The LIFT -

The LIFT Center will once again offer summer camps for elementary and middle school students beginning in June. The camps are open to any child in those age groups, whether they are enrolled in Abilene ISD or not. The LIFT will host Maker Space Camp June 4-6 and June 11-13 from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. or 1-3 p.m. Those camps will be for current 2nd-4th graders. The LIFT will also host a Career Exploration Camp, May 28-30, from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. each day. That camp will be for current 5th-7th graders. The LIFT will also host Career Academies June 4-6 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. for all current 5th-7th graders. The camps are $75 for three days with lunch provided. For AISD students qualifying for free and reduced lunch, the fee will be reduced. 

Fine Arts Roundup: The Youth Art Month display – which features numerous pieces of art created by students in Abilene ISD – continues through Friday, March 15, at The Grace Museum. Make sure to stop by and explore all the work our talented students are creating on campuses throughout the district. … Abilene ISD celebrated Big Art Day on Thursday, March 7. Big Art Day is an art event to raise awareness of art education and art as a creative force in communities on a BIG statewide scale. It is an attempt by the Texas Art Education Association (TAEA) to engage all art educators, their students, and communities in a single-day art event. Look for a detailed wrap-up of Big Art Day events in the March 22 edition of the AISD Newsletter. … Abilene ISD is hosting an Employee and Alumni Art & Design Exhibition from May 15-Aug. 1 at the One AISD Center. Artwork must be hang-ready or compatible with the existing frames and matting available. Sculptures are also welcome for the exhibition. All art must be labeled with the artist’s name, title, media, and contact information. One AISD will determine artworks eligible for display. Entry into the exhibition does not guarantee the artwork will be displayed. Art delivery dates are from May 6-May 10 from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.  For more information or to set up a delivery date, please contact Briana Hutchins at 677-1444 ext. 1153 or via email at briana.hutchins@abileneisd.org.

The Cooper Student Council – under the direction of Cooper English teacher and StuCo sponsor Jimmy Pogue – left Wednesday (March 6) on its 21st consecutive trip to Chinle, Arizona, for its annual Four Corners Service Learning Project. The group will return to Abilene on Monday, March 11, after four days of outreach in one of the most economically depressed communities in the country. Pogue and his group annually take a semi-truck trailer full of supplies to the people in Chinle. Over the previous 20 trips to the Navajo Nation, Pogue and his group have delivered more than 1 million pounds of clothes and food for the people in Chinle. This year’s group – 49 people, including Pogue, sponsors, and students – is carrying almost 50,000 pounds of supplies for the people in the area. Look for updates on the CHS StuCo Chinle Trip Facebook page on the evenings of March 6-11 for a daily wrap-up of the trip and in the March 22 AISD newsletter for a comprehensive story about the trip.

