CHS Newsletter

Bobcat Nation,

As we head into another week, it’s been wonderful to see our students and staff really settling into the rhythm of the school year. Classrooms are running smoothly, and the positive energy around campus is growing stronger every day. Looking ahead, you will need your camo gear ready for Friday’s dress up theme and match up against Gunter! Let’s show up in full Bobcat spirit as we get ready to support our teams.

Thank you, as always, for the continued support at home. Together, we’re making this a year to remember!

We will do our best to let you know of the events going on at CHS. Each week, you will find the Athletics Calendar here and you can click on it to see what is going on for the week. We will advertise for other events in Academics, CTE, and Fine Arts.

• After a storm forced our Friday Night Lights to Saturday afternoon, our Varsity football team went down to Mansfield and beat Waco La Vega 36-7.
• Our Cross Country teams ran against some large schools at the McKinney Boyd Bronco Stampede Saturday morning with some impressive times! Senior, Ryder Phillips, took 1st in the Open Boys Varsity 5K with a time of 17:01.
• Our Varsity Volleyball team plays at Home Tuesday night, and it is Student Organization Night! Show up to see our student organizations be recognized and to support our girls.

Photos by Ryder Phillips (12)

This year's staff have come up with an incredible theme of.... THEN. NOW. ALWAYS.

At Celina High School, our story is built on tradition, strengthened by growth, and carried forward with pride. Then represents our roots—the memories, values, and traditions that shaped us. Now celebrates the moments we’re living, the students who fill our halls, and the achievements that make this year unique. Always is our promise: no matter how much our city grows or how the world changes, the bond of being a Bobcat endures. This yearbook honors every student, in every role, reminding us that "once a Bobcat, always a Bobcat."

Gabriela is a senior from Basque Country, Spain, and Mirella is a Brazilian/Italian junior from Italy. Both Gabriela and Mirella have jumped into our Celina culture and made an effort to attend events, make new friends, and involve themselves within our school. They are most excited to try famous American foods, celebrate our national holidays, and learn what the US High School experience is like. They have most enjoyed our pep rallies, our elective courses, and the new friends they have made, but they are missing their friends and family back home, their pets, the beach (Gabriela), and their native food (they haven't experienced those famous US foods yet!). They are both helping put together our HS yearbook this year, and they have taken some amazing photos at our events. We are SO excited to have them at CHS, and they have been incredible and loved additions to our school.

Alex has been playing volleyball for seven years. She puts in a lot of work to be successful as a setter, often setting basketballs to strengthen her wrists and getting as many reps in on the court as she can. She was shocked when she found out that she had reached 1,000 assists. With a team focus, this personal milestone was not on her mind. Alex feels as though she has never had as much confidence as she does now playing for Coach Cate. She credits Cate as the best coach she has ever had and says that she makes her love volleyball, always encouraging her to be a leader on the team. After this milestone, Alex hopes to reach 2,000 assists and help lead her team back to state to win the gold medal.

Photo by Ryder Phillips (12)

Easton Clayton is a senior football player on a mostly new offensive line going into this season.

Q: Coming after a state championship season, how do you balance honoring that legacy while motivating your teammates for a new season?

E: We know that we have a target on our back after winning state, so that pressure is pretty motivating. We do want to honor that legacy by winning a state title again, but we're focused on our success this year.

Q: What is your role as a senior and team captain in helping underclassmen?

E: My role is to show up for people, continue working hard, and leading them by example.

Q: What motivates you to show up and work hard every day?

E: The target on our backs. After a perfect season, every opponent is gunning for Celina, and that can be intimidating. But it gives me a reason to get up in the morning and work hard to be successful.

Q: What do you want underclassmen to remember about you?

E: That I put God first and play through the whistle.

Q: What does it mean to be a bobcat?

E: To have grit, be hardworking, and be God-fearing.

Q: What is your favorite memory while being at Celina High School?

A: My favorite memory is winning the West Plains game last season because it was a really hard game and came down to the wire. It was the Semifinals that took us to State.

Journalism students and newspaper editor, Kirsten Morton (12) interviewed HOSA's President Gaurav Muttasseril (12)

KM: What is HOSA and what's its mission?

G: HOSA's official mission statement is to empower HOSA-Future Health Professionals to become leaders in the global health community through education, collaboration, and experience. Basically it is a place for students to learn about the medical field, compete in competitions, give back to the local community, and meet like-minded people who are interested in the same things as you.

KM: Why should students join HOSA?

