HISD | Employee News: HISD’s news for district employees

ALL TEACHERS

Fan Favorite Voting Now Open: Support your campus colleague and help HISD determine the district’s “Fan Favorite,” who will be announced on Friday, May 17, as HISD honors teachers and principals across the district at the Educators of the Year banquet. All campus-based Teachers of the Year are eligible for this award, which will be determined by who has the largest number of fans. Anyone can vote—including colleagues, parents, students, and former students. Vote here through Friday, April 26, and be sure to share your favorite on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media channels to get the word out. A second round of voting will take place April 29-May 3 to determine the elementary and secondary winner from among the finalists. 

Teacher of the Year Finalists announced: Find out which twelve finalists (six for each category) have been named for the Elementary and Secondary Teachers of the Year. The two winners, who will go on to represent the district in Region 4, will be announced during the Educators of the Year banquet on Friday, May 17. Finalists were selected from all 287 campuses based on performance data and other criteria. Other awards announced include Beginning Teacher of the Year, Librarian of the Year, and Instructional Coaches of the Year. To view the complete list of winners, click here.

2019 Science Teacher Award Finalists: The Elementary Curriculum and Development Department announces the finalists for the 2019 Elementary Science Teacher Award, sponsored by alliantgroup. The award was created as an effort to support the district’s goal to increase student achievement and recognize the district’s most outstanding elementary science teachers. All finalists will go on to be recognized with a cash award and a media profile, featured on Houston Life, to highlight their inspiring work in the classroom, which will air on April 15-22. To view a complete list of finalists, click here.

Google Classroom Focus: The Secondary Curriculum and Development will host five after-school focus groups during the week of April 29 to May 3, to ensure that the district provides proper instructional support and understands the needs of campuses as it relates to Google Classroom. Input is requested from teachers, campus instructional technologists, and campus leaders who regularly use or support the tool as part of classroom instruction. Each session will include both an open-forum discussion and an opportunity for Q&A. The first session will be held from 4-5 p.m. at Milby High School (1601 Broadway St., 77012) on April 29. The second focus group will take place from 3:30-4:30 p.m. at Energy Institute High School (3501 Southmore Blvd., 77004) on April 30.

Modified TADS Coming Soon: On April 11, the HISD Board approved a modified version of TADS, known as M-TADS. This change allows teachers who achieve a rating of Effective or Highly Effective in all categories of the appraisal system, along with earning a Summative Rating of Effective or Highly Effective, to opt-in to receiving a minimum of one observation and one walkthrough rather than the standard requirement of two of each. To qualify, a teacher must also have: at least 3 years of teaching experience overall, a term or continuing contract, and at least 1 full year of teaching experience in HISD. Be on the lookout for additional information at the start of the 2019-2020 school year.

2019-2020 TSL Teacher Transfer: 2019-2020 TSL Teacher Transfer: The Teacher and School Leader (TSL) Incentive Program grant is offering a $10,000 teacher recruitment bonus to effective and highly effective teachers, who transfer from an HISD campus that is not funded through the grant to one of the 88 high-needs campuses identified as part of the TSL grant cohort. Teachers who transfer to one of the 88 campuses will be expected to make a three-year commitment. For details on the criteria to apply, click here.

Open Transfer Period: HISD’s annual Open Transfer Period has officially opened and will end at 5 p.m. on Friday, April 26, 2019.  Transfer requests will not be considered after April 26. During this period, eligible teachers and nurses are free to transfer between HISD campuses to fill open positions for the 2019–2020 school year.  If you are interested in a specific position, you are to apply directly via email to the principal and provide your name, employee ID, job title, and attach a resume or include a summary of your experience. For application guidelines and eligibility requirements, click here.

Lead4ward Educator Survey: Lead4ward Educator Survey: The Research & Accountability department is asking that all teachers complete the Lead4ward Educator Survey that was developed to gather educators’ perceptions about the utility and effectiveness of the tool. The information will be used to inform decision makers and to improve instructional practices in the district. Lead4ward was implemented in HISD to provide instructional resources to educators.

