Category Archives: Parents

New Parent University session scheduled for Nov. 15 

HISD will host its second Parent University workshop from 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 15 at five locations throughout the district: Pin Oak Middle School, and Milby, Washington, Wisdom and Yates high schools.

The theme for the session will be “Pathways and Programs.” 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.

Parents can look up locations and select the most convenient one to attend. Registration is available at HoustonISD.org/ParentUniversity.

Free dinner, interpretation services, and child care will be provided.

HISD Special Education Fall Parent Summit draws nearly 200 

Click here for photos, videos and more from the Special Education Fall Parent Summit.

The Houston Independent School District held its 2018 Special Education Fall Parent Summit on Saturday, October 27, providing nearly 200 parents and students with the opportunity to meet with Special Education professionals, attend learning sessions, and connect with resources available to them.

“I am pleased to have hosted another very successful Special Education summit with our HISD parents,” said Office of Special Education Services Assistant Superintendent Dr. S. Lachlin Verrett. “We are excited for the opportunity to support our students and families as well as hear their input about how we can better serve their needs.”

See photos, videos and more from the Special Education Fall Parent Summit

Continue reading →

HISD bus riders to begin scanning bus badges on Monday

HISD bus riders at 22 pilot schools across the district began scanning their badges as they got on and off the bus this week as part of the official launch of Student Badge Program.

The 22 pilot schools were tapped to lead the initiative, giving Transportation Services time to review the initial rollout and refine the program as needed before implementing it districtwide next week.

Bus riders at all remaining HISD schools will begin scanning their badges during the week of Oct. 29.

“No one will be refused transportation if they don’t have a badge. However, it’s important for students to remember to bring and scan their badges every day,” Transportation Services Interim General Manager John Wilcots IV said. “These badges give us — and their parents — access to real-time information about when and where students get off the bus. But no badge equals no data.” Continue reading →

Transportation Services begins bus badge distribution

HISD Transportation Services began distributing personalized badges this week to HISD student bus riders as part of the district’s Student Badge Program.

Badge distribution began Thursday, Oct. 18 and Friday, Oct. 19 for a 22-school pilot group with general distribution across the district set to begin on Monday, Oct. 22.

The 22-school pilot group includes: Elmore, Herod, Lockhart, Parker, and River Oaks elementary schools; Woodson PK-5; Fondren, Pershing and West Briar middle schools; Carnegie Vanguard, Chavez, Lamar, Waltrip, Westbury, and Westside high schools; DeBakey High School for Health Professions, Mandarin Immersion Magnet School; Houston Academy for International Studies, Gregory-Lincoln Educational Center, Baylor College of Medicine Academy at Ryan; Mickey Leland College Preparatory Academy for Young Men; and High School for Law and Justice. Continue reading →

HISD holds its first official Parent University

HISD hosted its first official Parent University workshop on Thursday, Oct. 18 at four geographically dispersed locations across the district—Fonville Middle School, Austin, Sterling and Westbury High Schools.

The theme for the first workshop was “Getting Involved with Your Child’s Education.” Each school provided resources and information fairs that focused on ways parents could become more involved at their child’s campus and the importance of parental involvement.

There were also a variety of district and community program representatives available to speak with parents.

“It’s important that we equip our parents with valuable information and resources that will produce positive academic outcomes for their child in and outside of the classroom,” Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan said. Continue reading →

HISD to hold Dual Language Parent Leadership Conference on Oct. 20

Houston ISD invites parents of dual language students to attend the district’s inaugural Dual Language Parent Leadership Conference from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 20 at the Hattie Mae White Building (4400 W. 18th St. 77092).

With the theme of this year’s conference, “Understanding and Advocating for Bilingualism and Bi-literacy,” participants can expect to leave transformed and ready to support their children at home with new and effective instructional second language acquisition strategies.

Click here to register.

 

New initiatives to address bus service challenges expected Tuesday

Bus riders across the district could see changes to their scheduled pick-up and drop-off times as part of an ongoing review designed to ensure all students have access to safe and reliable transportation.

In addition to scheduling changes, the Transportation Services department also is expanding the magnet hub program with the addition of two new hub locations, continuing to assign students to routes, and ramping up bus driver recruitment efforts to prevent driver shortages.

“Transportation to and from school is one of the building blocks for academic success,” HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan said. “It’s imperative that we provide safe, reliable and timely service to our students. We will continue making changes until we can ensure we are meeting that goal.” Continue reading →

HISD Parent University to offer opportunity for engagement, access to resources

All HISD schools to participate in kickoff event on Sept. 27

HISD will launch Parent University on Sept. 27, a new program for the 2018-2019 school year to support parents and families in the education of their children and introduce them to district programs, resources, and parent-engagement strategies.

To kick off the program, all HISD schools will hold their own Parent University events on their campus on Sept. 27. The HISD-led Parent University meetings will take place monthly, beginning in October, and will be conducted at four geographically dispersed locations throughout the city.

“This is an opportunity to better engage our families and parents across the district by providing them not only with the resources the district offers, but access to community-based organizations and our partnering entities,” said HISD Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer Rick Cruz.

Each Parent University session will begin with a resource fair featuring HISD staff and community partners. At the end of the year, parents will receive recognition for their successful completion of the program.

More details, including locations and sign-up information, will be announced when details are finalized.

HISD asking parents to complete socioeconomic form

The Houston Independent School District will provide free breakfast and lunch to students at no charge for the 2018-2019 school year, but parents will need to fill out a new form to ensure Title I funding for HISD schools.

All HISD schools are now qualified to operate under the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service Community Eligibility Provision, which allows HISD to provide breakfast, lunch, and dinner at no charge to all students, eliminating the need for free and reduced-price meal applications.

While parents will not need to complete and return a free and reduced-price meal application, they will need to complete a socioeconomic form (see below), known as the blue form.

In order for campuses to receive their Title I funding, HISD is still required to collect and report the socioeconomic status of each students to the Texas Education Agency. Continue reading →