Strong sense of dedication to school community prompts Gallegos ES mom to spread the word

The rain held off just long enough this past Saturday for one Gallegos Elementary School parent to complete her mission of promoting her beloved neighborhood school.   

“I have loved this school ever since my oldest started here in pre-K. It feels like home,” said Amy Ortega, who has four children enrolled at Gallegos. “My kids are always happy to come school.” 

Ortega and group of parent volunteers and staff from Gallegos Elementary School came together for a door-to-door effort to help regain students whose parents have chosen non-district schools and to encourage first-time enrollment at the campus.  

Continue reading →

HISD Police Department K9 Sasha receives donation of body armor

HISD Police Department K9 Sasha has received a bullet and stab protective vest, thanks to a charitable donation from non-profit organization Vested Interest in K9s, Inc.  

The vest was sponsored by Jason Dale, Black Forest Motorsport of Cheektowaga, N.Y. and embroidered with the sentiment “Born to Love-Trained to Serve-Loyal Always.” 

Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. is a 501c(3) charity located in East Taunton, Mass. with a mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies throughout the United States. The non-profit was established in 2009 to assist law enforcement agencies with this potentially lifesaving body armor for their four-legged K9 officers. Since its inception, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provided over 3,300 protective vests in 50 states, through private and corporate donations, at a value of $5.7 million dollars.  

Continue reading →

Class of 2019 valedictorians, salutatorians to be honored at Scholars Banquet 

The Houston Independent School District will pay tribute to each high school’s valedictorian and salutatorian during its annual Scholars Banquet. 

Every spring, HISD honors the top two scholars at each of its high schools with a formal celebration of the accomplishment of finishing first or second in their class academic rankings. During the banquet, each valedictorian and salutatorian is presented with a medallion in recognition of their outstanding academic achievements. 

The 2019 Scholars Banquet will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 16, 2019, at the Westin Galleria Hotel (5060 West Alabama St., Houston, 77056).

Austin HS construction progressing on schedule

New construction at Austin High School has made significant progress in the past couple of months, reaching close to 30 percent completion.

Construction crews have been installing underground utilities, placing tilt wall panels, and erecting structural steel. The crew is also preparing the building for interior build out and roofing installation. Progress will continue according with the construction schedule.

“As the walls have gone up so has the excitement of the students, parents, and of the East End community,” Austin High School Principal Steve Guerrero said. “We will continue to collaborate with our construction partners to ensure a smooth and safe transition to the new campus.”

Continue reading →

Kinder HSPVA students participate in distance learning master piano class

Kinder HSPVA students participated in a groundbreaking remote piano master class last week with a famous musician —even though the artist was instructing the students from 1,500 miles away.

The students attended the class with world-renowned pianist, composer, and arranger Giorgi Mikadze, who taught the class through a live broadcast from New York City.

This technological feat was made possible with a pair of internet-connected Yamaha Disklavier “reproducing” pianos, part of the state-of-art technology included in the school’s new 2012 Bond school, which was one of the first in the nation to introduce this distance learning opportunity.

Continue reading →

Northside HS construction surpasses 80 percent completion

Northside High School is nearing the end of its fifth and final construction phase, which will bring the project to completion by the third quarter of 2019.

Demolition on a portion of the existing building was recently completed, making way for the new performing arts addition. Foundation work has already begun and walls are going up.

“We are looking forward to having our new building and renovations finished this year,” Northside Principal Cecilia Gonzales said. “Although we’ve been able to move in our new spaces as they were being built, we are excited about having a fully completed school.”

Continue reading →

Free ‘Camp Adventure’ summer camp registration now open

Registration is now open for “Camp Adventure,” a FREE summer camp that combines exciting STEAM activities with art, crafts, and games with the joys of summer camp!  

Sponsored by The Children’s Museum of Houston and the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation, “Camp Adventure” offers an exciting and unique STEAM experience. Students will participate in a variety of interactive activities including engineering projects, hands-on science experiments, games, songs, music, and storytelling.  

Continue reading →

‘Light It Up Blue’ in honor of Autism Awareness Month

Light It Up Blue is the annual kick-off event for Autism Awareness Month, and members of the HISD community are encouraged to wear blue on Tuesday, April 2 (World Autism Awareness Day), to help spread the word. 

World Autism Awareness Day is internationally recognized on April 2 every year and is meant to raise awareness about people with Autism Spectrum Disorder and to educate the public about autism.  

The entire month of April is World Autism Month, and people around the globe are encouraged to #LightItUpBlue to show support and understanding for those with autism. Learn more about how to Light It Up Blue here. 

Continue reading →

Transportation Services to stop route changes March 29

Transportation Services will stop making changes and updates to existing routes at the end of this month as the department shifts it focus to planning for the 2019-2020 school year.

Students with new transportation requests submitted after the cut-off date will be assigned to existing routes and stops.

“We began this school year with several challenges. Since that time, we’ve worked hard to address the concerns of parents and make changes as necessary,” Transportation Services General Manager John Wilcots IV said.

Continue reading →