Registration now open for summer college application workshop

The HPHS Counseling Office is proud to announce its Summer College Application Workshop for the class of 2015. The featured workshops are "Getting Started with the Common Application & the ApplyTexas Application" and "Planning & Writing College Essays and Resumes." Students will only be able to attend one session during each time slot. Both presentations will be available during each of the following four sessions: 9 a.m.-noon Friday, Aug. 1 1-4 p.m. Friday, Aug. 1 9 a.m.-noon Tuesday, Aug. 5 1-4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 5 The workshops will be held in the HPHS Library. Registration is on a "first come, first served" basis. Students will receive confirmation once they have been assigned a seat in the requested session(s). Students can register by completing the "Summer College Application Workshop" survey under the "About Me" tab in their student Naviance account. The registration cannot be accessed through parent accounts. All workshops are free to attend. Please contact the HPHS Counseling office with questions.

'Write Your World' Literary Festival concludes with awards breakfast

The Highland Park Literary Festival honored winners of the 2014 Student Writing Contest and Open Mic Night at its annual awards breakfast April 10. Winners included the following students:   Fiction: First - Sarah Grace Forbes Second - Keely Brown Honorable Mention - Hannah Kubik Creative Nonfiction: First - George Abuhamad Second - Kimberly Sun Honorable Mention - Yingfan (Linda) Du Poetry: First - Chloe Sarfatis Second - Christine Ramjee Honorable Mention - Lindsey Elliott The Lit Fest celebrated "Write Your World" events February 27-28 with a wide range of assemblies and workshops for HPHS students and the larger community. The two-day festival featured award-winning author Mark Salzman, as well as more than twenty poets, playwrights, journalists, storytellers, and songwriters. The weekend culminated with an Open Mic Nite at Half Price Books where more than 50 HPHS students gathered to share poetry, musings, and music. The Literary Festival Awards Breakfast is made possible through the generosity of the family of Warren Mills Hutcheson, who passed away in 2008 following a tragic car accident. The HP Lit Fest thanks the HPHS English faculty, La Fiesta de las Seis Banderas, HP Arts, HPHS PTA, and HPISD families for their support. Planning for the 2015 Festival is already underway. For further information, visit www.hplitfest.com

HPHS PTA president passes the torch - and gavel - to incoming president

The Highland Park High School PTA recently held its last meeting of the 2013-14 school year. After leading the PTA for the last year, Eloise Meachum was all smiles as she ran her last meeting. She received a gift from Principal Walter Kelly and flowers from incoming President Gina Culpepper. In return, Eloise passed the official presidential gavel to Gina.

HP track & field stars perform well in district meet

The JV and varsity Flying Scots track and field teams competed in the district meet April 8-9. The varsity team finished in third place, and the JV team won its meet. The following HP athletes advanced to the area meet April 16-17 at Standridge Stadium in Carrollton: Pearson Feagans - triple jump, long jump and 4x100 relay Max Hayashi - 110 meter hurdles and 4x100 relay Hayden Schneiders - 4x100 relay Andrew Frost - 4x100 relay Andrew Clyde - shot put and discus Griffin Beitter - 1,600 meter run and 3,200 meter run Rico Lara - 1,600 meter run and 3,200 meter run Rush Urschel - pole vault Danny Leland - 400 meter run and 800 meter run Tony Richards - discus

Hyer Kindness & Compassion Club support Change for Children's

The fourth-grade Kindness & Compassion Club led Hyer Elementary Students in a community service program to raise money for Children's Medical Center. The money was raised through the Change for Children's program during the week of April 7. Students were encouraged to host lemonade stands and do chores around their homes to earn extra money for Children's, benefiting the Rees-Jones Center for Foster Care Excellence at Children's Medical Center. Hyer is eagerly awaiting its fundraising total from Bank of Texas, which generously donated its time to count the donations.

