Tag Archives: High School Ahead Academy

High School Ahead Academy hero places sharp focus on helping students

As Michael McClendon begins his day at High School Ahead Academy, you can usually find him moving about the campus, stopping to check in with various students along the way.

The dedicated employee often serves a mentor and role model for the nearly 200 students on campus. He listens to their joys and frustrations, offering a kind word or two in return.

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John Flowers named new principal of High School Ahead Academy

John Flowers has been selected as the new principal of High School Ahead Academy. He most recently served as principal of Highland Heights Elementary School.

Flowers began his career at Hohl Elementary School as a second and third grade teacher. He then served as the instructional coordinator at DeChaumes and Roosevelt Elementary schools. Subsequently, he served as the assistant principal at Kashmere High School. Flowers holds a bachelor’s in Business Administration from Prairie View A&M University and a master’s in Educational Leadership from Lamar University.

Ericka Austin named new principal of High School Ahead Academy

Ericka Austin has been selected as the new principal of High School Ahead Academy. Austin began her career supporting school improvement in Haiti designing outreach programs for students living in group homes, followed by a teaching career in Arlington, Texas. At HISD, she has served as a teacher specialist and a data-driven instructional specialist. Austin was a part of the leadership team at Marshall Elementary that successfully moved to a met standard rating. She has also held leadership roles at High School Ahead and Booker T. Washington High School. Austin earned her bachelor’s degree at University of Central Arkansas and a Master of Business Administration from University of Arkansas.

Seven HISD Schools Receive Generous Donation of 10,000 Books

Seven schools in the Houston Independent School District will receive 10,000 books because of a generous donation from Neuhaus Education Center.  The announcement was made today at the 3 Men Movers Warehouse on the Southwest Freeway.  Neuhaus Education Center received the books as part of the H-E-B Read 3 campaign. 

This afternoon, 3 Men Movers will deliver the books to Bonham Elementary, Garcia Elementary, Whidby Elementary, Gregory-Lincoln Elementary, Kashmere Gardens Elementary, High School Ahead Academy, and Worthing High School.

Several campuses plan to use the books to enhance their library collections, while others will use the books to supplement classroom libraries.  One school will also give some of the books to students to encourage summer reading.

“This generous donation of books will enhance the literacy of hundreds of HISD students”, said Dr. Alicia Thomas, HISD Deputy Chief Academic Officer. “One of the greatest gifts you can give a child is to teach them at an early age the importance of reading every day.”

Since 1980, Neuhaus Education Center (NEC) has been dedicated to the prevention of reading failure and provides teachers professional development in research-based methods of literacy instruction. Nearly 7,000 HISD teachers have received training at NEC on literacy intervention strategies.  Principals and teacher development specialists have also attended the professional development sessions.

The H-E-B Read 3 campaign was the brainchild of H-E-B CEO and Chairman, Charles Butt, a strong advocate for public education.  H-E-B launched the Read 3 program as part of its continued efforts to strengthen education in Houston and throughout the state.

H-E-B Read 3 is committed to helping parents shape a child’s mind by encouraging them to read to their children three times a week.  H-E-B’s goal is to collect 1 million books for children in need.