School: High School

NHS Induction Ceremony

On April 8, National Honor Society was proud to welcome its newest members. It was an evening of fun and accomplishment for the incoming students. We are incredibly proud of our inductees and their dedication in acquiring hours of community service, their devotion to maintaining the highest level of academic excellence, as well as their demonstrated leadership and character in and out of school! 

The new NHS members are:

Fine Arts Students Travel to NYC

The Cypress Christian School art, theatre and music departments spent the end of their Spring Break in the Big Apple! Twenty-one CCS high school students, five parents, Mrs. Harris, Mrs. Ward and Mr. Williamson spent four days of their spring break in New York City. The field trip focused on experiencing great art! 

On the first night, the group spent time in Times Square and then headed to “The Play that Went Wrong”. It is a silly, laugh-out-loud, high-energy comedy. One of the students exclaimed, “It was great! An easy 10 out of 10!”

Friday was a day of learning about the history of New York and America. The group started the day visiting Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, better understanding what America stands for and why it is a beacon of hope to so many people. In the afternoon, they visited Trinity Church founded in 1697, Federal Hall – the site where George Washington was inaugurated President in 1789, the 9/11 Memorial and the 9/11 Museum.

On Saturday, they first visited the United States Museum of Natural History. The consensus was two hours is not even close to enough time to see all the exhibits. In the afternoon, they traversed 70 floors to the top of Rockefeller Plaza, known as Top of the Rock. What a spectacular view! The highlight of the trip for most of the students was attending the brand-new musical, “Back to the Future”. The entertainment value and special effects were of the highest quality, but it became even better after the show. The entire audience was dismissed from the theater, and our group was able to move down front and have a talkback with eight of the actors and actresses along with the stage manager. Our students were able to have 30 minutes of Q&A time with them. Even Marty McFly and Biff stayed after the show to interact with our students. The students asked well-thought-out and deep questions. We all learned so much from them. 

The last day was beautiful! The group worshipped at Central Presbyterian Church on Park Avenue. Twelve of our students who are in the CCS choir joined the church’s choir in leading worship and were able to sing the offertory, which they had prepared in advance. We are so grateful for the talents God has placed in our students and for the beautiful art they were able to share. After church, they spent the afternoon at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. And again, there was not nearly enough time to see all of the beauty the museum has to offer. 

The excursion was the trip of a lifetime! Students look forward to future trips to New York City and have been blessed by God’s handiwork, made even more evident by this experience. A huge thank you to Forge Tours, and Greg “Papi” St. Jacques for putting this trip together, to the parents and chaperones that made this dream trip a reality for our students and finally, to Mrs. Amber Ward for her connections to arrange a talkback with professionals on Broadway. We look forward to many trips to come!

Bridgeland Campus Groundbreaking

We were blessed to hold the groundbreaking ceremony on Friday, February 23 for the new Cypress Christian School campus in Bridgeland, opening in August 2025. Dr. Jeff Potts and the Board of Directors prayed over the campus before the ceremony.

Mike Slabic, Dr. Potts and Scott Mestayer spoke, fifth-grader Berkleigh Elsner led the pledges and junior Ryan Fisk said a prayer over the ceremony. The ground was broken by the Board and Dr. Potts and Board Member Stacy Fransen closed the ceremony in prayer. “We are not only here today to celebrate groundbreaking, we are also here to recognize that there has never been a greater need in our nation for what will be happening under the roof of this building and out on the fields of this campus. Increasing the scope and impact of Christian leadership in our community and our country through an academically rigorous and Christ-focused education experience is what we believe this new campus will do.” – Mike Slabic, Chairman of the CCS Board of Directors

Community Impact article

Chapel Speaker Al Jowdy

This week in chapel, middle and high school students had the unique opportunity to hear the amazing story of Mr. Al Jowdy. Mr. Jowdy was born in San Antonio in 1927. He was the sixth of nine children, growing up in a two-bedroom, one-bath home. At the age of 15, he altered his baptismal certificate to say he was 17 and enlisted in the Navy. In his first six months of duty, he recovered bodies from the Pearl Harbor bombing and two different ships he was stationed on were torpedoed, resulting in him twice having to survive on life rafts in the South Pacific. 

Our students were mesmerized by his stories and storytelling. It is a rare gift to have a 96-year-old be so clear in thought with the ability to clearly describe some of America’s most important stories. The students walked away with an even greater appreciation for the “Greatest Generation”. A seventh-grader was quoted to say, “I could listen to him forever.”

We are grateful to the Granato family for making the introduction of Mr. Jowdy to Mr. Williamson and CCS.

Learn more about Mr Jowdy – https://www.jowdy.com/_Cart/al-jowdy/home/.

TAPPS State Swim Competition 2024

The Warrior Swim Team competed in the TAPPS State Swim Meet on Wednesday, February 14, in San Antonio. The Warriors were represented by 16 athletes and competed in four relay events and six individual events.

The girls’ team was represented by juniors Audrey Fransen, Katie Schmitt and Jadie Weatherly; sophomores Madeline Boctor, Zoe Brashier, Annie Burgos, Jana Faraclas, Kayla Geyer and Ali Richard; and freshman Lexie Stamos. They placed 22nd out of the 28 schools represented in Division III with Brashier, Richard, Schmitt and Weatherly also scoring points in individual events – the 100 Breastroke, 200 IM, 100 Butterfly and 200 Freestyle, respectively.

