Need extra spending cash for the holidays? Earn and learn new skills on Sat. Dec. 5
Need a little extra cash for the holiday season? Teachers at all experience levels are invited to take part in two upcoming training sessions on Saturday, Dec. 5. The sessions will pay either a $50 or $100 stipend.
- New teachers wanting become stronger at implementing classroom management approaches, differentiating instruction or utilizing student performance data should sign up for the Dec. 5 “New Teacher Saturday Session.” The half-day workshop at the Ryan Professional Development Center will cover everything from tight transitions to TADS talk and the use of A4E. Teachers who attend will earn a $50 stipend. Click here for more information.
- All middle and high school teachers are encouraged to sign up for the “2015 Transformation Institute” hosted by the Office of Secondary Curriculum and Development on Saturday, Dec. 5, at Lamar High School. Teachers who attend the all-day training will receive a $100 stipend and can choose from a series of sessions related to differentiation, personalization, and individualization. Click here for more information and for a list of eTRAIN numbers.
In addition to these Dec. 5 sessions, the Elementary Curriculum and Development Office is hosting several upcoming “Saturday Summits” for literacy, math and science, and social studies. PK through fifth grade teachers are invited to attend. Click here for more information.
An earlier reminder to complete you benefits annual enrollment inadvertently listed the wrong deadline date. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
While the annual enrollment period did end Thursday, Nov. 19, employees can still call the Benefits Service Center to enroll or make changes to their 2016 elections. Call the Benefits Service Center at 877-780-HISD (4473) between 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Friday (except holidays).
All employees are encouraged to review their benefits confirmation statements, which will be mailed in early December. If changes need to be made, call the Benefits Service Center. We recommend you call as early as possible to ensure your selections are active on Jan. 1, 2016.
Thank you for your understanding.
HISD Benefits Service Center
Roger Ibarra, 1976-2015
Team HISD is mourning the passing of Secondary Schools Office Director Roger Ibarra, who died on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015, at the age of 39.
Ibarra joined HISD in 2001 as a math teacher at his alma mater, Sam Houston High School (now known as the Sam Houston Math, Science & Technology Center), where he also served as an assistant principal. He then served as principal at Fonville Middle School from 2009-2014.
In 2014, Ibarra was promoted to Middle Schools Office director, where he served until 2015, when he took over as the Secondary Schools Office director.
“HISD has lost a dedicated educator, visionary, and wonderful human being,” said Chief Secondary Schools Officer Michael Cardona. “Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Roger have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor.”
Ibarra led successful efforts to turn around a large urban high school and helped campuses transition to new systems, including a new teacher appraisal system and state accountability and assessment system.
Ibarra earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Our Lady of the Lake University and graduated with cum laude honors. He also earned a master’s degree in education from the University of the Incarnate Word. Ibarra had recently been accepted into the doctoral program at the University of Texas’ College of Education and started taking classes this past summer.
Ibarra is survived by his wife, Christine, and son, Austin.
Funeral arrangements are pending and will be communicated at a later date.
The Houston Independent School District Board of Education voted Thursday to adjust neighborhood attendance boundaries at 10 elementary schools to address classroom overcrowding resulting from growth throughout the city.
The attendance boundary proposals were created in response to state law, which requires kindergarten through fourth-grade classes to have no more than 22 students per classroom. Classes that exceed that number must request a state waiver. read more…
UPDATE: An FAQ document is now available to answer further questions.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, Express Scripts will take over as the prescription drugs benefits provider for HISD, and there are a few changes employees need to know about to prepare for this transition.
Express Scripts is replacing CVS/Caremark, and continues to offer a large and convenient network where employees can get prescriptions filled. Employees may also have 90-day prescriptions filled at Kroger, H-E-B, Costco, Randalls, Sam’s and Walmart or through Express Scripts’ mail order service. However, three-month supplies are not available through CVS/Caremark or Walgreens. read more…
During the past few weeks, dozens of teachers at campuses across the district have been providing feedback to the Talent Acquisition team that will be used to refine future recruitment activities.
The feedback sessions, called “HR Pop-Up Events,” are designed to give teachers a quick and anonymous way of offering their thoughts on such topics as: what characteristics make teachers successful at their campus, why they choose to teach there, and their own personal reasons for staying. read more…
Willie Demby and Staniesha Jones, Employees of the Month for November, are members of the HISD Police Department who serve as campus officers at Yates High School. In what may well be a first for the district, they were nominated and selected for recognition together, as they serve as partners on the force and function as a team.
“Officers Demby and Jones definitely work well together,” said Sergeant Antony Davis. “They are always visible out in the hall, interacting with staff and students. Establishing that rapport is critical to the success they have, and the level of trust people have in them. It is impossible to nominate one without the other.”
Congratulations also go out this week to:
- District Deputy Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer Ken Huewitt has was honored by the Council of Great City Schools. Read more here.
- Furr HS Principal Bertie Simmons was awarded the November Excellence in Leadership Award for creating a culture of caring on her campus. Read more here.
- Revere MS‘s STEM partnership with BP America in prestigious publications the Atlantic and National Journal. Read more here.
Thanks to a big surge during the final week, Team HISD contributed $329,831 toward the 2016 Combined Charities Campaign, topping $300,000 for the third consecutive year. During the past three years, the fundraising event has donated nearly $1 million to local, state, and national organizations. read more…
Change agents will help guide district through SAP upgrade and PeopleSoft migration
Nearly 200 members of Team HISD recently gathered to learn more about their roles on the first HISD Change Agent Network. The group of school-based and district employees were nominated by their principals or direct supervisor to help guide HISD through a large-scale initiative that will improve and upgrade current SAP functionality and also merge the district’s payroll and HR functions from PeopleSoft to SAP. The go-live date for the project is July 2016.
[su_vimeo url=”https://vimeo.com/144161334″] read more…