G: Students can join if they want camaraderie with people who have the same interests and values, as well as to further their involvement and education in medical-related areas, especially if they intend on competing in competitions, gaining distinction and achievements, and eventually pursuing a career in medicine.

KM: What activities and opportunities are available to students who join HOSA?

G: Besides the competitions and monthly meetings, HOSA does a lot in terms of community service. For example, HOSA partners with Carter Blood Care every year to do the blood drive at Celina. Another example would be when last year, we painted the windows at Papa Gallo's on the square to support the community. We also do lots of social events to bring people together over the course of the year.

KM: What goals or plans do you have for HOSA this year?

G: Since we were new last year, we didn't have a lot of people compete in the actual competitions. This year we hope more people who are actually interested in competing will join HOSA, because we want to expand our distinction as a school in that area. Generally we are interested in expanding the organization at our school, increasing involvement in community service and fundraisers, and helping students to be a part of a community and serve their community.

Meet Mrs. Reeves - the Photography, Yearbook, Journalism and Student Council teacher!

With a hardworking heart, she gives her all everyday. She graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor's in English and a Master's in Education and is teaching in Celina for her 5th year. Her favorite thing about Celina is the kids and the winning culture. Outside of teaching she loves spending time with her 11 month old son, Braxton, and her husband.

My favorite memory with Mrs. Reeves was her April Fool's Prank last year when she told us she was leaving again after 11 weeks of maternity leave, and that Dr. Burdett would be our teacher; she pranked the whole class. Mrs. Reeves wants to leave the world a better place than she found it. Mrs. Reeves is the best!

Interview featured by Journalism student Maggie Hegmann (10)

Photo by Photography student, Ethan Weston (11)

BIG NEWS Bobcat Nation! The *OFFICIAL* 2025 community HOCO shirt is here! This shirt is for every student, alum, and fan of the Bobcat community. Grab yours early to support our Bobcats because THIS is THE shirt for homecoming! All money raised goes back to the high school PTA.

It is time to order your 2025-2026 Yearbook! Order before September 12th for the lowest price of the year + 4 FREE icons!

Get your "Once A Bobcat, Always A Bobcat" shirt today!! Order your seaside inspired design by 12 Sept 2025. Artist credit: Peyton Hatcher, 2019 CHS Grad

Greetings,

Parents and Families,

Welcome to the 2025-26 school year! We're so excited to share this newsletter with you to help you child begin the new year on a high note.

To help you and your child get ready, we've put together some resources in this special back-to-school newsletter. Inside, you'll find:

• The benefits of being bilingual with Education Program Models

• At-home learning websites to give your child additional resources

• Information for your high-school student to help prepare for their next steps

We also want to hear from you! Please take a moment to complete this short survey. Your feedback helps us create content that's most useful for your family.

We look forward to a fantastic year ahead!

Thank you,

Emergent Bilingual Support Division

Saludos,

Padres y familias,

¡Bienvenidos al año escolar 2025-26! Nos emociona mucho compartir este boletín informativo con ustedes para ayudar a sus hijos a comenzar el nuevo año con buen pie.

Para ayudarlos a ustedes y a sus hijos a prepararse, hemos recopilado algunos recursos en este boletín especial de regreso a clases. En él, encontrarán:

• Los beneficios de ser bilingüe con los Modelos de Programas Educativos

• Sitios web de aprendizaje en casa para brindarles a sus hijos recursos adicionales

• Información para que su hijo/a de preparatoria se prepare para sus próximos pasos

¡También queremos saber de ustedes! Por favor, tómense un momento para completar esta breve encuesta. Sus comentarios nos ayudan a crear contenido útil para su familia.

¡Esperamos un año fantástico!

Gracias,

División de Apoyo a Estudiantes Bilingües Emergentes

Our 2025-2026 yearbooks are on sale now! Lowest prices of the year remain until September 12th. Order before then for $65 and 4 FREE icons. https://jostensyearbooks.com/?REF=A08128000

For entry into CISD events, we are using the HomeTown app to make it easy to purchase tickets. You can scan the QR code below to download the app.

Join us for the 2025-2026 Lunch n Learn Series! Brittany Cortez is a College and Career Counselor from Collin College and will cover a variety of college related topics throughout the year. The sessions will start at 12pm via Zoom. No sign up is required, just grab your lunch and click on the Zoom link in the flyer. Each of these topics will also be offered to all students to attend throughout the school year.

Helping Hands of Celina

Community Action Team (CATS)

Our CATS is our parent organization that helps to support all 1500 students and 135 staff throughout the year with bake sales, selling the official Homecoming t-shirt, and providing goodies/luncheons for our staff. Please join to add a layer of support for our kids and our staff. You can join through your School Cafe account and look for CATS (HS PTO) Membership '25-'26.

