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I N S I D E
T H I S I S S U E :
Young Men’s
Leadership
Academy
1
South Hi Mount
ES 2
Jean McClung MS 3
Rosemont 6th 4-5
Sam Rosen ES 6
Sagamore Hills ES 6
T.A. Simms ES 7
Clifford Davis ES 7
Forest Oak MS 8
Sunrise-McMillan ES
9
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
YWLA 10
Morningside ES 11
Meadowbrook MS 11
Young Men's Leadership Academy Students
are Giving Back!
Y oung Men‘s Leadership
Academy is very committed to
serving the community in
which they are a part. In fact,
Principal Rodney White has included man-
datory community service as part of the
school‘s curriculum. All students must
complete 40 hours of community service
each school year.
YMLA has a variety of programs in place for students to earn
their hours. Habitat for Humanity is one of the programs
offered. Habitat is a program which provides opportunities for
young people to invest directly in their communities via
community service projects.
Four YMLA staff and fifteen
students volunteered their time to
revitalize a house in the area. FWAS consistently
supports the school‘s commitment to the community, and
the program provided snacks for all who participated in
Saturday‘s fun event. Special thanks to Ms. Brister and
Mr. Hooper for coordinating the day‘s program. It was a
great success, and the workout provided tremendous
health benefits!
“Only a life lived for others
Is a life worthwhile”.
Albert Einstein
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PAGE 2
South Hi Mount Elementary School Students
Want a Change for Peace!
A student‘s
imag ina-
t i o n
s p r a n g
into action with ideas
to stop bullying and
spread peace all over
the world. It hap-
pened as a result of
our new collaboration
with the Thank You
Darlin‘ (TYD) Foun-
dation, a nonprofit
organizat ion that
gives students a
chance to practice
thinking outside the
box through the study
of poetry. Promoting
strong literacy, freeing imaginations and illuminating the voices of young students are the main
goals of TYD. Each year, they produce a publication of poetry written by 3rd- 12th grade students.
This year‘s book entitled Up & Away with Words for Change was inspired by the creative thinking
of one of South Hi Mount‘s third grade students. During a dialogue in class about an acrostic
poem called ‗Peace‘, he suggested contacting a famous athlete to ask if they could supply a blimp,
so the class could fly across nations dropping out copies of the poem. Then he said, ―When people
catch and read the poem, they will know peace.‖
Many of our students will also be featured in TYD‘s region-wide youth poetry slam on Saturday,
April 19th at the Central Library in downtown Fort Worth. Come hear our poetry team express
their thoughts and ideas about change, the theme for this year. You can
take a sneak peak by reading this acrostic poem, which was written by one
of our fifth grade students.
Change
Caring for people and animals
Having fun doing it
A world without Bullies
No one hurting one another
Giving love and peace
Everyone living in harmony
A Testimonial from PFC: Robyne Henry
Jean McClung Middle School
provide. Being ranked and a COC, I know the value of the program. Before JCC, I saw myself as
ordinary, meaning I did not see any difference between myself and other students my age. How-
ever, I can assuredly claim that the JCC program has been life-changing. It has the power to mold
you into a productive student, giving you the leadership skills needed to be an effective leader.
Although, the After School Program and the JCC club is a first year program, I never expected it to
be easy, but I was surprised by the challenges. There were times when I just wanted to give up, but
being in a leadership role, I learned that you must make tough decisions. I could not leave behind
fifty-plus cadets. Each situation revealed a new aspect of leadership. In many situations I had to
learn to keep my composure because if they see me in a negative mood, the cadets would soon feed
off of my energy.
Overall, the JCC program has taught me that while being an effective leader you shouldn‘t focus on
being so demanding, but rather it‘s better to be compassionate so that your plans can be executed
correctly. From 2012-2014, I have grown mentally into a strong and effective leader. Though 2013
-2014 was a challenging year, I made it. I am blessed to have been given the opportunity to become
the first COC at Jean McClung Middle School. I am also grateful for all the wonderful opportuni-
ties the Fort Worth After School Program and the JCC club have given me and I look forward to
using my newly acquired skills to continue bettering my future. Without these two programs, my
growth for this year would be minimal.
What an awesome testimonial!
Thank you for sharing your success with us, Robyne.
T he Junior Cadet
Corps Program,
along with the
Fort Worth
After School Program at
Jean McClung Middle
School, has helped me
immensely in my middle
school and everyday life.
