Yearly Archives: 2012

HISD Celebrates Academic Excellence and Outstanding Achievements for the 2011-2012 School Year

Beginning this week there will be several recognition events held for Houston Independent School District students, faculty, and staff honoring exceptional academic achievements and contributions during the 2011-2012 school year.

  • Tuesday, May 22nd: 2012 Scholars Banquet will be held at 7 p.m. at the Westin Oaks Galleria (5011 Westheimer).  The event will honor the Class of 2012 valedictorians and salutatorians.  Gary Tuma, President and CEO of Smart Financial Credit Union, will be the keynote speaker.  Since its inception 78 years ago, Smart Financial Credit Union has been a valued community partner of HISD offering scholarships for graduating seniors.
  • Thursday, May 24th: Team HISD Celebration of Excellence will be held at 7 p.m. at the Hilton Americas Hotel (1600 Lamar Street).  At the event the 2012 Teachers of the Year will be named.  The Principals of the Year and each Employee of the Month will also be recognized.  This is the first time all of the honorees will be recognized during one celebration.
  • Wednesday, May 30th: Volunteers in Public Schools (VIPS) Recognition Breakfast will be held at 8 a.m. at Kingdom Builders’ Center (6011 West Orem).   This celebration will recognize parents, students, and community partners that volunteer their time at HISD schools.

HISD Superintendent Dr. Terry Grier will also be making remarks at all of the events.

HISD High Schools Win More National Accolades

Houston ISD high schools are well represented on two national lists issued today that seek to identify the top high schools in America.

The strong showing on the Washington Post High School Challenge rankings and Newsweek’s America’s Best High Schools of 2012 are the result of HISD’s Advanced Placement initiative that began with the 2009-2010 school year.  That was the year Superintendent Terry Grier called on all high schools to expand student access to college-level AP courses and the district agreed to pay the exam fees for all students in those classes.

“This is great recognition of the hard work being done by teachers and students at high schools across the Houston Independent School District,” said Superintendent Terry Grier.

Today, all HISD high schools offer a minimum of 10-15 AP classes, and the number of exams earning a score of 3 or higher, which is the score most colleges require for course credit, is up 35 percent.

HISD’s strong AP progress is one reason the district is among four finalists for the Broad Prize for Urban Education, which recognizes the top urban school district in America. This week, a Broad Prize panel of experts is touring HISD schools as part of the evaluation process.

Washington Post High School Challenge

Twenty-one HISD high schools earned recognition in the Washington Post High School Challenge, a list of 1,800 schools representing the top 9 percent in the nation when it comes to preparing graduates for college. Only 125 Texas high schools made the list, and HISD campuses – Carnegie Vanguard, Eastwood Academy, and DeBakey High School for Health Professions – represent three of the national top 100.

HISD high schools that made the Washington Post list include:

2012 Rank      School Name

10                         Carnegie Vanguard

23                         Eastwood Academy

96                         Challenge Early HS

114                       DeBakey HS for Health Professions

153                       Bellaire

161                       High School for the Performing and Visual Arts

168                       East Early College

194                       Furr

228                      High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice

267                      Lamar

275                      Westside

548                      Westbury

553                      Lee

833                      Chavez

1,001                  Milby

1,062                  Reagan

1,121                   Scarborough

1,158                  Washington

1,205                  Davis

1,377                  Waltrip

1,571                   Austin

Newsweek’s list of America’s Best High Schools 

HISD high schools also occupy 9 out of 1,000 positions on Newsweek’s list of America’s Best High Schools.  Only 86 Texas high schools made the Newsweek list. HISD schools on the list are:

2012 Rank       School Name

13                           Carnegie Vanguard

72                          Eastwood Academy

75                          DeBakey HS for Health Professions

162                        High School for the Performing and Visual Arts

439                        Bellaire

446                        Challenge Early College

685                        High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice

883                        Lamar

957                        Mount Carmel Academy

HISD to Dedicate New Cunningham Elementary School

HISD Board of Education President Michael Lunceford will join community leaders, administrators, alumni, staff and students during the official dedication ceremony on Wednesday, May 23 at 9 a.m. for the new Cunningham Elementary School, 5100 Gulfton.

“This is a great new school for the community, and it can now adequately handle the number of children attending,” Lunceford said. “This new facility will also have more of a ‘campus’ feel with the trees and large green space for the children to enjoy.”
This new facility is built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards and is projected to have a 35 percent reduction in water use and a 25 percent reduction in annual energy use. Every major learning space and classroom has at least one window. The district has committed to build all new construction projects to LEED standards.

