Category Archives: Achievement/Recognition

Number of Family Friendly Schools more than doubles in second year of program

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Sixty-one HISD schools took the Family and Community Empowerment (FACE) Department’s challenge to get their campus certified as a Family Friendly School for the 2016-2017 school year, and they did it.

Campuses worked diligently during this past school year to offer their families and communities research-based activities and strategies to expand and build relationships, link events to student learning, and build capacity and support efforts for family and community empowerment. Through these efforts, schools attained one of the three Family Friendly School Certification levels: Continue reading →

Carnegie Vanguard HS senior aces SAT, ACT, and AP exams

Carnegie Vanguard High School Ramon Moss (left) and HISD College Readiness Senior Manager Jennifer Ertel present senior An Nguyen with a certificate of achievement.

Meet An Nguyen, the Houston Independent School District student who earned perfect scores on the School Day SAT, the ACT, and the 11 Advanced Placement (AP) exams she has taken throughout high school. Nguyen is now part of an elite, high academic profile club.

According to the CollegeBoard, 1.7 million students took the SAT in 2017, with a mean score of 1060. In Texas, 204,409 students took the SAT, with a mean score of 1020.

The SAT and ACT are both college entrance exams, assessing skills in reading, math, and writing.

Increasing access to college entrance exams is a key focus for HISD— all high school juniors take the SAT for free at their home campus during regular school hours. Houston ISD also offers the PSAT to students in grades 8-11 for free. HISD is dedicated to preparing students test college-ready in math and reading before graduation. Continue reading →

HISD awarded more than $60 million in federal grants

U.S. Department of Education funding to target teacher recruitment, STEM programs

The Houston Independent School District has been awarded three grants, including one that is believed to be the largest grant the district has ever received.

Each of the three grants is from the U.S. Department of Education. The largest totals $47 million and will go to recruiting and retaining the best teachers and administrators at the district’s most struggling schools.

The district also received a nearly $15 million grant for STEM — Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math — education at six HISD schools, and a $1.3 million grant that will go toward professional development for music and arts teachers in high-poverty schools. Continue reading →

October is National Principals Month

Thank an HISD leader using a special image and hashtag on social media

Next to classroom instruction, the role of an effective school leader is crucial to the success of a school and its students. That’s why NASSP, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, and the American Federation of School Administrators have designated October as National Principals Month to honor principals nationwide.

Texas Governor Greg Abbot has also issued a proclamation declaring October 2017 Principals’ Month in Texas. HISD is joining in on the festivities by encouraging students, parents, staff, and community members to honor and thank district principals by downloading the image below and posting it on social media. Be sure to include the name of the principal you would like to acknowledge along with the school he or she leads. Also include the hashtags #ThankaPrincipal and #HISD in your posts.

Click here to download

72 HISD students named National Merit semifinalists

Students will have opportunity to compete for more than $32 million in scholarships

Seventy-two seniors from six Houston Independent School District high schools have qualified as semifinalists in the 63rd annual National Merit Scholarship Program, earning one of the top academic honors in the nation. HISD had 51 semifinalists last year.

The students are among 16,000 from across the country to earn the semifinalist designation, allowing them the opportunity to continue in the academic competition and vie for more than $32 million in scholarships that will be awarded in the spring.

The students attend Bellaire, Carnegie Vanguard, Lamar, and Westside high schools, as well as DeBakey High School for Health Professions and the High School for Performing and Visual Arts. Continue reading →

Lyons ES, Eastwood Academy named National Blue Ribbon Schools for second time

A month after catastrophe crippled the city, there’s a bright spot to celebrate in HISD. Two of our schools have been named National Blue Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education: Eastwood Academy and Lyons Elementary.

The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program honors public and private exemplary campuses or those that are closing achievement gaps. Eastwood and Lyons are among 26 public schools in Texas to receive the award this year, and both were named as “Exemplary High Performing Schools.”

Eastwood Academy, which is located in the East End, is a college prep high school. Students here complete dual-credit courses, along with 80 hours of community volunteer work, before they graduate. The principal attributes part of their success to the school’s focus on addressing the needs of individual students through social and emotional learning. Continue reading →

Sharpstown HS wins $100,000 sports equipment grant

Sharpstown High School has won a $100,000 customized sports equipment grant from Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Let’s Play, and Good Sports!

After the field had been narrowed down to 20 schools from across the country, voting opened on Facebook on Sept. 8. Sharpstown then made the top 10, then the top three, and finally were selected by a committee to win the grand prize.

Coach Carlos Quintero spearheaded the winning campaign, and now the athletic department will have $100,000 worth of new equipment. The school would like to thank everyone who voted for them.

See Click2Houston’s video here, which captures the moment the coach and students found out they won, as well as part of the video that won them the prize.

Yao Ming visits Hilliard ES, donates $100K to mayor’s hurricane fund

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Basketball star Yao Ming toured the flooded Hilliard Elementary School on Sept. 26 to show his support for HISD students suffering from the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. Hilliard is among the “top 10” HISD schools damaged by the storm, and it will be months before students will be able to return.

Ming joined Hilliard Principal Edrick Moultry and HISD officials at the school, which took on four feet of water from nearby Halls Bayou. Also on the tour were HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza, Board President Wanda Adams, and Trustees Rhonda Skillern-Jones, Diana Dávila, Anna Eastman, and Holly Maria Flynn Vilaseca.

Continue reading →

HISD recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month

The Houston Independent School District is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs Sept. 15- Oct. 15, to recognize the contributions made by people of Hispanic and Latin American descent and their heritage and culture.

HISD includes 22 schools that recognize the contributions of Hispanic civic and community leaders, who range from educators and civil servants to local restaurateurs, newscasters, Congressional Medal of Honor recipients, and even Nobel Prize-winners.

Hispanic Heritage Month begins on Sept. 15 because that is the anniversary of the independence of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The month also encompasses the independence days for Mexico (Sept. 16) and Chile (Sept. 18), as well as Columbus Day (Sept. 12), also known as Dia de la Raza.

Hispanic Heritage Month started as a week in 1968 under President Lyndon B. Johnson, but President Ronald Reagan extended it to a month in 1988.

SCHOOLS: We would like to retweet photos of your Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations. Please include @HoustonISD in your Tweets, along with the hashtag #HispanicHeritageMonth. 

Condit ES selected as finalist for Texas school architecture competition

Designs for three additional bond schools honored with ‘Stars of Distinction’

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Constructed as part of HISD’s 2012 Bond Program, Condit Elementary School has been selected as one of five finalists vying for the highest honor offered by the 2017-18 Exhibit of School Architecture Competition.

Three additional bond campuses — Atherton Elementary School, Mandarin Immersion Magnet School, and Sterling Aviation High School — received Stars of Distinction.

The annual school architecture competition showcases new and renovated Texas schools and recognizes excellence in their planning and design. It is sponsored by the Texas Association of School Administrators and the Texas Association of School Boards.