Category Archives: Middle Schools

Student Spaceflight Experiments Program

 Two more Houston Independent School District student experiments will soon be headed to space.  The first experiments launched in May aboard the inaugural Space X Dragon commercial space flight and will return in July.   Two other experiments are now being prepared for the mission to the International Space Station in September.

Four HISD schools, E-STEM Middle School Academy West, Garden Oaks Elementary, Johnston Middle, and Pershing Middle Schools, participated in the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP) Mission 2 to the ISS. 

As part of the program, students worked with teachers and members of the community to complete research on a rigorous scientific proposal along with a design challenge for experimentation in microgravity aboard the ISS.   Students also helped design a mission patch that represents HISD and their work on this project.

 The team from Pershing Middle which took top honors and Johnston Middle school student Emily Soice will represent HISD on the SpaceX Falcon 9 flight in September.  Two HISD mission patches designed by E-STEM Middle School Academy West student Abilio Sanchez and Johnston Middle School student Sebastian Beil from Johnston Middle school will also be aboard the flight.   

 The program was made possible by donations from Advanced Metal Fusion, KBR, Lockheed-Martin, Minute Maid, and Texas Space Grant.

The Student Space Flight Experiments Program (http://ssep.ncesse.org) is undertaken by the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE; http://ncesse.org) in partnership with Nanoracks, LLC. This on-orbit educational research opportunity is enabled through NanoRacks, LLC, which is working in partnership with NASA under a Space Act Agreement as part of the utilization of the International Space Station as a National Laboratory.

Young Men’s College Preparatory Academy Awarded $31,000 Grant for School Uniforms

The Moody Foundation has awarded HISD’s Young Men’s College Preparatory Academy a $31,000 grant to purchase school uniforms for the 2012-2013 school year.  Nearly 80 percent of YMCPA students are from low-income families, and many students and parents cannot afford the uniforms which consist of blazers, slacks, and ties. Since state and federal guidelines prevent the academy from paying for uniforms, the school relies primarily on partner organizations for financial support.    

The HISD Board of Education is expected to accept the grant during the board’s regular meeting on Thursday, June 14. 

Principal Dameion J. Crook says the school uniform project has helped inspire student confidence and has helped nurture both the intellectual and social development necessary for his students to graduate college and become successful leaders. 

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HISD Awards Top Custodians and Plant Operators of the Year

The Houston Independent School District presented the Custodian and Plant Operator of the Year awards, and recognized the strong work ethic, dedication and commitment of the entire operations staff on June 7.

“We want to take the time to say – we see what you’re doing, we know what you’re doing, and most importantly, we appreciate what you’re doing,” Superintendent Terry Grier said.  “The work of these employees is vital for all our schools and facilities to be able to operate smoothly on a daily basis.”     

The Secondary Custodian of the Year award was given to Hortencia Garcia from Waltrip High School and the Elementary Custodian of the Year award was given to Maria Fuentes from De Zavala Elementary School.

Honorable mentions were also given to Vickie Newton from TH Rogers Middle School and Vilma Villatoro from Red Elementary School for excellence and innovation in service to their campuses.

“We are truly proud of these custodians, who exceed expectations in every area of plant operations, and who go to work every day with their most important customers in mind – the children of HISD,” said Leo Bobadilla, Chief Operating Officer.  “These awards serve as tangible recognition of their efforts, and our appreciation.”

Marili Vaquiz from Burrus Elementary School was awarded Elementary Plant Operator of the Year, and Gary Vaughn from Welch Middle School was awarded Secondary Plant Operator of the Year. 

Honorable mentions for excellence in plant operations were also given to Maria Cerda from JP Henderson Elementary School, Jerry Johnson from Waltrip High School, and Connie Broussard from McNamara Elementary School.           

HISD’s custodians and plant operators are tasked with ensuring all of the district’s schools and facilities are clean, safe and operating adequately.

HISD Students Make History on the Space X Dragon

The Space X Dragon which is now headed to rendezvous with the International Space Station is carrying two experiments made by four Houston Independent School District students as well as two student-designed mission patches.  The Dragon launched Tuesday morning at 2:44 a.m. CST from Cape Canaveral, FL.

