To guide district decision-making, particularly moving forward on virtual learning, the HISD Research and Accountability Department is launching a districtwide Fall 2020 Virtual/Remote Learning Parent Survey.
The survey will run from Monday, November 9 through Tuesday, November 17. Parents are asked to complete the survey online at HoustonISD.org/FallParentSurvey. The survey is also available in Spanish, Vietnamese, and Arabic.
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HISD students are invited to attend a series of virtual lunch and learn programs presented by the HISD Office of School Choice in partnership with The Ion of Houston and Pumps and Pipes.
The first event, Careers in Innovation, Technology & Entrepreneurship, will take place from noon to 1 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 5, and will feature speakers from Xecta Digital Labs, Plug & Play Tech Center, and The Ion.
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COVID-19 has presented several educational challenges that have exacerbated gaps in student learning, but two Carnegie Vanguard High School students saw it as an opportunity for positive change.
During the pandemic, juniors Aadhav Jai Murugesh and Levi Chen created Numerly, which provides easy-to-access, free tutoring services for students grades 3-8. Numerly’s goal is to uplift economically and medically underserved communities by making high-quality math and science education available for free.
“We wanted to do our part to help students succeed, regardless of the circumstances,” Murugesh said. “The math and science knowledge kids gain in elementary and middle school is crucial, and a strong foundation ensures that more challenging subjects are attainable in high school,”
Continue readingHISD middle and high school students are invited to attend a virtual Wellness Fair presented Next Level Urgent Care, Jones Futures Academy and Junior Achievement of Southeast Texas.
The wellness fair will take place from 9:30 to 11 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 5. During the fair, students will have access to workforce readiness opportunities, as well as an opportunity to meet and interact with health care professionals without having to leave their campus.
Continue readingParents have a wide variety of choices regarding where to send their students to school in HISD, but time is running out to be in the first round of consideration.
Parents who still aren’t sure which school they want their child to attend next year are invited to the final virtual School Choice Fair from 9 a.m. to noon this Saturday, Oct. 31. Representatives from HISD magnet schools will be available, and attendees can get help submitting their application. Parents can log into the virtual fair here.
The deadline to apply is Nov. 6 for guaranteed consideration in the first round. Any applications received after the Nov. 6 deadline will be considered only for schools where space is still available.
Continue readingWith the 2020-2021 school year in full swing, it is important that all HISD parents complete the Student Information Verification application to ensure student information is accurate and up to date.
The form will be available on the HISD Connect Parent Portal from Monday, Oct. 26 to Friday, Nov. 13.
The Student Information Verification application will allow parents the opportunity to verify or update their information to stay connected to their student’s school, such as home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and emergency contacts.
Continue readingChantal Duval-Jackson’s Kickstart Karate students lined up in neat rows and ran through warm-up drills on Monday with their usual precision and enthusiastic shouts of “Kiai!”
The only noticeable differences on the first day of face-to-face instruction at Navarro Middle School were the addition of masks and carefully staggered checkerboard mat to ensure social distancing measures were observed.
Duval-Jackson, who has taught karate at the school for nearly 10 years, had the extra challenge this year of creating a safe space for her students – not an easy task considering karate usually is a full-contact sport. She has about 150 students in sixth through eighth grades, and about 30 percent of those students have opted for in-person instruction. The majority of her students are participating virtually.
Continue readingAsusena Gonzales’ 9-year-old son, Brandon Martinez, is deaf and attends the Region 4 Regional Day School Program for the Deaf (RDSPD) at HISD’s T.H. Rogers School.
Brandon has been at Rogers since the age of 3, growing and learning like any other student. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The school closed and went fully remote in March, and Gonzales worried that virtual school would be a challenge for her son and that he could fall behind, but Brandon exceeded all expectations.
“He was able to learn multiplication through virtual learning, and that was shocking to me because I thought he would be delayed but … it has been really great,” she said. “Actually, we’ve been learning with him, and learning the signs to assist him, which has been really good.”
Continue readingThe Houston Independent School District partnered with several churches throughout the city for the Sanctuaries of Learning program, which offered hundreds of students a safe place to participate in virtual learning.
Now, as the district returns to face-to-face instruction this week, the program is ending, but not before having served an important purpose for HISD students and staff alike.
The program served students who had a device but were not old enough to stay home alone or lacked internet access. Participating students spent their school days in the church buildings, supervised by HISD staff and church volunteers and receiving breakfast, lunch, and snacks.
Continue readingEricka Austin has been selected as the new principal of Sugar Grove Middle School.
Austin joined HISD in 2014 as a teacher specialist at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School, after beginning her career in Arlington ISD as a fifth-grade math and science teacher and later, grade-level chair. She also served as a teacher specialist at High School Ahead Academy before moving into the role of a data-driven instructional specialist for the district. In 2019, she returned to High School Ahead Academy as principal.
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