The Episcopal School of Dallas welcomed Paul Lockhart, retired NASA Astronaut, Space Shuttle Pilot, and Air Force Aviator, as their special guest at the 2020 Parents’ Breakfast sponsored by the Dads’ Partnership last month. Not only did Lockhart speak with faculty and parents at the morning’s breakfast, but he also spent time sharing his experiences with all three divisions of students.

After graduating from the University of Texas with a Master’s in aerospace engineering, Lockhart was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1996. In 2002, he flew on two space flights (STS-111 in June and STS-113 in November), logging over 26 days in space. Learn more about his experience here.

In addition to a reenactment of how the space shuttle launches into space, enters into orbit behind the international space station, and how it eventually descends back to earth after ~15 days, Lockhart also showed actual footage of himself and his colleagues on board the shuttle and photos taken on their journey. Students, parents, and faculty alike enjoyed hearing - and seeing - his experiences over the two missions. “The most beautiful thing to look at when you’re in space is the earth,” he said.

Lockhart also encouraged students to dedicate time to not only science but all of their studies if interested in this career. “Everything you’re learning in other classes is important,” he said. “You have to understand science, yes, but also know how to capture what you see, how to write about it, and how to tell people back on earth what you saw. That’s why we need all sorts of people that are interested in going to space.”

Following the presentation, Lockhart also made time to answer student questions, including but not limited to:

• Q: Is it scary to be in space? (A: no, but fun fact- he is afraid of heights!)
• Q: Does traveling to space change your perspective on life? (A: Yes, to put it simply)
• Q: What are your favorite foods to eat on the space shuttle? (A: chicken and rice)

ESD so enjoyed having Lockhart on campus! In the words of one second-grader, “Before, I wanted to be a surgeon but now I want to be an astronaut.” Thank you for visiting, Colonel Lockhart!

Kindergarten friends at The Episcopal School of Dallas were joined in the science lab by some special guests last week: a sophomore psychology class! Psychology students helped teach Kinder about science with several interactive experiments in the lab. Using different household materials like milk, soap, and baking soda, etc., students explored the effects of science on their five senses.

1. Baking soda & vinegar balloons- feels cold to touch and sounds fizzy like a soda

2. Ooblek- pink and blue non-Newtonian liquids that act like a solid when pressure is applied and a liquid when relaxed. Students loved playing with this slime-like experiment!

3. Water surface tension- How many drops can you fit on top of a penny and how many paper clips can you float? What about when there is soap? Students learned about how soap breaks the water tension and allows the water to spill over the sides. 

4. Alka Seltzer lava lamps- oil and water don’t mix because water is polar and oil is nonpolar. Students colored the water to see it better and added Alka Seltzer to see it bubble up like a lava lamp. 

5. Magic Milk- a plate of milk with some food coloring in the center. When you touch it with a soapy q-tip, the colors spread out like tie dye! 

"The sophomores did a great job teaching and interacting with the Kinder students," said Upper School chemistry teacher Anneke Albright. "Everyone had a lot of fun."

We love seeing Eagles of all ages getting to learn together!

Last week during Special Programming Day, juniors and seniors at The Episcopal School of Dallas had the incredible opportunity to hear from Bea Johnson, founder of the Zero Waste movement and author of the bestselling Zero Waste Home, as part of ESD's annual Robert H. Dedman Endowed Lecture Series for Leadership. 

After class of 2006 alumni Amy Zamora Kennedy received Johnson’s book from a friend, she was inspired and thought ESD would benefit from hearing this story. Amy (far left) discovered Johnson was on a North American tour and worked closely with ESD’s Development team to bring her to campus for today’s lecture. 

Johnson, who was introduced by Junior Class President Ellie Bass ’21, spoke to students about her journey to a zero-waste lifestyle that began in 2008. When she first heard the term “zero waste,” it was only used in a manufacturing waste context, not in reference to single households. After living with most of their belongings in storage due to a housing move, the Johnson family realized they didn’t miss most of their items and decided to pursue a “less is more” lifestyle. “When you live with less, you have more time for things that are important,” said Johnson. The Johnson family has lived waste-free for well over a decade. In 2019, her family of four produced just one pint of trash.

Johnson claims the key to living with less and managing a zero-waste lifestyle lies in the five Rs:

• Refuse: just say no to what you do not need (i.e. promotional pamphlets, etc)
• Reduce: declutter what you have, try to buy second-hand things
• Reuse: search for reusable alternatives, like refillable glass jars for storing food items and reusable cloth bags for grocery shopping
• Recycle: recycle what you cannot reuse, like plastics #1 and #2, cardboard, paper
• Rot: compost food scraps, hair, etc.

