HISD expands number of food distribution sites to 36

In response to high demand on Saturday, March 14 at Chavez High School, HISD, in partnership with the Houston Food Bank School Market program, will offer daily food distribution at 31 additional campuses beginning Wednesday, March 18 and continuing through Friday, March 20.

The five campuses previously scheduled to serve as food distribution locations will remain unchanged on Monday, March 16 and Tuesday, March 17.

“After witnessing first-hand, the enormous need in the community at our first distribution site, it was clear that we needed to increase our efforts to help more families in partnership with the Houston Food Bank,” said HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan. “Our top priority right now is doing our part to ensure that our children are being fed during these unprecedented times, and I am thankful to all who are stepping up to serve families.”

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HISD to operate daily food distribution sites during districtwide closure

HISD, in partnership with the Houston Food Bank School Market program, will offer daily food distribution at five area high schools, beginning Saturday, March 16 to Friday, March 20.

A sixth high school will host a one-time food distribution site on Saturday, March 14.

The measure is being implementing to ensure all HISD families, many of whom have students who depend upon school meals, have access to healthy food while the district is closed.

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Annual Name that Book contest comes to a close

HISD students from across the district gathered at the Hattie Mae White Educational Center this week to show off their reading comprehension skills during the annual Name that Book competition finals. 

At the high-school level, the top three competitors were Carnegie Vanguard High School, The Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and Bellaire High School. T.H. Rogers, Garden Oaks, and West Briar Middle Schools earned bragging rights in grades 7 and 8, while Bush, Condit, and Horn Elementary Schools took the highest honors at the finals held for grades 3-6.

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HISD strengthening school, bus sanitization efforts

The Houston Independent School District is augmenting its cleaning and sanitization efforts as a precautionary measure as officials continue to monitor the potential impact of COVID-19. 

HISD has no confirmed cases of COVID-19. However, acting out of an abundance of caution, the district issued a 14-day self-quarantine for several individuals, all of whom recently returned from a country on the CDC travel warning list or are closely related to someone who did.  

Impacted schools are being deep cleaned and sanitized as a precautionary measure. This includes fogging all rooms with CDC-recommended disinfectant and cleaning all air ducts, a common practice for potential cases of airborne viruses.  

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HISD provides Coronavirus updates and precautions

As we continue to monitor the potential impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), HISD is taking immediate, proactive measures to mitigate the impact on the HISD community and keep our students and staff safe.

Travel Reporting
All HISD employees, students, and families who have traveled or are planning to must register their travel plans using the HISD Travel Reporting Form. This form must be completed no later than Friday, March 27, 2020. (A printable form can be found here: English | Spanish | Vietnamese | Arabic)

All HISD students, families, and employees should take extra precautions when traveling and follow travel guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at Coronavirus Disease 2019 Information for Travel website.

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Poe ES Teacher Named Teacher of the Month for March

Third-grade teacher Carmen Carfello was laser-focused on a reading aloud lesson with her students when Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan surprised her as the district’s Sterling McCall VIP Services Teacher of the Month for March. 

“Words cannot describe how deserving this recognition is for Ms. Carfello,” Principal Jeff Amerson said. “She is always bringing the ELAR TEKS to life by using a mixture of real-world experiences, hands-on learning and Socratic discussions.” 

Last school year, Carfello’s students passed with an 80 percent on the STAAR Reading with 50 percent reaching Masters-level, while 90 percent of her students passed STAAR Math and 60 percent reaching the Masters-level.   

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HISD Pre-K Enrollment Festival set for April 18

HISD is collaborating with Good Reason Houston to promote an opportunity for families to enroll their eligible 3 and 4-year-olds into prekindergarten. 

HISD and Good Reason Houston, a local nonprofit dedicated to creating a future where every child excels in world-class public schools, will be hosting a Pre-K Enrollment Festival from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 18 at Delmar Stadium (2020 Mangum Rd., 77092), which will allow families to learn about the prekindergarten programs across the district. Additionally, HISD and Good Reason Houston will also host a second Pre-K Festival in June.  

Families will be able to talk directly with program leaders and administration and apply for pre-K programs on the spot for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year. Texas Children’s Hospital mobile clinic will provide free vaccinations to children 0-18 who do not have insurance and the Ronald McDonald Mobile Dentistry unit will be on site to do free dental checkups.  

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HISD Foundation’s State of the Schools event focuses on achieving excellence with ‘One Voice, One Vision’

A packed house of public education supporters from the business, academic, advocacy and faith communities attended the HISD Foundation’s Public Education Matters fundraising luncheon on Friday.

HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan delivered the annual State of the Schools address during the benefit.  Lathan issued a call to action urging supporters to work together by employing, “One Voice and One Vision” to equitably raise the standard of excellence for all students in the district, regardless of their socioeconomic status.

Lathan also told the crowd of about 700 that despite the challenges faced by the district, innovative teachers, inspiring leaders, and resilient students have helped HISD earn its current high “B” rating, with a score of 88 under the Texas Education Agency’s accountability system.

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