Hornet Herald

Thank you so much for joining us for last week’s Back to School Night! It was truly wonderful to see so many families walking through our halls, engaging with one another, and connecting with our Hornet staff. Building strong partnerships between school and home is a key part of our mission, and your participation last Wednesday was a significant step in that direction.

As we move into this week, our students will begin the MAP math assessment. This test is an important tool that helps our teachers understand what students know and how best to support their learning. Please encourage your student to do their best but remind them not to stress about the test. Our goal is to see continuous growth in every student throughout the school year.

Additionally, I am excited to announce our first PTA meeting of the year, taking place on Thursday, September 12 at 7:45 am. We would love to see you there! If you can't make it in person, you can still join us virtually. And if you haven’t yet joined the PTA, now is a great time to get involved and make a difference in our school community.

Thank you once again for your support and involvement. I am looking forward to another strong week.

Mr. Estes

• September 9 - 20 MAP Testing
• September 12 - PTA Meeting
• September 12 - Volleyball vs. O. Henry
• September 14 - Speedster Cross Country Classic
• September 16 - Football vs. Lamar
• September 19 - Volleyball vs. Lively
• September 19 - CAC Meeting
• September 21 - Cross Country McNeil Invitational
• September 23 - Football vs. Marshall (7th grade only)
• September 26 - Volleyball vs. Small
• September 30 - Football vs. Bailey

Each week, we will recognize our fellow Hornets who exemplify our campus-wide values and who have been MEETING and EXCEEDING our campus-wide expectations. We are ALL working hard each day to show each other and our school community kindness, respect, loyalty and safety. Here are this week's salutes.

From Ms. Morgan: Ella Freimann is an amazing problem solver and very responsible for making sure she understands and completes all class work. She has enormous respect for her education.

From Ms. Morgan: Azyl Hoovestol has demonstrated an amazing level of creativity and dedication to her school work in ELA. Her respect for her education is more than admirable.

From Ms. Morgan: Jacob Dresher's passion and enthusiasm in Food for Thought is infectious. His respect for our planet will ensure he does everything he can to stop climate change.

From Ms. Morgan: James Hadden's curiosity and enthusiasm in Food for Thought is palpable. His commitment to sharing his knowledge is unmatched.

Think Tank is starting this week and will be open Tuesday through Thursday from 3:30 to 5:00 pm. It's the perfect spot for students to work on assignments after their club, Office Hours, or practice. Remember, to join Think Tank, students need to have participated in an after-school activity and will need a pass from their teacher, coach, or sponsor.

I had the pleasure of catching up with some of our students again this week to hear about their standout moments. Here’s what they had to share:

"I had fun playing the fraction game in Mr. Jones' class. Having the highest score in my class was also pretty nice." - Caelyb Cody - 8th Grade Student

"Hanging out with my friends at lunch was fun. We didn't really do anything, I just liked being with them."

Kaden Kahlor - 8th Grade Student

"In Ms. Chambers' class was my favorite this week. We did some group work and focused on team communication." Abdullah Daadman - 7th Grade Student

"My highlight of the week has been football practice. I am having a lot of fun playing with my friends and I am looking forward to our Homecoming game." Jaxon Richardson - 8th Grade Student

"The atmosphere at yesterday's volleyball game was so fun. My friends and I were cheering loud for all the players. I also had a lot of fun in Student Council with Ms. Boyle. We had discussions on what makes a good leader." Darcy Pudhorodsky - 8th Grade Student

Subscribe to our calendar on the Kealing website and stay up to date on all the happenings! Click Subscribe on the upper right corner to connect to the calendar platform of your choice

We are transitioning to class sets for Chromebooks as a campus! This change will help reduce the risk of devices being lost or damaged, and encourage more interactive, instructional use during class time. Instead of students receiving an individual device, Chromebooks will remain in classrooms, which promotes socialization and peer to peer interactions while minimizing non-instructional use such as gaming or watching videos.

Chromebook distribution started last week, and will continue this week. Students are still welcome to bring personal devices; however, they must adhere to their teachers’ expectations and cannot use them during lunch.

Thank you for your support as we implement this new approach!

