April 6, 2025

Dear Charger Parents and Families,

8th Graders! The 8th Grade Panoramic Picture will be taken at school tomorrow, Monday, April 7. Please wear a royal blue polo or any POMS-approved royal blue spirit shirt. Don't miss it! See below for details on how to purchase your panoramic photos!

STAARassessmentsbegin on Thursday, April 10 with Reading. 

Our students have been working so hard over the course of the school year, and the time to show what they know is finally here. I wanted to send out a few reminders to review with your student:

What to Bring:

• The only things students should bring to the testing rooms are their Chromebook, lunch, pencil, and something to read.
• Make sure the Chromebook is fully charged the night before!
• Also, it might be a good idea for students to bring a jacket just in case the room is chilly.

Leave Personal Tech at Home:

• All personal devices—cell phones, smart watches, smart glasses, earbuds, etc.—should be left at home.

Rest and Breakfast:

• Students should get at least 8 hours of sleep the night before the test.
• A healthy breakfast in the morning will help them feel their best.

After Testing:

• Once students finish their test, they’ll need to put their Chromebook on the floor and can then read a book. That’s the only approved activity after finishing.
• They also need to remain silent throughout the entire testing block to help keep the environment focused.

Other Things to Know:

• There will be no lunch drop-offs during STAAR testing days.
• Please avoid parent pickups during testing hours until after the testing is finished.
• After testing, we will transition back to our modified block schedule, and instruction will resume, so we need students to remain on campus until the end of the school day.

Thank you for your support. Let’s keep our students feeling confident and ready to do their best. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to me.

The Pin Oak Middle School Technology Student Association (TSA) dominated at the 2025 Texas TSA State Conference! We are thrilled to celebrate the incredible success of our Pin Oak TSA. Our talented Chargers represented with creativity, determination, and innovation — and it paid off.

Overall Results:
2 State Championships
20 First Place Wins
6 Second Places
4 Third Places

State Championship Winners:

Ryan Kim – CO2 Research Race
Mikael Virani & Dev Thosani – Social Media Marketing

First Place – Unique to Texas Events:

Ireoluwa Freeman – Photography
Bella Shabelansky – Model Home Design
Eldad Kalmanovich – Applied Science – Light and Mechanical
Ryan Kim – Applied Science – Electrical
Zubin Siperstein – Commercial Web Design, Computer Multimedia
Shyam Mandayam – Food and Product Advertising
Riddhi Dalwadi – Photography (1st in 3 categories!)
Jacob Fleischer – 3D Design, Computer Image Transfer, PVC Model
James Eisenhoffer – Spreadsheets
Ashwin Perumal – Newsletter
Zed Ibeawuchi – Individual Webpage Design
Ryan Kim - C02 Research Racer
Dev Thosani / Mikael Virani: Social Media Marketing Video

Second Place – Unique to Texas Events:

Jude Dahdel – 3D Design
Ireoluwa Freeman – Photography (Trees Category)
Alexandros Pate – Automotive Transportation
Zed Ibeawuchi – 2D Video Game Design
Zubin Siperstein – Individual Webpage
Liba Sigel – Cityscapes Photo

Third Place – Unique to Texas Events:

Mikael Virani – CNC Woodworking
Avi Sigel – Certificate Design
Zubin Siperstein – Indoor Sports Photo
Peyton Ballard – Mechanical Engineering Sketch

National Qualifiers – On to Nationals!
Our Chargers have earned the honor of representing Texas at the TSA National Conference in the following events:

Career Prep – Riddhi Dalwadi (3rd Place)
Community Service Video – 8th Place (Team Captain: Liba Sigel)
Construction Challenge – 6th Place (Team Captain: Dev Thosani)
Electrical Applications – 4th Place (Team Captain: Avi Sigel)
Inventions & Innovations – 8th Place (Team Captain: Eldad Kalmanovich)
Mechanical Engineering – 2nd Place (James Eisenhoffer & Ben Baudier)
Microcontroller Design – 5th Place (Liba Sigel & Shyam Mandayam)

We are beyond proud of all our TSA competitors for their hard work, teamwork, and tech-savvy skills. You’ve made Pin Oak proud — and now it’s time to take that Charger excellence to the national stage! 

Our 6th graders were ready for their Algebra I Placement Exam. More than 135 students took advantage of this amazing opportunity, demonstrating they’re ready to take high school credit courses starting in 7th grade. We couldn’t be prouder! 

Don't forget to log in for the PTO General Board Meeting which will be VIRTUAL ONLY on Teams on a new date, Friday, April 11 at 9:00 am.  

We'll host a Book Fair April 24-26 at POMS and our Annual Charger Fest on Saturday, April 26! Please sign up to volunteer for both of these fun-filled events. See below for all the details.

Connecting with you is important to us and we are here for you: 

• Visit the POMS website for a full staff directory and much more
• Use the Remind app (text @f7cb99g to 81010) for timely reminders
• POMS Student Handbook
• Connect on X @pinoakms and Instagram @pinoakchargers
• POMS links and information

See you soon!

Lindsey Vela, Principal
HISD West Division Middle School Principal of the Year 

Pin Oak Middle School PTO

4601 Glenmont • Bellaire, TX 77401

pinoakpto.org