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It’s less than a month until the 2012-13 school year begins and some new educator faces will greet incoming students at Magnolia ISD. 

 Brad Schnautz, last year’s principal at Magnolia Junior High, was chosen from more than 40 applicants to become the new Magnolia West High School Principal.

Before coming to Magnolia Junior High in 2010, Schnautz had been at Magnolia West for four years. He is looking forward to his new position.

“I am very excited about this opportunity. It’s good to be back at Magnolia West,” he said. “I feel lucky to know three quarters of the students already – the current seniors were freshmen when I was here before and I got to know this year’s freshmen and sophomores when I was at Magnolia Junior High.”

Schnautz looks forward to re-establishing relationships with students, their parents, the staff and the community and wants to help build a culture of academic excellence at Magnolia West. He feels his biggest challenge will be to implement the necessary changes at the school that will be needed to serve the collective vision for the estimated 1,785 students. He believes it is important for the school to produce well-rounded students that are prepared for the next phase of their lives. 

Schnautz came to Magnolia West in 2006, working first as a math teacher and baseball coach and then as assistant principal. He received a master’s degree in educational administration from Sam Houston University and is currently pursuing his doctorate in educational administration from Texas A&M, where he also received his bachelor’s degree. He was an educator at Conroe ISD and Bryan ISD before coming to Magnolia ISD.

Meanwhile, Brenda Marfin has been promoted to fill Shnautz’s previous job at Magnolia Junior High.

Marfin has more than 20 years of education experience, which includes serving as the MISD Social Studies Director and as the principal of Williams Elementary, as well as several years as a classroom teacher. She has been with MISD for 16 years. She is currently pursuing her doctorate in educational leadership from Prairie View A&M. She has a master’s degree in education and supervision from Sam Houston State and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston.

The district also welcomed Kendra Wiggins as the Director of Special Education. Wiggins is new to MISD, having worked at Tomball ISD for several years, most recently as the Assistant Director of Special Services. She was also a special education teacher and ARD (Admission, Review and Dismissal) Facilitator for the district.

Wiggins received her master’s degree from Sam Houston State and her bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M, and is pursuing her doctorate from Lamar University.

All three administrators say they are hard at work preparing for the coming academic year. MISD continues to grow as people move into our area and district officials expect to have approximately 12,000 students this year.

On a steamy Saturday morning, several people stood watching as an excavator crunched into a dilapidated, abandoned building on a quiet neighborhood street.

Thanks to the Magnolia Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association (MCPAAA), the demolition at 158 Roy Street was finally taking place, as a result of volunteer efforts from businesses and citizens.

The MCPAAA was originally formed by Magnolia Citizens Police Academy graduates, and Williams Elementary teachers, Jill Gabriel and Summer Foltz. They approached Magnolia Police Chief Domingo Ibarra about projects that might build a stronger bond between citizens and the police department. He immediately suggested they try to find a way to demolish the Roy Street structure. It had long been a problem for the city because of code enforcement violations, but Ibarra was reluctant to take the property owner to court due to extenuating family circumstances.

“The ladies (Gabriel and Foltz) felt this project was out of their league, but I knew this group would find a way to do it -- and they did,” said Ibarra. “Now we know what they are capable of.”

The MCPAAA rallied a group of volunteers and engaged the services of local businesses. The demolition, was first scheduled for early July, but was delayed because of heavy rains that affected the area. On Aug. 4, the project got off to an early morning start. DLG Timber and North Houston Trucking provided the heavy equipment, WCA provided debris removal and Texas Star Propane disconnected the gas lines and removed the propane tank on the property -- all free of charge.

Many residents on Roy Street came out to support the effort, happy to have the dangerous structure eliminated.

The MCPAAA will be tackling other similar projects in the near future.

“We have other unsafe structures to raze and want to begin some projects for our senior citizens,” said Gabriel. “The Magnolia Citizens Police Academy taught us how we can get involved in the community and help make a difference.”

Magnolia residents who are at least 18 years of age can participate in MCPAA projects, and will soon be able to view information about upcoming events online on the Magnolia Police Department website at www.cityofmagnolia.com. A new Citizens Police Academy will begin starting Sept. 6. Classes run from 6 to 9 p.m. for a nine week period and are free of charge. Class size is limited, so officials say that those interested should call the police department office at 281-356-2500 soon to apply.

 Photos by Cheryl Garcia

In what’s quickly becoming a highly anticipated annual event, the City of Magnolia and the Magnolia Community Foundation (MCF) have set Aug. 18 as the date for the second annual Magnolia Tailgate Party on the Stroll.