When I started JCC back
in 2012 at McClean Mid-
dle School, I can defi-
nitely tell you I would
have never imagined the
opportunities it would
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PAGE 3
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
PAGE 4
Rosemont 6th Grade Students
Are Baking, Beautifying and Behaving!
R osemont 6th Grade‘s FWAS Program has been
making a mark this 2013-2014 school year – with
new and creative classes, incentive trips and
parent engagement events. Our most recent class
project was our Cake Boss Challenge Competition that was
held in March. Our Cake Boss Class, taught by our art
teacher, Jackie Falcon, brought in creative and eager minds
ready to learn the craft of
cake baking, decorating, and
presentation. Our students
were assigned jobs as Execu-
tive Chefs, Sous-Chefs,
Chefs de Partie, Food Man-
agers and Tools Managers to
properly run their kitchen as
they learned the techniques
of cake baking. Over a
month‘s time, our kids
learned how to make cake
pops, cakes, frosting from
scratch and fondant. They
also mastered the skills on how to cut fondant into shapes,
numbers, animals, objects and letters.
After much preparation, our students were ready for our 1st
Annual Cake Boss Challenge Competition. Two teams competed and tested their skills in perfect-
ing their cakes. I, as the Site Supervisor, was happy to be the judge! After much deliberation, our
winners of this competition were announced. Alyssa Steward, Irene Silva DeLaRosa and Alondra
Montemayor were crowned the ―The Next Great Bakers‖. This was one of our most successful
classes yet! We are looking forward to continuing this class next semester.
Along with new and exciting classes, we are also giving back to
our community with our Campus Beautification – Spring Garden
Club. Now that Spring has arrived, our Junior Gardeners are
ready to get back in action and make our campus and community
look beautiful. Our Junior Gardeners started last Fall laying down
the ground work for our Beautification Plan. We were lucky
enough to have the Botanical Gardens of Fort Worth Team up
with the FWAS Program, who donated plants and vegetables to
keep our students busy. We have, since then, planted tomatoes, potatoes, onions, cucumbers, mel-
ons, zucchini and a variety of herbs. Our plants and trees have survived the winter and our goal is
to plant even more this Spring. Our students have truly taken pride in taking responsibility for our
garden and campus. They have learned the proper tools to use, which seasonal plants/flowers to
use and they have mastered how to maintain the life of these plants and vegetables.
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
PAGE 5
Rosemont 6th Grade Continues….
“Whatever you are,
Be a good one”. Abraham Lincoln
“Doing your best
means
Never stop trying”.
Benjamin Franklin
O ur students in the FWAS Program work hard
during the day in class and they continue their
efforts after school as well. We expect our kids to
do their best and nothing less. We hold them
accountable for their grades, for turning in missing assign-
ments and, most importantly, we want our students to best
represent Rosemont 6th Grade. Our FWAS Program has
planned very special incentive trips for those students who
have passing grades, have attended our program for 30 days
or more, and also for kids who have continued to show in-
credible behavior.
After much hard work, it was time to reward our
kids! We took the students to their first Dallas Stars
Hockey game. They were more than excited, to say
the least. We had 45 deserving students attend this
memorable event, none of whom had ever been to a
hockey game before, so this trip was extra special.
The week prior to the game, our Academic Liaison/
Coach explained the game of hockey, helping the
students understand how the game is played, so they
could appreciate the sport as well as their environ-
ment. It was an exciting, sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat
kind of game. Our students and FWAS teachers had a
wonderful time and created lifelong memories
together. Go Stars! (And Go Rosemont 6th Students)!
P A G E 6
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
Sagamore Hills Elementary School Students Get Ready for Boat Regatta
O n March 20, 2014, Sam Rosen Elementary
held their Spring Picnic parent event. The
occasion was filled with all kinds of fun
picnic-themed races.
The two that stood out the most were the pie eating
contest and the shaving cream beard race. The first
contest involved eating a jello and whipped cream
pie, which was won by our very own David and
Daniel Balleza. The second contest was for the par-
ents, who had 45 seconds to make the best shaving
cream beard on their child‘s face. Ozzy Guerrero and
Marisa Garcia won this contest.
The lively evening, although a little messy, was a lot of fun!
(For a moment, I thought it was Christmas! That is one
great Santa Claus beard)!
Sam Rosen Elementary School’s Spring Picnic Parent Event
T he Mustang Machine is under construction and the
crew is getting ready to race at the upcoming Boat
Regatta, to take place on April 26th at Hurricane
Harbor, Arlington.