Austin ISD's Student Success Guide outlines expectations for appropriate behavior and highlights the importance of creating a positive learning environment for all students. We encourage parents and students to review the guide together to ensure everyone understands their role in fostering a respectful and supportive school community.

If you haven't already done so, please complete this year's Income Verification Form (IVF) through Enroll Austin. If your family is new to the district, you should have already completed the form. Our returning families will need to finish your annual registration forms. This information will determine if Kealing is eligible for additional funding for the 2025-26 school year. All Economic Income Verification Forms must be submitted on or before October 25, 2024.

Kealing Connects is a community engagement initiative, created by teachers, administrators, and the PTA to provide positive support for Kealing students. The goal is to continue to promote a culture of respect and increase well-being on campus. We are seeking volunteers to care, connect and have a consistent and positive presence on campus.

After we gather interest, we will match your availability and coordinate shifts. Volunteers are also required to complete a background check through voly.org and attend a one-hour orientation session with Kealing staff (offered monthly).

Please fill out THIS SURVEY so we can take the next steps to prepare you for your time at school.

If you are a returning volunteer, please let us know your availability for this year! You WILL NOT need to attend the orientation again. You WILL need to register and complete a background check through Voly.

Greetings from XC. Sixth graders on the Run Club crushed it. Lydia Higgs won the 6th grade race by 15 secs!!! Her older sister Charissa Higgs finished 5th in the 7/8 grade race.

Our 6 grade boys run club won the team competition by 44 points!

Top 5 on team. Rye Anderson won. Nathan Hildrum was 6th. Dean Clark 8th. Jimmy Cathey 14th. Jacob Dresher 16th. Absolutely awesome.

Kai Kwolek ran great and finished 5th overall in 7/8 race!!! The Boys team finished 9th but were only a few points from 3rd overall.

Girls 7/8 finished 8th but we were down some strong runners.

Overall, it was a successful first meet!!! I am proud of each of you. - Coach Speed

Our next meet is Saturday, September 14 at the Speedster Cross Country Classic.

Congratulations to both our 7th and 8th Grade Volleyball teams for their wins over Lamar last week. Both A teams played extremely hard but were edged out in the the end. We are super proud of all the student-athletes.

This week we take on O Henry Middle School. Our 8th grade team is home and the 7th grade team will travel to O Henry.

Livio Wang was recently named one of the Top 300 Junior Innovators in the 2024 Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge (JIC), a program of Society for Science. The title of his project was Effects of Electroculture on Lycopersicon lycopersicum. This honor places Livio among a select group of 300 middle school science and engineering projects in the United States from 1,862 entrants.

The next step for Livio and the Thermo Fisher JIC takes place on September 18, when 30 finalists will be announced from the Top 300 Junior Innovators. These students will be invited to Finals Week of the competition, held in Washington, DC, from October 25th – 30th.

Congratulations and Good Luck, Livio

We’re thrilled to kick off our first membership meeting of the 2024-2025 school year! Join us on Thursday, September 12 at 7:45 am in the library. If you can’t make it in person, you’re welcome to participate via Zoom. We look forward to seeing you there!

We are thrilled to introduce Ms. Maricela Aleman as our new Parent Support Specialist! We’re excited to have her join the Kealing family and look forward to the positive impact she will bring.

Ms. Aleman has prepared a calendar of Family Engagement events for September to keep our families informed and engaged. Please check it out for upcoming opportunities to connect and get involved.

Hello! My name is Sydney Jones and I am a senior at LASA High School. I attended Kealing from 2018-2021. Kealing was an essential part of my learning experience so I want to share this project. I am youth ambassadors for the World Literacy Foundation, a global nonprofit with a mission to lift youth literacy rates. I believe in the power of reducing poverty through literacy and the importance of education. Without fundamental skills such as reading and writing, people around the world are placed at a disadvantage. Currently, 750 million people worldwide are illiterate, and 258 million children are out of school. These individuals face economic, social, and health impacts that frame their quality of life. With the proper access to books and education, there are new doors opened to brighter futures with limitless opportunities. Our goal is to raise awareness to these issues at the communal level. Any money donated will go directly to the World Literacy Foundation to support their outreach programs. Donate to help us achieve our goal!

For more information, visit our website HERE

To donate, click HERE