Seasons Greetings to all! Plans have been finalized for the
PTO’s 2nd Annual Family Reading Night, held in conjunction
with the Life School Elementary Holiday Concert. The festivities
will take place this Thursday, December 15, 2011 from 7-9 p.m. Kudos
to Mrs. Peterson for putting together a wonderful concert event with the
1st, 2nd and 3rd graders. Thanks to Ms. Price and Mr. Davis for helping
secure and set-up rooms for the evening. Special recognition goes to
Mr. Albert Thomas for serving as the PTO’s “special surprise” guest for the evening.

We are pleased to have 14 men participating as readers this year. Our special
guest readers will be Acting Dallas Fire & Rescue Chief Louie Bright, III,
Dallas City Councilmen Duane Caraway, Dallas Police Sr. Corporal Lovy
Page, Dallas Police Officer Jarrett Ehlinger and Jose Rodriguez with
PowerHouse.

Nine LSOC Dads are also serving as readers. They will be sharing the
wonderful story of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” by Dr.
Seus.

LSOC PTO Parent and professional clown/face painter, Morgan
Solis will be on hand to do face painting. We also will be offering Pictures with
Santa. Thanks to the generosity of The Paper Plate, we will be offering attendees
cookies and milk on their way home.

The overall purpose for Family Reading Night is to bring
literature to life. That is why in addition to the reading rooms for elementary students,
we will be screening the film “A Christmas Carol” for Middle and High School
Students in Hanson Hall.

We hope you can join us for a great evening of living literature, holiday fun and
fellowship, Attached is a schedule of events for the evening. If you have any
questions, please feel free to let me know.

Family Reading Night Schedule

Jacqueline M. Bell, M.S.
Life School PTO
Vice President, Development, Programs & Public Relations
(214) 290-3790 [c]

 8 Educators to be trained to identify high-potential
children in low-income settings

The sixth class of Javits-Frasier Teacher Scholarship recipients announced
for the November 3 – 6, 2011 training in New Orleans, LA.

Washington, D.C. - October 10, 2011: Today the National Association for Gifted Children
(NAGC) announced its 6th annual class of Javits-Frasier Teacher Scholars. Comprised of 8
educators from Title I schools, the group will attend a special strand of sessions at the NAGC
Annual Convention and receive a travel stipend through generous support made possible by
the Javits-Frasier Teacher Scholarship Fund for Diverse Talent Development.

The scholars are:

Misti Bustamante, Marquisha Flowers, Gohar Hamo and Paige Kendrix, all from California,
Ellen Saltzman from Texas, Lindsay Watson from Georgia, Lafina Willard from Arizona and
Dana Wiles from Maryland.

The teacher training program honors Mary Frasier, Ph.D., the late and beloved past president of
the association who led the way in identifying under-served gifted children. Dr. Frasier’s
pioneering work in the state of Georgia increased by three-fold the number of African American
and quadrupled the number of Hispanic children in gifted/talented programs. She later consulted
across the U.S. and became legendary in the field of gifted on the topic of under-served children.

In order to take expertise and tools back to their schools, these scholars will be trained using the
proven tools that Mary Frasier developed and inspired during her career. A rigorous four-day
program has been designed as part of NAGC’s 58th annual convention in New Orleans, LA,
where all of the experts in the field will gather November 3rd - 6th. The eight scholars were
selected from a nationwide pool of applicants across the country.

The national scholarships include a two-year membership to the National Association for Gifted
Children, convention registration, four days of training at convention, an assigned mentor, as well
as a travel stipend.

Donna Ford, Ph.D. of Vanderbilt University and former chair of the NAGC Diversity Committee
is confident of the purpose and success of this project. A lifelong friend and colleague of Frasier,
I cannot thank the donors enough for making this dream a reality. There is no more
fitting extension of Mary’s legacy than to dispatch 8 newfound voices for culturally and economically
diverse students who are struggling to be recognized for their potential. This is a program that I am certain
has a great future” 

For more than three decades, NAGC members have addressed the issue of under-representation
of culturally and economically diverse students. The Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students
Education Act was passed by Congress in 1988 in memory of the late senator. The program has
funded grants to focus on giftedness in disadvantaged youth. Much of the research contained in
the Frasier methodology has its origins in this research. So simultaneously, Senator Javits’
lifelong passion for civil rights is truly commemorated in this program.

“Until Now we’ve not had an organizing principle around which to coalesce and provide this
critical training. Thanks to the generosity of our members and other contributors, we can truly
advance the cause of leaving no talent behind, no matter what the economic circumstance of the
child,” says Nancy Green, Executive Director of NAGC.

The National Association for Gifted Children is the largest national organization dedicated to meeting
the needs of the more than three million gifted and talented students in the U.S. The association is fully
committed to national goals that advocate both excellence and equity for all students in public schools
and believes that the best way to achieve these goals is through differentiated educational opportunities,
resources, and encouragement.

For additional information, contact Jeff Danielian at jdanielian@nagc.org or call NAGC at (202) 785-4268.

Life School’s October 27th  Master Leadership Class included special guest performer and speaker, Chris Koehl. Chris was a top 20 contestant on this season’s So You Think You Can Dance.

Chris came all the way from Los Angeles to share the struggles he faced with dyslexia and how he overcame the challenges before him. He also gave advice on following your dreams and never giving up on your passion. In addition, he performed two original dances for our 800 Life School students who were in attendance. 

Although Chris was our main attraction, Life School students also showed off their skills in “step” and “dance”. Two groups from each of Life’s MS/HS campuses performed prior to Chris. All of our students did an excellent job.

Thank you to Ms. Russell and her step team, as well as to and Ms. Brinkerhoff and her dance Zero Hour group,  for sharing their gifts with our student body.

Our next MLC will be at the end of our first semester on January 26th. We are very excited to announce Jim Morris as our guest speaker. Jim is the coach from the movie, The Rookie, starring Dennis Quaid. 

Students, remember to be in school each day or provide a doctor’s note, show up to class on time, and follow all of our policies and procedures. We would love to see all of you at the next MLC. Parents are invited. The new six weeks begins Nov. 7 and goes through January 13.