Author Archives: HISD Communications

Power of Public: Making every child’s sky-high dreams come true

Ronald Canales is pursuing his flying dreams at Sterling Aviation High, which in 2017 debuted a new $72 million campus, rebuilt as part of the voter-approved 2012 bond program. It includes a 7,100-square-foot airplane hangar surrounded by career and technology education classrooms.

Editor’s Note: February 27 through March 3 is Texas Public Schools Week, and we are celebrating by sharing personal stories throughout HISD on how public education is helping students succeed. Tweet at us @HoustonISD and share how public education is positive force in you or your student’s life, using the hashtag #PowerofPublic.

Ronald Canales was 5 when he first spotted the large commercial airliner gliding through the sky. He was mesmerized and full of questions: How does that work? How does it fly?

He dreamed of becoming a pilot, but the idea seemed elusive. Though he lived just minutes from Sterling Aviation High, he didn’t give much thought to its aviation magnet and the doors it could open.

At least not until his sophomore year, when he met aviation history teacher Marvin Smith. Continue reading →

Power of Public: Making every child feel at home in school

After his family immigrated to the U.S., Hla Aye found his home at Fondren Middle, where many of his peers are the children of immigrants. There are more than 100 languages spoken in HISD, which offers services such as counseling, tutoring, and health services to help newcomers settle in their new country.

Editor’s Note: February 27 through March 3 is Texas Public Schools Week, and we are celebrating by sharing personal stories throughout HISD on how public education is helping students succeed. Tweet at us @HoustonISD and share how public education is positive force in you or your student’s life, using the hashtag #PowerofPublic.

Hla Aye was 2 when his home in Myanmar, formerly Burma, was destroyed in the country’s decades-long civil war and his family was sent to a refugee camp with little food and no running water. His father applied for a visa to the U.S., and the family was greeted at the airport by a translator and a sponsor who gave them enough money to last one month.

“My parents found jobs,” Hla said. “My mom encouraged me. She said study as much as you can.”

When Hla enrolled in first grade, he didn’t know anyone, and he didn’t know the language. A practice website helped Hla teach himself English, but it was at Fondren Middle that he really found his voice — and a new home.

Continue reading →

HISD names new chief financial officer

The Houston Independent School District has selected Rene Barajas as the district’s new chief financial officer.

Dr. Barajas currently serves as deputy superintendent and chief financial officer of the Garland Independent School District, with more than 20 years of central administration experience in public schools. He has eight years of experience as a chief financial officer.

He previously served as an assistant superintendent for business and support services for the San Marcos Consolidated Independent School District as well as a business manager and internal auditor for other public school districts in Texas.

Continue reading →

HISD communications team wins 23 Star Awards from Texas School Public Relations Association

Largest school district in the state honored for school communications, including Platinum Award for Global Graduate project

Feb. 22, 2017—The Houston Independent School District’s communications team will be awarded 23 Star Awards from the Texas School Public Relations Association for its excellence in school communications for the 2015-2016 school year, including the Platinum Award for its work on HISD’s Global Graduate profile. The awards will be presented on Wednesday, Feb. 22, during the 2017 TSPRA Annual Conference Star Awards Banquet in Galveston.

Every year, the Texas School Public Relations Association (TSPRA) honors school districts for their exceptional work in print, electronic, and visual media. HISD was awarded 12 Gold Stars, six Silver Stars, a Bronze Star, three Crystal Commendations and the Platinum Award for an all-encompassing year-long communications project. Continue reading →

HISD, university partners meet to strengthen collaboration

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As HISD works to find an effective teacher for every classroom, one of the district’s renewed focuses in on strengthen partnerships with colleges and universities to recruit and better prepare new teachers.

To help achieve this, HISD hosted representatives from several universities Wednesday to begin a discussion on how the district and higher education institutions can improve the lines of communication when it comes to teacher training and support. Among those in attendance were the University of Houston, University of Houston-Downtown, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Texas State, Sam Houston State, Texas Southern, Prairie View A&M, and University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Continue reading →

Take a virtual tour of HISD’s African American namesake schools

As Black History Month draws to a close, take a virtual tour of the district to visit the many schools named after renowned African American leaders, and learn a little about the historical contributions of those educators, legislators and community leaders. Even the district’s administration building, the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, has an important namesake you can learn more about.

Click image for an interactive tour.

New Westbury HS video stresses vital role parents play in student success 

It’s all about family at Westbury High School, and parents are a big part of the school’s extended family.

With 2,200 students, Principal Susan Monaghan counts on parents to help with whatever needs to be done.

“It’s important for parents to be part of what we do every day at Westbury,” she says in a new video. “That’s the only way we can become a top school.”

Continue reading →

Students to present at Microsoft for Digital Learning Day 

Presentations to highlight how technology has helped transform learning 

Teams from 10 HISD high schools will be making presentations to Microsoft executives this Thursday, Feb. 23, as part of Digital Learning Day. The student presentations highlight how HISD’s one-to-one laptop initiative, also known as PowerUp, has impacted learning both in and out of the classroom.

The ten teams were selected from among 45 high schools who participated in Together with Tech, the district’s first ever student-led technology conference that took place Feb. 11 at Lamar High School. Student presentations at the conference used technology-based platforms that included digital animation, mobile app design, and tools such as Google Earth.   Continue reading →

Garden Oaks Montessori gathers for groundbreaking

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Despite a stormy forecast, the weather cleared up just long enough Friday morning for the Garden Oaks Montessori community to officially celebrate the start of construction on their new addition and renovations.

The suddenly sunny skies matched the mood of hundreds of students, staff, and community members who took part in the groundbreaking ceremony.

“We have some sunlight, so let’s make the most of this beautiful moment in time,” Principal Lindsey Pollock said as she kicked off the celebration, which included student performances and a recitation of the Garden Oaks Creed.

Continue reading →

HISD elementary students’ poetry, artwork featured in Houston Symphony production

Poetry and artwork created by second grade students from Patterson Elementary School will be featured in the Houston Symphony’s Carnival of the Animals jazz production Saturday at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts.

With guidance from the Houston Symphony, the students wrote poetry based on the movement of each animal featured in the show and their personal interpretation of the music. To complement their poetry, the students also created visual art, which will be on display in the Jones Hall lobby on Saturday and Sunday.

Patterson, a dual language literature magnet school, was selected for the Houston Symphony’s School Residency program, designed to provide music education experiences for second-graders while exploring connections between music and literacy. As part of the program, the school receives two pre-concert classroom visits and one post-concert visit led by the Houston Symphony community-embedded musicians.

The program also is part of the district’s fine arts initiative to ensure students in the Chavez High School feeder pattern have the opportunity to continue learning about art, drama, and music from elementary through high school.

The Carnival of the Animals production is scheduled for 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., Saturday, Feb. 18 at Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana St.