Category Archives: Parents

Parents encouraged to register for pre-K during Week of the Young Child on April 16-20 

The Houston Independent School District is encouraging parents to register early for pre-K for the 2018-2019 school year during the Week of the Young Child, which is April 16 through 20.

Pre-registration will still be available before and after this week, but schools are celebrating the Week of the Young Child as a formal window for pre-K roundup and to showcase HISD programs and celebrate the district’s young learners. The Week of the Young Child is an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Finding a program

To locate an Early Childhood Center or an HISD Elementary School, visit HoustonISD.org/FindASchool. Filter your search by clicking the PK grade level button in the Advanced Search. You may also email the HISD Early Childhood Curriculum Department at Curriculum@HoustonISD.org. Continue reading →

Project Prom this weekend to help students in need receive free formal attire 

The Houston Independent School District Student Assistance Department will provide free dresses, tuxedos, shoes, and accessories to hundreds of homeless and at-risk high school seniors planning to go to prom.

The third annual Project Prom event will be held from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 7, at Pin Oak Middle School (4601 Glenmont St. Bellaire, 77401). Students will be able to select formal attire from a wide selection of dresses and menswear.

The event also will include college and career resources; health services, including meningitis shots, which are required for all incoming Texas college students; free food; and giveaways.

HISD surveying parents on family engagement efforts 

The Houston Independent School District is seeking parent input in an annual survey is to determine how well their child’s school partners with them and encourages family engagement in the education process.

Your feedback on this survey is important and will help the district to develop strategies to improve supports for parent and family engagement at the school level.

Parents may access the 2017–2018, HISD Title I, Part A Parent and Family Engagement Survey here.

The survey should take approximately 10 minutes to complete and will remain anonymous. The survey should be completed for each school being attended. For assistance in reading or interpreting the survey, please contact the Title I campus contact person at the school level for additional assistance.

CANCELLED: ‘When I Grow Up’ career expo

When I Grow Up has been cancelled due to threat of severe weather on Saturday morning. However, students 16-24 years old will still be able to apply and interview on the spot for various summer jobs at companies who are partners to Hire Houston Youth. This is an initiative of the Mayor’s office, and HISD has encouraged its business partners to do their summer hiring through HHY. See this website for details: www.hirehoustonyouth.org/youth.

In addition, students will still be presenting project presentations reflecting a year of working with ACE Mentors. Preliminary and final presentations in the architecture, construction, and engineering fields that solve business problems will be presented at Hattie Mae White beginning at 8 a.m. this Saturday.

HISD social workers recognized in March for national Social Work Month 

The National Association of Social Workers has proclaimed March to be Social Work Month, with the theme of “Social Workers: Leaders. Advocates. Champions.”

The Houston Independent School District includes 37 social workers on campuses across the district. These social workers provide crisis support, helping children overcome issues such as death and grief, and helping communities connect to resources to recover from natural disasters – most recently from Hurricane Harvey and flooding. Continue reading →

3 town hall meetings planned on HISD magnet program 

The Houston Independent School District’s Office of School Choice is planning three meetings on proposed changes to the district’s magnet program.

Meeting attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about school choice in the district.

Meetings will be held at the following locations and dates. All meetings are from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, March 20
Milby High School
1601 Broadway, Houston 77012

Wednesday, March 21
Hattie Mae White
4400 W 18th St., Houston 77092

Thursday, March 22
Wisdom High School
6529 Beverly Hill, Houston 77057

HISD surveys students and parents on magnet programs

HISD is seeking parent and student input on the district’s magnet programs in an effort to better understand our families’ needs. The survey is open to students or parents of students who:

  • Attend a magnet program
  • Do not attend a magnet program
  • Live within HISD but do not currently attend an HISD school

The survey can be found at HoustonISD.org/MagnetSurvey. It will be open until March 30.

HISD pioneered the development of magnet programs in the 1970s and is known nationally for its innovative offerings at more than 100 schools.

“We remain committed to magnet programs and school choice,” said HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza. “We want to be sure that our programs are in line with the district’s vision that every child, no matter where they live, has equitable opportunities and access to an effective, personalized education.”

The community will have opportunities to comment on the magnet program in public meetings that will be scheduled for the coming weeks.

Community meetings scheduled on budget deficit

HISD Board of Education Trustees are scheduling meetings in their respective districts to discuss the district’s 2018-2019 budget deficit.

Meetings may also address the difficult choices the district faces regarding improvement required campuses, HB 1842, and SB 1882. Questions from the audience are welcome.

The following meetings have been scheduled. Each meeting will begin at 6 p.m.: Continue reading →

Parents can sign up to participate in Special Education focus group meetings

The Texas Education Agency will be conducting focus group meetings on Monday, Feb. 26 for parents of students with disabilities across age and grade levels receiving special education services.

During the 2016-2017 school year, the United States Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, performed a series of onsite monitoring visits to review Texas’ compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The final report was provided to TEA on Jan. 10, 2018.

The findings from that report require TEA to develop a plan to address four corrective actions. An integral part of the plan development process will be the gathering of input from stakeholders and other interested Texans. Continue reading →

Personal stories exemplify how HISD is rebuilding, reimagining education

‘We could be anywhere, and we would still be Robinson’

If anyone could find a silver lining amid the devastation wrought by Hurricane Harvey, it’s Robinson Elementary School Principal Paige Fernandez-Hohos. After being flooded with more than a foot of water, Robinson was relocated and students split between two adjacent campuses. Though not ideal, the situation made Fernandez-Hohos determined to give students a sense of normalcy. Vacant rooms and hallways sprung to life with decorations. Auditorium and gym spaces were transformed into cozy classrooms to accommodate more students. Fernandez-Hohos trekked back and forth between the two campuses. If she started the day welcoming students at one school, she ended it saying goodbye to students at the other. It was important, she said, that every class see her every day. Robinson students returned to their home campus in January, but Fernandez-Hohos said the storm taught her a valuable lesson about the spirit of her school: “When everything else is stripped away, all you’re left with is the bond between teachers and students. We could be anywhere, and we would still be Robinson.”

Continue reading →