Alto ISD

🥞 Coach Shaffer’s class has been busy in their classroom kitchen! Last week, they whipped up some delicious cookies, and today they took it up a notch with pancakes! Students took orders, measured ingredients, flipped pancakes, and even delivered them. Cooking isn’t just about food—it’s a hands-on way to develop math, science, literacy, social, and life skills all at once!

We’re running a little behind on sharing, but we didn’t want to miss the chance to celebrate last week’s Alto Elementary Students of the Week! Congratulations to our outstanding students who showed great effort, character, and leadership both in and out of the classroom. We’re so proud of you! 💛🖤

Congratulations to Ms. Matej, who teaches our youngest learners in Pre-K! She shows incredible patience and care, helping our littlest Yellowjackets start their learning journey with confidence.

Thank you all for making Alto ISD shine! 🌟

It’s National School Psychology Week, and we want to take a moment to celebrate our amazing LSSP, Ms. Zara Orr! Ms. Orr serves the students of Alto, New Summerfield, and Wells with a compassionate heart and a wealth of knowledge. She works tirelessly to support students’ success and well-being, and we are so thankful for all that she does! 💛🖤

🎓 FAFSA Help for Seniors!
Seniors and their parents have two more opportunities to receive assistance with the FAFSA process from an Angelina College representative:

📅 Thursday, January 29
📅 Wednesday, February 11

Don’t miss out—mark your calendar and take advantage of this chance to get expert help completing your FAFSA!

Today, Coach Parker and Coach Mayes took the Alto Middle School girls basketball team to ISD Day at SFA! The girls got to watch the Lady Jacks secure a victory over the Lady Lions and take in some valuable game-day lessons. What a great learning experience for our young athletes! 💛🖤

Thank you for another AWESOME week at Alto ISD!!☝️

Building relationships and inspiring growth. 📈

I would like to share a few highlights of "Hard Work and Respect" from this week with you:

1. Alto 8th grade competed against the Alto Junior Varsity in a hard fought intersquad scrimmage at Cam'ron Matthews Field. We had 41 kids dressed out with a 20-6 JV win.🏈

2. Enrollment stays up at 524 students. ⬆️

3. Alto Middle School Softball beats LaPoyner. 🥎

4. Alto Elementary enjoyed costumes and participated in our annual Book Character Parade. 📚

5. Alto ISD Academic Banquet celebrating all students that scored in the Masters level on the Spring 2025 STAAR test. 🎓

6. Alto ISD hosted a Drug-Free Red Ribbon Week with a special guest speaker giving our students and staff a heartfelt and memorable message. 🎤

It is always a great week to be a Jacket!!🐝
--
Derrick Conley
Superintendent
Alto ISD

Tonight, we celebrated some of our outstanding students who mastered their STAAR tests at the 3rd annual Academic Banquet! Students and families enjoyed a delicious dinner and an inspiring message from Coach Whitaker about how to maintain the success they have achieved. We’re so proud of the hard work and determination our students show every day — both those honored tonight and all who continue striving for excellence. 💛🖤 Thank you to our staff and families for helping make this special evening possible!

Seniors explored Texas State Technical College today to check out all the amazing programs the campus has to offer!

Alto 4th graders spent the day diving into the world of agriculture! They learned where our food comes from, discovered how farmers care for animals and crops, and explored the many ways agriculture affects everyday life. A special thank you goes out to all the community partners, volunteers, and teachers who helped make this experience both educational and fun!

Mrs. Parker brought learning to life today as she read a poem about the Salem Witch Trials to the 7th and 8th grade RLA students. She was so in character, she may have even attended a meeting still dressed in her costume!

The 7th grade football game that was scheduled to be played in Mt. Enterprise this evening has been cancelled by Mt. Enterprise.

💉 Hands-On Health Science Training!
Students in Coach Whitaker’s upper-level Health Science course received hands-on training from Kierra Whitaker, FNP, this morning. Mrs. Whitaker presented a lesson on IV administration for our third-year CTE students, giving them the opportunity to practice starting IVs on a model arm. Great job, future healthcare professionals!👩‍⚕️💪

📢 Parents! Red Ribbon Week isn’t just about dressing up and theme days, it’s a chance for you to talk to your kids about the dangers of drugs and alcohol. Believe it or not, YOU have a significant influence in your children’s decision to use alcohol and other drugs. It may not seem like it, but students DO listen 👂 when their parents talk about underage drinking and substance use.

The Drug-Free Council program is funded by a grant from TxDOT to reduce the number of alcohol-related crashes in Texas. #TalkTheyHearYou

Mean Sting-

Thank you for another AWESOME week at Alto ISD!!☝️

I would like to share a few highlights of "Hard Work and Respect" from this week with you:

1. Alto Middle School with big wins versus Lovelady. 8th grade 62-32 and 7th grade 16-0. 🏈

2. Enrollment stays up at 525 students. ⬆️

3. Alto Middle School Volleyball wins the Latexo tournament. 🏐

4. Alto Elementary Rotunda Awards Assembly honoring achievements for many of our students. 📚

5. Alto High School National Honor Society induction ceremony for 17 new members. 🎓

6. Alto ISD had 27 students compete in the CCJLS Hay Judging Contest with two students, Makenzie Low (2nd place) and Eli Middleton (10th place), earn a top 10 finish in the 4-H contest. 🏅

7. Alto High School's Drug-Free Council provided public service announcements that will air on 90.9 KSWP radio. 📻

It is always a great week to be a Jacket!!🐝
--
Derrick Conley
Superintendent
Alto ISD

Mr. Conley was proud to make good news calls to Kimora and Gannon’s families this afternoon! 🎉 Both students also received tickets to tomorrow's football game. Don't forget—kickoff is at 6:30! 🏈💛🖤

Alto ISD was proudly represented by 27 FFA and 4-H members at the Cherokee County Hay Judging Contest on Wednesday!

Special congratulations to Makenzie L., who placed 2nd with a score of 224, and Eli M., who placed 10th with a score of 214 in the 4-H contest. Even more exciting—their team took home 1st place! 🏆

Way to go, Jackets! 💛🖤

Bilingualism is a superpower! Today Mrs. Dees took a brave step out of her comfort zone to present about Culturally Responsive and Sustaining Practices at the 53rd TABE conference for bilingual education in Allen, Texas. Advocating for our bilingual students is one of the many superpowers Mrs. Dees brings to our district!

⚠️ Schedule Update: Due to the threat of inclement weather, kickoff for Friday night’s game vs. Overton has been moved up to 6:30 p.m. Please spread the word! Go Jackets! 💛🖤

We’re very proud of AHS Drug-Free Council member Allison D. for having her letter to the editor published in this week’s Cherokeean Herald !