Category Archives: Magnet/School Choice

Magnet Spotlight: Carrillo ES serving gifted and talented students on Houston’s east side

IMG_5051HISD has 10 elementary schools that serve gifted and talented students though the Vanguard magnet program, and one of those is Carrillo, located just east of downtown.

In addition to a rigorous Vanguard curriculum, Carrillo offers a host of enrichment class options, such as band, music, and art. After-school choir and orchestra programs also give students an exceptional opportunity to learn how to play the flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, guitar, or percussion instruments.

For children whose first language is not English, Carrillo’s bilingual program provides intensive instruction and support in all subjects, with a special focus on developing listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills using English as a Second language methodology.

Students may also participate in Gifted and Talented Expos, the annual Name That Book competition, and Odyssey of the Mind activities.

“The Carrillo faculty is caring and dedicated to the success of every single student,” said Principal Mary Hallinan. “We are committed to ensuring that each child reaches his/her potential by setting high expectations and providing the best quality education to help students reach those standards.”

HISD will be holding its annual School Choice Fair on Saturday, April 25, for parents and students who have not yet decided on a school for the coming academic year. Carrillo is one of several schools that still has space available in its magnet program. For more information about Carrillo or other magnet campuses, please visit the School Choice website.

Mickey Leland community breaks ground on new school

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G00005ZrcJWDZ3_0″ g_name=”20150416-Leland” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

Mickey Leland College Prep students, staff, alumni, and elected officials on Thursday gathered to break ground on the new school and to celebrate moving forward with the $42.4 million project.

Despite challenges, including the threat of rain on Thursday, those who attended expressed enthusiasm and excitement about getting construction underway on the all-male preparatory school in the Fifth Ward.

Continue reading →

Still looking for the perfect school for next school year?

If you are looking for an HISD magnet school for the 2015–2016 school year, you will have an opportunity to learn more about dozens of schools with openings firsthand at the HISD School Choice Fair. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 25, at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, 4400 West 18th Street, Houston 77092.

“This event will provide an opportunity for parents and students to visit with representatives from HISD schools to learn more about exceptional programs that still have space available,” said Mark Shenker, assistant superintendent of School Choice. “These include magnet schools, multilingual programs, neighborhood schools, and preschool programs.” Continue reading →

HISD elementary school receives $50,000 grant for smart boards, books

Bruce Elementary School was selected this week to receive a $50,000 grant from the Leonore Annenberg School Fund for Children, an organization that provides educational resources to underfunded schools in urban and rural communities.

Bruce Elementary was one of nine schools from across the country to receive the grant, which will be used to purchase interactive whiteboards and nonfiction books for existing classroom libraries to boost literacy through student engagement and teacher effectiveness.

Continue reading →

New signing day celebrates magnet acceptances

Districtwide celebration is also a chance to hand in paperwork

This year, students and families can celebrate their acceptance into a magnet program by participating in a Magnet Signing Day event at their campus of choice.

Magnet Signing Day events—which are scheduled at the school level and do not fall on any particular date—provide an opportunity for parents and students not only to celebrate, but to meet with school officials and confirm their child’s seat at the accepting school. Parents should bring a signed copy of their Magnet Entrance Agreement, proof of residence, and, if they have a child new to HISD entering Pre-K or kindergarten, proof of that child’s age, to the festivities.

Continue reading →

Status of all students’ magnet applications now available

New HISD School Choice website will guide parents through the acceptance process

The results of approximately 65,000 magnet applications from close to 21,000 HISD students are now available on the Magnet parent dashboard at www.hisdchoice.com.

Parents will also receive an email invited them to log in to their parent dashboard. The notifications will be sent starting at 4 p.m. on Friday, March 27, 2015. (This process will take several hours, so please do not be alarmed if you don’t see an email right away.) In addition, letters will be mailed via the U.S. Postal Service to the address of record on file for each student’s application and should arrive a few days later.

Continue reading →

Status of all students’ magnet applications to become available Friday

New HISD School Choice website to guide parents through the acceptance process

[su_box title=”Leer en Español” box_color=”#ededed” title_color=”#000000″ radius=”5″]El viernes se darán a conocer los resultados de todas las solicitudes magnet[/su_box]

Awaiting the results of your magnet applications? You are not alone. Approximately 65,000 applications from close to 21,000 students have been received by HISD magnet schools since the submission period opened in November.

To better understand the ins and outs of magnet submissions and acceptances, HISD has created a new page on the School Choice website, called “magnet status,” which explains the meaning of each status category, as well as how and when to respond. This page can be reached using the www.houstonisd.org/magnetstatus URL or by clicking the dropdown menu under the “Applying to Magnet Programs” section on the School Choice website.

Continue reading →

Coding club students learn how to build computers

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000Ox1EEL_ocV4″ g_name=”20150109-ComputerCamp” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]

Over the winter break, Lockhart Elementary School hosted a free three-day computer camp for 60 students in a coding club sponsored by Schlumberger, a global technology supplier. The camp was also sponsored by KidsXplore, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching kids about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

Students in grades 4-6 learned how to build computers using a new computer platform called Raspberry Pi. The students connected wireless keyboards, monitors and speakers to their CPUs (central processing units).  Once their computers were built, students connected them to a Wi-Fi network where they were able to load Scratch and other computer programming software. Students also participated in a circuits workshop to explore circuit design. Continue reading →

Vanguard magnet programs challenge students with rigorous courses

DSCF1560

In the Vanguard magnet program at Black Middle School, students are taking advanced courses such as biology, geometry, and creative writing. They’re working on their own experiments, researching history on a local and national scale, and even writing their first novels.

“Our students are taking high-school level courses in the seventh and eighth grades,” said Katelyn Riley, the school’s Vanguard coordinator. “Our sixth-graders are learning seventh-grade math, and we have students taking geometry and biology as eighth-graders.” Continue reading →