Category Archives: Middle Schools

22 campuses ranked at top of Children at Risk list of best public schools

DeBakey HS for Health Professions, DeAnda ES earn top spots   

The Houston Independent School District has 22 campuses that placed in the top 10 on the annual Children at Risk list of best public schools in the eight-county region, with DeBakey High School for Health Professions continuing its streak as the number one high school. 

DeAnda Elementary School is ranked number one on the regional list of Children at Risk Gold Ribbon campuses, which are schools that have high achievement rates despite high poverty rates. Sanchez Elementary School is ranked second on the list.  

During a news conference today at the Children’s Museum of Houston, HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan joined other local educational leaders for the announcement of the school standings. 

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HISD unveils student winners of 2019 holiday greeting card competition

The Houston Independent School District announced the winners of the district’s 2019 holiday greeting card competition on Friday, featuring creative student artwork highlighting family holiday traditions, seasonal decorations, and classic holiday songs.

“I want to thank all the students who participated for sharing and opening up your world to us,” HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan said during the annual unveiling ceremony. “I hope you’ve enjoyed this experience, and I hope we will be able to provide you additional experiences throughout your school career.”

The winners – fifth-grader Edward Lopez of Neff Elementary School, eighth-grader Josiah Rajesh of Baylor College of Medicine Academy at Ryan, and senior Mariangela Rodriguez of Lamar High School – were among 17 finalists from elementary, middle, and high schools. All finalists received a boxed set of their holiday cards. Their holiday cards also will be available for purchase and on display at the HISD administration building.

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HISD students participate in National School Lunch Week jingle contest

Elementary and middle school students have been busy creating lively videos for Nutrition Services’ National School Lunch Week jingle contest. 

Students were asked to compose a short jingle or rap about the importance of making healthy food choices. The contest was developed in honor of National School Lunch Week, which was held Oct. 14-18.  

This year, the theme — What’s on Your Playlist? — highlighted the variety of flavors and dishes offered in today’s school lunch.  

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Transportation Services conducting ridership review

Transportation Services is conducting a comprehensive review of bus ridership at schools with high transportation eligibility to identify opportunities for route consolidation and increased efficiency.  

The review is focused on 15 schools with low ridership, despite having a high volume of students who are eligible for transportation and have been assigned routes.  

Transportation Services General Manager John Wilcots IV explained that requests for transportation are often at their highest at the start of the school year. Once a request is made and the student is found to be eligible, the department is required to assign that student to a route and stop — even if they end up choosing not to ride the bus.   

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New Parent University session scheduled for Nov. 19 

HISD will host its next Parent University workshop from 5:15 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 19 at four locations throughout the district: Oak Forest and Emerson elementary schools, Thomas Middle School and Furr High School. 

The theme for the session will be “Digital Citizenship.” 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.  

This district-wide initiative was launched last September with a mission of connecting HISD parents and children to resources that support successful academic careers, as well as safe and healthy environments at home and at school. 

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HISD school leaders, business executives pair up for ‘Project Principal’

Nine HISD schools give business leaders an opportunity to shadow school principals

It was 8 a.m. on a typical morning at HISD’s Benavidez Elementary School, and Principal Zabeth Parra-Malek was on the go. After making the morning announcements, she stood at the front door greeting late arrivals, making sure they were fed and ready for the day. By 8:45, she landed in a PALS pre-K classroom for a drop-in observation with the school’s therapy dog, Lucy.  

What made this morning different was that she had a “shadow” – Kristie Ketron, an executive with Ernst & Young. Parra-Malek was one of nine HISD principals who hosted visitors like Ketron for Project Principal, an opportunity for business leaders to walk a mile in principals’ shoes. 

And they did plenty of walking, in and out of classrooms and meetings, highlighting the main message Parra-Malek wanted the community to hear: schools, teachers, and students are more than test scores and accountability ratings. 

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HISD to name student winners of 2019 holiday greeting card competition

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.  

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HISD celebrates National School Lunch Week with good food, music

Students 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. 

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‘Culture of trust, accountability’ at the center of North Forest turnaround success

Over 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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Achieve 180 math teacher named October Teacher of the Month

There was a level excitement that could not be contained when math teacher Breana Chatman of Holland Middle School was surprised by Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan as the Teacher of the Month for October. 

“Mrs. Chatman goes above and beyond the call of duty every time she steps into the classroom,” Principal Pablo Resendiz said. “She is very intentional in planning and ensures standards have been unpacked thoroughly before she designs her lessons.” 

Not accepting anything less than excellence from her students, Chatman pushes students understanding and knowledge of the mathematical process by using mathematical sentence stems, and utilizes interactive word walls and anchor charts to ensure the class environment supports all students. 

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