HISD leadership geared up the for the new school year, gathering at Delmar Stadium for the district’s annual Welcome Back meeting. 

More than 1,500 principals, deans, assistant principals, and district leaders packed the general session to hear the breakdown of Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan’s strategic priorities, attend area breakout sessions centered on their campus goals for the upcoming school year and celebrate successes from the previous year. 

“Last school year, we made great strides in closing the achievement gaps for students and turnaround efforts for our Achieve 180 program remain on an upward trend,” Lathan said. 

Lathan also shard the return of initiatives such as Ascending to Men, Parent University and H.E.A.R., which strengthened the district’s relationship with the community-at-large and increased parental and student involvement. Additional initiatives like ROSES and Miles Ahead will also join the lineup of resources available to underserved students. 

“Our students are overcoming even greater challenges at home that extend well beyond the classroom and we must remain vigilant in building campus teams that support our students at every angle and prepares them for a world beyond HISD,” Lathan said.  

It wasn’t all business during the Welcome Back, thanks to the district’s partnership with Sterling McCall VIP Services. As a thank you to the principals for all their hard work during the 2018-2019 school year, Principals Lisa McManus of Roosevelt Elementary School and Michelle Shoulders of Pin Oak Middle School had their names randomly selected to drive a Sterling McCall vehicle for a month.  

New principals, staff updates for 2019-2020 school year 

The superintendent also took time out to recognize and congratulate 43 of the district’s first-year principals. Attendees also got a chance to hear from Kwame Simmons, a nationally known educator and 2015 BET Honors Award for Excellence in Education recipient who works to turn urban schools into national models of success.