The Mustang‘s Captain is Mr. Julio Martinez, and the Co-
Captain is Ralph Wade Jr. The crew said they are not going
down without a fight! So—other schools should be ready to
race! They are currently practicing their rowing skills and turn-
ing the boat.
Good Luck Kids!
“Parent involvement
boosts student achievement”.
John H. Wherry, Ed.D., President
The Parent Institute®
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
PAGE 7
T. A. Sims Students Getting “Fired Up” About Career Day!
N o, there was not a fire at
the elementary school—
just a demonstration for
our students by the Fort
Worth Fire Department (FWFD) who
joined us for our Annual Career Day
Activities. The FWFD was just one
of many representatives on hand for
the event held at T.A. Sims. ―I want to
become a Fireman‖, exclaimed FWAS
student, Tarrence Sanders, after meet-
ing one of the Firefighters. ―This will
go down in history as one of the best
Career Day Activities we have had‖,
stated Mrs. Beesley, career day organ-
izer.
Other career day presenters who took the time to visit our
students included a meteorologist, boxers, representatives from
Jungle Jim‘s Wild Encounters, a professional clown, a code
enforcement officer, and a realtor. Annette Sykes, the Site Super-
visor for Clayton Yes!, helped to organize the day. It was such a
success, we are really looking forward to next year.
A Student at L. Clifford Davis ES “Expresses What Moves Her”
A s the After School Program prepares for this year‘s
―Expressions That Move You‖ art contest, we spoke to
one of last year‘s finalists, Cung Sang, to see how she
felt about it all. We asked Cung what the last contest
was about, and her response was, ―It was about bus that make city
safe‖. Asked how she came up with her drawing idea, she said she
used ideas from ‗The Little Mermaid‘. We wondered how she felt
when she won, and she told us she was confused and happy at the
same time. When asked what she got when she won, she said she
received the copy of her picture along with a trophy. She also added
that she is very excited to enter this year‘s contest.
Good Luck, Cung!
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PAGE 8
Forest Oak Middle School Students
Are On The Move!
Kudos to Coach Nelson and Ms. D!
T he one thing I have learned through working with our students is that it
is hard to get them to move. At the beginning of the year it was so hard
to get our students to engage in physical activity. All they wanted to do
was computer lab and sit and talk, but we couldn‘t do that!
Enter Coach Nelson and Ms. D.! With their enthusiastic personalities, they
decided to get the students more involved by creating a fun, physical and motivational environment.
Coach Nelson is over our Sports Conditioning class, where students work on mastering skills for
whatever sport season is coming next. Coach explained that at the beginning of the semester it was
like pulling teeth to get the boys to warm up, which consists of laps on the track and stretches. That
changed after some encouraging words and creating a more structured class.
Students cannot participate in sporting activities or events without first going through proper warm-
ups. In the beginning, the students could only do 2 or 3 laps on the track, but today is a different
story, as they knock out 3 to 4 miles (12 to 16 laps) with each run. Ms. D. decided it was time to get
the girls moving, too, because Sport Conditioning only appealed to the boys. Ms. D. has been just as
successful with the girls, despite the fact that it was tough getting them to participate. Ms. D. got
right in there with the girls, participating in the workouts, and now these young ladies are much
more excited about exercise! The biggest thing for the girls was seeing the change in their bodies,
and I quote, ―Getting summer-time fine!‖
Coach Nelson and Ms. D. are two wonderful people who take pride in working with the after school
students at Forest Oak Middle School. Their hard work is greatly appreciated.
Thank you, Coach Nelson and Ms D.!
(Time to put on my tennies and go for a run!)
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PAGE 9
Sunrise-McMillan Elementary School Going for the “Big Leagues”
On Saturday, April 5, 2014, a select group of Sunrise-
McMillan Elementary after school students partici-
pated in the 2014 NCAA Division 1 Coca Cola Youth
Basketball Clinic at Texas Christian University
Recreation Center. It was a three-hour clinic which
targeted third through sixth grade students, with nearly
two hundred students in attendance. This event was
one of the many activities the NCAA hosted during the
Men‘s Road to the Final Four Championship. (Sunrise-
McMillan is one of the few FWISD schools selected to
participate in the Clinic).
Clinic activities included offensive and defensive drills,
fitness, conditioning, dribbling, and shooting drills.
