Category Archives: Achievement/Recognition

Dozens of students win regional recognition through Scholastic contest

A Gold Key winning painting entitled "Childhood," by Carnegie Vanguard HS student Oulu Li

A Gold Key winning painting entitled “Childhood,” by Carnegie Vanguard HS student Oulu Li

More than 120 students from 11 different HISD schools earned recognition at the regional level of the Scholastic Art & Writing competition this year, which qualifies them to advance to the national level of judging in New York City.

Forty-two students won the Gold Key award, while 31 took home Silver Key awards, and the remainder earned Honorable Mention.

Westside High School student Christine Willis was also the only HISD student to be named an American Visions finalist. American Visions and American Voices nominees are considered regional “best of show” winners in art and writing (respectively). Each receives a $250 scholarship from sponsor Texas Arts Supply, and one in each category will earn the national medal in March.

The winning entries were selected from approximately 5,000 submissions at the regional level. Visit the HCDE website to see a complete list of winners. Other HISD students on the list are from: Bellaire, Carnegie Vanguard, DeBakey, Waltrip, and Westside high schools; Pershing and Pin Oak middle schools; T.H. Rogers, The Rice School, and the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.

Bellaire HS graduates nail perfect scores on AP macroeconomics exam

Bellaire HS grads Yuqing “Mike” Xiong, left, and Jinchen Zou

Bellaire HS grads Yuqing “Mike” Xiong, left, and Jinchen Zou

Two Bellaire HS graduates just learned that they made perfect scores on last May’s Advanced Placement (AP) macroeconomics exam. Yuqing “Mike” Xiong and Jinchen Zou graduated from Bellaire last spring and took the exam to earn college credit and be eligible for higher-level courses as university freshmen after completing Michael Clark’s economics course.

Jinchen and Yuqing’s are two of only 51 students worldwide to have made a perfect score on the exam in 2014, which was taken by 117,209 students last year. Jinchen now attends Yale University and Yuqing is going to the University of Texas.

Continue reading →

Community partners ‘fire’ up students to attend school

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CITGO Petroleum Corp. and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) gave away 30 Kindle Fire tablets to students at six Houston-area schools in the second year of “Kindling Young Minds,” a project designed to boost attendance. Two HISD schools – Inspired for Excellence Academy and Harper Alternative School – are part of the program. The HISD schools were selected to participate in the project because of their at-risk population and low attendance rate. Continue reading →

Gallegos ES educator named finalist for TCEA Teacher of the Year

 

Alex Jones works with students on a geography lesson using both old (the globe) and new (iPads) technology.

Alex Jones works with students on a geography lesson using both old (the globe) and new (iPads) technology.

Alex Jones, a science lab teacher at Gallegos Elementary School, has been named one of only three finalists (.pdf) for Texas Computer Education Association’s (TCEA) Classroom Teacher of the Year. The award is presented annually to the educator who best recognizes the importance of technology in school and actively tries to promote its use in his or her classroom.

Jones previously served as an education specialist, a special projects coordinator, and an educational technologist, “but my love for children brought me back to HISD and the classroom” this year. His passionate lobbying also persuaded Principal Jessica Tejeda to purchase iPads especially for the science lab.

“I am extremely passionate about teaching young children and enhancing my lessons through the use of technology,” explained Jones, “especially with iOS devices.”

Carnegie Vanguard HS students mastering art, music, fencing

Ariel Simmons

Ariel Simmons

Three students from Carnegie Vanguard High School are making news this week for being at the top of their respective games.

  • Cole Bennette, a junior, recently entered and won an art contest titled “Houston in 2025,” in which he had to envision what the Bayou City would look like in another 10 years. Cole’s artwork now adorns a billboard on I-45 at Smith Street, whose space was donated by Clear Channel Communications. The contest was sponsored by the Center for Houston’s Future.
  • Ariel Simmons, a senior, won gold medals at two prestigious fencing competitions: He won the U.S. title for 20 and under in Salt Lake City, Utah, earlier this month and the U.S. title for adults last month in Dallas. His sport is epee check.
  • Junior Kerrigan Quenemoen and her partner, Kenneth Yu (a senior at Bellaire High School), have once again advanced to the national finals of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Senior Piano Duet Competition in March. They also shared this honor back in 2013.

Congratulations to these talented students!

Texas commissioner of education praises North Forest schools in HISD

In December, Texas Commissioner of Education Michael Williams visited schools in the former North Forest school district, which was annexed into HISD in July 2013. The decision to make the schools part of HISD was his, and as he states in a Houston Chronicle opinion piece, he hoped for a “wholesale transformation.” The visit confirmed that his hope is being realized.

“The North Forest High School campus looked remarkable,” Williams wrote. “As I walked through the halls and peered into math classes, tutoring sessions and graduation labs, I found students and teachers actively engaged in learning.” Continue reading →

After-school programs get boost from new city grant

CASE Connections

HISD’s Chávez High School and Henry Middle School became two of the first local organizations to benefit from a new initiative recently, when they received grants for $15,000 and $5,000 from the City Connections program.

City Connections, a partnership between the City of Houston and the Center for Afterschool, Summer, and Expanded Learning (CASE) for Kids, is designed to help fight juvenile crime and promote child safety by providing much-needed funding for after-school programs. Continue reading →

Class of 2014 IB diploma candidates receive their degrees

LamarHS_CO2014_IBDipsMore than 100 members of HISD’s Class of 2014 took home their International Baccalaureate (IB) diplomas recently. Ninety-six graduates from Lamar High School (some of whom are pictured here) and 10 from Bellaire High School accepted their degrees during special ceremonies held on Jan. 5 and Dec. 17, respectively.

Since IB diplomas are not conferred until late summer, students are generally presented with them while at home, on break from university.

Lamar and Bellaire were the first two HISD high schools to offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program, which is composed of academically challenging and advanced curriculum. Lamar’s IB Diploma program is the largest in Texas and one of the top 10 IB Diploma programs in the United States. Reagan High School received its IB authorization for the Middle Years Programme in the fall of 2013. It is currently in the process of obtaining authorization to offer the IB Degree Program. The first students eligible to graduate from that campus with IB diplomas will be the Class of 2018.

High school students receive diplomas at fall semester graduation ceremony

fallgraduation2More than 80 students received their high school diplomas at the HISD fall 2014 graduation ceremony on Saturday, Jan. 10.

Organized by the district’s Office of School Support, the ceremony recognized students from various high schools for completing the required courses and passing the state assessments during the fall semester. Among those were the first four graduates from the district’s Middle College High School at HCC Felix Fraga, which opened in August 2014: Jennifer Baltazar (below, right), Selena Hernandez (center), Verner Potts, and Nataly Ramon (not pictured). Continue reading →

DeBakey wins $7,500 grant in national H&R Block budget challenge

photo 12

The DeBakey High School for Health Professions recently received a $7,500 grant from the H&R Block Budget Challenge, a teen financial literacy program that rewards high school classes for mastering real-world budgeting and personal finance decision-making. H&R Block representatives presented campus leaders with a check at a special gathering held in December.

High school students and educators nationwide are competing this year to win a portion of $3 million in classroom grants, college scholarships, and cash prizes through the Challenge, which was created to help students learn to manage their money and become financially responsible adults. Continue reading →