Yearly Archives: 2015

Askew ES community hears about plans for new school

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Askew Elementary stakeholders turned out for the school’s first of three bond community meetings on Wednesday, where they heard from the architect and other project team members about initial design plans for a new campus.

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Bond Oversight Committee hears program update at quarterly meeting

Members of HISD’s Bond Oversight Committee met this week to review second quarter progress for the district’s $1.89 billion bond program.

Despite record rainfall over the past several months and a challenging construction market, the bond project team is making significant headway in the planning, design, and construction of new schools. Continue reading →

Business Assistance team recognized as ‘Top 25 Supplier Diversity Champion’

D-marsHouston’s monthly African-American magazine, Subcontractors USA, recognized HISD’s Business Assistance team Wednesday with the 2015 Top 25 Supplier Diversity Champions award during the 2015 Top 25 Prime Contractors, Engineers, Architects, Construction, Transportation and IT for Diversity Awards at the HESS Club in the Galleria area.

“Subcontractors USA is proud to be a minority business journal that inspires, informs and educates,” said Subcontractors USA magazine president Keith “D-MARS” Davis. “Recognizing and celebrating the community is one of the things we are known for. We are especially proud to celebrate agencies and companies that put forth effort and resources to provide minority and women-owned companies with opportunities.”

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Road construction impacts area around HISD’s central office

Beginning at 9 p.m. on Friday, the West 18th Street exit ramp from I-610 West Loop northbound will be closed. The exit will reopen at 5 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 8.

During the closure, motorists will be detoured to the T.C. Jester exit, directed to U-turn and continue on U.S. 290 westbound frontage road to Dacoma, and then turn left to the 290 eastbound frontage to W. 18th. Continue reading →

Mandarin Chinese school community gets update on construction progress

On Tuesday, parents and community members met for the third time to discuss updates for the new Mandarin Chinese Language Immersion Magnet School being built under the district’s 2012 bond program – with a particular focus on the construction portion of the project and upcoming vertical steel.

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Registration is open for Pre-K students

Give your child a head start by enrolling them in prekindergarten now.

Pre-K is just as necessary for academic success as kindergarten or first grade, according to numerous research studies. Not only will your child be more successful in school, but later on, they are more likely to graduate high school and attend college, which leads, in turn, to a well-paying job and increased earning potential.

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NCAA donates backpacks to 6,800 HISD students

About 6,800 HISD third-grade students will get free backpacks full of supplies, thanks to the NCAA.

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“Each student will get a notebook, pencils, pens, crayons, rulers, and other school supplies,” said Doug Hall, president of the Houston organizing committee for the 2016 NCAA Final Four. Continue reading →

Security breach at HISD vendor compromises some employee data

The Houston Independent School District recently learned of a data breach that affected one of the district’s vendors, Medical Informatics Engineering (MIE). MIE is a medical records company that works with Concentra, which operates the district’s two onsite health clinics.

MIE has mailed letters to affected employees about the security breach, along with information about how to sign up for two years of free credit monitoring and identity restoration services.

Below is information employees need to know about the data breach and next steps to take. Continue reading →

HISD officials attend ‘Rethink School Discipline’ gathering at White House

White House convening

From left, Shadowbriar ES Principal Mark Samuel, Davis HS Principal Julissa Alcantar-Martinez, and HISD Chief Student Support Officer Mark Smith at the White House.

HISD representatives traveled to the White House on July 22 to participate in “Rethink School Discipline,” a convening on how to improve school discipline policies and practices. HISD Chief Student Support Officer Mark Smith, Davis High School Principal Julissa Alcantar-Martinez, and Shadowbriar Elementary School Principal Mark Samuel attended the conference.

Across the country, there is concern that zero-tolerance policies in schools are resulting in more student suspensions and expulsions, which places students on the streets when they should be learning in school. According to the Civil Rights Data Collection, more than 3 million students across the country are suspended or expelled every year.

“The convening was a great starting place to discuss the need for a change to the zero-tolerance approach to discipline,” Dr. Alcantar-Martinez said. “They prompted us to re-evaluate our code of conduct and to work with students to include their insight into discipline options at all levels. We plan to share with our peers and work toward exploring alternatives that keep kids in school, thus reducing suspensions.”

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