Students stay UP All Night during urban campus campout

The University Park Preschool Association held its first UP All Night, a father and child urban campout, at  UP Elementary April 12. Dads and children set up their tents on the UP lawn in the afternoon and enjoyed activities across the street at Curtis Park. The children loved fishing, the climbing wall, hamster wheel and bounce houses. Later, dinner was served and the children had a pajama dance party until dark. In the morning, campers enjoyed donuts and breakfast tacos before packing up their campsites. The event was a huge success due to the hard work by event chairs Amy Pollard, Marcy Simmons, Elisabeth McHugh and Laura Saunders, and by next year's chairs Emily Lewin, Annie Stock, and Ashley Hughes and UPPA President-Elect Amanda Cejika.

City of UP to host recycling event April 26

The City of University Park will host a recycling event from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, April 26, in the MIS/HPMS parking lot.    Clear your garage and attic, and get a jump on spring cleaning! Participation is free of charge. Many paper products and documents can be disposed of including: Medical records Legal files Tax records Financial records Invoices Canceled checks Blueprints Contracts Payroll records Company letterhead Junk mail containing personal information Any information that contains credit card, social security, driver license and account numbers E-waste items can also be disposed of including: Computers/laptops Computer monitors and speakers Keyboards, mice and power supplies Printers, fax machines and scanners TVs, VCRs, PDAs and cell phones. Universal Recycling Technologies will collect and dispose of all e-waste items. The company handles disposal of electronic materials at collection events in Dallas and in cities across the U.S.

Dr. Orr coauthors article on a new vision for public education

HPISD Superintendent Dr. Dawson Orr recently authored the article "A Growing Consortium" with Coppell ISD's Superintendent Dr. Jeff Turner. The article describes the work of the Public Education Visioning Institute, which has sought to initiate a new vision for public education in Texas, and the Texas High Performance Schools Consortium, which was created by Senate Bill 1557 in 2011 to serve as the research and development arm for Texas public education.   The story was featured in the April 2014 issue of Texas Lone Star Magazine and describes the consortium's work to date. Click here to read the story.

Centennial volunteers sort 100 years of HPISD history & memorabilia

Volunteers and HPISD employees are busy preparing for the upcoming Centennial celebration. The HPISD Centennial is almost here, and volunteers are lending their time and energy to make it a celebration for the ages. As part of the Centennial activities, each campus will release students early at 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17, 2014. From 1:30-3:30 p.m., the campuses will invite families, friends and community members inside for special open houses. Each school will also host a display area to showcase the amazing artifacts and memorabilia that have been loaned or donated to the district. The displays will also be shown at the community block party Oct. 19 in the Multi-Purpose Activities Center, across from the stadium. The following volunteers have done an exceptional job of collecting and cataloguing these precious items: Mary Taylor Christi Swayze Bess Brooks Cindy Cummings Sheila Holmes Stephanie Moore Frost  Ann Smellage Thank you, volunteers!

HP tennis sweeps district meet, sends 15 to regionals

The HP tennis program began its march to state after sweeping the UIL District 10-4A Tournament April 4-5. HP athletes played tremendously and won all five events and placed second in four events. The team will send 15 athletes to the regional tournament April 14-15 at the University of Texas at Arlington.  The following are results from the district tournament: Boys Doubles First place - Captains Hunter Holman and Connor LaFavre Second place - Harrison Buford and Gardiner Perotti Girls Doubles ·         First place - Elizabeth Porter and Margo Taylor Second place - Captain Elizabeth Burgos and Jennifer Mee Girls Singles First place - Chandler Carter Second place - Caitlyn Frankel Boys Singles First place - Cole Hausman Mixed Doubles First place - Mac McCullough and Elizabeth Tedford Second place - Charlie Legg and Logan Lett

Lady Scots lacrosse club defeats Ursuline, celebrates Senior Night

HP girls lacrosse club senior captain Paige Jubinsky scored five goals in the Lady Scots' 17-9 win over Ursuline Academy April 7 at Highlader Stadium. The win gives the team a 10-1 record on the season. The team also honored Jubinsky and her parents during Senior Night festivities. The night was a special one for the Lady Scots' Junior Scot, Georgia Alessio, a third-grader at Hyer elementary. Georgia received a special jersey and an autographed poster from the team, participated in the team's warm-up, was introduced and ran on the field with the team and sat on the sidelines during the game. Georgia also played in the annual "Under the Lights" game for the girls youth program hosted by the Lady Scots.

