[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000UbOHITXgMfg” g_name=”20160415-SATKhanAcademyWinners” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]
Representative from HISD’s College Readiness department and The College Board spent most of Friday driving across Houston to surprise 11th-grade students at seven high schools who were named winners of the School Day Incentive program.
The purpose of the program is to increase student participation and scores for the School Day SAT on April 12, thereby increasing student access to higher education and money for college. Two contests were introduced through the incentive: the You Khan Do It Scholarship and the Best SAT Campaign Ever. Students were encouraged to participate in taking the SAT for a chance to earn scholarships toward college-bound materials or activities.
“The HISD College Readiness Department is so excited that there were so many juniors participating in the HISD School Day Initiative, including the You Khan Do It Scholarship and the Best SAT Campaign Ever,” said College Readiness Senior Manager Jennifer Ertel. “We saw so many students geared up and prepared for the School Day SAT, which was the goal of the initiative. The campaigns were truly inspiring and creative.”
As a part of both contests, students were required to practice the SAT test on the Khan Academy website daily. HISD 11th-graders who earned 50,000 or more energy points on their Khan Academy SAT practice account and applied for the You Khan Do It scholarship were entered into a $500 scholarship drawing, resulting in three winners from Eastwood Academy, Young Women’s College Preparatory and Reagan High School.
For the Best School Day SAT Campaign, the class of 2017 at high school campuses across the district created their own campaigns by using social media outlets, posters and photos. The top three winner schools include Barbara Jordan High School, Energized for STEM Academy and North Houston Early College High School and High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice.
First place winner for the Best SAT Promotional Campaign Ever was awarded to Barbara Jordan High School, where Principal Ross McAlpine said the campaign really encouraged students to use the Khan Academy to their advantage.
Energized for STEM Academy student Alexis Ventura credits Khan Academy for being prepared on School Day SAT, but also says the positive environment created around the campaign was an added boost of confidence.
“I said ‘I can do it,’ because I have the resources from Khan Academy and my friends who were there to say I could do it as well,” Ventura said. “I believed in myself, and using Khan Academy made me believe I could solve any problem on the test.”
More details on the winners:
Best SAT Promotional Campaign Ever Winners
- Barbara Jordan High School (1st Place, $1,000)
- Energized for STEM Academy (2nd Place, $500)
- North Houston Early College High School (3rd Place, $250)
- High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice (Honorary Mention)
You Khan Do It Scholarship Winners
- Eberardo Cordova, Eastwood Academy
- Jessica Lee, Young Women’s College Preparatory
- Tamia Alfred, Reagan High School