HISD in the News
- Six steps to a successful Bring-Your-Own-Device program
- Challenge Early College HS student named CW-39 Class Act
- Shearn ES funds fine arts summer camp with $11,000 grant
- VIVA HOUSTON spotlights HISD’s HIPPY program
National News Links
- What happens when students have a choice in summer reading?
- The important conversations we are too scared to have
- Can you steal an education?
- Why teaching kids to have ‘grit’ isn’t always a good thing
- Does anyone have the answers on school turnarounds?
Each spring, the Houston Independent School District honors the top two scholars at each of its high schools with a formal celebration of their outstanding academic achievements. In 2015, the district recognized the valedictorians and salutatorians of its 47 high schools during a special ceremony held on April 7.
Visit the HISD website to see photos and read the biographies of each valedictorian and salutatorian.
Congratulations also go out this week to:
- Bellaire High School student Alisa Hamilton, who was surprised on May 20 with a $10,000 scholarship from Superintendent of Schools Terry Grier. The scholarship was part of the Council of the Great City Schools’ Green-Garner Award, which Dr. Grier received in October upon being named that organization’s Urban Educator of the Year. Read Alisa’s story here.
- Members of the T.H. Rogers Quiz Bowl team, who won a state championship and earned second-place laurels at a national competition. Get their story here.
- Students from Milby High School, the Energy Institute, and Lee High School, who swept the recycling bin decorating contest sponsored by the City of Houston’s Solid Waste Management Department. Get all the details and see a photo gallery here.
- Students from Atherton, DeAnda, Wainwright, and West University Elementary schools, who were named the winners of the HISD Police Department’s inaugural Police Appreciation Week Art Contest. Read that story here.
- Wainwright Elementary School students Catalina Alejandro, Cyrus Carlos, Ivan Gonzalez, Ja’Nay Leonard, Litzy Nuñez, and Camron Richard, who won scholarships for a six-week ballet class through The Houston Ballet’s “Chance to Dance” program. Get that full story here.
- Prabin Panta, a seventh-grader at Grady Middle School, who was named the third “Reader Leader” by myON for logging the most time spent reading on that website during a particular month. Prabin read for 97 hours and 22 minutes in myON in April. Learn more about him here.
- Two people from Carnegie Vanguard High School: Oulu Li, a ninth-grader who was selected as the winner of a Congressional Art Competition, and chemistry teacher Christy Rajadurai, who won the 2015 Thomas Aczel Award for Excellence in High School Teaching from the American Chemical Society. Find their stories here and here.
- Milby High School seniors Yovanni Cervantes, Jason Covarrubias, Armontré Manning, Daerion Richards, and Reginald Thompson, who took the first step toward careers in the maritime industry by obtaining their Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) cards. TWIC cards grant access to U.S. ports, waterways, maritime facilities, and vessels. Their story is here.
- The 400 HISD fifth-graders at C. Martinez, Sherman, Stevens, and Wainwright elementary schools who received bicycles, helmets, and locks from the Thin Blue Line Foundation & Law Enforcement Motorcycle Club though its “Bikes for Excellence” program. The bikes are awarded to students who have excelled in academics, personal conduct, and attendance. Get that full story here.
| If you know someone who should be featured in Accolades, please email us at info@houstonisd.org and tell us why. |
HISD’s online teaching and learning platform, known as the HUB, will be transitioning from its pilot phase to full districtwide implementation during the 2015–2016 school year. The implementation is part of the district’s larger efforts to digitally transform instruction and integrate technology into content development and classroom instructional practices. read more…
To help accommodate administrative changes and allow teachers to explore additional options, the Open Transfer Period for teachers is extended until Monday, June 8, 2015. The original deadline was May 15, 2015.
During this period, eligible teachers are free to transfer between HISD campuses to fill open positions for the 2015–2016 school year. Please visit the Careers page on the HISD website to view 2015–2016 vacancies.
If you are interested in a specific position, you may 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. Due to the high volume of applicants, principals may only contact candidates of interest. If you receive an offer, please click here for step-by-step instructions to continue the process.
If you have additional questions, please contact Human Resources at 713-556-7406 or hiring@houstonisd.org.
The five members of “Team All In” from Washington High School have lost an astonishing 101 pounds collectively during the district’s 4 for $40 challenge.
This month’s 4 for $40 Challenge raffle winners are Valerie Payne (from left), Russell Sassin, Jennifer Harris, Bradley Berry, and Star Kindle from Booker T. Washington High School.
