Young Women`s Leadership Academy

Young Women’s and Young Men’s
Leadership Academies in GPISD
Mission of YWLA and YMLA
The YWLA and YMLA offer 6th-8th grade girls and
boys a dynamic learning experience that
encourages critical thinking, inspires confidence
and nurtures the intellectual and social
development necessary for success in college,
career and life.
Rigorous coursework, field-based exploration and
personalized counseling help students transition
from middle school to high school and to higher
education and beyond.
Visitors to YMLA or YWLA
 Gregg Hodges- Quarterback for the Texas Tech
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Red Raiders
Amy Bean- Foundation for Educating Young
Women
Austin ISD
Fort Worth ISD
GPPD
DPD
Chamber of Commerce
City of Grand Prairie
Accomplishments
 Hosted the Grand Prairie Chamber of Commerce: A
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Crisis in Education
YMLA student offered a Scholarship to Texas Southern
University
Mary Mendez- Named PE Teacher of the Year for Texas
(YWLA)
Students from both campuses have gained accolades
in Fine Arts Competitions and Academic
Competitions
Featured on
News 8 Daybreak
Community Service
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Canned Food Drive
Puppy and Kitten Food Drive
Toy Drive
Jacket Drive
Girls Give Back Event: Food Baskets for needy families at
Thanksgiving, Money for uniforms for homeless students
at our campus, Care packages for troops of students
relatives
Adopt a Highway Program
Teaching elderly citizens how to use computers
Visiting Nursing Homes
Bonham EEC and Hobbs-Williams Elem Mentors (YWLA)
Seguin Elem Mentors (YMLA)
How the Academies Are Different
 All-girl or All-boy setting
 Bell Schedule
 Advisory Period
 Standardized Dress Code
 Focus on Leadership
 Leadership opportunities
 Extracurricular clubs/events
 PreAP/College Readiness focus
 Advanced Technology
Leadership Focus
During Advisory, students participate in leadership
topics such as
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Character- Successful Women and Men of Tomorrow
Presentations- Be Confident in What You Know
Social Media 101
Sportsmanship
Teamwork and Competition
Study Skills and Time Management
Setting Goals
Peer Language vs. Professional Language
Community Service- Giving Back
College Readiness
…and many more topics to help our students become
productive, confident, and successful young women.
Leadership Focus, cont.
Students will have the opportunity to participate in leadership and
community service events at other campuses and in the Grand Prairie
community. They will have opportunities to participate in events with
their brother or sister school to practice appropriate communication
skills with the opposite gender.
Dress Code
 Standardized Dress on most days:
 Khaki or black pants or finger-tip length skirts or shorts
 No “skinny” jeans (YWLA)
 Belt and shirt tucked in (YMLA)
 Solid red, white, navy, or black collared shirts
 Shoes- solid black tennis shoes; black or brown dress shoes
 Spirit Days- YMLA/YWLA spirit t-shirt (sold by PTA)
 Jean Days will be earned by reaching leadership goals
 Appropriate hairstyles and jewelry
 No unnatural hair color
 Must wear ID at all times
Dress Code- Electives
 Athletics/PE- Spirit t-shirt or white t-shirt, black
shorts, tennis shoes
 Dance (YWLA)- black leotard, pink tights, and
pink ballet flats
 Ballet Folklorico (YWLA)- black leotard, nude
tights, school provided ballet folklorico shoes
 Leadership Outings for the Leadership Elective
class will be professional dress or school
standardized dress. This will be discussed as part
of the Leadership class.
YWLA Houses
 Students are divided into 4 houses
 Alpha
 Beta
 Delta
 Kappa
 Students earn merits for excellence in the areas of
academics, athletics, fine arts, behavior, and
service
 The house with the most points earns jean/spirit
shirt days as well as other privileges
 Demerits occur when students do not follow
procedures or behavior expectations
Rigorous Coursework
 Spring Board Curriculum for PreAP Math- written by
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The College Board
PreAP available in all core subjects
All 6th grade students encouraged to take at least one
PreAP course in the 2013-2014 school year
High school credit courses such as English I,
Algebra I, Spanish I, II, and III, BIM
(technology), and Health Education
College level course- AP Spanish
Students learn and use the
Cornell Notes technique
AVID
Electives
YWLA and YMLA offer a variety of electives such as
Athletics, Cheerleading (YWLA), Dance (YWLA),
Ballet Folklorico (YWLA), Orchestra, Mariachi,
Choir, Band, Theater, Visual Arts, Spanish, AVID,
Speech, Health, BIM, and Leadership
Extra Curricular Activities
 All students are encouraged to join clubs
 Can earn points toward their house
 Parents are encouraged to attend extra-curricular events
with their daughter or son
 Student Council and House Leaders
 National Junior Honor Society
 Some clubs include:
Book Club, Poetry, Blog, Photography, Garden,
Recycling, Scrapbooking, Art Club, Step Team, Robotics,
Chess Club, Technology Club, Homework Club, FCA,
Rachel’s Challenge Club, Football Club, etc.
Parent Involvement
 PTA- Parents are encouraged to be part of helping
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enhance their student’s learning. It’s only $7 to join
PTA.
Volunteers- We are always looking for volunteers to
help us in the workroom and help with events and
projects!
Club/Elective Chaperones during events
Mentors
Community Service
Adult Education (Ingles sin Barreras, Computer, etc)
Parent Wellness Program- Parents come to workout
and improve their health
Thank you for your interest in our schools!
Questions?
Jennifer Oliver
Sterlin McGruder
YWLA Principal at Arnold MS
YMLA Principal at Kennedy MS
jennifer.oliver@gpisd.org
sterlin.mcgruder@gpisd.org