‘Last year’s turnout was amazing,” MCF President Deborah Rose Miller said. “And this year, more is being planned for all ages. It is a great way to end the summer with a family-friendly evening that celebrates all school activities with the entire community.”

Miller said there will be a few enhancements to this year’s event.

“The biggest change is two-fold,” she said. “First the bands and other groups will have performances throughout the evening on four side streets around the Stroll, instead of just one big performance. The other will be a district-wide pep rally at Sullivan Park at 7:30 p.m.”

Groups performing will be the various bands, drill teams, drumlines, cheerleaders and others from the Magnolia schools.

Karaoke has been added to this year’s event, while the Magnolia Rotary Club will have a dunking booth. Football coaches and principals from both Magnolia High School and Magnolia West High School will be inside the booth taunting tossers who will pay $1 for each throw. Proceeds from the dunking booth will benefit the Magnolia ISD athletic programs.

“The dunking booth we have this year is brand new and bigger,” Miller said.

Booster club’s from the various schools will have booths set up to sell spirit items, while other vendor and food booths will be set up along the Stroll. Vendor and food booth spots are still available for $50.

MCF has also set up a contest that offers a $500 cash prize to the school that receives the most likes on the MCF Facebook page.

“The evening will not only be a great party for all ages, but will benefit our community in tangible ways, especially the children,” Miller said. “Seeing all the kids come together in one place is something I am really excited about.”

Miller said the idea for the tailgate party came after a brainstorming session of MCF members.

“The tailgate was a creation of the Stroll committee and Ravelle Smith, who originated the concept,” she said.

There is no charge to attend the tailgate, however alcohol is not allowed. Students are encouraged to wear their activity uniform or attire to the event.

The entrance to the Stroll is located at Sullivan Park, at the intersection of FM 1488 and FM 1774. For more information or to purchase booth space call 713-806-3453, visit magnoliacommunityfoundation.org, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Magnolia ISD employees should get a break for the coming year in the form of a three percent raise across the board. According to Chief Financial Officer Erich Morris, the MISD board of trustees is expected to pass a final budget totaling $79.8 million, which is more than $1.3 million higher than the previous year, at its monthly meeting Aug. 20. Along with personnel raises, up to 16 new staff positions (six teachers and ten paraprofessionals) are anticipated, based on specific district needs.

Morris stated the budget should be balanced and would result in a surplus of up to $400,000 at the end of the year, which can help with the budget for the following year. This year’s new funds are a result of slightly higher Montgomery County property appraisals and new student growth, which is projected to be about one percent.

“The property tax rate for schools will remain the same as in 2011-12,” said Morris. “We are adopting a very conservative approach to the budget because we do not know what the next state legislature will do in regard to school funding. We are in the second year of the current two-year state finance system, which means there will be no big uncertainty in funding for the 2012-13 school year. However, there could be changes as a result of the next legislative session.”

Morris indicated that other factors could increase the amount of funding received by MISD, such as greater new student numbers than expected or higher property tax collections. However, he agreed the best approach to the budget was a conservative one, in order to meet the overall needs of the district and ensure no new layoffs.

MISD will also be increasing the lunch price for students that are not receiving reduced-price meals in order to cover rising food costs and to adhere to federal guidelines outlined in the Healthy Hunger-free Kids Act of 2010. The new lunch price will be $2.15 for elementary students and $2.40 for secondary students, an increase of $0.10 in both cases. There will be no increase in breakfast charges.

There was more good news for Magnolia ISD employees following the Board of Trustees meeting Aug. 20.  According to Chief Financial Officer Erich Morris, all full-time MISD employees will get a three percent pay raise and additionally the district will increase its contribution to employee health insurance by $50 per month. This will increase the contribution per participating employee to $275 per month.

Morris said the pay raise was good timing, given that the district had not been able to provide raises in recent years, due to state funding concerns.

“The school board felt like this was the right thing to do and is within our budget this year,” he said.

Morris explained the new insurance contribution amount is more than the minimum required contribution of $225 per month. The district conducted a survey to ensure they were in line with other districts before arriving at the $275 per month figure.

“The district performed a survey of surrounding districts and became aware that other districts were contributing a bit more,” he said. “Taking that into consideration and with premiums rising year after year, the district administration recommended the increase to the board.”

The board also committed $500,000 for district-wide technology needs, which will primarily be used for classroom computer upgrades and replacements.

“This isn’t really new funding. The intent is to replenish the technology funds that were lost during the budget cuts from recent years,” said Morris. 