Hyer Kindness & Compassion Club supports Change for Children's

The Hyer Kindness & Compassion Club kicked off its week-long fundraising campaign for Children's Medical Center April 4.  Club members, Hyer fourth-graders, made the rounds to each classroom presenting the spring outreach program: Change for Children's. Students spent the week raising money for Change for Children's, benefiting the Rees-Jones Center for Foster Care Excellence at Children's Medical Center.

Scots basketball coach featured in neighborsgo

Photo by Rose Baca, neighborsgo staff photographer HPHS varsity basketball coach David Piehler was featured on the cover of the April 4 neighborsgo section of The Dallas Morning News. The article looked at the history and success of the HP basketball program, as well as HP players who have gone on to find success at the college level. Click here to read the full article on the neighborsgo website.

HP Sports Club donates new scoreboard for Highlander Stadium

A mock-up of the new scoreboard is pictured above.   Thanks to the generous $600,000 donation by the HP Sports Club, Scots fans will soon be able to see video replays and highlights on a new scoreboard in Highlander Stadium. The Highland Park ISD Board of Trustees approved the purchase and installation of the new scoreboard at its April 3 called meeting.  "The new state-of-the-art video scoreboard will bring a new level of excitement to all events at Highlander Stadium," said HPISD Athletic Director Johnny Ringo. "Thanks to the Sports Club for its continued support!" The new scoreboard will be 25'x36'. Last week's enews listed the incorrect dimensions for the current scoreboard - the actual dimensions are 19.5'x36'. The new scoreboard will replace the current one located on the west side of the stadium. The scoreboard will be purchased from Daktronics, Inc. and will be installed by Reynolds Sign.

Live onstage: The Killdares, Highlander Strings & pipers

 

Dallas Celtic rock group The Killdares are bringing their unique sound to HPHS, where they will play with the Highlander Strings Orchestra and bagpipers at 6 p.m. May 1.

HPHS Orchestra Director Peggy Tucker is a long-time fan of the group, and she and The Killdares founder, lead singer and drummer Tim Smith thought the collaboration was a natural fit.  

"We'd heard about the Scots and the school's reputation for having a great music program - with bagpipers - which we loved," Smith said. "This is going to be a first for us - having student musicians as part of our show. It's not just exciting for the kids, but it's way outside the box for us."  

Tucker said the students are thrilled to be joining the band onstage throughout the performance.  

Members of the band will join students for several rehearsals before the show, which will be a part of the learning experience. The Killdares fiddle player Roberta Rast practiced with students during their April 4 class. Rast broke the ice with students by playing along with the student's practice song before wowing with them with her technique in one of The Killdares' songs.

"What a great chance for our students to see up close how professional musicians create their own unique sound," Tucker said. "And then to be able to play with the band - it's going to be fantastic!"  

When Smith heard about the Scots football team playing The Killdares in the locker room to get pumped up before a game, he said the deal was sealed.  

"At that point, we knew it was meant to be," he quipped.  

To view video of the Killdares in concert, click HERE.  

The show, a special HPISD Centennial celebration, will be from 6-7 p.m. Thursday, May 1. Tickets are free, but they are required because a full house is expected. 

Tickets will be available from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. April 25 at the HPHS Titus Box Office.

Funding for "Rocking the Centennial" concert was made possible by grants from HP Arts, PC Tag Parents and Highlander Strings Orchestra Boosters. 

Methodist Ministers Rock Out For Charity

Rusty King, Brian McPherson, and Eric Folkerth perform with Connections.

Eric Folkerth, a former associate pastor at Highland Park United Methodist Church, is one of the founding members of Connections, an enormous cover band fronted by United Methodist ministers from around North Texas.
“That probably sounds like a terrible idea,” he said, “but we’ve actually played for tens of thousands of people in the past six years, and raised hundreds of thousands for charity.”
Much like church services, the band’s shows are all free. But, much like church’s services, the band takes up an offering, usually with a specific charity in mind. The beneficiary of Friday’s show at Northaven United Methodist Church, where Folkerth has been the senior pastor since 2001, will be the United Methodist Committee on Relief. If Connections’ fans donate at least $700 that night — and Folkerth thinks they will — the band will surpass $250,000 in total fundraising.
The theme of Friday’s show, which is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m., is “Triple Play.” Connections will cover three songs each by seven artists, including Jackson Browne, Fleetwood Mac, and Blood, Sweat, and Tears.

