GCISD’s iUniversity Prep, the #1 public online school in Texas and #2 in America, held its first-ever homecoming on Friday, November 1.
Leading up to the event, with it was also being Red Ribbon Week, the school organized a variety of themed-dress up days and online events such as a homeroom homecoming kickoff, virtual mum-making and a Life after iUP alumni panel, to name a few. The week culminated with families from across Texas, staff and alumni gathering to celebrate in-person at Chicken N Pickle in Grapevine.
“We really had to think about how to create this traditional event in a non-traditional way and that is how the HOCO week of events was formed,” Principal Desiree Weiche stated. She also shared that when they surveyed families about what events they could add, homecoming rose to the top of the list.
Since the school is online, the campus emphasizes building strong relationships and community among staff and students through a number of activities, meetups, and clubs.
"We are very intentional about giving our students opportunities to engage socially in addition to the rigorous academics we provide," Weiche explained.
iUP offers meetups throughout the year along with several virtual clubs such as iHoot, the school newspaper, and Owl Pals, their peer mentorship program that supports new students. This school year, they also added a student-led test prep club dedicated to supporting one other in achieving high scores on the SAT and ACT exams.
However, homecoming would be a first for iUP and something that the school’s tightly-connected community had not experienced in their 12 years of existence.
The in-person homecoming event was an evening filled with a variety of activities, including an Esports bash, cornhole competition, high school student dance, pickleball, mum-making and more. The school also invited alumni, who attended.
“We have so much to celebrate,” Weiche added. “We hope this gives our students, past and present, an opportunity to connect, show off school pride, and feel like they are a part of something wonderful.”
Learn more about iUniversity Prep, which is a tuition-free Texas online public school that offers rigorous academics, innovative instructors and a collaborative community that provides resources and support to students to create a well-rounded academic experience.