The Colony Courier-Leader (The Colony, Tex.), Vol. 40, No. 47, Ed. 1 Sunday, December 27, 2020 Page: 4 of 8
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4A starlocalmedia.com
The Colony Courier Leader
Sunday, December 27,2020
UPCUTERNEA
TO SUBMIT YOUR
STORY IDEAS
OR PHOTOGRAPHS,
EMAIL CROARK@
STARLOCAL
MEDIA.COM
VOICES
"Oh no,
the mistletoe!”
T
et’s talk about the most
romantic of all holiday
plants....mistletoe. You
might have seen a mistletoe tree
before, but like unicorns and the
Cowboys winning another Super
Bowl, it doesn’t exist. Mistletoe
lives on other trees such as hack- JANET
berries, oaks, elms and pecans. LAMINACK
It’s evergreen so when the host Texas A&M AgriLife
, , , County Extension
tree loses its leaves, you are left Agent of horticulture
with mistletoe. It can practical- -------------
How did this semi-parasite be-
come associated with Christmas
and kissing? First of all, it is no-
ticeable in winter. The Celtic Dru-
ids believed this indicated vitali-
ty and that the plant had mystical
healing properties. They probably
were the first to decorate with
mistletoe to ward off evil spirits.
Norse mythology has a dramat-
ic tale in which mistletoe has a
starring role. The berries are said
ly take over a tree. So that’s why in the to have been tears of a grieving goddess
winter, you might think that the tree is which may have started the association
indeed a mistletoe tree. with love.
Being green, mistletoe does photo- Dear reader, I did scour the interwebs
synthesize its own food. However, it does to find out when and how the modern
take water and some nutrients from the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe
host tree which makes it only semi-para- started. One source claimed that an En-
sitic. Mistletoe doesn’t kill a tree, but it glish musical from 1784 mentions kissing
doesn’t help it either. Older or stressed under the mistletoe. Washington Irving is
trees could continue to decline with an credited for one of the first mentions in
overabundance of mistletoe.
print of mistletoe at Christmas in an 1820
Birds are the culprits that spread mis- book. And in the classic “A Christmas
tietoe around. They feast on the white Carol,” the first printing in 1843 included
berries and then poop out the seeds in illustrations depicting kissing under the
other trees. Some berries with seed may mistletoe. I found it interesting to read
even hitchhike on a bird to find a new lo- that the original custom involved remov-
cation.
ing a berry in order to be kissed. Once all
Once the seed has found a new tree, the the berries had been picked the kissing
roots delve into the bark of the branch, was over. That would definitely be a fac-
Often there is a swollen area where the tor on “when to arrive at a party.”
mistletoe attaches. The roots can spend Of all the years to talk about kissing
a few years growing before the mistletoe under mistletoe, this is not the right one.
plant appears.
I hope the sprig of mistletoe hanging
Getting rid of mistletoe is not easy. The on my front porch doesn’t send a mixed
best method is to cut the branch back at message to all the hard-working delivery
least 12 inches in from the mistletoe to persons who have made my life safer this
ensure that all of the roots are removed, year. Perhaps I need to explain that it’s
Merely cutting mistletoe where it comes simply a symbol of love and friendship,
out of the branch or snapping it off only not an invitation to spread germs.
makes the mistletoe more determined.
For chemical control a growth regulator Janet Laminack is the county exten-
can be used but the effects are only tem- sion agent of horticulture for Texas A&M
porary.
AgriLife in Denton County.
CHRISTUS
St. Joseph Village - Coppell
During these ever-changing times we are in,
Christus St. Joseph Village would like to extend
our thanks to all our first responders and health
Care workers. Thank you for protecting and caring
for the most vulnerable of us. COVID-19 has put
up a strong fight, but you have met your match
with the American spirit.
To those who no longer can work due to this
health issue we truly pray that you stay strong and
encouraged.
We continue to do all we can to help protect our
senior population here at St. Joseph Village. Thank
you to our vendors, families, guests who have
put up with the changes in protocols, sometimes
twice daily. Together we will get through this, and
together we will rise stronger and better for our
tenacity.
972-304-0300
1201 E. Sandy Lake Rd., Coppell, Texas 75019
i—
stjosephvillagecoppell.org
EQUAL HOUSING
OPPORTUNITY
Seventeen students earned Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degrees.
COURTESY OF NICK YOUNG
A first for college
STAFF REPORT
es, and many hospitals and completing their clinical re-
Graduation is different this health care facilities are look- quirements and attending
year at Collin College. For the ing for nurses with bachelor’s in-person classes two days a
first time in the college’s histo- degrees, said Neil Matkin, Col- week.”
ry students are graduating with lin College district president. While these students earned
baccalaureate degrees. We are thrilled to help provide their BSN degrees in one year,
While Collin College award- BSN-credentialed, professional students can also attend the
ed more than 2,500 associate nurses who fill a vital role in college’s RN-to-BSN program
degrees and certificates this our community. Our first bac- part time by taking classes one
December, 17 students earned calaureate graduates will pos- day a week. This program also
Bachelor of Science in Nursing itively unpact individuals lives offers students the opportunity
(BSN) degrees, uring a global pandemic." to schedule clinical require-
"This marks a new chapter e ,C° ege's . to- ST ments at times that best suit
at Collin College,” said J. Rob- program's mission is to edu- their schedules.