The final approved budget number is $83.6 million, which is $3.8 million more than the $79.8 million previously projected. Besides the new staff benefits, all 16 new staff positions throughout the district --- six teachers and ten paraprofessionals --- were approved.

Morris said that the district decided to come up with a conservative budget this year, since the upcoming legislative session is expected by many to cut state funding even more.

“It is a challenge to budget when there is fear of the unknown,” he said. “We are balancing the fear of the unknown with the needs of our folks and doing it in a way that is conservative. We must look at what’s possibly coming in the future.”

The board is still estimating the new student growth rate to be one percent, with enrollment expected to peak by October.

A group of 25 committed Magnolia West High School Interact members, led by club president Dakota (Cody) Stormer, have began an initiative to help the Magnolia Independent School District (MISD) become more eco-friendly, by raising the awareness of students and teachers to conserve energy and reduce their carbon footprints.

This past August, Interact club members joined forces with National Honor Society members to work for a week at MISD’s J.L. Lyon Elementary. Their mission? To get the “go green” message across. They helped teachers create bulletin boards with conservation messages, moved furniture and placed stickers encouraging energy and waste conservation on lights, computers and even paper towel dispensers.

J. L. Lyon fifth grade science and social studies teacher Julie Sustala thought the work the students did was a “life saver for us teachers. They all worked enthusiastically and they did a great job.”

Connie Melton, fifth grade reading and language arts teacher at J.L. Lyon, was also appreciative of the help the students provided.

“They provided my room with a warm, cozy feel – it has never looked better,” she said. “Dakota was a student of mine here before and I saw the spark of leadership in him. I’m not surprised he has become such a good organizer.”

The Magnolia West Interact club plans a similar effort at Williams Elementary Sept. 29, with the students again donating their time and hard work. Stormer explained that projects like this are part of Interact’s environmental stewardship project for the national student organization Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA).

“We hope to add more MISD schools to our schedule throughout the school year,” said Stormer. “We want this project to help teachers educate students about their impact on the environment and make this a cleaner, greener year for our district.”

Interact “green” initiatives  include  recycling plastic bottles at Magnolia West, promoting water conservation and educating students about ways to reduce litter and pollution. 

The Rotary Club of Magnolia sponsors the Interact clubs at both Magnolia and Magnolia West High Schools.

 “Interact clubs are the high school version of Rotary – a service organization to help students give back to their communities,” Judy Bode, the club’s Rotary liaison, said. “It is exciting to watch these kids develop their own vision and leadership skills.”

Deborah Rose Miller, Rotary Club President agreed.

“We are so proud of what the Magnolia West Interact club has done,” she said. “It is truly helping to teach young people that life is not just about them but about helping others.” 

Besides being the Magnolia West Interact club founder and president, Stormer is also a board member of Keep Montgomery County Beautiful, so going green is something he is passionate about.

“We chose J.L. Lyon as the first school in our project, because I had heard that the school had been actively engaged in energy conservation in the past and thought they would welcome us,” Stormer said. “We believe this project will save the school thousands of dollars in electric bills.“ 

Magnolia West students wishing to join Interact or volunteer for the conservation project should contact Stormer at 832-533-0935 or faculty sponsor Connie Maddox at the high school. Any Magnolia or Magnolia West student is eligible to join Interact, and dues are about $15 per year.

The Magnolia Interact club’s conservation project is part of a national FCCLA competition. FCCLA comprises more than 200,000 members in approximately 6,500 chapters across the U.S. The organization focuses on helping students promote personal growth and leadership by addressing critical issues such as character development, creative thinking, interpersonal communications and career preparation. It encourages active student participation in community or family activities at local, state and national levels. For more information, visit www.fcclainc.org.

Magnolia High School celebrated its annual football homecoming recently. Reagan Villarreal (left) was named the 2012 Homecoming King, while Allison Woods (right) was named the 2012 Homecoming Queen. Both are seniors at Magnolia High School.

A woman is now sitting in the Montgomery County Jail, after being accused of putting a gun in the backpack of her boyfriend's son to try and salvage a relationship with the boy's father.

Heather Darlene Hodges, 26, of Anderson, was charged with unlawful carrying of a weapon on restricted premises and unlawful transfer of a handgun to a minor.

Deputies with the Montgomery County Pct. 5 Constable's Office, who provide security for the Magnolia school district, said the school received an anonymous call Nov. 5, that a student had a pistol in his backpack.

Upon arrival, deputies found that school administrators had already removed the student from class and found an unloaded 9mm handgun in the boy's backpack.

