Natalia ISD okays contract with education consulting company

By Anton Riecher
The Natalia school board voted Monday to contract with Austin-based public school consulting firm Moak Casey regarding strategic planning for the district’s future.
Buck Gilcrease, chief executive officer for the firm, served 18 years as a school district superintendent before joining Moak Casey.
“We do this work with boards around the state,” Gilcrease said. “Our approach is a little different from others in that there is a conversation that happens – many…

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Natalia ISD’s new superintendent says love of teaching started early

Natalia ISD superintendent, Dr. Lana Collavo

By Victoria Arredondo
Freelance Writer
Growing up in South Texas in a small town called Taft, Dr. Lana Collavo aspired to be a teacher.
As a little girl, she would pretend to teach her sister, along with their stuffed animals.
“It was just my…

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Mrs. Sanchez-Morales’ Spanish I class celebrates life with 2nd Annual

“Dia de los Muertos”

Staff Writer
Devine High School Spanish I teacher Christina Sanchez-Morales and her students recently completed a “Dia de los Muertos” project that celebrates life by making an ofrenda (offering) to celebrate the life of someone or something special to each student…

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Everything HOMECOMING Devine HS Bonfire, Pep Rally, Game, & Events for Former Students

THE HOMECOMING COMMUNITY BONFIRE PEP RALLY is this Wednesday, Oct. 11 at 7:30pm in the high school parking lot. Bring your kids and dogs and neighbors and celebrate this tradition and cheer on our Warhorses and Arabians.

Former Devine students can join others at the DEXTA event at the Devine VFW on Saturday, where DHS twirlers through the years will be honored.

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HOMETOWN HISTORY:The Modernized DEVINE PUBLIC SCHOOL circa 1929

The Modernized DEVINE PUBLIC SCHOOL circa 1929

By Nancy Ehlinger Saathoff, Devine Historical Committee
In 1929, at the height of the Roaring 20s, with the nation in an upswing of prosperity, Devine’s new $40,000 modernized school was built on College Avenue! Not only did it have a modern, art-deco look; it was fitted, for the first time, with heating, plumbing, and electricity! That was a far cry from what many of the students had in their homes at the time; so this was a very big improvement for the students of Devine ISD.

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Arabian XC 5th @ Islander XC; Stotts, Carr, Rodriguez, Rangel, & Jones prep for Regional

Arabian runners with a quick snapshot after their 5th-place finish at the Islander Splash in Corpus Christi. Pictured above is: Charlee Rangel, Airyanna Rodriguez, Claire Jones, Aimee Carr, Kenadi Marek, Rachel Stotts, and Angelina Garcia.

Jerel Beaty
Staff Writer
The Arabian Cross Country team left many runners in their wake the annual Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islander Splash. Devine placed 5th out of a whopping 35 complete teams that toed the line to begin the race.


In a race that started with an even 300 runners at the mark, Rachel Stotts, Aimee Carr, Airyanna Rodriguez, Charlee Rangel, and Claire Atkinson were the first five Arabian runners to cross the finish line.
Devine scored 156 points to place fifth. La Vernia was just ahead of the Arabians with 147 points while Pleasanton came after in the sixth spot with 175 points.
Stotts ran an amazing race, finishing in 7th place with a time of 13:13.84. She was less than four seconds behind the sixth place runner.
Carr placed in the top 20 as well as she came in 16th with a time of 13:31, almost ten full seconds ahead of 17th place.
Rodriguez came in at 36th place with a time of 14:06. Rangel was next at 51st place with a time of 14:42 then Jones at 59th place with a time of 14:48.
Angelina Garcia placed 112th with a time of 15:45.
Top 10 team rankings
1st Boerne 102, 2nd Poth 108, 3rd Sinton 110, 4th La Vernia 147, 5th Devine 156, 6th Pleasanton 175, 7th Lytle 182, 8th Robstown 189, 9th Gonzales 353, 10th Schulenburg 395.