Cypress Lakes High School student Wasiq Javed spoke before the Cy-Fair ISD board of trustees Monday night on behalf of a group of students from across the district who are advocating for an end to gun violence. Cy-Fair, Cypress Creek, Cypress Falls, Cypress Ridge, Cypress Woods and Langham Creek high schools were also represented by students in the audience.

Javed said out of 15,000 attendees at the March for Our Lives rally in downtown Houston on March 24, Cy Lakes High School had more students in attendance than any other school. Students across the country participated in similar events organized after a Feb. 14 mass shooting in which 17 individuals were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.





“On a district level, we would like to see cohesive activity this coming Friday on a national historic day for America,” he said, referring to the April 20 anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting, where 12 students and one teacher were killed in a Colorado school shooting. “This tragic day is a call for us to put an end to gun violence period.”

Javed asked the board to consider allowing all CFISD high schools to recognize the victims of the Columbine and Florida shootings on Friday.

Additionally, he asked teachers to explain to students the resources the district has to prevent similar tragedies from happening in CFISD, citing student ID badges, tiplines and the district’s police department.

“Many students also do not understand the importance of certain policies put in place for campus safety,” Javed said. “For this reason, we would ask for a presentation to be given by every teacher in CFISD following the commemoration of the victims.”

Although district policy states board members may not discuss the comments of speakers, Superintendent Mark Henry publicly addressed the students at the end of the meeting, saying he appreciated their presentation.

Henry said he thought the students’ requests were reasonable, and administrators are already working to put something together to have available in campuses by Friday.

“I just wanted to let you to know that we really are all in this together,” he said. “I’ve told people that school violence is not just about students; school violence is about school employees too, so we’re all on the same page on this.”

Board shadowing project gives students the chance to learn how the district functions


Monday night also marked the 24th annual CFISD Board Shadowing Project, a learning experience that pairs 11 high school students with members of the board or the administrative team to observe the functions of the board.

Understanding how school districts govern is required by the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills standards.

“My life is a testimony to the importance and the true significance of public education, and I want to thank every single one of y’all for defending that and defending us in the process as well,” said Grant Marconi, a senior at Langham Creek and part of the project. “Not only did I learn much from this experience tonight but also gained a new appreciation for what our school board does for our community.”