![The cross country team poses for the camera after finishing the district meet. The varsity boys, JV boys and JV girls all placed third and the varsity girls placed fourth. “Coach put in the right training for us for this season, so I think we will be peaking this week and the next couple of weeks,” varsity runner and junior Nathan Kukla said. “The chances of making it to state are very high, but we don’t settle for the lowest and there is always going to be that chance, so [we] race for the best.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Heidi-831-1200x900.jpg)
![Sucking in a breath of air, freshman Lily Pope competes in the 200 yard individual medley. On Oct. 25, the swim team competed in the AISD Swim Invitational. Overall, the girls team took second place and the boys team came in eleventh. “My favorite stroke is butterfly because I do the best in that stroke,” Pope said. “I feel like [butterfly] can test how [your ability] to convince yourself to keep going. The hardest part of swimming is convincing yourself to stay strong and keep pushing during a hard race [when] everything is tired.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/POPE-1200x804.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, Author Ehigbor Okosun, members of Page Turners, and other students reflect on the author's visit. “I thought the visit was great,” Senior Amia De Leon said. “It was interesting talking to her and [getting to know] her process and her thoughts and books in general. But I think the reason it went well [was that] people got to ask questions. I'm glad that she said so much in response to the questions and it wasn't just one and done. [The author’s responses] felt very articulate.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Sebastian-5-1200x800.jpg)
![Standing in front of the field at a freshman football game, cheerleader freshman Jacob Gaudreau along with teammate freshman Bella Gibson pose for a photo during halftime of game. “[Cheer has] definitely given me a much more outgoing personality,” Gaudreau said. “I used to be very introverted, so it's definitely made me more extroverted towards people.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Ingrid-204-1200x800.jpg)
![Holding a wooden pizza toy, senior Taylor Peterson plays with small children in Bucaramanga, Colombia. During the summer, Peterson traveled to Colombia to help build an elementary school that only had two classrooms but five or six grades with one teacher. “We add[ed] two more classrooms,” Peterson said. “It’s kind of hard when you have two or three grades in one classroom and you only have one teacher. It’s very hard to actually get some beneficial learning. [The extra classrooms will give the students] a better quality of education because they’ll actually have a place specific for their learning.” Photo by Taylor Peterson](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Taylor-P.png)
![Swinging with his arm extended, senior Nolan Park hits the ball smoothly over the net and to the opponent’s side. Park is one of four varsity tennis captains and helped the team win district championships. “Winning district champs was a pretty awesome feeling,” Park said. “We had lost to Liberty Hill a couple of weeks before, but when we played them [again], we came out and really took care of business. We took them out and it was just a really awesome night.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kassidy-419.jpg)
![Standing proud, varsity senior athletes Rafael Escobar, Griffin Jacobs, Jakob Martin, and juniors Jackson Springer and Jack Morris pose with their newly earned medals. The varsity team finished third out of 14 teams on Sept. 25. “The team's primary goal is to win the district championship,” head coach Cody Price said. "We're confident that with our action plan in place, we can accomplish this mission. [For the next tournament], our preparation involves assessing our strengths and weaknesses, celebrating milestones and creating individual development plans." Photo courtesy of Cody Price](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/golf.jpg)
The Pulsera Project
Spanish NHS Students Sell Handmade Bracelets, Purses From Central American Artists
Through the Pulsera Project, the Spanish Honor Society is helping support artists in Central America by selling colorful, handmade bracelets and purses.
March 5, 2019
Indian activist Mahatma Gandhi once said, “you must be the change you wish to see in the world.” By taking part in the Pulsera Project, the Spanish Honor Society is bringing a colorful change to countries in Central America, as well as to the local community.
“It gives them a sense of community, of doing good or helping other people,” club sponsor and Spanish teacher, Larisa Kulis, said. “You have to know the Pulsera Project is mainly supporting women and children in countries like Guatemala and Nicaragua, [giving them] opportunities for employment or [opportunities] not so often met in these countries.”
The Pulsera Project, a nonprofit organization founded in 2009, brings together schools from all over the U.S. with colorful, handmade bracelets and purses made by Central Americans. Students in SHS annually volunteer to sell these items so that the Pulsera Project can put the proceeds towards Central American education and help create jobs. Kulis said that students learn to appreciate and understand the unique culture in Latin American communities as well as how to improve the lives in Central America.
“On each pulsera, it comes with a tag and tells you who made it,” Kulis said. “I think it’s a bit more personalized and because the students see [that], it gives them a sense of self-worth. It’s a positive thing and it gives them a sense of fulfilling something good.”
Not everyone in SHS is required to participate in the Pulsera Project; the society votes on certain projects they want to be a part of and from there, members can choose which projects to participate in.
Junior Ryan Sawicki, who has been a member of SHS for almost a year, said that he took part in this project for the chance to help citizens in Central America find jobs, pay for healthcare and even improve the educational system.
“I knew a bunch of people who wanted to buy pulseras,” Sawicki said. “I think the Pulsera Project is a really cool opportunity for us to help people in need of employment and education even though we aren’t able to help them directly.”
Senior Leah Wilcox joined SHS at the end of her sophomore year. Wilcox said that she believes by selling pulseras, the community gets the chance to feel more connected with people in different countries.
“It allows our community to give back to less fortunate communities that need more help,” Wilcox said. “It connects people from around the world.”
Over 1,000 schools across the country have helped spread the Pulsera Project. By sharing the art of people in countries like Nicaragua and Guatemala, these students have supported people in finding well-paying jobs, housing, healthcare and they have helped improve the educational system in poorer parts of countries with the funds they sent back.
To find more information about the Pulsera Project, click here.
