Category Archives: 21st century schools

Construction on the new Lee HS moves forward despite heavy rains

Heavy rain and flooding throughout the Houston area may have slowed down many this week, but construction at the new Lee High School work site continued to move forward.

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Located on Houston’s west side, the $73.8 million, 240,000-square-foot facility is being rebuilt as a modern learning environment that will accommodate 1,700 to 1,900 students.

“The school looks like it’s going up pretty fast, and I’m really happy given the weather lately,” said Lee Principal Jonathan Trinh. “The community appreciates having a new school. With the neighborhood surrounding the school going through renovations now, we’re hoping the new campus will kick start and revitalize the area.”

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Wharton renovation, expansion plans presented to community; construction to start soon

Once construction is complete, the new Wharton Dual Language Academy will feature new learning spaces and labs, a new gym and library, an interior courtyard preserving heritage trees, and a grand, three-story, glass entryway.

Designs plans for the school’s renovation and new addition were detailed to nearly 100 Wharton parents and community members Thursday night during  community meeting at the Wharton campus.

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The project is part of the Houston Independent School District’s 2012 Bond Program, which calls for renovation or replacement of 40 schools across the district. Construction at Wharton is expected to start later this year, with the Montrose-area school expected to re-open its doors in fall of 2018.

The project will expand the school’s capacity up to 900 students and eliminate all the temporary buildings from the site.

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District’s new career and technical education center at Jordan HS accepting applications

Rising juniors at nine HISD high schools have the opportunity to explore different careers without changing schools, thanks to the district’s first regional career and technical education center at Barbara Jordan.

The Barbara Jordan Career Hub is now taking applications from 10th-grade students zoned to Davis, Furr, Kashmere, North Forest, Reagan, Sam Houston, Washington, Wheatley, and Yates high schools to participate in the specialized program at Jordan, where they will get specialized education and training in high-demand fields.

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HISD Board of Education to consider Kashmere High School construction contract

The Houston Independent School District Board of Education on Thursday is expected to consider a construction contract for Kashmere High School, which is undergoing significant renovation as part of the 2012 Bond Program.

The bid for the renovation work was submitted by DT Construction in response to a February request for competitive sealed proposals. The proposal — one of three submitted — includes a base bid of $13 million with a construction contingency of $1.1 million, meaning the total costs would not exceed $14.1 million. Continue reading →

Construction on Davis HS campus to begin this summer

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Work on the bond project to rebuild Davis High School is slated to begin this summer when construction gets underway on a parking lot off Tackaberry Street.

That new lot is part of an expansion plan for the Near Northside campus, and the first step in a three-phase project that will bring two additions and renovations to create a newly modernized school for 1,500 to 1,700 students.

“We’re basically working from the left of the campus to the right,” Architect Mark French of the IBI Group, told more than 40 people who turned out Thursday for a meeting to get the latest updates on the historic school.

Davis Principal Julissa Alcantar-Martinez opened the meeting by thanking the school community, especially the Project Advisory Team, for working together to move the project forward and to advocate for the best facility possible for students.

“They have stuck with this for three years even when it hasn’t been easy,” she said, noting that the school received $19 million in additional funding in December because of that support.

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Milby HS takes shape as bond construction moves forward

As concrete walls go up and steel framing is erected, the Milby High School community can now see the future of their new campus beginning to take shape.

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The 267,000-square-foot project along Broadway Street in Houston’s East End is a combination of new construction and renovation, allowing the school to maintain its historical structure while also creating a modern learning environment for up to 2,000 students.

“All of the tilt walls and concrete walls have now been completed,” said HISD’s Project Manager Mark Crippen. ”It seems as if it takes forever to complete, but once construction starts, it moves pretty quickly.”

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Scarborough HS community learns more about progress of renovations

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Scarborough High School parents, staff, and community members on Wednesday evening heard an update on plans to renovate the nearly 50-year-old campus in northwest Houston – an effort the school hopes will attract neighborhood families.

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Construction at North Houston Early and South Early College high schools nears completion

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Construction at both North Houston Early and South Early college high schools is nearing completion, with preparations underway to have both campuses ready for students at the beginning of the 2016-2017 school year.

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New Mark White ES accepting applications through March 25

MarkWhiteES_800aHISD’s brand new Mark White Elementary School (2515 Old Farm Road, 77063) will be opening its doors for the first time in the fall of 2016, and interested parents have until Friday, March 25, to submit their applications for admission.

The school, which is located just north of Westheimer on the district’s west side, will offer a French-language immersion program to students in prekindergarten and kindergarten during its first year of operation, and expand the program by one additional grade each year until 2021.

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New Sam Houston MSTC campus to feature flexible design with a collegiate feel

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Stakeholders of Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center gathered at the school this week for a bond community meeting to learn more about design plans for their new campus, which is being rebuilt under the bond program.

Flexibility, a hallmark of 21st Century school-planning, features prominently in the design. The building would feature a large open courtyard that will function as a flexible outdoor learning and gathering space, and also serve as an extension of the dining area. A large grand stair is also featured in the plans and would serve as a flexible informal sitting and gathering space for students, but can also be used by class-sized groups for lectures or presentations.

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