Category Archives: District VII – Bridget Wade

Superintendent Richard Carranza to welcome HISD students back to school

New HISD leader will travel 60 miles while visiting 6 schools in 6 hours on Monday

Newly hired HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza will welcome students back to school on Monday as he crisscrosses the city on a six-campus tour.

A unanimous HISD Board of Education hired Carranza on Thursday, and Monday’s visits will be his first chance to get a glimpse of the district’s size, diversity, and variety of educational programs. Members of the HISD Board of Education will join Carranza along the tour, and members of the news media are welcome to cover all of his stops.

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Richard A. Carranza named HISD superintendent

Carranza calls on community to rally around city’s public schools

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Richard A. Carranza assumed leadership of Texas’ largest school system on Thursday with a unanimous vote by the Houston ISD Board of Education to name him superintendent.

Carranza, 49, most recently served as superintendent of the 58,000-student San Francisco Unified School District. Carranza is a fluent Spanish-speaker and lifelong educator. He has served as a bilingual classroom teacher, a campus principal, and a senior-level administrator in Las Vegas and Tucson.

The Board of Education conducted a national search for candidates matching a leadership profile developed with input from more than 3,200 parents, teachers, taxpayers, and other community members.

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New Mandarin Immersion Magnet School campus near completion, set to open Monday

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The new Galleria-area campus for the Mandarin Immersion Magnet School (MIMS) is nearing completion, and construction crews are working hard to ensure that the building is all set to welcome students for the first day of school on Monday.

Part of the district’s current bond program, the $32.2 million school, located in the 5400 block of W. Alabama adjacent to the School at St. George Place, is one of HISD’s most popular magnet programs, with more than eight applications for every available spot. It draws students from all parts of the district and is one of HISD’s most diverse schools, but it long ago outgrew its initial location on the former Gordon Elementary campus in Bellaire.

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Board of Education set to name Richard A. Carranza HISD superintendent

carranza2New superintendent will address news media, meet with public following vote

The Houston ISD Board of Education is scheduled to finalize the hiring of lone superintendent finalist Richard A. Carranza on Thursday.

The meeting will begin at 4:30 p.m. in the Board Auditorium of the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, 4400 W. 18th Street. After the vote, Mr. Carranza will address members of the news media and participate in a meet-and-greet with members of the public. The full agenda is available here. Continue reading →

HISD voters to decide whether to send local school tax dollars to the state

Board also calls special election for Trustee District VII

In order to comply with Texas’ school finance law, Houston ISD trustees on Thursday called a special election to let voters decide whether they are willing to send an estimated $162 million in local tax dollars to the state of Texas.

Under Texas law, HISD is now considered a “wealthy” school district because of rising property values, even though three-quarters of all students come from low-income households. As a result, HISD is being asked to pay the state about $162 million later this fiscal year. That payment cannot be made unless voters approve.

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HISD voters may be asked if they are willing to send local school tax dollars to the state

Texas’ school finance law gives HISD trustees little choice but to place an item on the Nov. 8 ballot asking voters for permission to send $165 million of their local tax dollars to the state.

Trustees will meet Thursday to consider calling the election, which is necessary because Texas’ school finance law considers HISD to be a “wealthy” district, even though 3 out of every 4 students live in a low-income household. As a property wealthy district, HISD is required by law to send an estimated $165 million in locally generated property taxes to the state. HISD, however, cannot pay the money the state says the district owes unless voters approve.

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Trustee Harvin Moore to step down

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Moore has represented Trustee District VII nearly 13 years

HISD District VII Trustee Harvin Moore has announced that he is stepping down from the board.

A former Houston Independent School District student, Moore was first elected to the board in 2003, and served as president in 2008. He is currently the longest-serving member of HISD’s nine-member board. Continue reading →

Board of Education to consider superintendent candidates

Trustees could vote to name finalist or finalists

The Houston ISD Board of Education will meet Wednesday morning to discuss superintendent candidates, and possibly announce a finalist or finalists for the position. Continue reading →

More than two dozen HISD students spend memorable week in nation’s capital 

Thanks to Washington, D.C.’s Workshops Foundation and The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America, 27 HISD students spent a week in the nation’s capital learning about leadership, civic education, domestic and global politics, and American culture.

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Board interviewing candidates for superintendent position 

Applicant pool consists of candidates who match leadership profile developed with public input 

The HISD Board of Education is interviewing candidates for the position of superintendent of schools to replace former Superintendent Terry Grier, who stepped down on Feb. 29.

The Board, working with the search firm of Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates, narrowed down an initial list of 35 applicants to a select pool of candidates for a first round of interviews, which is underway. Continue reading →