ert Collins, founding trustee cate baces aureate prepared The Collin College RN-
and Collin College Board of Ine long learners actively in- to-BSN program • currently
Trustees chair. "We are incredi- volved in service, who partici- accepting applications and of-
bly proud of our first bachelor’s pate in the nursing community fering virtual information ses-
students who are leaders serv- to promote quality of life, and sions. To find out more about
ing on the frontlines of health who are members of an inter- information sessions or the
care. disciplinary health care team, BSN degree, visit collin.edu/
Collin College was among using clinical judgment to pro- nursing/bsn. For curriculum
certain community college vide safe, evidence-based pa- information and to download
districts in Texas authorized tient-centered care. an information sheet about the
to offer selected baccalaure- "It is exciting to see these program, visit collin.edu/aca-
ate degrees with the passage students graduate with their demics/programs/NURS_BSN.
of Senate Bill 2118, which was BSN degrees,” said Dr. Jane html.
signed into law by Gov. Greg Leach, dean of nursing. “They For additional informa-
Abbott in 2017.
have worked hard to achieve tion, email Dr. Betty Veasy al
“There is a shortage of nurs- their degrees in one year by bveasy@collin.edu.
Math program on the way
STAFFREPORT ‘.
Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Education
Agency (TEA) last week announced that a sup-
plemental K-5 math computer program will be
made available to school systems through TEA's
Texas Home Learning 3.0 (THL 3.0) initiative.
Like other THL 3.0 offerings, these instruc-
tional materials are optional and aligned to Tex-
as Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) - the
state standards for what grade-level knowledge
and skills students should possess.
FILE PHOTO
"ST Math is an effective and engaging pro- includes Texas teacher feedback to confirm
gram that will help students stay on track wheth- quality standards. Additional THL 3.0 instruc-
er they are in a classroom or learning virtually,” tional materials for other subjects and grade
Abbott said. “The State of Texas will continue to levels will continue to be announced over the
expand the THL 3.0 program and ensure access coming weeks and months. Currently, more than
to dynamic learning opportunities for students 100,000 students in 350 different Texas schools
across the state.” are utilizing this program.
“We're excited that ST Math’s adaptive online No matter where the student engages in
product for grades K-5 will be made available learning, ST Math has proven effective at keep-
to all Texas school systems and families at no ing meaningful math learning happening for
cost to them. ST Math’s unique approach pro- students. By design, its mastery-driven approach
vides students with equitable access to learning develops deep conceptual understanding at the
through challenging puzzles, non-routine prob- student’s own pace, making ST Math just as pow-
lem solving, and informative feedback,” said erful a learning tool outside the classroom as it
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath. is inside of it.
“Each curricular offering through THL 3.0 is dy- “MIND is proud to partner with the Texas Ed-
namic and innovative; these new instructional ucation Agency to bring the patented ST Math
materials for math will not only be fun for kids, approach to all Texas educators, students, and
but will also help the lessons to really stick.” families,” said Brett Woudenberg, CEO of MIND
ST Math is easy to implement; its supple- Research Institute. “ST Math is an effective,
mental nature allows for plug and play within high-quality blended learning experience that
many existing math blocks. It is an engaging will help to ensure Texas students deeply un-
platform that allows students to take a pen- derstand and truly love math—whether they
guin named “JiJi” through math challenges are learning remotely at home or engaged in the
to build conceptual understanding in math, classroom.”
Due to the conceptual nature of the program, THL 3.0 is a comprehensive initiative aimed
it limits written language and builds strong at supporting school systems, teachers, parents,
conceptual understanding of math, which can and students throughout the public health crisis
help all students, particularly English Lan- and beyond with high-quality instructional ma-
guage Learners (ELLs). Beginning today, all terials, technology solutions, and professional
Texans - educators and families - can regis- development resources.
ter for access to a new ST Math account at st- TEA previously announced that it will offer
math.com/texas. all Texas school systems a world-class Learning
TEA has partnered with the MIND Research Management System (LMS) from PowerSchool’s
Institute, a nonprofit organization that created Schoology for two years at no cost. Nearly 400
ST Math, to deliver this latest set of high-quality Texas school systems have already signed up,
resources. Before release, all THL 3.0 instruc- with another 200 currently engaging with the
tional materials undergo a rigorous review that Schoology team.
NAACP
From PAGE TWO
ro NAACP unit is led by Cop- allow us to establish a NAACP
pell resident Minister Crystal presence in our community
Bates. Bates, who has been the and build relationships and a
driving force in creating this culture of serving the commu-
Victor Landers; Gwen Morri- unit, addressed the newly ad- nity through our volunteer ef-
son - Tarrant County Com- mitted members, forts, and more.”
munity College Trustee Board “Congratulations, we all did The DFW Metro NAACP
Member; Kristen Washington it,” she said. “So thankful to be Branch Unit No. 6305 includes
- Greenville Place 3 Council- able to serve this community Coppell, Carrollton, Lewisville,
woman; Reverend Lynn Harper with such a wonderful group of Flower Mound and Grape-
- Community Missionary Bap- people. You all rock.”
vine. DFW Metro NAACP Zoom
tist Church of Desoto;attorney Bates added, “In the midst meetings are held monthly.
Delia Parker-Mims; Paige Dix- of so much civil unrest around The NAACP is the largest
on - Lewisville Independent the country, it was important and most preeminent civil
School Board Place 1 Candi- for us to be proactive in hopes rights organization in the na-
date; Attorney Jesse Gaines; of building relationships in our tion.
and Sherley Spears- President, community to prevent such The Texas NAACP Confer-
San Angelo NAACP. events from happening here, ence is scheduled for Jan. 7, 8
The new DFW Met- This was a proactive effort to and9.
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Roark, Chris. The Colony Courier-Leader (The Colony, Tex.), Vol. 40, No. 47, Ed. 1 Sunday, December 27, 2020, newspaper, December 27, 2020; Plano, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1622561/m1/4/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Colony Public Library.