2018 Annual Magazine
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VOLUME V Life SchoolMAGAZINE Ready to Learn Ready to Lead Ready for Life 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Brent Wilson Superintendent Scott Fuller Table of Contents Chief of Staff A Letter from the Superintendent 4 Student: Aziza Clerk 6 Student: Cayla Perry 8 Leadership Language & Attributes 10 Megan Harrison Chief Financial Officer School & Academic Updates 12 Athletes & Champions 14 Student: Darius Yarbrough 16 Educator & Alumnus: Jeremy LaRue 20 Student: Daniel Ashley 22 Troy Mooney New Flag Pole 24 Chief Academic Officer Student: Brayden Reed 26 Educator: Susan Wolverton 28 Gifted & Talented Program 30 Student: Shamar Williams 32 Our Graduates 34 Barry West Life School Foundation 36 Chief Operations Officer Financials & Board 38 Jennifer Wilson* Chief Culture Officer *No relation to Superintendent 2 3 Dear Life School Families, applied to their job, their team and their passions. Ready to Learn Each month, leaders throughout the organization Character and leadership are foundational to our shared personal leadership stories that highlighted Ready to Lead Life School culture. We believe in creating an the attributes we aspire to teach our students. environment for building trust, valuing people and You will continue to see this common language Ready for Life pursuing continuous improvement. As we grow as an throughout our organization as we connect the organization, it is important that we continue to activities, programs and opportunities our students cultivate the culture that has provided success for the experience every day to the attributes necessary to be past 20 years. As such, we have created a common Ready to Learn, Ready to Lead and Ready for Life. language around 15 specific attributes to ensure a I invite you to learn more about the Leader consistent focus on preparing students so they’re Profile in the article on pages 10-11. Also, look for Ready to Learn, Ready to Lead and Ready for Life. special call-outs of attributes featured throughout The new framework helps make sure we each the magazine. become Ready to Learn through the use of critical Parents, we understand you have a choice where thinking and information literacy skills, as well as your child is educated. Life School is honored to maintaining a global perspective. We are Ready to serve your family. We are committed to helping your Lead when we exhibit ethical leadership, humility child reach his or her full potential. and social awareness. We must also be collaborative, problem solvers and effective communicators. We Sincerely, are Ready for Life when we exhibit citizenship and financial literacy. Additionally, we must be self- aware, self-managed, goal-oriented and resilient. This past ear,y professional development Brent Wilson Superintendent activities around the Leader Profile provided a time for teachers and staff to personally reflect on the leadership attributes and discuss how they 4 5 Unfortunately the sadness of losing two parents at the same time started to catch up with Aziza and during her sophomore year she fell behind and failed one of her dual-credit courses. “I started at the top of my class freshman n the last semester of her eighth-grade year, but when I failed the class, I fell to 15th,” I year at Life Middle School Waxahachie, she remembers. the unthinkable happened to Aziza Clerk Despite losing her parents and hitting when both her parents were killed in a car a rough patch in her academics, Aziza was accident while traveling back home from a determined to do better. “I studied harder Houston business trip. and started getting all of my homework “We found out at 3:00 in the morning knocked out as soon as I got home from when the police called,” recalls Aziza, who is school,” she says. now a senior at Life High School Waxahachie. Aziza will graduate in the top 10 percent In an instant her life was turned upside of her class at Life High School Waxahachie down. Aziza was excited about starting high and the avid reader dreams of becoming a school before tragedy struck. book editor and writer. OVERCOMING TRIBULATION “It was really hard,” says Aziza. “I had to Her favorite books? “I liked fantasy and start making my schedule for my freshman sci-fi at first,” she says, “but I’ve moved on to year around the time when my parents died. more realistic fiction now.” And that was something that normally my She also loves watching movies and wants mom