If you do not have a School Cafe account, you can click here to set up one and this will allow you to join CATS, purchase the official Homecoming t-shirt designed and sold by our CATS, set up a lunch account, and order other items like paying for parking spots and dues for various classes.

School Lunch

Free and reduced lunch applications can be found in the following link: https://www.schoolcafe.com/CELINAISD The grace period will end September 26, 2025, so please take time to complete your application.

For our new families, you can create school cafe account using the link above, you can send money with your child, or you can have your child bring their lunch. In School Cafe, you can monitor your child's account and place restrictions on their meal accounts if you would like to do so (e.g., your child can only buy one ice cream).

For those who were in Celina ISD last year, any balance that you have in School Cafe rolls over from the previous school year. Please add funds to your account before the first day of school.

GPA Update beginning for Class of 2026

Please click this link for the GPA update for the Class of 2026.

GPA Update beginning for Class of 2029

Please click this link for the GPA update for the Class of 2029.

2025-2026 Attendance Goal = 98%

We achieved 95.1% attendance last year so 98% is a very bold and ambitious goal! Furthermore, the more students are here, the more connections and positive relationships that they have, and the more that they learn!

Attendance-Truancy Tribunal

Chapter 25 of the Texas Education Code details the attendance requirements for students in Texas. Students must be in attendance for 90% of their class in order to receive credit for the class (remember that our goal is 98%). In addition, there is language in this code that directs schools/school districts to take action when a student accumulates a certain number of unexcused absences (including tardies - 3 tardies = an unexcused absence) and this includes filing truancy charges on the parent. Celina ISD wants to partner with our parents in order to prevent truancy charges from being filed. Therefore, when a student accumulates 7 unexcused absences/tardies, we will send a summons to the parent and student to attend a Truancy Tribunal Hearing in order to develop a plan to improve the attendance of the student. The Truancy Tribunal process has proven to decrease unexcused absences, decrease failed classes, and decrease discipline incidents of students. We are proud to implement the Truancy Tribunal Hearings and we know that this will benefit our kids and our families. If you have questions about the Truancy Tribunal process, please reach out to me via email or phone call at the information in my signature

Student Code of Conduct

At CHS, we start with the knowledge that we have the best students and parents on the planet! As such, we hold the highest standards for our kids because we know that they will live up to these standards. Likewise, we hold ourselves the to the highest standards to support our kids and our parents. We want to make sure that you have all of the information needed regarding our dress code and the passage of the new "cell phone ban" HB 1481. The dress code and standards of conduct are contained in the link above. The dress code is addressed on pp. 58-59 so please take a moment to familiarize yourself with CISD standards of dress and decorum.

HB1481 Device Ban

The major change for this year is the passage of HB 1481 that prohibits personal communication devices. Celina High School will strictly enforce this law/policy between 8:45-4:10. Prior to 8:45, students should turn off and put any prohibited devices in their backpack. This will prevent any prohibited devices from being seen or heard and will allow students to form relationships with other students and teachers and focus on learning. If you need to contact your child, you can send a message to their school email account and if there is an emergency, you can contact our front desk and we will assist in getting the message to your child(ren).

Although HB 1481 does not go into effect until September 1, 2025, CISD has chosen to implement this law beginning Wednesday, August 13, 2025. Our staff will continue to only use their personal devices for professional use only during the work day and because we receive emergency notifications and we send emergency notifications through our personal devices.

Prohibited personal communication devices include, but are not limited to:

• Smartphones
  

• Laptops and tablets
  

• Smartwatches
  

• Earbuds and earphones
  

• Smart eyeglasses

• Portable gaming devices

Contact Information for Administrators and Counselors

Administrators

• Dr. John M. Burdett (Principal) - johnburdett@celinaisd.com
• Kristy Carr (Student last names A-Gan) - kristycarr@celinaisd.com
• Greg Sherwood-(Student last names Gar-N) - gregsherwood@celinaisd.com
• Dr. Adam Washburn (Student last names O-Z) - adamwashburn@celinaisd.com

Counselors

• Carrie Crane (Student last names A-Gan) carriecrane@celinaisd.com
• Denise Moore (Student last names Gar-N) denisemoore@celinaisd.com
• Karen Pelkey (Student last names O-Z) karenpelkey@celinaisd.com

Thank you for taking time to read some of the ways in which we connect and grow in order to Love Kids and Drive Rigor.

For Kids,

John