Author Archives: HISD Communications

HISD, Houston Urban Debate League Host Summer Debate Camp

Houston ISD students had an opportunity to hone their public-speaking and debate skills at the sixth-annual Summer Debate Institute July 29–August 2, 2013, at Austin High School. Hosted by HISD and the Houston Urban Debate League (HUDL), 85 students from 17 Houston-area schools participated in the week-long camp.

“It’s been informative and really helpful in other aspects, because debate keeps you apprised of relevant topics,” said Joseph Collins, 12th grade camp participant. “It’s given me the ability to not only state my opinion but actually back it up and be able to do the research.”

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Parents: Get Children’s Back-to-School Immunizations for Free

The start of the new school year is just around the corner, and one of the things all students need to have is up-to-date immunizations.

Which immunizations are required for your child? Visit the Heath & Medical Services Departments’ website for the lists.

Here’s some good news: Your child can get back-to-school immunizations for free. Here’s where and when you can get them in Houston. Parents must accompany their child and have their child’s immunization records in order to qualify.

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HISD Transportation to Provide Emergency/Rescue Training to All Bus Drivers

More than 1,200 to complete hands-on training in partnership with Houston Fire Department

HISD’s Transportation Services, in partnership with the Houston Fire Department, will provide realistic emergency and rescue training to all bus drivers and attendants to prepare them to respond successfully to any crisis on a school bus.  The training will be August 6 from 8 a.m. to noon at the Houston Fire Department Training Facility, 8030 Braniff Street.

Mock emergency drills will prepare bus drivers and attendants to respond to a variety of potential scenarios, including a fire on a school bus, an armed intruder on board, and a wreck involving a train.

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Sign Up Today for the Mayor’s Back-to-School Fest on Aug. 10

Mayor Annise Parker will be hosting a Back-to-School Fest for parents on Sat., Aug. 10, 2013.

The event will take place from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. at the University of Houston, and it is expected to serve about 25,000 families from almost two dozen Houston-area independent school districts.
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Millionaire Club Spotlight: What Are You Reading This Summer?

HISD’s Millionaire Club is a literacy initiative designed to encourage students to read for pleasure during the summer months. Each week, we’ll catch up with one HISD librarian to find out what’s on his or her reading list. This week, we spoke with Jo Reed, the librarian at Scroggins Elementary School.

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Customer Service Reps and Rooms Being Readied to Support Laptop Initiative

While the latest and greatest technology can often make our lives easier and save us time, nothing is quite so frustrating as when a digital device doesn’t do what we want it to. That’s why HISD is making sure that its new one-to-one laptop initiative called “PowerUp” has a robust system in place to support participating staff and students.

HISD’s Information Technology Department has spent the summer months locating and preparing special customer-service rooms at each of the 11 pilot schools involved in the launch of PowerUp this coming school year. All the rooms are in the process of being renovated and upgraded with new cabling and equipment.

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Bellaire High School Graduate Wins New Car at ‘Cool to Be Smart’ Celebration

Bellaire HS grad Kevin Dwyer with the car he won at the Cool to be Smart celebration

Bellaire High School graduate Kevin Dwyer, who caught a ride with his friend to the event, left the third Annual Cool to Be Smart celebration on Sunday in a brand new 2013 Dodge Avenger donated by the HISD Foundation and Helfman River Oaks Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram.

“This is really cool!  I never thought I’d win,” said Dwyer who will be studying electrical engineering at Texas A&M University this fall.  “My friend’s dad joked around that I would win, but I never imagined it would actually happen.”

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Jordan, Wheatley Students Cultivate ‘Friendships Beyond Borders’

HISD students pose in front of a statue of former South African President Paul Kruger in Pretoria, South Africa.

Almost a dozen students from HISD’s Jordan and Wheatley high schools forged new relationships with their contemporaries from around the globe last month when they traveled overseas as part of a program designed to cultivate “friendships across borders.”

The students briefly visited the Netherlands before heading to South Africa through the International Youth Friendship & Development Program, whose mission is to connect young people with their peers from other countries to build mutual respect and understanding, with the ultimate goal of someday achieving world peace.

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Westside HS students travel to Japan through Kakehashi Project

Emily Wang, Geovanni Salcedo (standing, second and fourth from L), Idara Ukpanah, and Shadi Al-Tawrah (kneeling, third and fourth from left) study kendo, the Japanese art of fencing.

A dozen students from Westside High School did their part to improve international relations this summer when they participated in a program sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The students spent ten days exploring that island nation in July through the Kakehashi Project/Bridge for Tomorrow, a program designed to cultivate a more positive relationship between the U.S. and Japan through youth cultural exchange.

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