Category Archives: District V – Sue Deigaard

HISD community celebrates Teacher Appreciation Week in creative ways 

[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxAxwjkyiWs”]While we always encourage our community to tell teachers how much they’re valued, students, administrators, and staff have rallied around our educators for Teacher Appreciation Week to celebrate their tireless dedication.

Inspirational and emotional messages of thanks and encouragement flooded the district’s social media channels, including tear-jerking moments caught on video as students told their teachers how much they mean to them. Continue reading →

Teach Forward Houston fellows commit to four-year teaching program 

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Some 60 seniors from 31 HISD high schools on Tuesday pledged to become teachers and return to the district to teach in four years as part of the prestigious Teach Forward Houston program.

“I will commit to my studies at the University of Houston in order to enter my classroom with the foundational knowledge, skills, and mindsets necessary to maximize student achievement and character development,” they recited in unison at Teach Forward Houston’s inaugural signing day celebration on May 3 in the Hattie Mae White board auditorium.

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Five HISD students win coveted Gates Millennium Scholarship

Five Houston Independent School District students are among more than 1,000 high school seniors from across the country to be selected this week to the final class of the Gates Millennium Scholars program.

The students — Nofisat Babajide and Esther Brown from Bellaire High School, Janeth Rodriguez from Carnegie Vanguard High School, Leslie Benavides from Eastwood Academy, and Sheighlah McManus from Jane Long Academy— will be awarded a scholarship that can be used to pursue a degree at accredited colleges or universities of their choosing. Continue reading →

Finalists selected for 2015-2016 Teachers of the Year  

Winners to be announced at May 20 Educators of the Year banquet

HISD has announced the finalists for the district’s Elementary and Secondary Teachers of the Year. The two winners, which will go on to represent the district in Region 4, will be announced during the Educators of the Year banquet on Friday, May 20. The twelve finalists were selected from all 283 campuses based on performance data and other criteria.

At the elementary level, the six finalists are:

  • Adrienne Glover from Anderson Elementary
  • Maria Godoy from Port Houston Elementary
  • Melissa Martinez from Sherman Elementary
  • Tracy Singleton from Fondren Elementary
  • Hillary Smith from DeAnda Elementary
  • Ciara Sutton-Rivers from Codwell Elementary

At the secondary level, the six finalists are:

  • Christina Carter-Woods from Pershing Middle School
  • Jennifer Chase from the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts
  • Morgan Dewitt from Long Academy
  • Valarie Moore from Gregory Lincoln Education Center
  • Donald Parker from North Houston Early College High School
  • Keavon Runnels from Austin High School

Be sure to help HISD pick the Fan Favorite among the campus-based Teachers of the Year by taking part in our survey. The first round of voting ends at 5 p.m. on May 6. You can vote once per day.

 

Who is your teacher hero? 

Teacher-Appreciation-Instagram-Banner-800px-800pxShare your photos, videos, and messages on social media 

While they may not wear capes, HISD teachers truly are real-life superheroes. As part of National Teacher Appreciation Week (May 2-6), HISD is asking students, parents, and staff to thank a teacher hero in their lives and share out on social media.

Take a picture with your favorite teacher (past or present) or take a picture of your child with his or her favorite teacher and post on social media using the hashtags #HISDHero and #ThankATeacher. If your favorite teacher is not nearby, take a selfie holding a piece of paper with a simple message thanking that teacher who made a difference in your life.

Or better yet, surprise an HISD teacher using your camera cell phone and tell them why they are your teacher hero. Check out the video below and watch as Westbury High School students give a surprise thank you to their teachers and even their principal.

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HISD will be sharing the posts on its own social media channels, so be sure to follow us on Twitter @HoustonISD and like us at Facebook.com/HoustonISD.

 

 

JJ Watt surprises Jane Long Academy students at pizza party 

Watt_JaneLongLast week, the JJ Watt Foundation made Jane Long Academy Principal Marci Baez take a vow of secrecy.

She was invited to bring 10 of her students to a pizza party on Saturday where they would meet the Houston Texans superstar, but Baez couldn’t tell them any details prior to the event.

So she told 10 students on the football team where to go with their parents and only said it involved a pizza party.

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HISD staff, students lend a hand during severe flooding across the city 

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In the wake of historic flooding across the Houston area this week, the HISD community has rallied to help in a number of ways, including assisting with the bus evacuations of residents in the Greenspoint area and setting up two school-based shelters on a moment’s notice.

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7 HISD schools named winners of SAT promotional campaigns

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Representative from HISD’s College Readiness department and The College Board spent most of Friday driving across Houston to surprise 11th-grade students at seven high schools who were named winners of the School Day Incentive program.

The purpose of the program is to increase student participation and scores for the School Day SAT on April 12, thereby increasing student access to higher education and money for college. Two contests were introduced through the incentive: the You Khan Do It Scholarship and the Best SAT Campaign Ever. Students were encouraged to participate in taking the SAT for a chance to earn scholarships toward college-bound materials or activities.

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HSPVA one of two schools nationwide selected for national jazz tour 

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Houston’s High School for the Performing and Visual Arts was one of only two schools nationwide selected by the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz to participate in a national “Peer-to-Peer Education” tour. HSPVA opened in Savannah, Ga., on April 11 and continued on to Charleston, Ga., performing in public schools all week.

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I am HISD: Meet renowned pianist and ‘Selma’ composer who developed a love of music in HISD schools 

Jason Moran works with a dance class at Gregory-Lincoln Education Center where he went to school as well.

Jason Moran works with a dance class at Gregory-Lincoln Education Center.

In this week’s I Am HISD, which features district students, graduates, employees, and other team members, HISD alumnus and renowned pianist, composer, and bandleader Jason Moran talks about giving back to the HISD schools he attended and receiving a McArthur “genius” grant. He attended McGregor Elementary School, Gregory Lincoln Education Center, and High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. During a recent visit to Houston to engage with students at all three schools, he took time out from his busy schedule to talk to HISD. For more background information see these links: African-American alumni give back and HISD alumni bringing Black History month to life. 

You are in year two of a three-year homecoming residency sponsored by Da Camera with the three schools you attended at HISD. What inspired you to give back to students in those schools?

Many of the thought patterns that I continue to use as a mature artist were learned at those schools. Macgregor Elementary is the place where an instrument was first placed in my hands [a violin], and that prompted my parents to buy a piano for all of us boys to practice on. That piano is still in my living room In New York City, and it’s probably the one I play the most. Though they seem fleeting, these ideas that are planted early on in children’s minds are very important. Continue reading →