17 finalists selected from nearly 100 entries this year
The Houston Independent School District on Friday, Nov. 8, will unveil the winners of the district’s 2019 holiday greeting card student art competition.
This year, 17 students from HISD elementary, middle, and high schools have been named finalists from a total of 95 entries. The 17 finalists were chosen by the district’s area superintendents.
Continue readingEvent to help students apply for college, financial aid
College Readiness and Multilingual Programs will be hosting the fifth annual Dream Summit to assist students with college applications and the financial aid process on Saturday, Dec. 7, from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, 4400 W. 18th St., Houston 77092.
High school students and their families are encouraged to attend the free event. Students should contact their campus college-access coordinator, counselor, or college and career readiness advisor regarding transportation. Five seniors will have a chance to win a $500 scholarship.
Continue readingAs two NASA astronauts ventured out of the International Space Station for an historic all-female spacewalk, a group of girls from Waltrip High School was the first to remotely navigate a prototype Mars Rover on Friday through the rocky terrain at the Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA) Mars Yard.
The nine female students made up teams Five Amigas and Mission Explorers, which were two of the five teams at Waltrip that took part in Mission Control Academy’s Mars rover training exercise. The students controlled the rover prototype located in the province of Quebec at a facility where terrain conditions resemble those on Mars.
“It is really cool,” sophomore Julyssa Godina said. “It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Continue readingStudents who walked into the De Chaumes Elementary School cafeteria on Wednesday were greeted with decorations featuring musical instruments, disco balls, and vinyl records.
Long cafeteria tables clad in green and yellow tablecloths with black and white music note centerpieces tied to colorful balloons — all in celebration of National School Lunch Week.
“I’ve never been a part of this type of event before,” De Chaumes third-grader Diego Martin Salinas said. “It feels kind of cool.”
Observed this year from Oct. 14 to Oct. 18 and featuring a “What’s on Your Playlist?” theme, National School Lunch Week aims to promote the benefits of serving nutritionally balanced meals to students.
Continue readingOver six years ago, HISD faced an enormous challenge when it agreed to take over North Forest ISD, which had been plagued by years of low academic performance, a laundry list of state sanctions, and financial mismanagement – which eventually led to the order from the Texas Education Agency to close the district.
Since taking on the seven schools in the North Forest district, HISD has made significant strides in improving the long-struggling campuses using strategies such as mobilizing effective teachers and principals, implementing reading mastery and corrective reading, extending the school day, and streamlining bus transportation to boost attendance.
Five of the seven original transition team members are still part of Team HISD to this day, and the experience left an indelible impact on each of them.
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From a sprawling mural featuring famous politicians and educators to students laughing as they head to their next class, it’s hard to imagine Houston’s Fifth Ward community without Wheatley High School, the campus that has served many residents as a gateway to adulthood.
There’s the feeling of perseverance and reassurance when you step foot onto the Wheatley campus. Plagued with the “improvement Required” label since 2012, the district learned in August 2019 that Wheatley wouldn’t meet standard for the 2018-2019 school year.
Despite Wheatley High School demonstrating tremendous academic progress and earning a passing grade of D this year with a calculated score of 63, they earned an overall rating of 59 due to a provision introduced into TEA’s 2018 Accountability Manual.
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Nutrition Services is sponsoring a student jingle contest in honor of National School Lunch Week, which is being held Oct. 14-18.
National School Lunch Week was created by President John F. Kennedy in 1962 as an annual celebration of the National School Lunch Program. This year, the theme — What’s on Your Playlist? — highlights the variety of flavors and dishes offered in today’s school lunch.
“National School Lunch Week provides us with a great opportunity to celebrate the importance of a healthy school lunch, while also reinforcing the importance of eating good food and expanding students’ palates,” HISD Nutrition Services Officer Betti Wiggins said.
Continue readingAs a young boy, Jorge Rubio, a sophomore at HISD’s Austin High School, idolized his father and dreamed of one day following in his footsteps. Now, thanks to a new CTE partnership, Jorge has a chance to live out his dream.
Jorge, along with 24 other students from Austin and Milby High Schools, participated in a commitment ceremony on Wednesday at HCC’s Southeast Campus for the district’s new dual credit, two-year construction certification program in partnership with MAREK, a specialty construction company.
“This opportunity means a lot to me and my parents,” Jorge said. “My dad is a construction worker and he is my inspiration.”
Continue readingApply by Feb. 28 for a full career and technical education scholarship
Students considering a career in construction, transportation, nursing, or industrial technology may qualify for a full scholarship in one of these fields or many more. Local and national industry data show a need for highly skilled employees in high-growth jobs with great earning potential.
Since 2012, the Marvy Finger Family Foundation Scholarship has been awarding worthy HISD graduates full scholarships covering their two-year degree or certification program in these high-demand careers. This scholarship includes not just tuition but books, fees, etc.
As many as 80 full scholarships are available from Finger for a career and technical degree or certificate program in the fields of automotive, construction, digital information and technology, industrial technology, health science, law, logistics, manufacturing, and transportation distribution. Included in these fields are HVAC, pipefitting, cybersecurity, welding, maritime transportation, and more (see application for a complete list).
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HISD will host its next Parent University workshop from 5:15 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 15 at four locations throughout the district: Cook Elementary School, Lawson and Pershing middle schools, and Westside High School.
The theme for the session will be “How to Get Involved.” The workshop will begin with a dinner and resource fair and will include information on district programs, parent engagement, community resources, and how parents can become active partners in the successful education of their children.
Parents can look up locations and select the most convenient one to attend. Registration is available at HoustonISD.org/ParentUniversity.
Free dinner, interpretation services, and child care will be provided.