ALL TEACHERS

2019-2020 TSL Teacher Transfer: The Teacher and School Leader (TSL) Incentive Program grant is offering a $10,000 teacher recruitment bonus to effective and highly effective teachers, who transfer from an HISD campus that is not funded through the grant to one of the 88 high-needs campuses identified as part of the TSL grant cohort. Teachers who transfer to one of the 88 campuses will be expected to make a three-year commitment. For details on the criteria to apply, click here.

Special Education Spring Parent Summit: The Office of Special Education Services will host its Spring Parent Summit at 9 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, April 27 at five different locations throughout the district.  The theme of the summit is “Fostering Strengths:  Promoting Parent and Student Advocacy” and will address topics such as Promoting Resiliency in Children, Recognizing and Maximizing My Child’s Strengths and Building Student Self-Determination and Advocacy. At each site, there will be entertainment from local schools, an art exhibit and vendor/resource fair for parents.  Childcare will be available with a nurse on site. For locations and to register, click here.

USDA Farm to School Grant: HISD Nutrition Services received the USDA Farm to School Grant for 2018-2020. This grant allows Nutrition Services to implement nutrition-focused garden programs in 15 HISD schools over the course of the grant period. Schools will be selected based on commitment, sustainability, human capital, space, and integration of curriculum. Nutrition Services will provide the Learn, Grow, Eat and Go Curriculum from Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, garden supplies, raised garden beds, and soil to support eight classrooms. To apply, click here. If your campus has previously applied, your application has been saved and will be considered.  If you want to update the survey you submitted previously, please complete a new survey.L

SECONDARY

Global Graduate Survey: Please encourage your high school students to complete the district’s Global graduate survey now through April 26 on the HUB. It is recommended that students complete the survey in a homeroom or advisory period. To access the survey, students should log into the HUB and search for the course called “Global Graduate Student Survey Spring 2019.” This survey of high school students is intended to determine how well the district is doing in developing the qualities needed for students to be successful in today’s world as Global Graduates.

Secondary Summer Writing Institute: Teachers interested in this year’s Summer Writing Institute from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (no Fridays) on June 5-20 at Pershing Middle School are encouraged to apply for this year’s event. Space is limited and only nine teachers from each school office area will be selected to participate. Notifications to confirm attendance will be shared via email no later than Friday, April 19. Participants will leave with prewriting techniques, writing instruction plans and strategies, grammar through revision activities, editing/ proofreading resources, test-taking tips, tips for conferencing, grouping techniques, publishing strategies, reading/writing connections, literature-based instructional plans including multi-cultural literature, and will participate in reading/writing workshops. Stipend for participants will be $1000 for 10 complete days.   

2019 AP Summer Institute: Teachers planning to teach an AP class for the 2019-2020 school year will have the opportunity to attend an AP Summer Institute (APSI). Thanks to the HISD Innovation & Postsecondary Programming, the department will cover the cost of teacher registration and fees for those that meet the requirements. AP teachers need to have a broad range of instructional strategies and deep content knowledge in order to build student mastery in the subject and increase the likelihood of future success at college. Click here for the requirements. If you meet the criteria, complete the APSI registration survey by Friday, May 31.

ALL TEACHERS

AHSA Scholarships: The Association of Hispanic School Administrators is providing scholarships for Hispanic professionals (not currently in administrator position) pursuing an associates or bachelor’s degree in Education, and Hispanic educators pursuing a master’s degree in Education who serve Hispanic students. Applicants are expected to enroll in a full academic course of study and attend an accredited college during the 2019-2020 academic year. For more information and to apply, click here.

2019-2020 TSL Teacher Transfer: The Teacher and School Leader (TSL) Incentive Program grant is offering a $10,000 teacher recruitment bonus to effective and highly effective teachers, who transfer from an HISD campus that is not funded through the grant to one of the 88 high-needs campuses identified as part of the TSL grant cohort. Teachers who transfer to one of the 88 campuses will be expected to make a three-year commitment. For details on the criteria on how to apply, click here.

