Category Archives: Middle Schools

LaTreia Woodard named new principal of Gregory Lincoln Education Center

Latreia Woodard

LaTreia Woodard has been selected as the new principal for Gregory Lincoln Education Center. She previously served as principal at Foerster Elementary School.

Woodard began her career in education as an intervention teacher in Cy-Fair ISD. Woodard taught a variety of grade levels from kindergarten through seventh grade in Fort Bend ISD and HISD. She continued to develop her leadership skills as a team leader, data specialist, instructional specialist, dean of instruction, and IAT Manager before becoming principal at Foerster.

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Nine HISD students win national Scholastic Art and Writing gold medals

A record nine Houston Independent School District students from six campuses won prestigious national gold medals in the 2020 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.

This is the first time HISD has had nine national gold medal winners in a single year. The winners competed against more than 80,000 students who submitted nearly 230,000 works of art and writing to the Scholastic Awards. Only 2,000 entries received national medals.

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Budding artists surprised as winners of Blast Off with a Healthy School Breakfast art contest

First-grader Nidarshani Chinthagunta gasped and her eyes widened as a bright turquoise bike adorned with white balloons was wheeled into the T.H. Rogers conference room where she stood sandwiched between her mother and school principal.

Grabbing the 20-inch Titan Tomcat by the seat and handlebars, she carefully eyed the new bike as she whispered a shy, “thank you.”

Nidarshani was one of two grand prize winners in the district’s “Blast Off with a Healthy School Breakfast” art contest held in honor of National School Breakfast Week in March.

More than 60 students submitted original artwork using the breakfast theme. A panel of judges from the district’s Nutrition Services and Fine Arts departments selected the top winners at the elementary and secondary levels.

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Ortiz MS celebrates heritage, diversity with mariachi program

The scene playing out on the stage at Ortiz Middle School on a humid May morning is a familiar one to many Houstonians.

Musicians decked out in embroidered pants, wide-brimmed sombreros, and colorful silk ties playing vihuelas, guitarróns, trumpets, and other instruments in a style instantly recognizable as mariachi music.

But what makes this group stand out is that the musicians are all under the age of 14.

“It makes me feel alive,” sixth-grader Joshua Campos said. “My problems, when I play, they just go away. I just think about the music.”

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Cultivated Classroom at Gregory-Lincoln growing young minds, spreading roots in community

Sit down to a table at Bludorn Restaurant in Midtown, and you expect to see a few things: an airy dining room with high-end lighting, the wine wall with vintages from around the world, and artfully plated dishes with ingredients like maitake mushrooms, chermoula, and sea urchin.

But what you might not expect to see is a carrot—or Swiss chard or green beans or kale—planted, cultivated, and harvested by a third-grader just down the block.

So how do these vegetables make it from the hands of an elementary school student to the plate of a high-end restaurant with a Michelin pedigreed chef?

Just down Taft Street from Chef Aaron Bludorn’s flagship restaurant sits Gregory-Lincoln Education Center, and its school garden. Or, as Kellie Karavias calls it, the Cultivated Classroom.

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Nutrition classes at Attucks MS, Worthing HS set up students for success

As students begin to think about the future, Nutrition Services Culinary Educator Brittany Jones is working to ensure they’re equipped with a key ingredient for success — the basics of cooking.

Chef Jones is one of two educators who teach “Get Growing Houston” classes at Attucks Middle School and Worthing Early College High School. The 10-week classes were piloted at the schools to help students learn the importance of good nutrition and the fundamentals of cooking.

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49 HISD schools named to Texas Honor Roll list

The recently released list of Texas Honor Roll schools selected by the Educational Results Partnership includes 49 Houston Independent School District campuses.

The schools were selected by the Educational Results Partnership (ERP) for 2019-2020  based on students’ academic performance, closing achievement gaps among groups of students, utilizing evidence-based instructional practices, and having a defined system-wide mission of college and career readiness for all students.

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Last virtual school choice fair on Feb. 13 as Phase 2 deadline nears

Parents who would like to explore HISD’s portfolio of school choice options for the 2021-2022 school year are invited to the final virtual School Choice Fair from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Feb. 13.

Representatives from HISD campuses will be available, and attendees can get help submitting their application. Parents can log into the virtual fair here.

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Rapid testing for COVID-19 now available at all campuses, central office

To assist with ongoing efforts to support public health and safety, the Houston Independent School District is offering COVID-19 BinaxNOW Rapid Tests at all campuses and its central office.

The district has been provided with testing resources to test campus-based staff, district administrators, and a percentage of students (with permission from parents) through a statewide COVID-19 Rapid Testing program implemented in conjunction with the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Division of Emergency Management. The tests will be optional, but all staff who work on a campus are encouraged to participate in the program.

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Virtual Parent University session to focus on non-academic supports

The Houston Independent School District will host its next virtual Parent University workshop from 6 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 9. (Please note: this was rescheduled from February due to inclement weather.)

The theme of the fourth session will be “Non-Academic Supports Offered in HISD.” The workshop will begin with a general session followed by virtual breakout sessions that will include information on district programs, parent engagement, and community resources.  

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