Read more: Park Cities People http://www.parkcitiespeople.com/#ixzz2xrRN2qLT

SMU Schedules Watch Parties For NIT Finals

If you can’t make it to New York City in time to see the SMU basketball team play for the NIT championship tonight, you should know there are watch parties scheduled at Moody Coliseum and Dave & Buster’s.
And if you missed the Mustangs’ victory over Clemson in the semifinals on Tuesday night, you can watch the last few minutes of that game right here.

Read more: Park Cities People http://www.parkcitiespeople.com/#ixzz2xrRN2qLT

Trustees Sign Off on Scoreboard Funding

The video scoreboard’s configuration will be flexible, depending on how many ads are sold.

Remember a month ago, when we told you that the University Park City Council was considering a new scoreboard for Highlander Stadium? Well, the Highland Park ISD Board of Trustees had a brief meeting this morning regarding the scoreboard’s financing.
Daktronics is charging $591,600 for manufacturing the scoreboard, and the Highland Park Sports Club will pay for that. Daktronics needs a 30-percent down payment to order the scoreboard, so the trustees approved a gift of $180,000 from the club this morning. Gifts for the remainder will be approved as needed.
The installation, which will be done by Comet Signs, will cost $61,204. The school district will pay for that, using revenue from seat licensing at Highlander.
The scoreboard will basically be a giant TV, with shifting configurations depending on the sports being played. Administrators said it will come with an upgraded sound system, which will do a better job of confining its auditory output to the stadium, as opposed to the surrounding neighborhood.
Joe Taylor, the trustees’ finance officer, lauded the Sports Club as one of the district’s “premiere partners,” and Superintendent Dawson Orr said the club will soon be increasing its annual gift for unspecified projects from $130,000 to $150,000. The scoreboard will incorporate ads from multiple sponsors, with those funds going back to the Sports Club.
“While it’s going to enhance the game experience,” Taylor said of the scoreboard, “more importantly, it’s going to enhance their ability to serve as a fundraiser for the district.”

Read more: Park Cities People http://www.parkcitiespeople.com/#ixzz2xrRGWINN

Harlan Crow’s House is Filled With History

Harlan Crow added a library wing to his home along Turtle Creek. (Photo: Dan Piassick)

Harlan Crow’s Highland Park house is filled with books, manuscripts, and works of art that add up to one of the largest private collections of Americana. But even his house can get rolled.
As a simultaneous celebration of April Fool’s Day and Kathy Crow’s birthday, a group of Park Cities moms toilet-papered the Crow home at 4700 Preston Road on Tuesday night. To hear Harlan tell it, he and Kathy’s 11-year-old daughter was the ringleader of the late-night shenanigans.
“Although we deal with a lot of musty old books, we try to have fun while we’re doing it,” Crow said Wednesday during the Park Cities Historical and Preservation Society’s Distinguished Speaker Luncheon.
Crow spoke at the Dallas Country Club event because his house, and his Americana collection, will be featured on the society’s Historical Home Tour on April 12. Crow said he and Kathy have hosted a number of students and researchers through the years, “so we would love for you guys, our friends and neighbors, to have a chance to be a part of it.”
History buffs who buy tickets that day will certainly get their money’s worth. Crow’s collection includes:

• A 1493 pamphlet based on Christopher Columbus’ hand-written letter to King Ferdinand. Crow said his copy is one of only 16 known to still exist, and it’s the only one in private hands.
• One of four known copies, according to Crow, of Amerigo Vespucci’s Mundus Novus, the first published use of the phrase “New World.”
• William Pierce’s hand-written notes from the Constitutional Convention in 1787.

