Category Archives: High Schools

Almost every East Early College HS graduate received an associate’s degree in 2014

These East Early College High School students (black gown with blue cord) were some of the more than 100 seniors from that campus to receive their associate’s degrees from Houston Community College SE two weeks before their high school diplomas. (Houston Independent School District)

These EECHS students (black gown with blue cord) were some of the more than 100 seniors from that campus to receive their associate’s degrees from Houston Community College SE two weeks before their high school diplomas.

It’s been more than a decade since HISD opened its first early college high school off Loop 610, but the number of students taking full advantage of both their premise and their promise—the chance to finish high school with a diploma in one hand and an associate’s degree in the other—has been steadily rising.

Nowhere is this trend more evident than at HISD’s East Early College High School, where just over 100 seniors graduated this year with a college degree—a stunning 93.5 percent of its Class of 2014.

Principal Tamera Bolden attributes her school’s incredible success to a variety of factors, including a stellar attendance rate (98 percent) and the “unwavering support” of Dr. Irene Porcarello, the president of Houston Community College Southeast (HCC-SE). Continue reading →

Free camp helps high school students build reading, writing skills

Do you have a rising freshman or sophomore who needs to boost their reading and writing skills? HISD is hosting a free Literacy Enrichment Camp to give them tools to help increase their end-of-course exam scores.

The eight-day camp will be held at Challenge Early College High School on the HCC Southwest Campus, 5601 West Loop South, July 21-24 and July 28-31. Participating students are expected to attend both weeks. The camp will be held 9 a.m.-3 p.m. each day. If transportation assistance is needed, METRO cards will be provided. Lunch will be served daily. Continue reading →

State Board of Education to honor Bellaire HS economics team

Jinchen Zhou, Ridge Liu, Michael Clark, Laura Zhang, Patrick Giradet

Bellaire High School’s economics team won the National Economics Challenge in May, and you can watch the ceremony live online when the Texas State Board of Education honors members at 9 a.m. Friday.

Team members Patrick Giradet, Ridge Liu, Laura Zhang, and Jinchen Zhou beat out more than 1,200 teams from 40 states to claim the title in a quiz-bowl live on CNBC. The students, who have since graduated, spent an average of 15 hours a week preparing for the competition and skipped their prom to be there. They each received a $1,000 award and rang the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange within a few hours of their win. Continue reading →

Summer enrichment program gives students a glimpse inside national politics

Carnegie Vanguard HS students Bonnie Sullivan (2nd from L), and Connor Burwell (far R) pose with Senator Ted Cruz.

Carnegie Vanguard HS students Bonnie Sullivan (2nd from L), and Connor Burwell (far R) pose with Senator Ted Cruz.

If Bonnie Sullivan still wasn’t sure about her plans after graduation, she is now.

Bonnie was one of four rising seniors from Carnegie Vanguard High School (and only 100 from around the world) to participate in a summer school program recently in the nation’s capital, and her experience there only cemented her desire to pursue a career in politics.

“I did it because I thought it would be interesting,” she said. “But being in D.C. and meeting policymakers made me realize it would be something I’d enjoy.”
Continue reading →

EMERGE SAT boot camp aims to boost scores, student dreams

Across the U.S., thousands of high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors buy books, attend seminars and complete online tutorials in hopes of boosting their SAT scores. This year, HISD EMERGE fellows hope to boost their scores by attending an intensive SAT boot camp which provides test strategies and content-based instruction. In past years, the program has led to significant increases in scores on the critical reading, mathematics and writing sections of the SAT.

Students who attended boot camp said they found the materials and instructors helpful:

Continue reading →

Pen pal project builds bridge to literacy for all participants

Neff ES student Leticia Hernandez is all smiles after reading her April pen pal letter from Westside HS student Annie Edick.

When Neff Elementary School fourth-grade teacher Stefani Patch first coordinated a pen pal exchange between her students and some of their older counterparts last school year, she had no idea that it would result in both parties improving their literacy skills.

But participating students at Westside High School were forced to bring their “A game” to the table once they saw the caliber of their younger correspondents’ letters.

“My students were blown away by the quality of writing from the younger students,” said Westside High School teacher Donna Patch (who is also Stefani’s mother). “It challenged them to be more creative and to focus on their own writing.”
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Bellaire HS debate coach receives two big honors

Jay Stubbs

School may technically be out, but it’s been a busy summer for Jay Stubbs, Bellaire High School’s speech and debate coach. He took a team to nationals, was inducted into the National Forensic League Hall of Fame and received the Texas Bar Association’s Leon Jaworski Award for Teaching Excellence in Law Focused Education – all in June!

“Being inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame and receiving this award from the Texas Bar Association mean so much to me,” Stubbs said. “How lucky I am to receive awards on behalf of the successes of so many of my students.”

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Digital transformation ‘Power(ing)Up’ job prospects for high school students

Sharpstown High School 2014 graduate Jairo Luna prepares laptops at a NetSync warehouse for distribution to classrooms, July 2, 2014. The Sharpstown PowerUp coordinator recommended Luna for the internship. (Houston ISD/Dave Einsel)

Jairo Luna

HISD is only one full year into its one-to-one laptop distribution as part of the district’s PowerUp initiative, but that hasn’t stopped students from reaping the benefits of the district’s bold, three-year push to close the digital divide.

Three Sharpstown High School students—Class of 2014 members Kevin Gordwin and Jairo Luna, and junior Keion Jackson—have already landed three of the coveted summer internships available with NetSync, the district’s approved vendor for distributing computers. And, they’re making good money while doing it.

Continue reading →

Teachers refine and share culminating projects at Linked Learning summer institute

Teachers at eight HISD high schools are preparing their coursework for the upcoming year a bit differently than they have in the past. Campus teams from Chavez, Eastwood Academy, Furr, Lee, Milby, Reagan, Sterling, and Westside are refining plans to teach core subjects through project-based learning — a part of the district’s commitment to the Linked Learning approach. These campus teams shared their plans at the Linked Learning Summer Institute during June.
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Linked Learning crafts new pathways for college and career

Educators from eight HISD high schools — Chavez, Eastwood Academy, Furr, Lee, Milby, Reagan, Sterling, and Westside — are spending their summer designing industry-themed programs of study intended to make learning exciting, challenging and relevant to real-world experiences. The program, known as Linked Learning, will help students build a strong foundation that leads to fulfilling and successful college and career experiences.

“It’s amazing. It’s awesome,” said Linked Learning superintendent Adam Stephens.

Linked Learning pathways differ from Texas House Bill 5’s mandated pathways. Continue reading →