Category Archives: Parents

School Choice applications for 2020-2021 available on Sept. 27

First of five school choice fairs set for Sept. 28 at Sterling HS

Parents will have the ability to begin applying to School Choice Programs for the 2020-2021 school year on Friday, Sept. 27, 2019. The district’s first school choice fair will take place from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Sept. 28 at Sterling High School (11625 Martindale, 77048).

HISD offers a robust portfolio of magnet programs at 112 schools to best meet students’ academic needs and interests. The magnet programs within the district include:

Continue reading →

Transportation Services receives influx of new requests for bus service

Transportation Services is temporarily halting the acceptance of route and stop change requests as the department works to process an abundance of new requests for bus service submitted after the start of the new school year. 

This measure allows the department to focus on ensuring all new requests for service are processed and accompanying students are assigned to routes. Once that work is complete, the department will resume review of route and stop change requests.  

Alternate Stop Request Forms — required when requesting a bus stop or route change — will not be accepted during this time. Additionally, the Alternate Stop Request Form option in the Let’s Talk! online communication platform is being temporarily disabled. 

Continue reading →

Veteran crossing guard creates community connections while keeping students safe

Crossing Guard Charlethia Vaughn is nearly a permanent fixture at the corner of Walnut Bend Lane and Briar Forest Drive during the school year.  

Every morning and afternoon, she is there to help Walnut Bend Elementary School students and their parents cross the busy street — even when the Texas heat is nearly unbearable, when the skies are pouring rain, or when it’s so cold, her fingers get numb. 

“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” she said. “This community has really embraced me.”  

Continue reading →

Transportation Services update scheduled for Thursday

Transportation Services is announcing its first round of bus route updates on Thursday. The changes will impact 445 routes with families being notified via SchoolMessenger. 

These adjustments result from the department’s continued focus to increase route efficiency, as well as its efforts to process new requests for bus service and route and stop changes. Changes to routes are not uncommon at the start of the school year and mostly involve minor adjustments to stop times.  

This year, Transportation Services will be making route update announcements on Thursdays, as needed, with changes to take effect the following Monday. The announcements distributed Thursday will take effect immediately after Labor Day on Tuesday, Sept. 3. 

Continue reading →

Interim Superintendent makes special stop during first-day districtwide tour to showcase pre-K expansion efforts

During her whirlwind first-day of school district tour, HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan stopped at Neff Early Learning Center, where she and other administration officials gathered to highlight to the media and community the expansion of pre-K education throughout the district. 

“High-quality, full-day pre-K will continue to be a top priority in HISD,” Lathan said. “We must provide all children with a solid foundation as they embark on their educational journeys. Funding these programs are an investment in our children and our families.” 

HISD’s full-day Pre-K program, which is offered to three- and four-year-olds, began in 2006. This school year, a total of 12 elementary campuses throughout the district will be expanding pre-K classrooms for a total of 38 pre-K rooms.  

Continue reading →

HISD’s Back-to-School Extravaganza helps families prepare for new school year

A line of bustling people wove its way through the parking lot of Delmar Fieldhouse on Friday as they anxiously waited for the start of the district’s second annual Back-to-School Extravaganza. 

As the doors opened, district parents and students were greeted by hundreds of smiling volunteers, a welcome chant from Waltrip High School’s cheerleading squad, and a special message from Interim Superintendent Dr. Grenita Lathan. 

“We are so excited to kick off the 2019-2020 school year,” Lathan said. “To everyone here, thank you for supporting HISD – one of the top school districts in the state of Texas!” 

Continue reading →

HISD school start times for the 2019-20 school year

The Houston Independent School District’s standardized start/dismissal times will remain the same for the 2019-20 school year. 

This school year, the district will operate with the following standardized times: 

Elementary schools and early childhood centers: 
Start at 7:30 a.m. and dismiss at 2:50 p.m. 

Middle schools and PK/K-8: 
Start at 8:30 a.m. and dismiss at 3:50 p.m. 

High School and 6-12 Schools: 
Start at 8:30 a.m. and dismiss at 4 p.m. 

Exceptions to the standardized start/dismissal times are in effect for certain campuses for the 2019-2020 school year. Please check with your campus directly to confirm start/dismissal times. 

Parent University to kick off for second year with districtwide workshops

The Houston Independent School District will kick off its second year of Parent University on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at all district campuses.

The workshops will connect parents and children to resources offered by the district to create successful academic careers as well as safe and healthy environments at home and at school. 

A variety of district and community program representatives and experts will be available for parents to connect with individually. After the districtwide event on Sept. 17, Parent University workshops will take place monthly at geographically dispersed locations at 5:15 p.m. as follows: 

Continue reading →

HISD students to eat all meals at no charge this school year

As parents prepare for the upcoming school year, Nutrition Services has taken one key responsibility off their plates — providing students with breakfast, lunch, and dinner free of charge for the second year in a row. 

All HISD schools are once again qualified to operate under the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service Community Eligibility Provision, which provides students with access to three healthy meals each day — at no cost to them and without having to fill out a free and reduced-price meal application. 

Continue reading →

HISD asking parents to complete socioeconomic form for the 2019-2020 school year

The Houston Independent School District will provide free breakfast and lunch to students for the 2019-2020 school year, but parents will need to fill out a new form to ensure Title I funding for HISD schools. 

All HISD schools are 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. 

Continue reading →