Denton ISD

Ryan Elementary School

Teacher chosen for program in Japan

Nancy Walkup, an art teacher at Ryan Elementary School, has been chosen as one of 200 teachers to go to Japan for three weeks in June to participate in the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program.

The Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program provides American primary and secondary school teachers and administrators with fully funded short-term study tours of Japan.

Walkup, who has been the art teacher at Ryan Elementary since it opened in 2001, was named Ryan’s Teacher of the Year for 2007. She received state and national recognition when she was named editor of SchoolArts Magazine in 2005. She is also the co-author of a book, Bridging the Curriculum Through Art.

From 1991 to 2001, she was the project coordinator for the North Texas Institute for Educators on the Visual Arts at the University of North Texas. In 2001, she was named Texas Art Educator of the Year.

As a volunteer, Walkup teaches seminars at Ghost Ranch in Santa Fe, N.M., and helps plan local and state art education conferences.

Title I meeting planned for April 24

Parents whose children attend area private schools are invited to a Title I Meeting at 4 p.m. Thurs­day, April 24, in the Redbud Room of the Professional Dev­el­op­ment Center, 1212 Boli­var St. It is sponsored by the the Denton school district’s Federal Programs Depart­ment  with Lisa Glenn as the director. The meeting will be about federal funds and private schools.

For more information, call 940-369-0677.

Ryan High School

Students get national honors for literary letters

The Texas Center for the Book recently named several students from Ryan High School as finalists in the Letters About Lit­era­ture Essay Contest.

From more than 3,000 entries, national judges chose Michelle Hess’ letter to Frederick Douglass, Alyssa McCormack’s letter to Barbara Ehrenreich, and letters to James McBride from Robbie Evans and Cassie Wilson. The students are in Advanced Place­ment English III classes; their teachers are Jane Welborn and Traci Burt.

The event is sponsored by the Library of Congress, Texas Asso­cia­tion of School Librarians and Texas Center for the Book.

ARGYLE ISD

Argyle High School

Argyle UIL team places first in regional meet

The Argyle High School UIL academic team recently won the Class 3A Region 1 academic meet at Odessa Community College. Argyle amassed 178 points; Sem­inole was second with 124 points.

Argyle’s science team of Thom­as Quintana, Kevin Wilker­son, Tyler Kass and David Graf placed first. Individually, Quintana was first, Wilkerson was second, Kass came in third and Graf placed fourth. In biology, Wilkerson placed first. In chemistry, Quin­tana won first and Kass placed second. In physics, Quintana won first, while Wilkerson and Graf tied for second.

In mathematics, the team of Quintana, Erik Katzen, Nick Strelke and Phillip Fullingim came in first place. Individually, Quintana placed first, Katzen placed second, Strelke was fourth and Fullingim came in seventh.

In number sense, the team of Quintana, Katzen, Strelke and Fullingim won first. Individually, Quintana was first, Katzen was third, Strelke placed fourth and Fullingim placed seventh.

In calculator applications, the team of Strelke, Katzen, Robbie Ehlers and Kass placed second. Individually, Strelke won first, Katzen placed third, Ehlers came in seventh and Kass placed ninth.

In computer applications, Kris­ten Gill won third place and Andrew Morrison placed fifth. In current events, Wilz Peiser re­ceived fifth place. In editorial writing, Haley Hagan placed fifth. In social studies, Nicole Brammer came in sixth.

Other students who competed were Matt Opel, Claire Edwards, Liz Fryer, Megan Kaase, Christa Conroy, Michelle Burns, Jared Rogers and Michael Wolfe.

Argyle will compete in the UIL academic state meet May 2-3 at the University of Texas. Argyle will enter four teams and nine individuals at the meet. 

Immaculate Conception Catholic School

Students take third place in one-act play contest

Immaculate Conception Catholic School took third-place honors Saturday in the Area 1 Private School Interscholastic Asso­cia­tion One-Act Play competition, held at Liberty Christian School in Argyle.

Immaculate Conception presented Dragon of the Winds. Award recipients in­cluded Claire Pierson, All-Star Cast; Sarah Owens and Scott Wolf, Honor­able Mention All-Star Cast; and Kennedy Feigle, Rising Star Award.

Cast and crew members also in­cluded Travis White, Adam Dorais, Casey Estorque, Britton Rowley, Nick Zimmerer, Madi­son Morgan, Hannah Schoen­dorf, Jessica Riney, Gage Salsman, Nick Murphy, Logan Trach­ta, Meg Garvert, Bethany Rush, Catarina Nobre-Gomes, Kallie Ralston, Delaney Shanahan and John Baker. Irene Dougherty directed this year’s one-act play, assisted by Eric Grunor. Set assistants included Alan Zimmerer and Bill Owens.