HISD employees to complete daily health screenings

The Houston Independent School District is preparing for students and staff to return to classrooms and office workspaces over the coming weeks.

The district’s top priority during this phase of returning to in-person work is the health and safety of students and staff. HISD is partnering with Axiom Medical to support employees. Axiom Medical has nurses on staff available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, as well as a chief medical officer. The Axiom Medical health screening app will help employees determine whether it is safe for them to come into work.

Effective Monday, September 28, all employees must use Axiom Medical’s Checkin2work (CI2W) app to log in and complete a daily self-attestation before arriving at work. The daily self-attestation consists of answering COVID-19-related questions. Employees without internet access should call HISD’s Health and Medical Services at (713) 556-7280 to complete the daily self-attestation.

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HISD Board of Education to host virtual community meetings on district goals for student outcomes

Virtual Community Meeting 2 (ENGLISH ONLY)
Thursday, Oct. 15, 5 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Zoom Meeting Link: https://bit.ly/2SkKKiL
Passcode: hYT3qT

The HISD Board of Education will host two community meetings ahead of a vote to set new district goals for student outcomes. All meetings are virtual and open to the public.

Trustees are scheduled to vote on the goals during a special meeting on Thursday, Oct. 22.

“Our mission as the Board of Education is to educate the whole child so that every student in HISD graduates with the tools to reach their full potential,” HISD Board President Sue Deigaard said. “As we discuss and consider new goals for student outcomes in our district, we want to better understand the views of our communities, which is why public participation in these community meetings is important to us.”

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HISD launches COVID-19 dashboard to track confirmed cases

As HISD prepares for a return to in-person instruction on Oct. 19, the district has launched a COVID-19 dashboard to keep the community informed about the impact of the pandemic.

Designed to ensure transparency, the online dashboard will track the number of confirmed COVID-19 on-campus student and staff cases. It will go live at 1 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 28.

“As we navigate this pandemic together, we want to ensure that we are transparent as we provide crucial updates,” HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan said. “This new dashboard will give our staff members and families the information they need in an accessible and easy-to-use way to make informed decisions.”

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Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to provide books to homes of thousands of HISD children

HISD is partnering with Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia, Books Between Kids, PNC Bank, St. James Family Life Center and the Waltrip Family Foundation to bring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to up to 5,000 children in Houston.

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that provides free books to children from birth to age 5 in participating communities within the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Ireland. Dolly Parton launched Imagination Library in 1995 to foster a love of reading among her home county’s preschool children. Today, the program gifts over a million books to children around the world each month.

Part of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, the “Book a Month” program will provide young Houstonians access to books by mailing a book directly to their home each month until the child turns 5. Families who either reside or attend a school in the following zip codes can sign up to participate in the program: 77009, 77011, 77012, 77017, 77020, 77022, 77029 and 77087. The first book each child will receive via mail will be Dolly Parton’s favorite—The Little Engine That Could. 

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NASA’s High School Aerospace Scholars program now accepting applications

High school juniors from across HISD are invited to join NASA in exploring the moon to Mars through its High School Aerospace Scholars program.  

NASA wants today’s students to become the engineers, scientists, researchers and innovators of tomorrow. High School Aerospace Scholars offers a one-of-a-kind experience for Texas high school students to explore the possibilities of a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) related major or career. 

The experience begins this fall with an online interactive course on NASA activities related to space exploration, Earth science, technology, mathematics and aeronautics. Students complete design challenges including 3D drawings, science quizzes, discussion posts, technology writings and monthly webinars with NASA scientists and engineers.  

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Deadline extended for parents to select in-person or virtual learning

To provide families with additional time to make the decision that best meets their student’s educational needs, the district has extended the deadline to select either in-person or virtual instruction to Monday, Sept. 28.

As a reminder, parents can make their selection for either in-person or virtual instruction through the HISD Connect Parent Portal. 

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Three HISD schools named 2020 National Blue Ribbon Schools

Memorial Elementary School, Young Women’s College Preparatory Academy and the High School for Law & Justice have been designated 2020 Blue Ribbon campuses by the U.S. Department of Education.

This is the first time the schools have received the designation, which is awarded to schools that maintain high academic standards among all its students while demonstrating progress in closing achievement gaps among various subgroups of students.

“I am extremely proud of our schools for being recognized with this prestigious honor,” said HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan. “The hard work is exemplified in the academic excellence of our students, and that takes an entire campus working together to reach such an impressive achievement.”

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District offices, facilities to remain closed due to inclement weather

Due to inclement weather from Tropical Storm Beta, and to ensure the safety of staff, all HISD facilities and offices will remain closed on Wednesday, September 23. District facilities are scheduled to reopen on Thursday, September 24, pending road and weather conditions.

Employees will be required to report to work remotely and remain available during regular duty hours. However, employees who are required to physically report to work will be contacted by their supervisors. Virtual at-home instruction will continue as scheduled as long as internet connectivity and power remain intact. All Digital Learning Centers will be closed.

Food deliveries at apartment complexes as well as curbside pickup – both scheduled for Wednesday, September 23 – also have been canceled.

Please be safe, remain alert to weather conditions, and follow the advice of local officials. More updates will be provided as we receive information from the National Weather Service and city and county authorities.

HISD encourages eligible students to register to vote

The Houston Independent School District wants to make sure students are responsible, active, and engaged citizens who recognize the importance of participation in elections.

HISD is encouraging eligible students to register to vote. Voting is a privilege and civic obligation. When people vote, they are empowered, and their voices are heard.

If you are a United States citizen and will be 18 before election day, which is Tuesday, November 3, then you are eligible to register. To register, go to votetexas.gov[, fill out the online registration form, and follow the instructions.

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Make sure you are counted by Sept. 30 for the 2020 Census

The 2020 Census deadline is fast approaching, and HISD needs the participation of every household to ensure the district receives the federal funding it needs to serve all students.

The deadline to respond is Wednesday, September 30.

Census data guides how more than $675 billion in federal funding is distributed to states and communities each year. The census also impacts funding communities receive for special education, classroom technology, teacher training, after-school programs, and school lunch assistance. For HISD, this also means support in the way of funding for technology needs for virtual learning.

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