Category Archives: Uncategorized

Scholarship, Financial Aid Fair Set to Assist Students and Parents

HISD’s Class of 2012 earned a record $180 million in college scholarship offers, and seniors this year are hoping to match or surpass that number. To assist students in their scholarship search, HISD’s College and Career Readiness Department is holding the “No Dollar Left Behind”  Scholarship and Financial Aid Fair on Tuesday, Nov. 13, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Challenge Early College High School (5601 West Loop South, 77081).

Students and parents attending the fair will have the opportunity to speak with various scholarship exhibitors, learn how to improve their scholarship search and get tips for successful essay writing. Representatives from the Department of Education will also be on hand to answer questions.

 “Many of our HISD families believe they can’t afford to send their child to college, but there is plenty of aid out there if you you know where to look,” said HISD Counseling Manager Nefertari Mundy. “In fact, there is nearly $150 billion dollars available from the federal government in the form of grants, loans, work study and scholarships. We want to make sure our students leave no dollar behind.”

Students attending the fair will also have a chace to win a $1,500 scholarship and can meet with representatives from 20 different organizations that have scholarships available to HISD students, including the Houston Live Stock Show and Rodeo, the Houston Hispanic Forum and the Childrens Defense Fund, to name a few.

Regional colleges like Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern and others will also be on hand to discuss scholarships that their institutions have to offer students.

HISD seniors attending the fair can also receive a free meningitis immunization thanks to the Meningitis Initiative. Students must have this vaccine to attend most colleges.

 

HISD Students Calling Eligible Voters to Encourage Voting on Election Day

On the eve of Election Day, dozens of students from various HISD high schools will be volunteering with Mi Familia Vota to call thousands of Houston voters to encourage them to hit the polls on Election Day.

Students from Chavez, Furr, Scarborough, Davis and Sharpstown high schools will be working the phones today after school to call eligible voters in their communities to encourage them to vote on Tuesday and remind them to finish the ballot. Nearly 30 students from each campus will be participating.

Mi Familia Vota, a nonprofit organization geared to promote civic engagement, will be providing the students at each campus headsets and a computer program to help facilitate the phone bank, along with the list of contact numbers for voters in their surrounding areas.

Students from Davis High School previously participated on another phone bank with Mi Familia Vota on October 19 to promote civic engagement and placed over a thousand phone calls.

At the Sam Houston Math, Science & Technology Center, parents and students made hundreds of phone calls to Houston voters on November 2.

Sam Houston Student’s Artwork Selected for HISD’s 2012 Holiday Greeting Card

Senior Alexandra Lartigue was inspired by holiday surroundings and vibrant colors

• Click here to see all of the artwork submitted for the 2012 HISD greeting card

 Alexandra Lartigue , a senior at Sam Houston’s Math, Science and Technology Center, created the winning artwork for the 2012 HISD Holiday Greeting Card.

Along with their families, art teachers, and principals, the finalists were honored at a reception Friday, Nov. 2, at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center.  Thirty talented student artists from around the district participated in the ninth annual HISD Holiday Greeting Card Event. Students from elementary, middle, and high schools submitted holiday-inspired artwork with the hopes of being selected as the official HISD greeting card artist. 

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HISD Students to Discuss Bond Proposal

Who:  Student representatives from the 28 high schools included in the Houston schools bond proposition.

What:  Just days before Houston voters decide whether to approve a proposition to rebuild schools in neighborhoods across the city, student representatives from the impacted high schools will be available to share their perspectives with reporters.

When:  10 a.m. on Thursday; Nov. 1, 2012

Where:  Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, 4400 W. 18th Street

Ghoulish Creatures from HSPVA, Lamar Getting Out the Vote

With Halloween right around the corner, things are getting a little spooky around the district. Photos of zombies in front of various HISD high schools are popping up all over Twitter and Facebook. In addition to their frightening appearance, the ghoulish creatures are holding “Zombies Vote Early” signs. Continue reading →

HISD Students to Promote Early Voting With Zombie Walk and “Thriller” Vote Early Flash Mob

HSPVA and Lamar ‘zombies’ walking to early voting site

 

What:         HISD’s own ‘zombies’ from HSPVA and Lamar High School will be encouraging fellow classmates, staff, parents and the community at-large to vote early and to finish the entire ballot by walking from the West Gray/Montrose intersection to the Metropolitan Multi-Services Center (1475 West Gray) where they will culminate their walk  with a zombie “Thriller” flash mob at 4:30 p.m.

 Who:               HSPVA and Lamar High School students

When:             Wednesday, October 31, 2012, 4 – 5:00 p.m.

Where:           Metropolitan Multi-Services Center, 1475 West Gray

Miss America brings message of encouragement to students at YWCPA

Miss America 2012 at YWCPA.

Laura Kaeppeler, Miss America 2012, brought a message of encouragement, determination, and persistence to the Young Women’s College Preparatory Academy during a recent visit to the school. 

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Houston CEOs Shadow HISD School Leaders

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The Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) of Houston met at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center on Thursday, Oct. 25, for a Principal Shadowing Event.

The reason for such a prestigious gathering? To bring community business leaders together with local school leaders and principals to discuss the state of Houston-area schools, teachers, and students.

This year, the Houston YPO teamed up with Houston Independent School District, Spring Branch Independent School District, YES Prep Public Schools, and KIPP Public Charter Schools-Houston to discuss such topics as school reform, educational leadership, and teacher effectiveness. The event was designed to open the lines of communication between community and school leaders and to increase awareness of the strengths and challenges for local public school systems. Continue reading →