Board recognizes staff and hears eighth-grade rocket presentations

The Odessa R-VII board opened the meeting by recognizing staff and community volunteers and hearing a student STEM presentation.

The board presented a "Making a Difference" award to Amy Phillips, introduced as the elementary social worker; the board described her as "thoughtful, dependable, and a genuine team player." The board also recognized Nancy Willig as the district's community champion, noting her 31-year teaching career and ongoing substitute and announcing work.

For the academic focus, Miss Halsey introduced eighth-grade students who demonstrated a water-rocket project. Students explained design changes and measurements: using about 1,000 milliliters of water, a tire pump to reach approximately 90 pounds of pressure, and an altimeter to calculate height. One student described improvements between launches: "On the first day, I didn't have this nose coated...so onto the second day, I added more tape, put this nose cone on here...and when I launched it the second day, it went straighter and way higher." Another student explained Newton's first law in the context of the rocket flight.

Board members asked follow-up questions about aerodynamics, class vs. club status (presenters said this is a class with about 150 students), and whether the district plans larger builds. The board praised the presentation.