardo serves as the Student Council Commissioner at LPS and looks forward to his classes in government and public administration.
Leonardo hopes to graduate from LPS as a top-ranked student and enroll in Collin College to complete his basic college coursework. From there, he plans to transfer to a four-year university to study subjects related to political science and law. Leonardo hopes to pursue a career in politics and will seriously consider one day running for public office.
Interning in the Mayor’s office is an excellent place to start down the path Leonardo envisions for his future. Leonardo has had the opportunity to work on some important projects and even attend events with the Mayor, who he believes has a genuine passion for Frisco.
“It’s been an amazing experience. To know that [I’m] interning for the chief-of-staff of the Mayor of one of America’s fastest-growing cities just blows my mind,” says Leonardo.
When asked what he thinks is the largest issue facing Frisco today, Leonardo says it’s keeping up with the growth and making sure the City’s infrastructure grows fast enough to accommodate all the new businesses and people moving here.
If given the opportunity to impact change in our City, Leonardo would propose electoral reform.
“I would like to change how we elect our representatives,” says Leonardo. “Frisco could save a lot of money by switching to a ranked-choice voting system, where voters can rank candidates from their most preferred to least preferred on the ballot.” Leonardo justifies his position by stating that a ranked-choice voting system would eliminate costly run-off elections. He adds that this voting system is used in cities across the world, including Minneapolis and London, and even used to fill legislative bodies in Australia and New Zealand.
Additionally, Leonardo would like to design a new flag for Frisco with “more symbolism to represent the history of our great city and what we’re best known for.”
If Leonardo decides to run for higher office, he would push for the adoption of English and Spanish as the official languages of the United States. The United States has not designated an official language at the federal level (though several individual states have designated “English” as their official language). Leonardo argues that English and Spanish should both be designated as the official languages in our country, similar to Canada adopting French and English as its official languages.
When Leonardo isn’t working, going to school, or studying, he enjoys creating election maps for use in Wikipedia articles. Under the username, “Mr. Election,” Leonardo makes simple, recolored county maps of presidential elections as well as self-made maps of parliamentary and referendum elections from around the world. Through this hobby, Leonardo made a friend from Windsor, Ontario, and they have been collaborating on map projects for more than a year.
Leonardo also enjoys playing Tetris. He is currently ranked #9 in Texas and in the top 3,500 worldwide.
Leonardo attributes his passion and all his successes to his mom. “She’s always supported me in all my endeavors and has sacrificed so much for the sake of my happiness,” he said gratefully. “Without her, I wouldn’t work nearly as hard as I do to achieve success. I just want to tell my mom how proud I am of her, and that I will keep working to make her proud.”
LPS Legacy Builders Program
The LPS Legacy Builders Program was designed to give students an opportunity to leave a legacy at LPS while contributing to the excellence of our leadership, computer immersion, and project-based learning programs for LPS students. Last year, money raised through the Legacy Builder Program was used towards the purchase of microscopes for secondary science, Amazon Fire tablets for elementary art, artwork for the secondary building, a Peer Mediation Training Program, and folding chairs for elementary's auditorium. There are three primary ways to support the Legacy Builder program.
1) Sponsor a Brick - Personalized, engraved bricks may be purchased for $75. To lock in this price and ensure your brick is installed during the next installation, please make your purchase before September 30, 2018. Click here to access the form to purchase a brick.
2) Become a Major Donor - Legacy Builder's Major Donor Plan gives donors at the $1000 level or higher an opportunity to leave a legacy by having a child's name or family name engraved on a leaf on the metal tree artwork hanging in the lobby of the secondary campus. Donations may be made on a monthly basis to help donors achieve their personal goals. Click here for more information.
3) Attend a Legacy Builder Event - The Parent Fundraising Committee plans an event each year to raise money for the Legacy Builders Program. Last year's A Taste of LPS event raised nearly $2500. This year, the Committee is planning an event with Santa on Saturday, December 8. Stay tuned to the newsletter for more information.
The next Parent Fundraising Committee meeting will be on Wednesday, Sept. 12 around 8 AM (immediately following drop-off) at Elevate Café inside Elevate Life Church. All parents are welcome to attend. If you would like more information about the Parent Fundraising Committee, please contact Sheacy Thompson at sthompson@lpsfrisco.com or (972) 370-3650 ext 122.
PARENT SEMINAR: ESTABLISHING GOOD STUDY HABITS
Monday, Sep 24, 2018, 06:00 PM
LPS Elementary Campus Auditorium
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
After-School Enrichment Opportunities at LPS
After sending surveys to our parents to determine interest in after-school activities, LPS has partnered with iCode and NuMinds to offer STEM-related enrichment classes at our secondary campus. There are opportunities for students in grades K - 11 (please see the flyers below for more information).
LPS is the P.L.A.C.E. to be!
The mission of Leadership Prep School is to inspire students to learn, grow, and lead for a lifetime. The acronym P.L.A.C.E. summarizes the five key areas that have been selected as the focus of LPS’ vision: Parent partnership, Leadership development, Academics, Creativity and Excellence.
LPS is proud to be a Leader in Me based school that applies The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to emphasize a culture of student empowerment and help unleash each child’s full potential. Focusing on the program’s timeless leadership principles nurtures the skills students need for success in the 21st century.
Leadership Prep School is recognized as a “Computer Science Immersion School” by Code to the Future. LPS integrates programming and game design into its curriculum starting in kindergarten with more advanced computer science concepts introduced as students advance each year.
Leadership Prep School is part of the New Tech Network and partners with local businesses to engage students in project-based learning activities, which enhances critical thinking skills in order that students may become strong problem-solvers. Project-based learning methodology makes learning relevant and prepares students for the demands of the workplace.
Email: info@lpsfrisco.com
Website: www.lpsfrisco.com
Location: 8100 Teel Parkway, Frisco, TX, USA
Phone: 972.370.3650
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leadershipprepschool/
Twitter: @lpsfrisco