Even before the Back To School Expo opened Saturday morning, cars were lined up outside Dekaney High School. The constant rain all day didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the families who attended this annual event.

After a quick shake of wet umbrellas, Spring ISD parents were able to find school supplies, vision and hearing screenings, free haircuts for their children and, most importantly, assistance with school registration. 

Administrators from each school had decorated their assigned classroom where they worked to assist families and answer questions about their child’s enrollment. The Reynolds Elementary room looked like they were ready for a Texans game with footballs and #1 foam fingers, but Principal Tim Livingston said his team wanted to deliver a winning feeling.

“We want to give something for parents to grab on to, a vision, and the vision that we are casting this year is that we are here to compete,” Livingston said. “And so our theme here today for Reynolds Elementary School is that we are one team, one dream and we are bringing our ‘A’ game.”

As the hundreds of families arrived at the event, hosted and organized by the district’s Family and Community Engagement Department, they worked their way to and from the school registration locations, passing dozens of tables with vendors offering services, district partners and school organizations. 

HEB was represented by their mascot, Buddy, who posed for pictures with some of the younger students and a few of the older ones too. Buddy had some friends from HEB who helped him hand out reusable snack containers, sandwich bags and book bags to help get the kids ready to go back to school.

Melissa Rowland, a Community Coordinator with HEB said she was here last year, but was really impressed with the huge turnout and good spirits of the crowd, in spite of the rain outside.

“This is fabulous. I was here last year and it was just amazing so I came super prepared for an exciting day full of lots of Spring ISD families,” Rowland said.

Roland said that HEB is a big believer in education and that since children are the future, they want to help get them ready in all avenues as they move forward.

Organizations like Spring ISD Athletics and the district’s Career and Technical Education Program were represented. Students at the CTE table were able to play a game of Spin the Wheel as they learned about career pathways in Spring. CTE Director Cynthia Williams made sure that families walked away with some information about available career pathways in addition to the prizes that they won.

“When they come to our table we just want to make sure that they know what Career and Technical education means in Spring ISD and all of the wonderful opportunities that they will find when they register their children here,” Williams said.

The district’s Pre-K program administrators were there to greet the youngest students and help them make hand prints that symbolize their commitment to come to school and have a successful day. Jennifer Bassett, Pre-K Program Coordinator for Spring ISD said the children were excited and they weren’t the only ones.

“The parents are very enthusiastic. For many of these children, this is the first time that they have set foot in a school and it’s a big milestone for the whole family and we just want to celebrate that,” Bassett said.

Popular expo destinations included the haircut station operated by Mystros Barber Academy and the Hurricane Beryl Relief Station, where families were able to pick up food, cleaning supplies and those all-important backpacks.