“Our kids are so excited about the new space and have taken true ownership,” said Cunningham Principal Nancy Mercado. “We are proud to show everyone in our community what we are doing here, which is providing a first-rate education for our students.”

The $805 million bond referendum approved by voters in 2007 made the project possible. The new school includes:
• New library;
• New science labs;
• New computer lab; and
• Smart Board technology in all classrooms.

For more information about other school construction projects district wide, visit www.hisdprojects.org.

Houston ISD Police to Participate in National Click It or Ticket Campaign

The Houston Independent School District is joining other state and local law enforcement officers and highway safety advocates across the country for the 2012 national Click It or Ticket seat belt enforcement mobilization.  The campaign kicks off May 21 in an effort to help save lives by cracking down on those who don’t buckle up. 

“The goal of HISD’s Police Department is to ensure the safety of all our schools, but we need the help of the community when it comes to seatbelt safety,” said HISD Police Chief Jimmy Dotson.  “Drivers need to ensure that they wear a seatbelt at all times for their own safety, and our officers are committed to enforce seat belt laws at all times.” 

Seat belt use saves thousands of lives across America each year and HISD’s Police Department is helping spread the word.

NHTSA statistics show that in 2010 alone, seat belts saved an estimated 12,546 lives nationwide.  However, in that same year 22,187 passenger vehicle occupants were killed in motor vehicle crashes, according to NHTSA, and 51 percent of them were not wearing seat belts at the time of their fatal crashes.

“School will be out for the summer very soon so it’s important we are aware of more children playing in neighborhood streets,” said Dotson.  “We ask that all drivers take extra precaution when driving in their neighborhoods to ensure the safety of all our students during the summer break.”

While this year’s Click It or Ticket enforcement mobilization runs from May 21 through June 3, motorists should know that officers are out enforcing seat belt laws year-round.

For more on the national Click It or Ticket mobilization, please visit www.nhtsa.gov.

See photos from the official dedication of Robert C. Patterson Literature Magnet Elementary School

HISD Board of Education Trustee Manuel Rodriguez, Texas State Senator Mario Gallegos and Principal Jeannie Castano and a host of parents and community volunteers were on hand at the official dedication of Robert C. Patterson Literature Magnet Elementary School on May 18.    The new Patterson campus is certified LEED Silver(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), and uses 19% less energy than a non-LEED campus, and 37% less water.

See photos from the dedication ceremony below:

[slideshow]

 

Jones Alumnus Returns to School for Hometown Hall of Fame

Former Washington Redskins player and Jones High School alumnus Darrell Green visited his alma mater on Wednesday, April 16. The Football Hall of Fame inductee addressed a packed auditorium of students and stressed the importance of staying in school and pursuing college after graduation. “Anything is possible,” said Green. “The opportunities are there if you pursue them. Make sure you utilize all the resources you have available to you including your teachers, your friends, your family, and the community around this school that wants nothing else but to see you succeed.”

While visiting the school, Green was presented with a plaque by the Pro-Football Hall of Fame and Allstate as part of a special program called “Hometown Hall of Famers.” The program honors the hometown roots of the National Football League’s greatest players. The plaque will remain on permanent display at Jones High School.

New Billy Reagan K-8 Education Center to Offer Two-Way Dual Language Program

HISD’s new Billy Reagan K-8 Education Center, scheduled to open this Fall, will offer a two-way dual language program to its kindergarten class in an effort to develop full bilingualism and bi-literacy for all students.

The two-way dual language program is both an additive bilingual program for Spanish-speaking students and a foreign language immersion program for English-speaking students in which a combination of native Spanish speakers and native English speakers are taught together in the two-way classrooms.

The Billy Reagan K-8 Education Center has been designed to be a learning, innovative environment that will address the global marketplace and the need for a multilingual workforce in the 21st century. 

The center will implement this program in one of the kindergarten classes during the 2012-2013 academic year and add one grade per year until there is a complete two-way dual language program in grades K-8.

HISD currently offers the two-way dual language program at seven elementary schools, two middle schools, one high school and one K-8 academy.  During the next academic year, HISD will be adding it to four more elementary schools and the new Billy Reagan K-8 Education Center (4842 Anderson Road).

Many of the schools offering the two-way dual language program are still accepting applications for the 2012-2013 academic year.  For more information, contact the Multilingual Department at 713-556-6961.

HISD Superintendent Proposes Raises for Teachers, Staff in 2012-2013

All Houston ISD employees would receive pay increases ranging from 1.75 percent to 2.25 percent in 2012-2013 under a budget proposal presented to the Board of Education for consideration today.

