Yearly Archives: 2016

What you need to know about the new Open Carry law

Recent legislative changes that went into effect Jan. 1, 2016, made it lawful to openly carry firearms in Texas under certain circumstances, but HISD does not and has never allowed handguns or other prohibited weapons to be carried into any district schools or educational facilities.

School grounds have been considered “gun-free” zones under the federal Gun-Free Schools Act that was enacted more than 20 years ago. Texas law also does not permit handguns or certain other weapons to be taken into any school buildings or carried anywhere that school-sponsored activities are taking place.

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New inspection app simplifies food quality assurance in HISD schools

HISD Nutrition Services Quality Control Representative Jeffery Chenier conducts food inspections in school kitchens using a new web-based inspection application.

HISD Nutrition Services Quality Control Representative Jeffery Chenier conducts food inspections in school kitchens using a new web-based inspection application.

Every day, HISD Nutrition Services quality control representatives visit school cafeteria kitchens to ensure that food is safe to serve and kitchens meet the city’s safety standards.

Nutrition Services recently upgraded its quality control inspection process with a new mobile application that allows for faster food-safety assessments. The new application helps quality control representatives inspect more schools and share more information with other departments.

“The application easily tracks scores for each school and we are able to send the reports directly to the operations team,” said Quality Assurance Manager Heather Kohn. “We can also attach pictures, giving a better understanding of the issues that need to be addressed.” Kohn added that Nutrition Services puts great emphasis on food safety and the prevention of foodborne illnesses in the district’s school kitchens.

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Students in final phase of PowerUp initiative receive their laptops

Washington HS sophomore Karla Bueno displays her new laptop.

Washington HS sophomore Karla Bueno displays her new laptop.

Students at a dozen HISD high schools will soon be making the most of 21st-century technology, thanks to HISD’s PowerUp program. The districtwide initiative to transform teaching and learning enters its third and final phase during the 2015–2016 school year, and students in the last group of 12 high schools began receiving laptops this month for use in the classroom and at home.

Noah Brown, a tenth-grader at Booker T. Washington High School, said he was excited to be receiving the device on Jan. 20. “It will make classwork easier,” he said. “Up ‘til now, I’ve been doing research on my phone.”

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Westbury HS launches campaign to increase students’ college-readiness

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Students at HISD’s Westbury High School are helping their peers to get —and stay — on the road to higher education, thanks to a new public awareness campaign the campus launched on Jan. 14.

The campaign, called “First One, Reach Higher,” is designed to boost students’ readiness for college, particularly those who are at-risk, first generation students of color.

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Career Day at Mading ES benefits students, entire community

More than 30 professional volunteers took time out of their busy careers to speak to Mading Elementary School students, parents, and community members during the school’s second annual Career Day on Jan. 14.

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Mading Principal Nicole Haskins said the event began last year as a community job fair in an effort to get more parents and community members involved. This year, after extending the event, the number of community involvement increased significantly.

“This is an opportunity not only for the students to see different careers, but the teachers, community members, and parents as well,” Haskins said. “It also affords our parents the opportunity to perhaps find a job just by coming to our Career Day.”

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Houston Educational Support Professionals union, HISD to hold town hall meeting about importance of three-point bus seatbelts

The Houston Educational Support Professionals union, in conjunction with the Houston Independent School District, will host a town hall meeting on Thursday to discuss the importance of wearing three-point seatbelts when they are available on HISD school buses.

Union and district officials hope to encourage parents and community members to talk to students and remind them about the importance of always buckling up.

HISD administrators announced in November that all new school buses purchased by the district would include three-point seatbelts. The recommendation by the HISD Transportation Department was made just days after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration provided new guidance on the issue, updating their position to suggest that students should have access to three-point seatbelts.

About 40 buses purchased following that announcement and equipped with three-point seatbelts are expected to arrive this summer. Transportation Department officials have said the new buses will be assigned to the district’s highest-mileage routes.

The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, at Peck Elementary School, 5001 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

Monarch Heroes Program to help reverse decline in butterfly population

The National Wildlife Federation once again has partnered with HISD to help reverse the decline of the monarch butterfly, launching its Monarch Heroes Program for grades six through eight.

“The goal of the Monarch Heroes Program is to help the monarch butterfly, whose population has declined over 90% in the past two decades, while giving students the opportunity to become engaged in and empowered to help solve a current and tangible ‘real-life’ environmental problem,” National Wildlife Federation Senior Education Manager Marya Fowler. “The monarch butterfly is a species that students can have a direct positive impact on that they see in their schoolyards, their backyards and their parks.”

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Martin Luther King Jr. oratory competition earns national, local attention


The performances of several HISD elementary school students who delivered original Martin Luther King Jr.-inspired speeches last week garnered praise from both local and national media outlets. ABC’s Good Morning America described the students’ speeches as “profound” and “impressive.”

The students’ speeches focused on the question, “What would Dr. King say in his campaign speech if he were running for president this year?” as part of the 20thannual Martin Luther King Jr. Oratory Competition sponsored by Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP.

Students from Cornelius, Pleasantville, Wainwright, and Whidby elementary schools were featured in news stories on the competition, thanking Dr. King for his service and legacy. Parts of their speeches also were highlighted on TV.

Cornelius fifth-grader Richard Espinoza-Garza, who won the competition, told ABC that Dr. King “meant we should all come together – all races, all cultures.”

Click the links below to view stories on HISD students participating in the oratory competition.

In Memoriam: Ann Sledge (1958–2016)

AnnSledge_TNAnn Sledge, a lifelong educator and former HISD administrator, passed away on Saturday, Jan. 16, at the age of 57.

Sledge was a much-loved member of Team HISD for more than 30 years, ascending from Title I coordinator and bilingual teacher in the 1980s to senior manager of leadership development by the time she resigned in 2013. During her tenure with the district, she also served as an assistant principal for five years, a principal for 13 years, an executive principal in the (former) West Region for six years, and a school support officer for one year.  Continue reading →

Show your appreciation on national ‘Thank Your Mentor Day’

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On Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, people of all ages will take time out of their busy schedules to show their appreciation during national “Thank Your Mentor Day.” The day, which occurs during National Mentoring Month, is reserved for giving thanks to all of the good Samaritans who provide guidance, advice, and encouragement to young people.

Many HISD students, both present and former, have been affected by one special person who gave of their time to improve the lives of others. Whether it was a teacher, principal, parent, or volunteer, if you are a current or former student whose life was changed for the better thanks to a mentor, share your story with us.

Leave a comment below, send us a tweet @HoustonISD, or go to our Facebook page and send a special shout-out to the person who helped shape your life. Use the hashtag #ThankYourMentor.

If you are looking to become a mentor to a student in HISD, please learn more about our Read Houston Read program. As a Read Houston Read volunteer, you can spend one hour a week, in person or online, reading and being read to by a beginning reader. If you are interested in other mentoring opportunities, contact the Volunteer in Public Schools (VIPS) department at 713-556-7020.