The Warrior boys team was represented by seniors Ayden Farrell, Brody Johnson, Reagan Lubs and Will Simcik; junior Noah Utley; and freshman David Achterkirch. The boys’ team placed 13th out of the 28 schools represented in Division III with Johnson scoring in the 100 Breastroke and Utley placing and breaking a new school record in the 100 Freestyle with a 54.05. The boys had an outstanding performance in the 200 Freestyle Relay with a new school record of 1:43.18 by Lubs, Johnson, Simcik and Utley and ended the meet with another big bang by placing fifth overall in the 400 Freestyle Relay.

Coach Nugent and Coach Hamm are very proud of all of the swimmers. From the early morning practices to the exciting moments of competition, each team member has exemplfied the true spirit of sportsmanship and camaraderie. From the seasoned seniors to the promising freshmen, they have formed a bond that transcends the pool, forging friendships that will last a lifetime. The swim program at CCS has a strong foundation to build upon and the future indeed looks bright. Way to go, Warriors!

TAPPS Solo & Ensemble Competition

CCS singers wowed judges at this year’s TAPPS Solo and Ensemble competition! The CCS middle school ensemble came home with a I-Superior Rating (highest possible) for their performance of the French chanson, “Je le vous dirait”.

Cypress Christian School took a total of 41 soloists to competition, middle school and high school combined, 30 of which were first-time soloists at TAPPS Solo and Ensemble. Of these singers, the following students received a I-Superior Rating (highest possible) from the TAPPS judge for their solo performances:

• Middle School – Molly Ahrendt, Amanda Atkins, Ethan Bryon, Kira Farrington, Owen Layton, Chelsea Scott, Elliana Sproule and Sydney Swan
• High School – Dyllen Baptiste, Jaeda Dumas, Erica Davenport, Pepper Eichelberger, Evan Ellington, Daniel Hamm, Rayne Harris, Melody Janz, Maddie McCown, Emily Muse, Madison Mynes, Jeykei Ortiguero, Caleb Poirrier, Aidan Salazar, Bella Thomas, Ashleigh Townsend, Noah Utley, Jadie Weatherly and Camille Zemke.

The following students received the TAPPS All-State Honor Award, given to students who received a I-Superior Rating when singing a solo at the most challenging level:

• Pepper Eichelberger, Rayne Harris, Emily Muse, Madison Mynes, Caleb Poirrier, Ashleigh Townsend and Camille Zemke.

Congratulations, students! CCS Chamber Choir will travel to Waco for TAPPS State Large Ensemble contest in April. 

Lemonade Day Results

When Junior Achievement was no longer an option for our elementary school students, Dr. Allen began searching for alternative curriculum that matched our mission of cultural impact. Ryan Fisk, Rowan Smith and Ian Barrow approached Dr. Allen to suggest Lemonade Day, whose mission is to help today’s youth become the business leaders, social advocates, community volunteers and forward-thinking citizens of tomorrow…one lemonade stand at a time.

With strong support from the elementary faculty, Fisk, Smith, Barrow, our NHS students and our fourth and fifth-grade students were challenged to build a business plan, purchase required supplies and run a lemonade stand. Each group of students worked in teams to identify pricing and marketing strategies and plan execution. They completed the curriculum on January 25, as the East Gym hosted 15 lemonade stands, alongside the bustling activities for Run-4-Fun. 

But it wasn’t just about the lemonade or learning — it was about the impact. Every dollar of the over $3,000 raised went directly to three local charities, amplifying the reach of these young changemakers far beyond their lemonade stands. With each donation, they planted seeds of hope and kindness, nurturing a culture of giving back that will continue to flourish for years to come.

National Signing Day 2024

Approximately 7% of high school athletes go on to play college sports. These 10 Warrior athletes have signed letters of intent to play their sport at the next level in a class of 82 seniors. This is over 12% of the Class of 2024!

• Mariana Van Dyk – Track & Field – Abilene Christian University
• Parker Hirth – Track & Field – Texas A&M University – Kingsville
• Caden Clinton – Gymnastics – University of Nebraska
• Brody Johnson – Football – Oklahoma Baptist University
• Jacob Rauch – Football – Colorado School of Mines
• Jacob Lukaszewski – Baseball – Centenary College of Louisiana
• Xavier Sanchez – Baseball – Howard Payne University
• Brandon Williams – Baseball – East Texas Baptist University
• Drew Mestayer – Baseball – East Texas Baptist University
• Ameron Sheikh – Baseball – University of Texas – Dallas

Congratulations, Warriors! We are so proud of you!

Computer Software Engineering with Legos

The Principles of Engineering class had the opportunity to play with Legos. The Lego kits were not just basic kits, they included a program that the students were able to use to code the creations to move. One type of engineering that overlaps with the commonly known computer science coding world is computer software engineering. Students were introduced to the similarities of these fields of study and then allowed to code in some online programs as well as see their computer codes come to life with Legos.

Capstone Engineering Partners with Reach Unlimited

Mrs. Yaw’s senior capstone engineering class spent January meeting with their clients and brainstorming ideas for their projects. Partnering with Reach Unlimited, the students met with clients and learned the needs that each group will need to meet for their spring semester projects. After brainstorming ideas for a solution, each group decided on a design and began planning how to execute it. To gain ideas on what they would need to complete their projects, Mrs. Yaw took her class to Home Depot to explore supplies they could utilize. The teams look forward to the rest of the semester and will continue to work through the design process to exceed the needs of those at Reach Unlimited.