Crow said his collection is particularly strong in politics and government, and he’s working to strengthen it in the areas of literature, science, and commerce.
“The only thing we don’t collect is Hollywood and sports,” he said, “but sports fans will be interested to know that we do have a Honus Wagner card.”

Read more: Park Cities People http://www.parkcitiespeople.com/#ixzz2xla7mGui

Lady Scots bid adieu to Paris, will face McKinney North in 2nd round of playoffs

The Lady Scot soccer team made a strong showing in the first round of playoffs with a 10-0 win over Paris High School March 24. The Lady Scots will face the McKinney North Lady Bulldogs in the Area round of the playoffs at 6 p.m. Friday, March 28, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco. Click here for a playoff bracket. The community is invited to a send-off for the team at 3:40 p.m. Friday in front of Highlander Stadium. Go Scots!

Dallas-area homebuyers to scramble this spring

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Louis DeLuca/Staff Photographer

Dallas-area homebuyers will have to hustle to make a purchase in this spring's housing market, experts predict.

Steve Brown

stevebrown@dallasnews.com

Published: 30 January 2014 08:33 PM

Updated: 30 January 2014 08:33 PM

If you want to buy a house in the Dallas area this spring, start looking right now.

Be prepared to pay a lot more and have much less to pick from than you’re probably expecting.

That’s what real estate agents and housing analysts are warning potential North Texas homebuyers.

And they aren’t just hollering wolf.

The supply of homes for sale in this area is at a record low. And demand for housing in the Dallas market is the best it’s been in probably a decade.

I’m thinking that’s the ingredients for a crazy home market this spring and summer.

David Brown, who heads the Dallas office of Metrostudy Inc., agrees.

“It’s going to be another challenging year for homebuyers,” Brown said. “Inventory is absolutely the lowest I have seen in my records.

“When the buyers come out, they are going to see fewer options than last year,” Brown said. “I’m looking for another frenzy in the spring.”

Spring 2013 was a mess for potential homebuyers. Homes were selling here as fast as they came up for sale — sometimes for more than asking price.

Buyers who came back to the market after sitting things out during the recession had to scramble to land a home. Some couldn’t and gave up.

Real estate agents and economists expected that with the significant rise in home prices in North Texas in 2013, more properties would go on the market to take advantage of the strong buyer demand.

But that didn’t happen.

Two-decade low

The number of pre-owned homes for sale in North Texas is at the lowest level in almost 20 years.

And the supply of housing available to buyers — about 2.5 months — is the lowest it’s ever been. New home inventories are even tighter.

In some popular suburbs, the supply of pre-owned houses listed for sale at the end of 2013 was even lower. Grapevine, for instance, had only a 1.3-month inventory. The supply was only 1.5 months in Coppell and 1.6 months in Plano.

Some potential buyers scout the market and walk away, Brown said.

“One Realtor described it to me as buyer fatigue,” he said.

After looking at how little is available, some folks forget the notion of selling their current home and moving up.

North Texas home sales are likely to be held down this year only because agents and builders don’t have enough houses to peddle.

“The market will not have the ability to grow at the same rate in 2014 as it did in 2013 because of the supply constraints,” said Brown.

That’s a problem for the thousands of out-of-state workers that are coming to North Texas.

‘Nothing to show”

“Agents are contacting me almost every day wanting to know what I have coming on the market, as they have nothing to show to incoming buyers,” said Barry Hoffer, a longtime Dallas agent with Ebby Halliday Realtors. “It looks to me like [this spring] is going to be a continuation from 2013, but even more stressful with less inventory available.

“I just listed late last Thursday afternoon in the MLS a home in Far North Dallas for what I thought was a fairly aggressive price of $245,000,” Hoffer said. “We had 19 showings in 48 hours, and the home went under contract within two days for $5,000 over the asking price.”

While that might be good news for sellers, it will be bad for the North Texas economy if the situation doesn’t change, forecasters say.

“The No. 1 economic challenge for Texas going forward is if we don’t start building more homes and putting more subdivisions on the ground, the prices of housing will get so expensive that employers will no longer be able to attract workers,” warned Mark Dotzour, an economist with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. “It’s an absolute disaster for economic development.”