When Robert Miller moved to Frisco in 2011, he only knew a little about the school district here. His kids had gone to Plano schools, and later, his grandkids attended Rogers Elementary.
His only connection to the district now is the tax bill he gets every year — but when he’s invited to the Senior Bus Tour and Luncheon, he accepts right away.
“I got that card in the mail letting me know about the tour, and I went straight to the phone to call and accept,” he said with a laugh. “I marked the date on my calendar.”
Miller joined 32 other older Frisco ISD residents for the annual bus tour this month, getting the red-carpet treatment at campuses eager to show off what they’re teaching, learning and building.
The first stop was the Career and Technical Education Center, where seniors were treated to cookies made by culinary students and a presentation from students on various career pathways.
Students studying culinary arts, engineering, nursing, agriculture mechanics and pre-law shared how their coursework has shaped their future plans.
After counselor Cara Yeates led them on a brief tour of the new G wing, including the esports classroom, seniors loaded the buses and headed to Hunt Middle School.
Once there, they cleared a cheering, smiling gauntlet of sign-waving AVID students, student council members, cheerleaders, choir performers and the Hunt Husky mascot.
Seniors filed into the campus and were introduced to the team behind Husky Pawfee, the student-led coffee shop, and put in their own orders. Hot chocolate, coffee, tea? No problem for Husky Pawfee.
They enjoyed a welcome from principal Victoria Williams and beautiful, holiday-themed performances from Hunt choir, band and orchestra musicians decked out in festive outfits — even the instruments were wearing tiny Santa hats.
As the group grabbed their Husky Pawfee drinks, two of the visitors got the attention of orchestra director Catherine Wiechmann to compliment her musicians and ask questions about program recruitment and participation.
Wiechmann thanked them, with her hand over her heart. “They work so hard,” she said.
Visitor Stephen Trent said he could tell. He used to play music as a child, but not for long.
“I played violin for a week and drums for two weeks,” he said. “Nothing like these kids! This is really amazing and impressive. I think our money has been well spent here.”
After Hunt, seniors visited Christie Elementary School, where young student ambassadors greeted them with waves and big smiles.
Principal Christy Garza kicked off with an introduction to the school, and then it was on to what was many seniors’ favorite part of the day.
Seniors broke into groups and visited kindergarten and first grade classrooms, both English-only and bilingual. They joined in on a poinsettia ornament craft while chatting one-on-one with the silly, happy students.
The afternoon concluded at the Hall of Honor with lunch and speakers, including Deputy Superintendent Dr. Todd Fouche, Board President Mark Hill, Staley AVID eighth grader Bronson Pearson, Community Relations Director Ashley Sine and Rachel Bloom with Heart to Heart Hospice.
Robert Miller said he looks forward to this event every year, and the positive, affirming picture it paints of the students and District.
“I just had a ball,” he said. “I don’t know how you don’t have four or five busloads of people going on this tour. I think people don’t stop to realize how much fun you’ll have, and how much you’ll learn about the school system. It’s amazing how fast the time goes — one second, I’m walking in the door in the morning, and the next thing I knew, we were at lunch.”
But the seniors weren’t the only ones touched by the visit. Naha, an eighth grader at Hunt, was beaming as she talked about the seniors she sat with. She’s student council president and handles marketing for Husky Pawfee, even making all the drinks the seniors ordered herself.
“I was having a hard day, and this cheered me up so much,” she said. “They are so sweet. One of the ladies I sat with told me I have a bright future — I can’t have a bad day after that!”
Special thanks
The District extends a special thanks to breakfast sponsor Frisco ER and lunch sponsor Heart to Heart Hospice. Thanks also to the Staley Middle School AVID program and teacher Eric Rivas, and the Staley orchestra performers and director R. Scott Adams, all of whom helped and performed at the lunch.
- Rachel McReynolds