Category Archives: District IX – Myrna Guidry

Madison HS prepares for start of construction on new school

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Madison High School Principal Orlando Reyna hosted a community meeting on Thursday to review final designs and reveal an overview of construction plans for the school’s new $82.7 million building, which crews will start to build in the coming weeks.

About 25 stakeholders turned out to hear from the project manager, the architect, and the contractor, and ask them questions. Continue reading →

HISD Board of Education elects new officers

District IX Trustee Wanda Adams named 2017 president

The HISD Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday to name District IX Trustee Wanda Adams president for 2017.

A Kashmere High School graduate, Adams was first elected to the school board in 2013. She previously served six years on the Houston City Council.

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High school students earn job skills from City of Houston internship program

Twelve Worthing High School students will be recognized Tuesday by the Houston City Council for their participation in an internship and job training program with various city departments to build career readiness skills while learning about community services provided to residents.

The students are participating in a two-year paid internship with at least four city departments – Health and Human Services, Houston Police, Information Technology, and the Houston Public Library – to learn about areas such as cybersecurity, urban planning, finance, administrative support, and employee relations.

“Our students are gaining valuable workforce training and experience from local city government professionals who are serving as mentors by preparing them for future success,” said HISD District IX Trustee Wanda Adams. “We’re excited to see our students be recognized for their commitment to this program and look forward to watching them continue to grow into young business professionals.” Continue reading →

Robots break ground on new Energy Institute High School

HISD’s Energy Institute High School held a high-tech groundbreaking on Saturday as student-built robots took the lead, turning over dirt alongside school and district officials to formally mark the start of construction on their new school. 

The planned 110,000-square-foot building, located at 3501 Southmore Blvd., will mimic the look of a high-tech corporate environment and house the first energy-themed high school in the nation. 

”This project has been a labor of love,” Principal Lori Lambropoulos said of the new building. “This school is the first one of its kind in the nation. We’re making history in the area of corporate involvement, and we’ve made it our mission to attract students that really want a career in the energy industry.”  Continue reading →

Carranza joins mayor, other elected officials in pledge to work together for all children

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HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza and other school leaders from across the Houston area joined Mayor Sylvester Turner and dozens of elected officials Wednesday in pledging to work together to ensure all children have access to a quality education.

“If we cannot help education and the kids in Houston and the surrounding area, we’re in trouble,” Turner told the crowd of about 125 people who turned out for the evening event. “There’s a lot of brain power in this room.”

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HISD names new deputy superintendent

Samuel Sarabia

Samuel Sarabia

Houston ISD Superintendent Richard Carranza has selected Chief School Officer Samuel Sarabia as the district’s new deputy superintendent.

Dr. Sarabia, a 29-year veteran educator, has spent his entire public education career working at HISD. He currently serves as chief school officer in the HISD Office of School Support for the district’s south area. He previously served as a chief school officer over elementary schools.

“Dr. Sarabia has been a well-respected and dedicated leader at HISD for more than two decades,” Carranza said. “He carries a robust background in public education and school administration with a remarkable track record in leading student-focused learning and increasing achievement for students of all backgrounds. I am excited to work with him closely as we focus on making HISD a world-class school district.” Continue reading →

35 schools to be under construction by year’s end, BOC learns at quarterly meeting

The Houston Independent School District expects to have almost three dozen schools under active construction by the end of 2016, HISD Construction Officer Derrick Sanders told the Bond Oversight Committee (BOC) on Tuesday during their quarterly meeting.boc-oct-2016

Pending board approval of additional contracts, the district will have 35 projects actively underway, leaving just two — Austin and Bellaire high schools — to begin construction in 2017. Up from about two dozen projects in the last quarter, that is more active construction than at any time in HISD’s history, and also believed to be record-setting in Texas and the U.S.

“The quantity of contracts that we’ve moved through the process is incredible,” Sanders said. “We’ve gotten a lot done, but have a lot more to do. We welcome the challenge.” Continue reading →

52 schools take on Family Friendly Schools Challenge

The Family and Community Engagement Department (FACE) is welcoming 52 HISD campuses into its Family Friendly Schools Program for the 2016-2017 school year – twice the number of campuses from the previous school year.

Through a series of research-based activities and strategies to expand and build relationships with families, link family events to student learning, build parent capacity and support efforts for parent empowerment, schools have an opportunity to earn a star toward one of three Family Friendly School Certification levels: Continue reading →

South Early College HS hosts ceremony, ribbon-cutting ceremony for new building

More than 100 South Early High School community members gathered Saturday to celebrate the grand opening of their new facility, which was built as part of the 2012 Bond Program and opened to students in August.

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The $13.5 million, 57,000-square-foot facility built adjacent to the Houston Community College-South Campus features modern, flexible learning spaces specifically designed to support the school’s robotics, computer technology and software engineering programs.

“This is an exciting opportunity we have here at 1930 Airport Road,” South Early Principal Steven Gourrier said to the audience. “It took a long time for us to get here, but now we’re here and excited about what’s to happen from this point forward at South Early College High School.”

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Bond program construction moves at record pace through fall 

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On the heels of an extremely busy summer that included the opening of six new schools, HISD’s bond construction is expected to continue moving forward at a record pace through the fall semester.

Construction is currently underway at more than 20 campuses across the district — more active construction than at any other time in district history. Contracts for most of the remaining schools in the program are expected to be awarded in the fourth quarter of 2016.

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