After adopting these five rules, Johnson was able to live a life based on experience instead of stuff, focused on being instead of having. “We never expected that what one family does could have such a huge impact or that it could influence a global movement,” she said. The zero-waste movement has not only caused others to live waste-free but also inspired people to start their own organizations, open bulk shops,  conceive reusable products and more to make waste-free living more accessible.

Students were able to ask questions on how her process applied to several other key areas of life, like prescriptions, transportation, technology, and more. The most common thread of the questions centered around the feasibility of adopting a waste-free lifestyle. Johnson’s response was, “What do you have to lose?”

To learn more about Bea Johnson and the zero waste movement, visit her website here. 

Started in 2002, the Robert H. Dedman Endowed Lecture Series provides students opportunities to learn lessons in leadership from outstanding achievers across many industries. Guests have included captains of many industries, heroes, and champions of philanthropy and service. For more information, please contact Carol Bergman (bergmanc@esdallas.org).

Earlier this semester, The Episcopal School of Dallas recognized Daniel Kaplan '20 as a finalist in the 2020 National Merit Scholarship Program. Approximately 15,000 high school seniors were named Finalists, representing the top one percent of PSAT scores taken in 2018-19. Daniel will go on to compete for the National Merit Scholarships. Congratulations, Eagle!

Eight total ESD seniors were recognized by the 65th annual National Merit Scholarship Program for their outstanding scores on the 2018-19 PSAT.

Daniel Kaplan '20 has been named a semi-finalist in the 2020 National Merit Scholarship Program. Approximately 15,000 high school seniors were named Finalists, representing the top one percent of PSAT scores taken in 2018-19. Daniel will go on to compete for the National Merit Scholarships. 

Six additional students have been named Commended Students in the 2019-20 National Merit Scholarship Program. The Class of 2020 students qualifying for this honor are Sameer Bhasin, Sunny Courtwright, Ned Dockery, Meera Gangasani, Kevin Jin, and Tarun Mittal. About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2020 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 scorers of more than 1.6 million students who entered the 2020 competition by taking the 2019 PSAT/NMSQT.

Spencer Dunn '20 was also honored as a National Hispanic Scholar for his participation in the National Hispanic Recognition Program. An invitation to apply for this recognition is extended to students who score in the top 2.5 percent among Hispanic and Latinx PSAT/NMSQT test-takers. The National Hispanic Recognition Program provides national recognition of the exceptional academic achievements of Hispanic/Latino high school seniors and identifies them for postsecondary institutions. This year, this program is recognizing more than 5,000 students selected from more than 400,000 students who took the PSAT/NMSQT. 

Congratulations to these high-scoring students!

This year, The Episcopal School of Dallas had the honor of hosting the annual DFW Interscholastic Colloquium on campus Monday, February 3. This annual forum, now it its 7th year, is a celebration of literature, student expression, and cross-campus collaboration. Students in grades 9-12 from participating schools across the DFW metroplex were invited to join in reading and discussing the year’s chosen text, Counting Descent by Clint Smith.

“The goal was not only to collaborate across campuses, but also to challenge students and their teachers ‘to think even better’ than they had before,” explains ESD English Department Chair and member of the DFW Interscholastic Colloquium Team, Tolly Salz. “This year at the Colloquium, we explored and honored the words of Clint Smith, as well as the amazing students who have crafted thoughtful, original works of celebration.”

From all submitted student works, some were selected to participate and present at the Colloquium earlier this week. An impressive total of sixteen ESD students' submissions were accepted, in the form of poetry and film, for the 2020 DFW Interscholastic Colloquium. Congratulations to Eleanor Beck ’21 (poem), Stella Foreman ’21 (spoken word poetry), Jiaying Fu ’21 (spoken word poetry), Taylor Maris ’21 (film), Madison McCoy ’21 (poem), Susanna Newsom ’21 (poem), Penelope North ’21 (poem), Zaria Osimetha ’21 (film), Charlotte Podeszwa ’20 (poem), Liesl Small ’21 (poem), Anna Strohmeyer ’21 (poem), Emma Sucato ’21 (poem), Tamia Tolbert ’21 (film), Lauren Weber ’21 (poem), Sumner Wooldridge ’21 (poem), and Evelyn Zhao ’21 (poem).

Smith himself made an appearance during the Colloquium on Monday where he was the keynote speaker for the event and hosted a Q&A for students following his address.

“I admire so many teenagers today because for so many there is a desire to move towards openness and a desire move toward recognition that everyone experiences the world in ways that are reflective of their different identities,” said Smith.

The Colloquium team received an impressive variety of submissions for 2020 and enjoyed the rich and celebratory discussions that took place during this year’s event.

Clint Smith’s attributed quote was taken from an interview the author did with ESD student Lauren Weber '21 following his Q&A. Thank you to Miss Weber for sharing her interview with us.