Category Archives: District II – Kathy Blueford-Daniels

Kashmere High School opens renovated campus

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000ya53gvlaRTc” g_name=”20170911-Kashmere-HS-First-Day” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

Kashmere High School students buzzed with anticipation Monday morning as teachers, staff, and community members welcomed them for their first day back to school at a newly renovated campus.

“It’s just beautiful,” Principal Nancy Blackwell proclaimed. “We went from dark and dingy to light and open.”

Blackwell said that the aesthetics that surround a child are important, so she is hopeful the new environment will positively impact students — both academically and emotionally.

Kashmere was renovated as part of HISD’s voter-approved 2012 Bond Program. In conjunction with an upgraded front entrance, the $17 million project included upgrading and enclosing the main central courtyard to create a large, indoor flexible space designed for year-round use. Continue reading →

Hurricane Harvey delays don’t dampen excitement at new Leland College Prep Academy

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G00009ie6NDtvlg8″ g_name=”20170911-Leland-First-Day” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

After a two-week storm delay, Mickey Leland College Preparatory Academy for Young Men Principal Dameion Crook was so excited for the start of school on Monday, he couldn’t sleep the night before.

“I got here at 6 a.m.,” Crook said as he stood in front of his school directing cars in the driveway. “I beat the plant operator.”

For Crook and his students and staff, Monday marked not just the first day of school but the first day of school in their new building, constructed as part of the 2012 Bond Program. The $30.3 million project called for a new facility that could accommodate up to 1,000 middle school and high schools students. Continue reading →

Hilliard Elementary among schools that suffered ‘extensive’ damage in Hurricane Harvey

Fifty-three campuses have “major” damage, 22 have “extensive” damage; assessment of campuses continues

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000G9gd4DmSIvI” g_name=”Hilliard-Elementary-Superintendent-visit” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

The floors of Hilliard Elementary School, where Hurricane Harvey floodwaters at one point reached 4 feet high, were still slick and littered with wet debris on Saturday, with water pooling in the hallways, cafetorium and classrooms. Flooring schoolwide will need to be torn out, walls removed 4 feet from the floor, and surfaces dried with humidifiers and covered in anti-microbial disinfectant.

The extent of devastation at the northeast Houston campus places it in the “top 10” of schools damaged by the storm. Continue reading →

HISD to open nine schools for 2017-2018 school year

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000.ifXQ8bJoOA” g_name=”20170816-New-schools” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

Nine schools across the Houston Independent School District will formally open their doors to all students for the first time on Monday — the first day of the 2017-2018 school year.

New schools set to open this school year include Furr, Milby and Wisdom high schools, as well as Mickey Leland College Preparatory Academy for Young Men and DeBakey High School for Health Professions. DeBakey technically opened to summer school students in May, but Monday marks the start of its first fall semester in the new building.

Another four schools — Kashmere and Waltrip high schools, Sharpstown International School, and Codwell Elementary — underwent major renovations. Continue reading →

Achieve 180 debuts with parade and community event in Sunnyside

Worthing feeder pattern schools join forces for ‘Southside Takeover’

HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza took to the streets of the Sunnyside community on Saturday, Aug. 19, for the first ever “Southside Takeover,” a back-to-school bash to kick-off the start of the 2017-2018 school year and the start of Achieve180.

“Achieve 180 is more than a plan or initiative,” said Carranza. “It’s a movement to better serve our historically underserved and academically challenged schools.”

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000X.8M7zAlic4″ g_name=”20170818-Achieve180-SouthSide” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

The “Southside Takeover” featured Carranza at the helm of a parade with students, staff, and parents from Worthing High School, along with various other campuses in the south area, and a resource fair for families with free immunizations, school supplies, backpacks, uniforms, food, and entertainment. Continue reading →

Achieve 180 kicks off with back-to-school events

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000tF9dkhd2U.0″ g_name=”20170816-Achieve180-Events” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

Back-to-school events aimed at strengthening partnerships with parents and community

Schools included in HISD’s Achieve 180 initiative are kicking off the 2017-2018 school year for their parents, students, and communities surrounding their campuses with everything from dance parties and parades to free school supplies, immunizations, and dental care.

Thirty-two schools are included in Achieve 180, a new district initiative launching during the 2017-2018 school year to support, strengthen, and empower underserved and underperforming HISD schools. A key component of the research-based initiative is family and community empowerment. Continue reading →

Officers challenged to ‘make a difference’ at HISD Police awards luncheon

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G00007MAkri5Espg” g_name=”20170811-Police-Awards-Lunch” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

HISD Police Chief Robert Mock encouraged his officers to get to know and build relationships with students, as he addressed the group at the department’s 20^th Annual Awards Luncheon on Friday.

“You have the ability get to know these students and intervene in their lives,” Mock said. “I challenge each one of you to choose to make a difference.”

HISD police officers, personnel, and family members gathered at Brady’s Landing restaurant for the event, which celebrates the achievements, contributions, and outstanding customer service provided by the department during the academic school year. Continue reading →

Fifth Ward community members tour the new Mickey Leland

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000i8rKn3PTXic” g_name=”Leland-Community-Tour” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

Excitement and nostalgia filled the air as community members from the historic Fifth Ward flocked to the new Mickey Leland College Preparatory Academy for Young Men on Friday to get their first glimpse of the new campus.

Roughly 50 school stakeholders and community dignitaries — including Gaston Leland, brother of late Congressman and school namesake Mickey Leland — crowded into the robotics lab, eager to see and learn about the facility, which is set to open to students for the first day of school on Aug. 28. Continue reading →

Washington HS engineering students travel to White Sands Missile Range to launch rockets

It’s an annual tradition. Students from Dr. Nghia Le’s High Altitude Rocketry class at Booker T. Washington High School and the High School for Engineering Professions travel to White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico to attempt to launch a rocket they built themselves during the school year.

The results vary from year to year, but this year, the Golden Eagle 6.5 team considered their launch successful, although the rocket did not reach the required 100,000 feet or deliver NASA’s payload.

Continue reading →

New Washington HS taking shape as construction progresses

Construction is more than halfway complete at Washington High School, where crews have completed installation of the building’s west side structural steel, exterior concrete walls, and exterior brick.

Crews are making steady progress. Installation of the exterior glass on the $51.7 million facility is underway, and the west side of the building is ready for both paint and flooring.

“It’s exciting to see what’s taking place,” Washington Principal Carlos Phillips said. “This will be the face of our school.”