After taking the student into custody, deputies from the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office proceeded to question the boy for several hours. Upon realizing that he was telling the truth and had no prior knowledge of the weapon, deputies began to investigate further. The boy told deputies that Hodges might have put the weapon in the backpack because she didn't like him.

Pct. 5 deputies were able to trace the anonymous phone call to a pay phone located at a nearby Exxon convenience store.

"Security video from the store led investigators to identify the anonymous caller as (Hodges)," a Pct. 5 press release stated.

The video allegedly shows Hodges car pull into the parking lot, where she then exited the vehicle and proceeded to walk to the pay phone.

During questioning detectives say that Hodges initially denied even being at the convenience store. However, once she realized she was on video, she admitted to deputies that she had placed the gun in the boy's backpack to get him in trouble with his father.

Sources told the Tribune that the boy's father was planning to move away from Magnolia and told Hodges that she would not be coming with them.

Hodges initially agreed to turn herself in to investigators, however she instead reported to her probation officer, where deputies took her into custody.
She is on probation for a 2011 theft conviction in Conroe.

Hodges is still in the Montgomery County Jail on a total of $20,000 bond. The boy was cleared of all wrongdoing by police.

Parents of students in Magnolia were a bit on edge last week, after receiving a phone call from the district stating that a student had brought a weapon to school.

Magnolia ISD officials said that they received information that a student at J.L. Lyon Elementary was in possession of a weapon, Jan. 9.

"Staff quickly recovered an unloaded firearm without incident," the district said in a written statement. "No ammunition was found in the student's possession nor was there any evidence of intent to use the weapon on campus."

School officials would provide no other information besides what was contained in the statement. The Tribune put in a public information request asking the district to release what punishment the student will face, without identifying the student. Magnolia ISD was still examining that request as of press time.

Parents at the school said the incident was disturbing.

"I got a phone call, it was a recording, telling me a kid had a gun on my daughter's campus," said Cathy House. "I was talking about it with my mother and my daughter came in. She had no idea that it happened while she was at school."

House said her daughter told her she saw police at her school.

"It's scary, especially with what happened in Connecticut," House said.

Cpt. Glenn Arnold with the Montgomery County Pct. 5 Constable's Office, the agency responsible for school security, said students were not in danger.

"(The gun) was unloaded, recovered and secured within moments of being notified," he said. "It wasn't anything with a malicious intent; the kid was just trying to show off as kids sometimes tend to do."

The district added that they are "committed to providing a safe environment for all students and will continue to work with parents and law enforcement to achieve this goal."

The student was transported to a juvenile facility, where he was expected to see a judge last Friday, according to Arnold.

Last year was the second time that Magnolia High School Principal Jeffrey Springer was selected as a regional winner for the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals (TASSP) Principal of the Year award -- but this time it was different. This time he was also chosen as 2013's Principal of The Year for Texas, which means that of more than 1,000 school districts in the state, Springer was rated the top secondary school principal. This honor makes him eligible for the national award in 2014.

"This award is not about me," stated Springer. "This is a celebration of our community, teachers and students. In fact, as soon as I heard I won, I called a meeting so I could tell my staff that the data that resulted in this honor is about them and their students. I didn't want this to just be a title, but to inspire us to work together to live up to the expectations of our state's educators."

Springer strives to create an environment at Magnolia that is a place where lives can be transformed and characters developed. He wants to reinforce the feelings of family - with all that entails, such as togetherness, compassion and pride.

"Our school is not perfect -- it has a way to go, we all do," he explained. "Public education has something of a black eye right now, but we want to change that. We are on a quest from excellence to eminence. We want people to say that Magnolia ISD has great programs and is an academic success."

Springer, a Magnolia resident, has been an educator for more than 30 years. He was selected the Region Six Secondary Principal of the Year in 2006 and received that honor again in 2012. A former teacher and high school football coach, Springer received his B.A. in teaching from Sam Houston State and a Master of Sports Administration from the U.S. Sports Academy.

The TASSP recognizes outstanding secondary school principals annually, as part of its mission to facilitate learning through best practices in school administration. The organization was established in 1922 to build a network of Texas educators that wanted to take responsibility for the quality of school leadership. TASSP is comprised of more than 5,000 secondary campus administrators and is an affiliate of the national organization (NASSP). It is committed to increasing public awareness about the critical problems facing educational leadership and engaging partners from business, government and community groups to tackle these issues and improve public schools in Texas.

Being selected Principal of the Year is a great honor for Springer, and for Magnolia ISD in general -- it shows that the district promotes leadership above just "management," which is a big step toward achieving the "eminence" that Springer is talking about, district officials said.