would have helped me with.” to write a screenplay herself one day. “Possibly The soon-to-be college freshman, who sci-fi,” she says. lives with her aunt (father’s sister), thinks the To help move her dreams along, Aziza has toughest thing about losing her parents is the big plans for college next year. life events they’ve either missed or are going to “At first I didn’t know where I wanted miss. “Starting high school, getting my license, to go,” she says. “But I Googled schools with TIZENSHIP CI graduation, helping me move to college,” she creative writing programs and found the ICA ETH L says. “They won’t be here to watch me grow University of Central Arkansas.” FECTIV and stretch as a person.” Her school counselor, Alysa Shull, agrees F E LIFE LEADER E E LI C V Her mom always wanted Aziza to take with Aziza’s path. ESI ENT O I R LIFE LEADER LL A B O R AT advantage of dual credit in high school. “She “She is a really good OBLEM L IP PR LIFE LEADER E H R A D S thought it’d be easier and less expensive to writer,” says Alysa. “She has ILIE C O E R ES NT O M AT earn college credits in high school and start really pushed herself, R LIFEG LEADERD M UNIC O TE out with an associate’s degree,” she recalls. taken AP courses and LIFE LEADER AL- O RIE N pulled everything LIFE LEADER S R together. She has E O L V E Aziza Clerk S E R overcome so much.” LF-A W A Life High School Waxahachie 6 7 MILITY HU UMILITY CT H FE IVE EF LIFE LEADER LOBAL E L G LIFE LEADER T H I C A LIFE LEADER E L R T A C O H I C LIFE LEADER O M AT E M UNIC P E V R S PEC TI THE MORNING MOTIVATION hat makes Life School Oak Cliff ’s heard the saying on TV, she thought, “Bet I Wannouncements so special is the could think of something like this that would inspirational saying Principal Anita Sanders help my fellow classmates get along,” she uses every morning in conclusion: “No matter remembers. the challenge, no matter what, we are always That’s when Cayla got to work on her own Lions and we never give up!” saying for the Life School Oak Cliff Lions. Principal Sanders didn’t come up with the She wrote it at home and first shared it saying by herself, though. She has fourth-grade with her sister Caitlyn, who thought it was student Cayla Perry to thank for the daily dose good. And then she shared it with her mom. of inspiration. “She loved it too,” says Cayla. “In the mornings I go around the halls and greet the students and staff,” she says. Motivation for Everyone “And on one particular morning, I saw Cayla Principal Sanders says Cayla’s dose of and she said she had something she wanted inspiration is not just motivational for the to share with me.” students. She believes it’s a daily reminder for So, Principal Sanders followed Cayla into teachers and staff that whatever challenges her classroom where Cayla gave her a piece they face during the school day can be of paper with the saying written on it. overcome with a positive mindset. That’s why “I instantly fell in love with it,” she always starts her closing line for the Principal Sanders recalls. “Then I decided it announcements with, “Teachers and students, was a perfect closer for what I was sharing no matter the challenge, no matter what, we every day over the announcements.” are always Lions and we never give up!” “It’s become a standard to share Cayla’s ZENSH Inspired by Nickelodeon ITI IP words of encouragement with the campus ICA C Cayla says the inspiration behind her every day,” says Principal Sanders. “Even in its ETH L saying came while watching a TV show simplicity, the quote holds value when faced FECTIV on Nickelodeon. with adversities.” F E LIFE LEADER E E “I got a little help from a show called LI C V ESI ENT O I Breadwinners,” recalls the nine-year-old, R LIFE LEADER LL A B O R AT who has an older sister Caitlyn, 10, and a OBLEM L IP PR LIFE LEADER E H younger brother Anthony, almost 2. R A D S ILIEN CO O E R ETheS BreadwinnersT version goes LIFE LEADER M AT somethingR like this: “No matter the challenge, G D M UNIC O TE no matter what, we always deliver and we LIFE LEADER AL- O RIE N Cayla Perry never give up!” LIFE Ca LEADERyla says that last year her friends were S R E O L V E Life School Oak Cliff Elementary notS getting along Rvery well. When she E LF-A W A 8 9 MILITY HU UMILITY CT H FE IVE EF LIFE LEADER LOBAL E L G LIFE LEADER T H I C A LIFE LEADER E L R T A C O H I C LIFE LEADER O M AT E M UNIC P E V R S PEC TI Ready to Learn What follows is a Q&A with Life School Chief Culture Officer Jennifer Wilson.