The team, which won this month’s iPad raffle, credits their weight-loss success to a combination of healthy food choices, regular exercise, and motivational texts at the beginning of the week to encourage each other. Thanks to their efforts and supportive attitudes, Bradley Berry, Jennifer Harris, Star Kindle, Valerie Payne, and Russell Sassin lost a combined 22 pounds in April.
Team captain Payne said they plan on losing even more weight, but not momentum, once the four-month challenge is over.
“Once you build a team, you develop relationships and the team members share their stories,” said Payne, a special education teacher. “We have members with high blood pressure, one who is cross-training, and a cancer survivor. I truly believe that this is a lifestyle change for all of us because of the health challenges we face.”
She added that she plans her meals for the week during a shopping trip on Saturday where she buys mostly fresh vegetables and fruit. Payne also bought a scale so she could weigh her food to control portions. But she also knows she can rely on support from her teammates, and vice-versa.
“Someone on the team either prepares a meal or shares a recipe each week for the entire team so that we won’t get bored and fall off,” she said. “We have more energy and stay energized throughout the day.”
To date, HISD employees participating have lost nearly 22,000 pounds during the 4 for $40 Challenge.
Click here for a list of locations and times for the next weigh-in period.
Although the initial deadline has passed, HISD is offering employees one last chance to complete the dependent verification process in order to keep eligible dependents on their benefits plans.
Employees must submit documentation verifying dependent eligibility to ADP, the plan administrator, by Wednesday, May 20, 2015. If ADP does not receive the required documentation by the deadline, those dependents will be dropped from benefits options on June 1, 2015.
Please note that if your dependents are dropped from coverage, they cannot be added to a benefits plan until the 2016 annual enrollment period (with an effective date of Jan. 1, 2016), when you will be required to show proof that they are eligible. You will also be unable to extend coverage through COBRA.
Employees who have a qualifying life event (such as the birth of a child, marriage) will still be able to add an eligible dependent to their plan, but must follow the same verification process.
To verify dependent eligibility, employees must:
- Review the letter sent by ADP to verify the document needed to comply (contact ADP at 800-553-3823 if you cannot locate your letter)
- Gather the required documents for each dependent, including a spouse if applicable
- Fax or mail the completed documents immediately
For specific information and assistance of any kind, call ADP at 800-553-3823. For general information about dependent eligibility, visit www.hisdbenefits.org.
Gary Hansel today…
Gary Hansel had only been with HISD about three years in 1988 when he got the phone call that would change his life.
“I was just sitting there one day and I got a phone call from (former Superintendent of Schools) Dr. Joan Raymond,” said Hansel, who now serves as the real estate manager of the Bond Fund program. “She said, ‘Mr. Hansel, I need you to meet me in my office at 2 o’clock.’ And I thought, ‘Uh-oh. What’s this about?’ When I got there, she said, ‘Are you aware that we just passed a new bond program? Well, it calls for us to build 12 new schools on 12 new sites, so I need to find those sites and get ‘em bought, and you’re gonna do that for me.’”
Before that, noted Hansel, “I’d never bought anything but my house. But basically, if it’s been bought, sold, or leased by HISD since 1989, I’ve done it.”
…and in 1992, with Barbara Bush, when Bush ES opened.
Over the years, that has translated into hundreds of millions of dollars in acquisitions, but Hansel still describes those first 12 campuses—Benavides, Bush, Carrillo, Gallegos, Garcia, Herrera, Lyons, Clemente Martinez, and Raul Martinez Elementary; Stevenson Middle; and Chávez and Westside High schools— as some of his most gratifying transactions on behalf of the district.
“Whether it be expansions or new acquisitions, I’ve touched more than half of our schools in one way or another,” he said. “But it was very rewarding to watch the new schools go up. I attended all the construction sites and followed those projects through until the kids walked in the door. I still have a picture of me with Barbara Bush when that campus opened.”
Hansel officially marked his 30th anniversary with the district on May 15, but a few other employees are also marking theirs this month (May 3–16). See if you know anyone on this list:
30 years
- Ernest Barajas, roofer, Construction & Facility Services
- Farley Fox, electrician, Construction & Facility Services
- Aretha Franks, attendant, Nutrition Services
- Reginald Johnson, campus police officer, Bellaire High School
5 years
- Keith Williams, associate teacher
| Check back in future editions of eNews for more Milestones. Leave a comment below if you’d like to congratulate any of the above employees. |
Carnegie Vanguard High School has been ranked as the sixth best high school in the country, according to the U.S. News & World Report’s 2015 Best High Schools rankings. Last year, the school was ranked 23rd on the prestigious list.
Two additional Houston Independent School District schools were ranked in the top 100 — DeBakey High School for Health Professions, which was ranked 23rd, and Eastwood Academy, which came in at 53rd.