The National Center for Earth and Space Science (NCESSE) and NanoRacks, LLC, have developed the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP), aimed at helping today’s students become the scientists and engineers of tomorrow.  The program gives the students the opportunity to be involved in a national space project with a focus on STEM education via the Nano-Racks payload.

Johnston Middle and Parker Elementary were two of the schools selected from 12 communities in the United States.   Hundreds of students in grades 5- 8 were given the opportunity to design and submit experiments to be performed in microgravity aboard the space station.  From 267 formal experiment proposals received, two were chosen to go to space.

Emily Soice from Johnston Middle School and Michael Prince, Maxx Denning and Aaron Stuart from Parker Elementary school had the winning proposals.  Both schools also held an art contest for the mission patch design. Fifth grade Parker Elementary student Christian Astorga and eighth grade Johnston Middle School student Sebastian Beil designed the winning mission patches.

The students conferred with STEM experts from Rice University, the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI), NASA, Pfizer, Texas A and M University, the University of Houston, Baylor College of Medicine, and Texas Southern University.    The students also had the opportunity to visit research facilities to prepare for their experiments for flight. 

The Student Space Flight Experiments Program (http://ssep.ncesse.org) is undertaken by the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE; http://ncesse.org) in partnership with Nanoracks, LLC and is enabled through NanoRacks working in partnership with NASA under a Space Act Agreement as part of the utilization of the International Space Station as a National Laboratory.  

During the Dragon’s 21-day mission it will dock with the space station where it will deliver about a half ton of supplies along with cargo from NanoRacks containing 15 student-designed SSEP experiments from around the United States.  Dragon will be the first privately-owned spaceship to dock at the space station.

Burbank Middle School Places Second in School of Year Contest by Spanish Ministry of Education

HISD’s Burbank Middle School placed second in the USA/Canada School of the Year Contest sponsored by the Spanish Ministry of Education. 

Burbank is now nationally recognized as one of the premier dual language middle schools in North America. The USA School of the Year contest highlights instructional excellence in both English and Spanish language programming.

As the second place winner, the school will receive a $2,500 award, a library of Spanish language books and a scholarship for one of Burbank’s dual language teachers to study in Spain this summer. 

Burbank Middle School participates in the prestigious International Spanish Academy Program with seven other HISD schools providing dual language students with a wide range of enrichment programming.

HISD Names Chief Middle School Officer

Michael Cardona, whose leadership of a high school and a middle school in San Antonio led to significant student achievement gains, has been named Houston ISD’s chief middle school officer.

Cardona comes to the Houston Independent School District from North East ISD, where he has served as principal of Robert E. Lee High School since 2009. He previously served as principal of North East’s Driscoll Middle School from 2006 to 2009. Cardona was among just five Texas finalists for this year’s H-E-B Excellence in Education Secondary School Principal Award.

HISD Superintendent Terry Grier said Cardona has the expertise needed to continue the transformation of Houston middle schools.

“The middle school years are a crucial time in the academic journey of every student,” Dr. Grier said. “The schools under Mr. Cardona’s leadership have successfully raised the level of academic rigor for all children, regardless of their background, and prepared them to succeed in college and in the job market.”

The number of college-level Advanced Placement exams taken by students at Robert E. Lee High School more than tripled on Cardona’s watch. The 2,700-student campus, which is home to three magnet programs, was included among the National Center for Educational Achievement’s list of Higher Performing Schools in 2011.

Cardona said he plans to use his experience as a principal on the middle school and high school levels to help students make the transition from eighth grade to ninth grade. Students must leave HISD’s middle schools prepared to tackle the rigor of AP classes in high school, Cardona said. This means exposing students to challenging classes in middle school, because high school is too late, he said.

“We have got to get these students ready when they enter high school,” Cardona said. “All kids are capable of being successful if they’re given the right structures.”

