Category Archives: HISD: Our Story

A day in the life of a Wraparound Resource Specialist 

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HISD spotlights its newest role that supports the needs of the whole child

To describe a wraparound resource specialist’s day as “busy” would be an understatement. The newly created role at HISD is part of Every Community Every School, a districtwide initiative that focuses on providing students with non-academic support that improves their well-being and academic achievement.

Meet Kirkland Hall, who serves in this unique position at Achieve 180 and Superintendent School, Highland Heights Elementary School. Hall’s work day is anything but typical. In the morning, he might be networking with a group of prominent community leaders to encourage support on his campus, and in the afternoon, he’s assisting a student who is struggling with an incarcerated parent. No two days are ever the same.  Continue reading →

HISD bus driver receives meaningful message from student

School bus drivers are usually the last to get recognized for their hard work. This holiday season, transportation employee Vivian Ivory was not only recognized, but she was given a gift of thanks.

Ivory is a 26-year school bus driver who was placed on a new bus route after Hurricane Harvey to help transport students to Lanier Middle School. One student personally thanked Ivory for allowing her to continue her education and for providing a means for her to get to and from school.

KHOU (Channel 11) covered the story earlier this week. The full story and video can be found here: http://www.khou.com/news/eighth-grader-writes-touching-note-to-hisd-bus-driver/501182466]

Aramco donates $4.7 million to support students, teachers at schools affected by Harvey

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The HISD Foundation today announced seven schools in which students were displaced due to damage from Hurricane Harvey will be the beneficiaries of a $4.7 million flood relief donation from Aramco Services Company, the Houston-based U.S. subsidiary of Saudi Aramco.

“The schools that will benefit from this grant are still working toward a sense of normalcy,” said Superintendent Richard Carranza. “It’s overwhelming, in a good way, to know that these students, staff, and school communities are the beneficiaries of this kind of generosity and kindness.”

The donation will be used by the foundation to replace and enhance technology and fulfill needs requests for Braeburn, Hilliard, Kolter, Mitchell, Robinson, and Scarborough elementary schools, and Liberty High School. Those items include, but are not limited to: Continue reading →

Wraparound services at center of new districtwide initiative 

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Campus specialists to coordinate non-academic supports for students 

Wisdom High’s School’s new Wraparound Resource Specialist Wagma Isaqzoy has only officially been on the job for a few weeks, but her efforts are already making a lasting impact on students.

Recently, with the help of the nonprofit group Be the Peace Be the Hope and the support of Wisdom High School’s ESL Department, Isaqzoy organized a three-day workshop for 200 of the school’s newcomer students. The workshop focused on the unique social and emotional needs of being new to the United States and culminated with a celebration event on campus Dec 11. At the event, students received a Citizenship Month certificate from the Houston Mayor’s Office of New Americas.  Continue reading →

AIG donates $100,000 to HISD Foundation for Harvey relief efforts

At the November HISD Board of Education meeting, representatives from American International Group (AIG) presented a donation of $100,000 to the HISD Foundation for Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.

“The American International Group (AIG) has historically been a strong and generous supporter of the Houston community,” Board of Education President Wanda Adams said during the meeting. “That has been especially true in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.” Continue reading →

Third annual Dream Summit draws record crowd with college, financial aid resources 

HISD’s third annual Dream Summit, held Saturday at Hattie Mae White, drew more than 200 students eager to collect resources and information about college applications and financial aid – about double the attendance over last year.

The HISD Office of College and Career Readiness and Multilingual Programs event is held each year to offer assistance to HISD DREAMers, DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipients, visa holders, permanent residents, refugees, and asylum grantees, along with their families.

Assistant Superintendent of Multilingual Programs Gracie Guerrero said the goal of the event is twofold.

“It shows students who may think that they have no options to pursue anything beyond high school that there are specific resources for them. And it also brings together resources that we have in the district in one place to make it accessible,” Guerrero said. Continue reading →

HISD awarded more than $13 million in grants to expand college access programming

More students in the Houston Independent School District will have access to college readiness programming thanks to two grants totaling $13 million from Houston Endowment.

The three-year grants will allow the district to expand EMERGE, a program that helps students from underserved backgrounds attend and graduate from the nation’s top colleges and universities. Most students in the program receive more than $200,000 in scholarships and grants over four years. And more than 96 percent of all EMERGE students have graduated from college within four years, or are on track to do so. Continue reading →

HISD named to College Board’s AP District Honor Roll for gains in student access, success

District, placed on list for first time, is among 447 across U.S. and Canada to earn distinction

The Houston Independent School District is one of 447 school districts in the U.S. and Canada being honored by the College Board with placement on the 8th Annual AP District Honor Roll, a first for the district.

To be included on the 8th Annual Honor Roll, HISD had to increase the number of students participating in AP since 2015 while also increasing or maintaining the percentage of students earning AP Exam scores of 3 or higher. The district has more than doubled that number since 2007. Reaching these goals shows that HISD is successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for AP.

“I am very proud of our students and staff for achieving this distinction,” Superintendent Richard Carranza said. “This honor is yet another example of the district’s commitment to offering rigorous options to all our students that we believe prepare them for their next level of education.” Continue reading →

Board of Education’s updated Mission, Vision, Beliefs, Constraints, and Goals focus on equity, improving student outcomes

The Houston Independent School District Board of Education recently adopted changes to the District’s Vision and Beliefs, and approved the addition of a Mission, Constraints, and Goal Progress Measures, to serve as the district’s roadmap to success.

“Together, the Mission, Vision, Beliefs, Constraints, and Goals represent a sharper focus on the very specific steps we as a district must take to improve student outcomes. The trustees on the Board of Education are united in our commitment to ensure that HISD delivers the best possible education equitably to all students in our district,” said HISD Board of Education President Wanda Adams.

The Mission, Vision, Beliefs, Constraints, and Goals reinforce HISD’s commitment to equity, closing the achievement gap, meeting the needs of the whole child, personalizing learning for each individual child, creating safe, joyful learning spaces, retaining qualified and effective personnel, operating with transparency across all departments, and engaging meaningfully with the community in all major decision-making.

The Board’s Mission, Vision, Beliefs, Constraints, and Goals are on permanent display in a series of posters outside the Manuel Rodriguez Jr. Board Auditorium.

Read more about HISD’s Mission, Vision, Beliefs, Constraints, and Goals here.

New Jersey student inspired to reach out to HISD in wake of Harvey 

Like millions of others across the country, Aleyna Kilic, a seventh-grade student in Jersey City, NJ, watched the news about Hurricane Harvey in disbelief at the devastation the storm wrought.

Instead of thinking, “someone has to do something,” Kilic knew she had to get involved personally.

Unsure about the best course of action, she reached out to the counselor at her school, The Learning Community Charter School, Shanelle Muse. LCCS is a PK-8 school with 585 students who come from all over Jersey City, which has been named one of the most diverse cities in the nation.   Continue reading →