Get the full story here.
Congratulations also go out this week to:
- HISD Superintendent of Schools Terry Grier, who was awarded the 2015 Bob Grossman Leadership in School Communications Award by the National School Public Relations Association. The award recognizes a current superintendent of schools for outstanding leadership in school public relations and communications. Get that full story here.
- Peck Elementary School Principal Carlotta Brown, who was recognized along with her school on the May 14 broadcast of the Ellen DeGeneres Show with a $100,000 check for her campus and a $10,000 check for herself. You can read that full story here.
- HISD’s Nutrition Services department, which was recognized recently for completing the Local Products Challenge during School Breakfast Week 2015. Each year, the Texas Department of Agriculture challenges schools to use more Texas products in the meals they serve during National School Breakfast Week and recognizes those who complete the challenge. Read more about the Challenge and how HISD incorporated more local foods into its menus here.
- The Rough Riders from Reagan High School’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps’ army unit, who rousted the 14-year title holder at the National High School Drill Team Championships to be named the national champions. They won the top prize this year at the Masters Level of the Mixed Arms Division—a first for Reagan High School and a first for any high school from the Houston area. Get the full story here.
- Eight students from four HISD schools, who were included in the latest round of National Merit Scholarship winners. Tianxiu Chen and Marina Finley (Bellaire HS); Brett Gu (Carnegie Vanguard HS); Xiaoyi Dou, Zachary Kortum, Teresa Lee, and Poornima Tamma (DeBakey HS); and Claudia Heymach (High School for the Performing and Visual Arts) all received $2,500 to offset their college expenses. Read more about them, including which three were the valedictorians of their respective senior classes, here.
- Four graduating HISD seniors, who collectively received $14,000 in scholarships from the Houston Hispanic Architects & Engineers association. David Valerio (Carnegie Vanguard HS), Jasper Gregory (Lamar HS), Bianca Rubio (Bellaire HS), and Michael Ortiz (Washington HS) will all be pursuing degrees in engineering or architecture.
- Marilou Alcaraz (Briarmeadow Charter), Pia de Leon (River Oaks ES), Dr. Nghia Le (Washington HS), Oscar Le (Sharpstown International School), Nazan Sohail (Key MS), and the Asian American Club at Chávez High School, which were all recognized by HISD’s Asian Advisory Committee for their contributions to Asian students and to HISD as a whole. Read more about (and see photos from) that event here.
- Westside High School student Nathan Brunell, who will be immersing himself in deaf culture this summer after being selected to attend an exclusive American Sign Language (ASL) program at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. Nathan is one of only 48 high-school students chosen from across the country to participate in the 10-day program, which is for deaf, hard-of-hearing, and hearing students. Get his story here.
- The 150 students from six HISD middle schools who were treated to a shopping spree at Target on May 8, thanks to the Moran Norris Foundation’s “Shopping for Good Character” program. Students from Cullen, Dowling, McReynolds, Marshall, and M.C. Williams middle schools, as well as Woodson Leadership Academy, were selected by their teachers for excellent attendance, great character, and the ability to make good choices. Get the full story here.
- Sam Houston Math, Science & Technology Center senior Luis Guapo, who recently passed the CompTIA Network+ test over the weekend, giving him a total of three industry certifications: Information Technology Fundamentals, A+, and Network+. Read more about him here.
| If you know someone who should be featured in Accolades, please email us at info@houstonisd.org and tell us why. |
Kate Tipton
Each year, as a part of Better Speech and Hearing Month, the audiologists at T.H. Rogers offer all HISD employees a free hearing screening during the month of May.
Last year, Kate Tipton took advantage of that opportunity—and she received free hearing aids from the State of Texas as a result.
“After years of asking people to repeat things or missing out on information at large meetings, I decided to take charge,” explained Tipton, who serves as the lead educational diagnostician in HISD’s Child Study department. “I was able to get in right away and was given the results right after the testing.”
After confirming that she had a hearing deficit, Tipton was given a list of doctors and the contact information for the Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS), which offers free and reduced-cost hearing aids for people who need to hear as a part of their jobs.
“I obtained my hearing aids and all the supplies that go with it for free, including the storage box to sanitize them at night and an alarm clock that flashes a light to wake me up in the morning,” said Tipton They will also provide new aids when needed. This saved me at least $6,000.”
Now, Tipton encourages other employees to take advantage of the free screenings, saying, “I only wish I had done it sooner.”
Interested employees may call 713-917-3575 to schedule a screening. Please note that this offer does not extend to spouses or children.