Cardona hold a master of science in educational administration from Texas A&M University-Kingsville, and a bachelor of arts in political science from Texas A&M University. He is currently pursuing his doctoral degree in educational administration from Texas A&M University.

Cardona began his education career in 1992 as a teacher working with students with disabilities. He served as an assistant principal at three North East ISD middle schools and one high school. His wife, Leila Cardona, is an elementary school reading facilitator. They have two sons, ages 7 and 12.

Cardona will report for duty in HISD on July 2. He replaces Dr. S. Dallas Dance, who was recently named superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools in Maryland.

Clifton MS Student Engineers a Win at Statewide TAME Competition

Victoria Rodriguez

Victoria Rodriguez and four of her peers from across the state engineered a victory at the Texas Alliance for Minorities in Engineering (TAME) Statewide Math & Science Competition recently, using nothing more than four toothpicks, two rubber bands, a clothespin, and a few dozen other small items.

Dubbed “The Tower of Power,” the crane the Clifton Middle School eighth-grader and her teammates constructed with these materials could successfully pivot 90 degrees and lift 83 marbles up to six-and-a-half inches.

“We came up with our design by trying to imagine an actual crane and used the tools we had to make a smaller version,” said Victoria, who acted as her team’s project manager. “Our crane was successful because it did everything it was built to do.”

The team’s accomplishment is even more impressive when you consider that it got a late start. “We only had 10 minutes or so to build it,” she said.

Nevertheless, Victoria’s team took home the prize, and she was one of a dozen HISD students to place at the 27th annual competition, which was held at Texas A&M University on April 14.

Other students who received awards at the event were: Moises Tacam (Challenge ECHS), Desmond Titus (Jordan HS), Samantha Gomez-Mora, and Emmanuel Onochie (both from DeVry Advantage Academy), who closed out the second through fifth-place prizes in the Integrated Physics and Chemistry category; Jessica Salazar (Challenge ECHS), who won fourth place in Physics; Nicolas Xiong (East ECHS) and Jayvian Green (Jordan HS), who won fourth and fifth place, respectively, in Advanced Placement Physics; and four others who also placed with their teams in the design challenge.

The event brought together more than 300 winners in grades 6–12 from 11 regional competitions across Texas. In addition to testing student knowledge of math and science concepts, the competition promotes teamwork, leadership, and academic achievement.

See what they’re saying about STAAR

The first administration of the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) exam began today, and students and parents took to social media sites to talk about the test. Here’s what some of them had to say:

  1. Share
    “
    For the freshmen taking STAAR, may the be force be with you.

     

    Johnny TaylorDefiningMatter

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 08:00:14
     
     
  2. Share
    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB7ax2i73Rk?wmode=transparent&showinfo=0]
    HISD Answers Frequently Asked Questions about STAAR

     

    thehisd

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 15:26:50
     
     
  3. Share
    “
    STAAR testing was way more fun than I thought it would be!

     

    Ty SnopekTy Snopek

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 11:05:15
     
     
  4. Share
    “
    I think I’m going to like STAAR. It was pretty easy

     

    Aleaahh ;D_IbreakNeckss

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:23:40
     
     
  5. Share
    “
    Good luck to both my boys this week on the STAAR testing I love you both bunches, n good luck to all the other kids who are testing as well

     

    Chavella PicasoChavella Picaso

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 11:00:47
     
     
  6. Share
    Texas Education Agency – STAAR™ Resources

    STAAR logo Beginning in spring 2012, the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR™) will replace the Texas Assessment of…
    State
     
     
  7. Share
    “
    #BelieveItOrNot i like STAAR better than taks

     

    CINDOO ♥OBEY__BEE

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 16:48:32
     
     
  8. Share
    “
    RT @jewduhrob: I’m just a normal boy most days, but today I’m a STAAR.

     

    KJ Stewart KJStewy

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:05:22
     
     
  9. Share
    “
    STAAR is great.

     

    Max Rand.maximusrand

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:14:02
     
     
  10. Share
    STAAR – HISD Connect –

    What is STAAR? For years, students have been taking the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) to determine whether they have …
    Houstonisd
     