AISD Athletics Roundup: Congratulations to Abilene ISD alum Winkie James and his son, Cory James, for making history last weekend at the UIL Girls’ State Basketball Tournament at the Alamodome in San Antonio. Winkie – a 1988 graduate of Abilene High School – is a longtime football and basketball official in Abilene, and last weekend he worked the girls’ state tournament, including last Friday’s Class 2AQ semifinal game between Nocona and Wellington. That assignment made history as he and his son, Cory – a 2013 graduate of Brazoswood High School – became the first father-son duo to ever officiate a Texas basketball state tournament game together. Cory will return to San Antonio this weekend to officiate the boys’ state tournament, but he won’t be joined by his father, who had to turn down the assignment to stay in Abilene for work-related reasons. … The District 4-5A gymnastics championship meet was March 6 and 7 in San Angelo. Look for a complete roundup of how the boys’ and girls’ teams from Abilene High and Cooper fared in the March 22 edition of the AISD Newsletter. … The boys’ and girls’ soccer season is winding down, and three Abilene ISD teams are still in the hunt for playoff spots. … The Abilene High boys took another step toward a return to the postseason Tuesday night with a 6-1 win over Lubbock High in Lubbock. The Eagles are now 13-4-3 overall and 6-2-2 in District 4-5A play, good for second in the league behind unbeaten Lubbock Monterey (18-0-2 and 9-0-1). AHS will wrap up the regular season with a match tonight at last-place Lubbock Coronado and Tuesday at third-place Lubbock Cooper. … The Cooper boys, meanwhile, were off Tuesday night but will return to action tonight with a match at Monterey, followed by a March 12 match against Lubbock High at home before finishing the regular season at Lubbock Coronado on March 19. The Cougars are 7-10-2 overall but tied with Lubbock Cooper for third in the league at 4-3-2. … On the girls’ side, defending district champion Abilene High pushed back into fourth place with a 7-0 win Tuesday night over last-place Lubbock High. The Lady Eagles are now 5-7-4 overall and 4-4-2 in the league, essentially two games ahead of fifth-place Lubbock Monterey with two regular-season matches left to play for each team. One AHS win or one Monterey loss in one of the last two matches will give the Lady Eagles a playoff spot. The Lady Eagles will play at second-place Lubbock Coronado tonight and then finish the regular season next Tuesday (March 12) at third-place Lubbock Cooper. Monterey, meanwhile, will be at Cooper tonight and home against Lubbock High on March 19. … The Lady Cougars were off Tuesday night but will close out the regular season with a match tonight against Monterey, at Lubbock High on March 12, and at home against Coronado on March 19. The Lady Coogs are 7-9-2 overall and 1-7-1 in league play. … The Abilene High and Cooper softball teams began District 4-5A play Tuesday night with Abilene High losing 3-2 at Wylie, and Cooper dropping an 11-1 decision at home against Lubbock Cooper at Cougar Field. … The Lady Eagles – who were 3-2 in last weekend’s DFW Turf Wars Tournament – are now 11-8-1 on the season. Abilene High will host Cooper at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March 12, followed by a home game against Lubbock Monterey on Thursday, March 14, at 1 p.m. The Lady Eagles will be at Lubbock High on Saturday, March 16, at 1 p.m. before hosting Lubbock Coronado at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 19, and then closing out the first round of district play at Lubbock Cooper at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, March 22. … The Lady Cougars – who were 3-3 in last weekend’s Iowa Park Tournament – are now 8-12 on the season. Cooper will be at Gatesville today (4 p.m.) in a non-district before playing at Abilene High at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March 12. The Lady Cougars will continue district play on Thursday, March 14, at 1 p.m. when it hosts Wylie, and then goes to Lubbock Monterey for a 6:30 p.m. game on Tuesday, March 19. … The District 4-5A baseball schedule also got started Tuesday and will be a featured part of this weekend’s AISD Tournament with games played between Abilene High, Cooper, and Wylie serving as district contests. … Abilene High – 2-3 at last weekend’s Tournament of Champions in Midland – opened district play Tuesday with a 5-4 win over Lubbock Coronado at O’Banion Field in Lubbock. The Eagles – now 7-5 on the season – will play four games in this weekend’s AISD Tournament, including a district game Friday at 6:30 p.m. against Wylie at Bulldog Field, and then a Saturday, March 9, home game against Cooper at 1 p.m. The Eagles will close out the first round of district play by March 19 when they play Lubbock High on March 14 and Lubbock Cooper on March 16 in Abilene, and against Lubbock Monterey in Lubbock on March 19. Each team in the district will play 18 district games (three games against each district foe). … Cooper – which was 3-1 in last weekend’s Crowley Tournament – opened district play Tuesday night with a 2-0 win over Lubbock High at Cougar Field. The Cougars –  now 5-5 on the season – will open the AISD Tournament at 7 p.m. Thursday with a home game against Wylie and will then play at Abilene High at 1 p.m. Saturday. The Cougars will play at Lubbock Coronado on March 14 and at Lubbock Monterey on March 16 before closing the first round of district play at home on March 19 against Lubbock Cooper. … Abilene ISD will host the Big Country Relays today (Friday, March 8) at the Shotwell Annex. Field events will get started at 12 p.m. with the 3200-meter run starting at 12:30 p.m. Running events will start at 4:30 p.m. Teams scheduled to compete are Abilene High, Cooper, Wylie, Brownwood, and Plainview. Borden County will compete in the girls’ division only. … Abilene High boys basketball players Josh Melson and Sawyer Moss were each named Tuesday to the Texas High School Coaches Association Academic All-State Boys Basketball Team. Melson – an honorable mention All-District 4-5A performer on the floor and an Academic All-District selection as well – was voted to the ELITE team, the most prestigious academic team selected by the THSCA. Melson is one of just 23 players from across the state to earn that selection. Moss – also an Academic All-District pick – was named first team Academic All-State.