INSIDE DSISD

Dripping Springs ISD will hold a Parent University called "Understanding the Risks of Youth Substance Abuse" on Thursday, March 31, from 12:30-1:30 p.m. in the Dripping Springs High School Lecture Hall. Former DSHS School Resource Officer (SRO) Sirenna Cumberland and Dr. Brian Bobb will be the presenters. Click here to see the topics that will be covered. The presentation will be recorded and posted on the DSISD website for parents who are unable to attend.

The DSISD Community Services Summer 2022 Catalog is now available online. Registration for the full-day Camp Venture and summer camps opens Friday, April 1 at 9:00 a.m.

Families enrolling in the tuition-based Pre-K program will be entered into a lottery to determine if they are placed at their home campus. Enrollment assignments are not given on a first-come, first-served basis. In order to be included in the Pre-K lottery process, parents must complete the steps listed on this page by Friday, April 1. For more information on the registration process, please visit dsisdtx.us/registration or contact your campus registrar (contact information listed at the bottom of registration page).

This spring graduating seniors at Dripping Springs High School may choose to participate in the DSHS Senior Showcase (formerly Senior Portfolio) with a presentation or exit interview, both of which will be in front of a panel consisting of educators, community members, parents, and professionals. Volunteers with all types and levels of expertise are being sought to serve on these panels. Senior Showcase will take place April 11-14, April 18-21, and April 25. To sign-up to be a volunteer, please click here.

Dripping Springs ISD is seeking community feedback from stakeholders about the recommendations made by the district’s Long-Range Facility Planning Committee (LRFPC). The LRFPC is an advisory committee to the DSISD Board of Trustees, and has the important task of developing long-range facility recommendations to meet the needs of our fast-growth school district. DSISD has designed webpages dedicated to each LRFPC recommendation. Please visit dsisdtx.us/longrangeplanning to review these recommendations and provide feedback to the district.

The Dripping Springs ISD Board of Trustees approved the hiring of two new middle school principals at the March 28 meeting. Angela Frankhouser was named Dripping Springs Middle School principal and Kelly Miller was selected as the principal of Sycamore Springs Middle School.

A resident of Dripping Springs, Angela Frankhouser brings 25 years of experience in public education to DSISD, including 14 years in school administration. She has been a campus principal for the past nine years. She first served as the principal of Lake Travis Elementary before being chosen to open LTISD’s newest elementary campus, Rough Hollow Elementary. Prior to her years in elementary campus administration, Mrs. Frankhouser served at the secondary level as an assistant principal for Lake Travis High School. Her diverse experience also includes time leading a Title 1 bilingual campus. Her years in administration are backed by 13 years of classroom teaching at Bowie and Travis High Schools. Mrs. Frankhouser holds a bachelor’s degree (Biology) from the University of Texas at Austin and a master’s degree (Education) from Concordia University.

“We are delighted to welcome Mrs. Frankhouser to DSISD. Her extensive experience and expertise as a campus principal, together with her enthusiasm and energy, make her the perfect next leader for Dripping Springs Middle School. Mrs. Frankhouser brings a unique balance of unyielding passion for students and staff with the keen ability to create and manage campuswide systems that lead to success. I know the DSMS community will benefit from her leadership,” commented Dr. Holly Morris-Kuentz, Superintendent of Dripping Springs ISD.

Kelly Miller is currently in her fourth year as an assistant principal at Dripping Springs High School. She has served in public education for 20 years, including eight years in school administration. Before her time with DSHS, Miller served as an assistant principal at Dripping Springs Middle School. She has been an employee of DSISD since 2016. Before joining DSISD, Miller spent 14 years at Crockett High School in Austin ISD in a variety of roles, including nine years as a classroom teacher and coach, followed by promotions to instructional coach, academic facilitator, and ultimately assistant principal. Miller holds a bachelor’s degree (Psychology), a post-baccalaureate (Texas State Teaching Preparation) from Texas State University, and a master’s degree (Education) from The University of Texas at Arlington.

“Growing and promoting exceptional leaders internally within DSISD is so important to a healthy, thriving organization, and I am thrilled to announce Ms. Miller as the next principal of Sycamore Springs Middle School. Her drive to create successful student outcomes will be a perfect match for our SSMS community. She is an exceptional leader and educator and I cannot wait to watch her lead the SSMS community with the vision and tenacity she has exhibited within her career and throughout our rigorous interview process,” Morris-Kuentz continued.

“Please join me in congratulating these two successful leaders on their new roles as our middle school principals. I am beyond excited to see all they will accomplish for our middle school students,” Morris-Kuentz added.

Both Frankhouser and Miller will begin their new roles effective with the 2022-2023 school year.

Dripping Springs ISD recognized eight professionals as 2021-22 Campus Teachers of the Year on Tuesday, March 29.

Campus Teachers of the Year are:

• Diana Ballinger (Dripping Springs Elementary, first grade)
• Whitnee Dunn (Rooster Springs Elementary, fifth grade)
• Angie Ellis (Walnut Springs Elementary, fifth grade)
• Jason LaMirand (Sycamore Springs Middle School, sixth grade Science)
• Shanon Montgomery (Dripping Springs Middle School, seventh grade English Language Arts)
• Lizzy Overby (Cypress Springs Elementary, PE)
• Maddie Runyan (Sycamore Springs Elementary, kindergarten)
• Kris Vannoy (Dripping Springs High School, Pre-Calculus/PALS)

Campus winners were selected through a nomination and voting process of all staff at each school. The campus winners are now eligible for the DSISD Elementary Teacher of the Year and Secondary Teacher of the Year awards, which are chosen by a volunteer committee comprised of retired educators. The selection process is based on submitted essay responses and a virtual interview. The two winners will be announced at the May 23 Board of Trustees meeting, and will represent Dripping Springs ISD in the state Teacher of the Year contest.

To read more about our campus winners, click here.

The Dripping Springs High School speech and debate team captured first place at the District 26-5A Meet on Wednesday, March 23 in New Braunfels.

Dripping Springs had 10 students place in the top six of their respective events with eight advancing to the UIL Region IV Meet on April 22-23 at UTSA. The DSHS CX Debate team consisting of Jackson Berthelsen, Claire Bynum, Zoe Costanza, Eli Craddock, Johnny Martinez, and Katherine Mihaly also contributed to the speech and debate district championship after winning their district title in January.

Complete Results (*Regional Qualifier):

Prose
*Jake Broyles, 2nd place

Poetry
*Evie Grimm, 3rd place
Alicia Hernandez, 4th place (Alternate)

Informative
*Eli Craddock, 1st place
*Lily Claire Kroll, 3rd place

Persuasive
*Lizzie Galassini, 1st place
*Colton De Los Santos, 2nd place
Jackie Truesdell, 6th place

Lincoln-Douglas
*Brett Banks, 2nd place
*Daniel Hearne, 3rd place
Colton De Los Santos, 5th place

Dripping Springs ISD is always looking to add to our Tiger Team! For some hard-to-fill positions, a hiring incentive, job training and flexible schedules are offered. Currently, DSISD has several openings for custodians, bus drivers, instructional aides, child nutrition staff, and Kids Club after-school staff and student workers. For more information about joining the DSISD team, visit dsisdtx.us/hr. To see job postings, click here.