Author Archives: HISD Communications

Austin High School bond project update draws big crowd

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More than 300 students, staff and community members gathered at Austin High School on Tuesday to get an update on plans to rebuild the 80-year-old school and a first glimpse at what the new facility could look like.

Plans for the campus include modern, open spaces allowing for lots of daylight, better traffic flow in and around the campus, clusters of classrooms to allow for a neighborhood learning concept, and a new, defined entry off of Jefferson Street.

“This really is about our students. We’re providing them with a different type of learning environment,” HISD Design General Manager Dan Bankhead told the crowd, explaining that students no longer sit in rows doing worksheets. “What we find now is students work better when they learn from each other, when they’re collaborative.”
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Vocabulary victories at Chavez HS, Lanier MS highlight effective literacy strategies

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Chavez High School and Lanier Middle School won the top prizes in Vocabulary.com’s 2015-2016 national Vocabulary Bowl, a competition that is becoming just one example of effective strategies to increase literacy across the HISD’s secondary schools.

Chavez won for the second consecutive year with 344,043 words mastered, and Lanier won with 230,034 words. Chavez celebrated on Monday, May 9, with a trophy presentation, medals and certificates for the top 100 students, and inspirational speeches and congratulations from local media and nationally known figures. Lanier’s celebration was Friday, May 13, in the school gymnasium.

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Summer Reading Program an opportunity to hone literacy skills, spark imagination

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The Houston Independent School District is challenging students to use the power of reading combined with the power of their imagination to go on an unforgettable journey through the district’s Summer Reading Program.

HISD is teaming up with the Houston Public Library and myON, a digital library where students can access more than 5,000 free books, to launch the initiative, which challenges students to read a minimum of five books during the summer. The program also encourages parents and students to spend time reading aloud together — even if it’s just a few minutes each day.

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Vote in second round of ‘Fan Favorite’ Teacher of the Year 

Two winners to be announced at May 20 Educators of the Year banquet

Over the past two weeks, HISD staff, students, and alumni voted over 85,000 times for their “Fan Favorite” Teacher of the Year. Voters could choose from any of the campus-based Teacher of the Year nominees. The votes are now tallied and the top four elementary and secondary teachers are moving on to round two. The finalists are:  Continue reading →

Construction at new DeBakey HS quickly moving along

The Texas Medical Center will soon welcome its newest neighbor as construction on the new DeBakey High School for Health Professions moves forward at a steady pace.

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Part of the voter-approved 2012 Bond Program, DeBakey will receive a 198,000-square-foot, five-story facility located on the western side of the Medical Center complex.

The $64.5 million building will accommodate 900 to 1,000 students and feature state-of-the-art medical training equipment with teaching labs for dentistry, rehabilitation, and patient care. Mock hospital rooms and science labs intended to mimic real-world research labs also will be included in the new facility.

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Board of Education to consider new names for seven schools

The Houston ISD Board of Education on Thursday will consider new names for seven schools that were recommended by committees of students, parents, teachers, alumni, civic leaders and principals.

Earlier this year, the Board of Education voted to start the process of choosing new names for schools that will better reflect the district’s values and diversity. If approved, the new names will be in effect beginning with the upcoming 2016-2017 school year. The proposed new campus names are as follows: Continue reading →

HISD to host college summit for historically black colleges, universities

Hundreds of HISD middle and high school students will have the opportunity to meet admissions representatives from regional historically black colleges and universities from 6 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, May 10 at the HISD College Summit for HBCUs at Texas Southern University.

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) located in Texas and Louisiana will be represented, and general information will be provided on the more than 100 HBCUs across the country. Students in grades 6-12 along with their parents are invited to attend. The free event will include a college fair and breakout sessions focused on financial aid and college admissions.

“Attending an HBCU changed my life,” said HISD EMERGE academic program manager Steven Chambers, who will be a featured speaker at the event. He is a graduate of Hampton University. “The HBCU college summit will expose students to the diversity of school offerings as well as highlight the impact HBCUs have on the character and confidence of students enrolled.”

Representatives will be in attendance from the following colleges and universities: Huston-Tillotson University, Jarvis Christian College, Prairie View A&M University, Southwestern Christian College, Texas College, Texas Southern University, and Wiley College.

The event is organized by the HISD College Readiness Department. Transportation will be provided from some campuses. This year, the district strengthened its college readiness efforts by deploying 28 new college success advisors and 10 college success managers to campuses across the district.

 

HISD community celebrates Teacher Appreciation Week in creative ways 

[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxAxwjkyiWs”]While we always encourage our community to tell teachers how much they’re valued, students, administrators, and staff have rallied around our educators for Teacher Appreciation Week to celebrate their tireless dedication.

Inspirational and emotional messages of thanks and encouragement flooded the district’s social media channels, including tear-jerking moments caught on video as students told their teachers how much they mean to them. Continue reading →