     
  11. Share
    “
    That awkward moment when someone’s phone goes off in the middle of the STAAR test and its an eminem song… #totesawk

     

    Claire StowellHeyCweezy

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:13:40
     
     
  12. Share
    “
    Good Luck my dear friends that have to take the STAAR TEST. I know you will do great

     

    Kelsey-Ray PassafumaKelsey-Ray Passafuma

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 09:49:55
     
     
  13. Share
    “
    Me: u ready for your writing test? Student: yes sir Mr. O’Neil, I know how to write stories. He’s ready for STAAR! #edchat

     

    TheCollinsPrincipalONeilCMSPrincip

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:28:45
     
     
  14. Share
    “
    Happy #STAAR testing today to all Texas 9th graders. Write like you’ve never written before! Wait, no…

     

    Hillari Hhillarih

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:26:27
     
     
  15. Share
    “
    Happy STAAR testing, and may the odds be ever in your favor.

     

    Christina MoenChristina Moen

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 10:00:18
     
     
  16. Share
    “
    New questions from HISD parents answered on STAAR Q&A site: hisdstaar.wordpress.com

     

    HISDSTAARHISDSTAAR

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:17:53
     
     
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  18. Share
    “
    Shout Out!! to the DHS Freshman Campus…. in Taking the STAAR Test Today.

     

    Tselane Candi McdonaldTselane Candi Mcdonald

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 09:51:12
     
     
  19. Share
    “
    Good Luck Kids!

     

    Amber Parker-CollinsAmber Parker-Collins

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 11:36:31
     
     
  20. Share
    “
    iWonder how my little brother doing on the STAAR Test.
    This morning I told him if he didn’t know the answer to just choose C.
    #BestBigSister

     

    Hi&&Bye.✌HomeIGuess

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:13:57
     
     
  21. Share
    “
    Good luck today on the STAAR, Freshman.!(:
    #So happy to be a 1996 baby<3

     

    Sattyn Justice WarnkeSattyn Justice Warnke

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 10:10:45
     
     
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    “
    Staar test was too easy!

     

    (● ω ● )caatado

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:23:02
     
     
  23. Share
    “
    Just finished my STAAR test , it was really easy I’m ready for the second part now!!!!!

     

    101410 thoo♡ ツ !Reree_3badd

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:25:35
     
     
  24. Share
    “
    First day of new TX state assessment, #STAAR . Less multiple choice, two types of essays, timed. Best of luck to all those testing!

     

    Sarah Jensenltf_sarah

    Mon, Mar 26 2012 12:18:59
     
     

“Exciting Time for HISD Students”: Magnet Letters to Arrive Starting March 26

Almost 34,000 students who applied to one of the district’s 115 magnet programs will find out during the week of March 26 whether they have been accepted to the school of their choice. Letters alerting students of their admissions status will be sent out on Friday, March 23, and students and parents can expect to receive their notification letters beginning Monday, March 26.

“This is a very exciting time for HISD students. We want to ensure they get the chance to build up the special knowledge and skills they desire, whether that be Chinese or Spanish language, math and science, dance, or even aviation skills,” said Assistant Superintendent of School Choice Lupita Hinojosa.

Students who are “accepted” must indicate that they will attend the magnet school for the 2012-2013 school year by returning the enclosed signed Student Entrance Agreement no later than April 9th.

Students who have not been immediately accepted will receive a letter stating “waitlisted,” “out of district,” or “not qualified.”

Magnet coordinators will begin making phone calls on April 9 to offer spots to waitlisted students who move up the list if the school has any students who decline to attend.

Selection for out of district students will begin June 6, after all in-district candidates have been accepted.

Students who receive a “Not Qualified” letter for a particular magnet program are invited to attend the Second Annual School Choice Fair on Saturday, April 28, at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center from 9 a.m. – noon to learn about other schools.

“The fair will feature magnet, specialty, and neighborhood schools with space available for more students. Everyone will be able to find a school of choice for the 2012-2013 school year,” said Hinojosa.

• See how many students applied to each magnet school (.pdf)