DeBakey PTO Newsletter

February 12, 2023

• Important Upcoming Dates
• Spirit Night - Feb 22
• Uniform & Spirit Wear Updates
• March 10 - Field Day and Class T-Shirt Sales
• School News
  • College Prep Meeting for Rising Seniors
  • Donors Choose - Ms. Zhang AP LIt and Comp Class
  • 2023-2024 Academic Calendar
• DeBakey Theatre - Donations Needed
• Thank you!
• Interested in Joining the PTO Board?
• Teacher Appreciation Event - Feb 10
• February/March Scholarship Opportunities
• Student Spotlight
• Odds and Ends
  • 11th Annual Young Women's Leadership Challenge program
  • 2023 National AI Scholarship

• Feb 10 - Winter Ball
• Feb 20 - No School - Teacher Service Day
• Feb 21 - Monthly PTO Meeting
• Feb 22 - Spirit Night - Mendocino Farms
• Feb 24 - Cycle 4 Ends
• Feb 27 - Cycle 5 Begins
• Mar 03 - Cycle 4 Report Cards
• Mar 10 - Field Day
• Mar 13 - 17 - Spring Break

The DEBAKEY2023 coupon code is for online orders only, but they will honor a printed version of the flyer if you bring it to dine in. Extras will be printed and left with the manager that day just in case. Thank you for supporting all of our spirit night events this school year!

FLASH SALE: The Uniform & Spirit Wear Store is having a special sale on all 50th anniversary lunch bags and 50th Anniversary T-shirts - just $10! First come, first served! Place your orders online TODAY as the next pickup date is this Thursday, February 16th during lunch.

All proceeds benefit our DeBakey school such as Freshman Yoga, Viper Camp and the upcoming DeBakey Field Day. Your support of the store is much appreciated! See link below to the online store.

(Friday before Spring Break)

Enjoy the day with class games, food trucks, inflatable rides, an obstacle course and dessert stand.

Opportunities to make this day special:

Parent Volunteers (VIPS approved) for the Dessert Stand. Shifts are 8-10, 10-12, 12-2, and clean up 2-3:30PM.
Please email fieldday@debakeypto.org

Parent Monetary Donations for Field Day via Zelle President@debakeypto.org

Class Tees are also for sale! Be sure to wear them on Field Day!

ATTENTION ALL  SENIORS!!!!

It's time to get your Class of 2023 Senior T-shirt before it's too late.  If you want to have your senior t-shirt for field day you need to purchase it by tomorrow Monday, February 16, 2023. The class color is pink. Here is a sample of what the shirt will look like, it's not exact but just a sample. Also, the '23' will have all the signatures of the seniors within, as shown below.

All purchases must be made on School Pay https://www.schoolpay.com/ The t-shirt is located on the 9th line down, just before Senior Class Dues. Please contact Andrea at andiehsimon@att.net if you have any questions.

It includes a one-week Thanksgiving break, two-week Winter Break, and one-week Spring Break. The district will observe Labor Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Chavez-Huerta Day, and Memorial Day. Students and staff will also be off for a Fall Holiday on Sept. 25, and Spring Holidays on March 29 and April 10.

In addition, there are three Teacher Preparation Days and 12 Teacher Development Days, including Election Day (Nov. 7) as a student holiday.

Teachers report to work on August 14, 2023. The first day of school for students is August 28, 2023.

The last day of school for students is June 5, 2024, and the last day for teachers is June 6, 2024.

Click the image for a larger view

DeBakey Theatre is in the process of preparing our 2023 UIL One Act Play competition show, The Library. We are looking for donations of school supplies (notebooks, binders, etc.), books (chapter books/novels/textbooks- anything that would be available in a high school library), and backpacks (similar to those high schoolers would carry) to use as props and as set decoration for the show. These items may be new or used. If used, tears, stains, notebooks with writing in them, etc. are completely fine. If you have items you would like to donate, please send them to school with your student or drop them off at the main office by February 22.

Thank you for your continued support of our program and of the arts as a part of your child’s education. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me: mccoy.rasco@houstonisd.org.

Warm regards, 

McCoy Rasco

Thank you to all of the parents, caregivers, staff and alumni that connect to our shared community via the PTO weekly newsletter. The PTO provides a way to work together to enhance learning at DeBakey HSHP.

We are truly grateful to ALL who contribute to the PTO via donations, volunteering, attending meetings and participating in ideas and discussions.

Thank you to our volunteers and organizers who made our recent teacher appreciation event such a success!

Photos: Mariana Zamora, Facebook

Scholarships open to HISD students only:

The Exotic Pop Scholarships, founded by Charleston Wilson, and his mother, Donnie Franklin, will provide scholarships to graduating seniors in HISD who are interested in pursuing business and entrepreneurship. Two $1,000 scholarships will be awarded to one male and one female student. The funds can be used for education tuition, fees, equipment, program materials, books, etc. The application will open Feb. 1, 2023, and close on March 30, 2023 at 11:59 P.M. Website: https://bit.ly/3wuxWul

The Waldman Legal Scholarship encourages bilingual (English and Spanish) high school seniors to attend a two- or four- year college/university. The scholarship will award one HISD senior with a $2,000 scholarship, a second HISD senior with a $500 scholarship, and a third HISD senior with a $250 scholarship. The application will open Feb. 1, 2023, and close on March 30, 2023 at 11:59 P.M. Website: https://bit.ly/3R5eIVA

Congratulations to the Boys Basketball team for their win and making it to the Finals!

Photo: Cris Stennett, Facebook

Cynthia Kong, DeBakey sophomore, performed the Bernstein West Side Story suite and some Tchaikovsky with the 2023 Texas All-State Philharmonic Orchestra. All-State is the highest honor a Texas music student can receive. 1,830 students are selected through a process that begins with over 70,000 students from around the state vying for this honor to perform in one of 18 ensembles sponsored by the Band, Orchestra, and Vocal Divisions.

Photo: Jordan Stewart, Facebook

11th annual Young Women's Leadership Challenge program

YWLC is a yearlong U.S.-based program for high school aged-girls created and managed by The Pangea Network, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering women and communities in the U.S. and Kenya. YWLC is composed of a summer conference, mentoring, monthly meetings, and lectures throughout the year.

When you apply to YWLC 2023-2024, you are applying for a hybrid year-long program which includes:

• Summer conference at Rice University campus

• Monthly meetings with expert speakers via zoom

• Mentoring

• Creating and executing a community service project

Learn more >>

2023 National AI Scholarship

Want to learn about AI with instructors from Stanford, MIT and Carnegie Mellon University? You can, even if you have no coding background! Just spend 5 min to apply for a 2023 National AI Scholarship. Deadline is 02/19/23

Learn more >>

DeBakey High School For Health Professions PTO

2545 Pressler St

Houston TX 77030