Free STEM workshop: The Society of Petroleum Engineers is inviting all Houston-area teachers and their students to a free one-day workshop on May 9 at the Offshore Technology Conference (One NRG Park, 77054). Those interested in attending will participate in hands-on activities use simple components to teach complicated engineering concepts used in oil and gas exploration and production. Registrations is open and limited to 100 teachers and 200 students. If you are a teacher, click here to register. If you know a student interested, register here. For more information on the event, click here.

Teacher Job Fair: HISD is seeking new teachers and current HISD teachers to join the Achieve
180 initiative. The research-based action plan is supporting 53 campuses in underserved and underperforming feeder pattern communities. If you’re interested or know someone interested in becoming a teacher and joining Achieve 180, register today for HISD’s first districtwide fair on Saturday, April 13 at Delmar Fieldhouse (2020 Mangum Dr., 77092) from 9 a.m.-Noon. For more information, click here.

Special Education Conference: The Office of Special Education Services will hold HISD’s Sixth Annual Special Education Conference on July 16-18, 2019 at the Kingdom Builders Center (6011 W Orem Dr.,77085). This year’s conference will focus on making the connections among teachers, students, parents, and the community.  The Office of Special Education Services seeks presentations that will support educating the whole child. If you would like to present during this year’s Special Education Conference, please submit a proposal here by April 12, 2019.

ELEMENTARY

Camp Adventure: The Elementary Curriculum and Development Department is excited to share a free two-week summer camp opportunity with HISD students who will be promoted to kindergarten to fifth grade in the 2019-2020 school year. Camp Adventure! is a camp for summer acceleration in July in HISD that combines Literacy, Math, and STEAM activities with the joys of summer camp. There will be two sessions offered this summer from July 8-August 1. Registration is limited to 200 campers per session. Families must complete online registration to participate. For more information including dates and locations, click here.

SECONDARY

HealthSmart Curriculum Training: The district’s Health and Physical Education Department (HPED) is offering a two training on April 17-18 from 8 a.m.-4 p.m., for the 35 high school health teachers on the Health Smart Supplemental Health Curriculum Resources. Based on data collected in year 5 the District’s Adolescent School Health Survey and the 2018 School Health Profiles, Health Education teachers expressed a need for more training on the Sexual Health Education Component of the district developed curriculum using an evidence-based program. Those interested in attending, the HPED will reimburse schools for the associate teachers. Register in OneSource, course #1436012.

The Teacher and School Leader (TSL) Incentive Program grant is offering a $10,000 teacher recruitment bonus to effective and highly effective teachers, who transfer from an HISD campus that is not funded through the grant to one of the 88 high-needs campuses identified as part of the TSL grant cohort.

Teachers who transfer to one of the 88 campuses will be expected to make a three-year commitment. Teachers who wish to transfer must meet ALL of the following criteria:

1) Overall score of 3.0 or higher on most recent annual TADS evaluation (2017-18)

2) IP, PE, and SP scores of 3.0 or higher on most recent annual TADS evaluation (2017-18)

3) Must not currently teach at one of the 88 TSL cohort campuses

4) Must not be on an active PPA

5) Must be willing to make a 3-year commitment to the campus to which they transfer

Eligible transfers must be completed during Open Transfer Period. Eligible dates may be extended into the summer if vacancies remain and BOTH the sending and receiving principals approve the transfers. All eligible transfer teachers will be required to sign a commitment letter.

Payments will be made in three installments: September of Year 1 (50%); January/February of Year 1 (25%); and September of Year 2 (25%), after principals have confirmed that transferring teachers have reported for duty.

If you have any questions about this process or want to know more about the TSL grant, please reach out to Lisa Sullivan at 713.556.3092 or TSLGrant@houstonisd.org. Thank you.