Author Archives: HISD Communications

Nutrition Services awarded second Oliver Foundation grant

Dietitian Jennifer Griffin Lengyel advices a parent during a community outreach event at Elrod Elementary School.

Dietitian Jennifer Griffin Lengyel advices a parent during a community outreach event at Elrod Elementary School.

HISD Nutrition Services has been awarded a second grant from the Oliver Foundation, a local organization dedicated to preventing childhood obesity. The award will help the department to promote, educate, and encourage HISD students to adopt healthy eating habits.

Nutrition Services received $3,000 from the Oliver Foundation last October and partnered with Davis High School’s culinary program to teach nutrition education to fellow students. The Oliver Foundation awarded $5,000 this year to Nutrition Services to continue its efforts.

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Summer STEM Institute helps teachers infuse learning with fun

More than five dozen HISD science, technology, engineering, and math teachers took part in a summer institute recently that was designed to help boost students’ math and science scores by incorporating more fun into their lessons.

The educators came from 23 HISD elementary and middle schools that received part of a TIF4 STEM grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The grant also provides resources such as equipment and technology, and participating teachers will receive additional training opportunities throughout the school year and share what they have learned with other faculty members at their campuses.

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New Teacher Academy provides enthusiastic welcome to district

NTA1 Part pep rally, part teacher development, the district’s 2015 edition of the New Teacher Academy kicked off on Aug. 5 with hundreds of enthusiastic educators soaking up HISD culture and information at the Kingdom Builders’ Center.

The annual event is designed to introduce new HISD teachers to the district, connect them with resources they’ll need throughout the year, and provide professional development opportunities geared toward helping them hit the ground running on the first day of school. This year, more than 1,500 teachers registered to attend. Continue reading →

Wharton Dual Language Academy stakeholders get first glimpse of initial design for new building

Wharton Dual Language Academy stakeholders on Wednesday learned more about the site plan and preliminary design for a new addition and renovations to the school’s current facility, which was built in 1929.

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Campus, district leaders share best practices at PLS 2015

Campus and district leaders are getting ready for the start of the new school year by sharing best practices and learning some new ways to help students succeed.

The Professional Learning Series 2015 was held at NRG Park in early August, and Sessions were designed to connect HISD’s leader competencies with Global Graduate competencies, as well as the district’s core initiatives of Global Education/Dual Language, Linked Learning, Literacy By 3, and PowerUp. Continue reading →

Secondary teachers gear up for new school year at Transformation Institute

More than 2,000 teachers attend professional development focused on transforming instruction

Nearly 1,000 middle and high school teachers spent the last week of July gearing up for the start of the school year at the district’s Summer Transformation Institute—one of five professional development sessions held this summer by the Office of Secondary Curriculum and Instruction. The fifth and final Institute at Chávez High School featured sessions on the use of technology for content development and classroom instruction, as well as sessions on project-based learning, classroom management, and reading and writing workshops.

“Teachers are loving the opportunity for choice,” said Chief Secondary Curriculum and Instruction Officer Annie Wolfe. “We designed the Institute so that teachers could start off the morning with their peers in core-content areas, but then have the opportunity to choose late morning and afternoon sessions based on their skill level and needs.” Continue reading →

HISD Transportation sets stage for a successful year with recruitment efforts

With the new school year just ahead, the HISD Transportation Department is taking every measure to ensure safe, reliable, and punctual transportation for students.

To reach this goal, HISD Transportation remained busy all summer searching for the best candidates to join its nationally recognized team. The department supports the student’s educational day by providing safe, professional, and efficient transportation to and from school, educational field trips, athletic competitions, and events. Continue reading →

Teachers aim to instill love of reading in students

About 1,000 new and veteran teachers attended HISD’s ongoing teacher professional development recently, which included a heavy dose of Literacy By 3 training.

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The sessions were designed to help teachers learn effective methods and classroom management techniques that lead to students reading on level by the third grade.

Charity Smith, a manager for elementary literacy training development, said the training ultimately benefits students by creating teachers who can implement hands-on learning in the classroom and provide critical-thinking exercises, all of which help build Global Graduates. Continue reading →

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 →