SCHOOL NEWS
Bowie, Nocona marching bands start rehearsals
Alyssa Perry, member of the Mighty Marching Maroon, was one of the students having a uniform fitting on Monday and Tuesday. (Photo by Dani Blackburn)
Montague County’s two high school marching bands are hard at work already preparing for the upcoming season.
Bowie High School’s Mighty Marching Maroon began preparations under the new leadership of Director Kendel Hickenbottom. The Pride of the Tribe Nocona High School Band enters its second year under Director Patrick Flaniken.
This week Bowie students are undergoing uniform fittings and regular practice. On Aug. 4-5, students practice 3 to 5 p.m. inside and 6 to 8:30 p.m. outside.
The band will play at Meet the Rabbits at 6 p.m. on Aug. 6 at Jackrabbit Stadium. Football, volleyball and cross country teams will be introduced along with the band.
From Aug. 9-12 and 15-19, band practice will be 3 to 5 p.m. and 6-8:30 p.m. Hickenbottom said he is excited to be leading the band and looks forward to the season. The show will be “Carmen.”
During the past two weeks, the Nocona band has conducted rookie camp and a leadership camp for band members. From Aug. 1-5, music rehearsal will be 2 to 4 p.m. with marching rehearsal from 6 to 8 p.m.
Flaniken said there will be no marching rehearsal on Aug. 11 due to “Fish Camp.”
Meet the Indians is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Aug. 4 at Jack Crain Stadium.
Rehearsals from Aug. 8 to 12 also will be 2 to 4 p.m. for music and 6 to 8 p.m. for marching.
This year’s halftime show for the Indians is “Jolly Roger: A Pirate’s Tale.” The music was composed by retired band director Barry Hurt, whose music has been featured in numerous performance at the University Interscholastic League State Marching Contest during the last several years.
By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonnline.com
Bowie Independent School District Trustees began plowing through the 2026-27 budget at its first workshop on Aug. 3.
The center of discussion was presentation of the salary study commissioned by the district through the Texas Association of School Boards. Laura Wurman of TASB explained how the data was gathered and developed into recommendations for the district.
Purpose of the study is to assess competitive pay levels for common jobs. Wurman said they analyses market data to determine where the district is at risk and identified priorities for pay system improvements.
Read the full story in the Thursday Bowie News.
Diana Calderon will join the Bowie High School staff as assistant principal in the new school year.
She comes to Bowie from Lake Dallas Elementary School where she served as assistant principal since 2024. Her prior positions include administrator at Decatur High School from 2022-2024, and English as a second language director at Ponder High School and Middle School from 2017 to 2022.
Calderon’s educational background began with a bachelor of business management in 2007 from the University of Phoenix. She earned her master degree in bilingual education from Southern Methodist University in 2018 and a master’s in educational leadership also in 2018.
The educator is working on her doctorate of educational leadership.
By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonline.com
New Bowie High School Principal Dean Johnson brings 15 years of experience as an educator to the campus and he is looking forward to settling down in his new town.
The 38-year-old comes to Bowie from Farmersville Independent School District where he was junior high principal since 2022 and prior to that he was assistant starting in 2019. In 2023 he was named Texas Association of Secondary School Personnel’s Region 10 Assistant Principal of the Year.
Born and raised in Sherman, Johnson always knew his career path was coaching/teaching. He followed in his mother’s footsteps as she worked 30-plus years as a high school math teacher. His sister is a middle school math teacher and her husband is a teacher/coach both at Bells ISD, along with a cousin who is elementary principal at Burkburnett.
And dad can’t be left out, Johnson said while his father did several jobs, for many years he drove a bus for Sherman ISD, including those athletic team trips.
“I would often go with him on those trips with the football team and at seven or eight years old you look up at the players. I also was a ball boy. My path was set early,” said the new principal.
Read the full feature in the Thursday Bowie News.
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