Students were coached by members of the National
Association of Basketball Coaches, including local
Division 1, II, and III coaches. Students also received
basketball tips and mentorship with the Texas Christian
University men‘s and women‘s basketball teams. There
was also an educational session for parents to discuss
collegiate athletic recruitment, eligibility, nutrition, and
the importance of physical fitness.
Students received signed posters from the TCU Men‘s and Women‘s Basketball teams, took pic-
tures, and received a goodie bag filled with Power Ade and Coca Cola products.
YWLA Students
“Go Wild”!
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
PAGE 10
O ur recent Wilderness Explorers class was a
great success. The students learned how to
recognize animal tracks, edible plants, and
several different skills needed to live outdoors.
At first, the girls were hesitant about this class, as most of
them had never been camping in their lives. Once they got
to the campsite, however, all hesitation had vanished into
thin (outdoorsy) air. Apprehension was replaced with ex-
citement as we watched them thoroughly enjoy having to
―get down and dirty‖ as they learned about outdoor life.
During the final week of the class, students created a sur-
vival pack, were trained in the basics of first aid, and
learned how to build a fire. They also prepared and
cooked meals, set up tents, and learned where to establish
a suitable camp site. They had a blast because they knew
that they were going to be able to put all of these skills to
use.
In order to test their skills, we took them on an overnight
camping trip to Fort Richardson State Park. Upon arriving
Friday evening, the students took charge. For the first
time, the instructors became the observers. The girls had
to work as a team to find and establish the campsite in a timely manner because night was ap-
proaching. The students did so well, the instructors only had to step in a few times to help. Other
than that, the students did it all on their own. The following day, the group explored the trails and
got to see all different types of wildlife. One of the coolest parts of the trip was getting to explore
the historical landmarks that were in the state park. Everyone on the trip absolutely loved it. In
fact, one student said this trip was one of the highlights of her school year.
Smores, anyone?.....
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow.
Learn as if you were to live forever.” Mahatma Gandhi
A t Morningside Elementary, we take pride in believing that all of our students can conquer
anything! This is proven in Mr. Ed‘s Endurance Champions class, in which all of our
students put their math, spelling, and reading skills to the test in the form of exercise!
Activities include variations of basketball, baseball, and a fun game of ―Turn off the
Music.‖ The students not only have fun with physical exercise, but also mental exercise, using both
their minds and body. We caught up with a few of his youngest participants, to see what they
thought of the class:
“Mr. Ed teaches basketball.”
Craig, Pre-K
“I like this class because you can be healthy.”
Audrey, 1st Grade
A P R I L 2 0 1 4
PAGE 11
Morningside Elementary School Students
Know About Endurance
O n March 1, 2014, students from Meadowbrook Middle
School participated in the annual competition held at
Trimble Tech High School. Seventeen JCC programs
participated in the event to face the ―Buffaloes‖, but
Meadowbrook managed to stay focused and the countless hours of
practice paid off in a big way. The cadets competed in Physical
Fitness (male and female) categories, Armed and Un-armed Color
Guard, Armed Drill Team, and Armed Exhibition. They also dem-
onstrated their ―Buffalo Will‖ by competing in Academic Chal-
lenge and Jeopardy Challenge.
The Meadowbrook Buffaloes placed in the following categories:
3rd. Place in Overall Armed Drill Team Performance
3rd. Place Overall Armed Color Guard
3rd. Place in Physical Fitness Challenge
2nd. Place Overall Academic Challenge
2nd. Place Jeopardy
6th. Place in Armed Exhibition Performance
Overall, we were very proud of their performance, and their willingness to represent Meadowbrook
at a high level.
Meadowbrook Middle School Students’
Spring 2014 Drill Meet
Our Mission Statement:
“To provide quality before and after
school programs in a safe
environment that result in
educational, physical, and social
development for elementary, middle,
and high school students.”
Fort Worth After School operates at 88 Fort Worth Independent School
District campuses. Fort Worth ISD, the City of Fort Worth and the
Texas Education Agency 21st Century Community Learning Centers
offer program support to the after school program.
2901 Shotts St.
FORT WORTH AFTER SCHOOL
Maureen Stolz Fort Worth After School Phone: (817) 871-3188
Fax: (817) 871-3162 [email protected]
We are on the web!
www.fwisd.org/fwas
Vision: To provide a safe, enriching
after school environment for each
child in Fort Worth.
Find us on