HISD’s non-teaching staff last received a pay raise in 2009-2010, and some, but not all, teachers received a raise in 2010-2011. No employees received raises this school year. Superintendent Terry Grier asked the board to consider the pay increases in an effort to remain competitive with surrounding Houston-area school districts that have already proposed doing so.

The teacher pay issue is especially critical as HISD seeks to compete with other school districts who are attempting to fill teaching vacancies caused by resignations and retirements. Each year, HISD loses about 1,000 teachers through attrition. Under the proposal, teachers with 10 years or less of experience would receive a 2.25 percent pay raise, which would increase beginning teacher pay in HISD from $44,987 to $46,000. Teachers with more than 10 years of experience would receive a 1.75 percent pay raise.

Other employee groups would receive the following salary increases under the compensation proposal:

• School bus operators, hourly food services employees, and salaried departmental employees on the lower end of the pay scale: 2.25 percent
• Substitute teachers, hourly employees, principals, assistant principals, and deans: 2 percent
• Professional employees and upper-level administrators: 1.75 percent

HISD began the budgeting process facing a $43.6 million shortfall caused primarily by the Texas Legislature’s decision last year to reduce public education funding by $5.3 billion. HISD is among many Texas school districts that have filed a lawsuit seeking to force the state to fund schools at the constitutionally-mandated level.
The budget proposal includes maintaining HISD’s current tax rate, which is the lowest among all Harris County school districts.
The district would pay for the $20 million compensation proposal in part with $8.9 million from the district’s savings account, which currently stands at about $257 million. About $17 million of the shortfall would be covered by reducing the amount of general fund money that is normally transferred to HISD’s debt service fund to help repay loans. This reduction is a one-time option that will not be available in future years.
HISD has also identified several areas of potential savings for the upcoming school year. These include:

• $3.5 million in reduced employee healthcare costs through increased efficiencies that should not impact quality of service.
• $1.7 million less in special funding for six unique schools.
• $2.5 million in non-campus departmental cuts, primarily through eliminating positions and layoffs. Last year, HISD eliminated 221 non-campus positions.

Changes in Distribution of Funds for Low-Income Students

HISD was notified this month that the federal government will now require districts to send federal money intended to supplement the cost of educating children from low-income families to the neighborhood schools in those children’s attendance zones. In past years, HISD has allocated that money, called Title I funds, to the schools that qualifying children actually attend, even if those schools are not in those children’s neighborhoods.
As a result of this change, some HISD schools will receive less Title I money than they would have in the past, while other schools will receive more money. In general, schools that accept large numbers of transfer students from low-income families will lose funding, while schools in low-income neighborhoods that have lost students to other schools will receive additional funds. The most money any single school would lose is about $180,000.
The Board of Education is expected to adopt the 2012-2013 budget at a public meeting in June.

HISD Leaders and Community to Dedicate Patterson Elementary School

HISD District III Trustee Manuel Rodriguez will join students, staff and community members for the official dedication ceremony of the new Patterson Elementary School (5302 Allendale) on Friday, May 18 at 9 a.m.

“The neighborhood deserves a new school and the dedication has been long time coming,” Rodriguez said.  “We know that the school staff is there to provide an excellent education for the children of the neighborhood.”

State Senator Mario Gallegos is among the elected officials expected to attend Friday’s event.

The new Patterson facility is built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards and is projected to have an annual 37 percent reduction in water use and a 19 percent reduction in energy use.  This campus also has two high-capacity rainwater collection cisterns that are used for landscape irrigation.  The district has committed to build all new construction projects to LEED standards. 

“It’s much more than a new building.  It’s a source of pride for this close-knit community,” said Principal Jeannie Castano.  “Our new library is amazing, and makes it so much easier to teach the connection between everyday life and literature.”

The $805 million bond referendum approved by voters in 2007 made the project possible. The new school includes:

  • New library;
  • New science labs;
  • New computer lab; and
  • Smart Board technology in all classrooms.

For more information about other school construction projects district wide, visit www.hisdprojects.org

[slideshow]

Burbank Middle School Places Second in School of Year Contest by Spanish Ministry of Education

HISD’s Burbank Middle School placed second in the USA/Canada School of the Year Contest sponsored by the Spanish Ministry of Education. 

Burbank is now nationally recognized as one of the premier dual language middle schools in North America. The USA School of the Year contest highlights instructional excellence in both English and Spanish language programming.

As the second place winner, the school will receive a $2,500 award, a library of Spanish language books and a scholarship for one of Burbank’s dual language teachers to study in Spain this summer. 

Burbank Middle School participates in the prestigious International Spanish Academy Program with seven other HISD schools providing dual language students with a wide range of enrichment programming.