Up Close: See the latest videos from HISD Board President Rhonda Skillern-Jones

In the newest edition of Up Close, President Rhonda Skillern-Jones looks at HISD’s preschool program, how digital transformation is improving student learning, and the Pro Unitas Youth Council’s volunteer work at Kashmere High School.

Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY)

In this video about the HIPPY program, Skillern-Jones talks with members of HISD’s Family and Community Engagement department about how parents can help prepare their young children for the rigors of learning before they start school. Parents are provided simple educational activities that they can do with their children ages 3-5 at home. Members of the HIPPY work with parents in their home at no charge.

“We want to build the capacity of our parents as partners,” said Jorge Arrendondo, assistant superintendent of Family and Community Engagement. “We want to empower them to be their child’s first teacher at home.”

The benefit for children is a boost to their confidence, which affects their attitude and enhances their learning. Statistics confirm that students who have gone through the HIPPY program outperform their peers. More than 600 HISD families are receiving free lessons in their homes. To learn more, call 713-967-5298.

Digital Transformation in HISD

Skillern-Jones talks with HISD Secondary Director of Instructional Technology Angela Borzon, Westside High School Principal Peggi Stewart, and Sam Houston High School chemistry teacher Nichole DuPaul about HISD’s digital transformation in this video and how the growing variety of digital resources is increasing student achievement.

Pro Unitas Youth Council

In this video, Skillern-Jones visits with members of the Pro Unitas Youth Council, which serves the Kashmere High School neighborhood. The young people serving on the organization’s Executive Youth Council discuss the importance of living a life of service.

HISD Up Close and the HISD Board of Education meetings are broadcast on HCC TV and HoustonTV.

Chemistry teacher has a secret alter-ego: professional bowler

In this week’s “I Am HISD,” which features district students, graduates, employees, volunteers, and other team members, Sam Houston Math, Science & Technology Center chemistry teacher Nichole DePaul-Miller talks about how she got involved in the world of professional bowling, what led her to a career in education, and why she still acts as a consultant for various bowling centers.

Nichole DePaul-Miller; Photo credit: Jaime Foster

Nichole DePaul-Miller; Photo credit: Jaime Foster

I hear that you’re a professional bowler, but you’re also teaching pre-Advanced Placement (AP) and AP chemistry at Sam Houston Math, Science & Technology Center. Which came first, the bowling or the chemistry?

Actually, they both kind of happened at the same time. I started bowling when I was three. My mom and dad bowled while they were dating, and I was practically born in a bowling center, so you might say I come from a bowling family. I bowled collegiately at Illinois State, too, while getting my degree in chemistry. Originally, I was going to try to stay in that field and work as an engineer, but the women’s tour disbanded in 2003 due to lack of funding, and I switched from being a chemist working in the bowling industry to an educator who just loves bowling. Continue reading →

HISD student named Houston’s inaugural Youth Poet Laureate

Houston Youth Poet Laureate Andrew White - photo by Yvonne Feece (small)High School for the Performing and Visual Arts creative writing student Andrew White was selected this week by Mayor Annise Parker as Houston’s first Youth Poet Laureate.

The HSPVA senior was among 45 Houston-area student writers who applied for the Youth Poet Laureate Program, a new initiative offered by Writers in the Schools, in partnership with the Houston Public Library, City of Houston and Mayor Parker. Continue reading →

HISD students take on the Bebras computational thinking challenge

Critical thinking is a key part of HISD’s Global Graduate profile. That’s why students from 59 HISD schools are taking part in a worldwide challenge that introduces computational thinking through online challenges.

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The Bebras Computing Challenge is open to 5th- through 12th-grade students from Nov. 9-21. The goal is to get kids excited about computing and improve their problem-solving skills. The challenge comes just a few weeks before Computer Science Education Week (December 7-13) and the worldwide Hour of Code. Continue reading →

HISD Board of Education approves policy calling for suspensions, expulsions to be measure of last resort

The Houston Independent School District Board of Education on Thursday approved the first reading of a proposal that calls for suspensions and expulsions to be considered a measure of last resort for elementary students.

Under the original proposal, campus administrators would not have been allowed to suspend or expel pre-kindergarten through second-grade students in response to behavioral or disciplinary issues — except as required by state law. Continue reading →

HISD Board of Education approves G/T policy focusing on equitable access for all students

The Houston Independent School District Board of Education approved the first reading of a policy revision that would provide students with more equitable access to the district’s gifted and talented program.

The proposal is designed to ensure that students identified as gifted are able to retain that designation and remain in the district’s gifted and talented program throughout their tenure in HISD, no matter which school they attend. Continue reading →

HISD Board of Education approves attendance zone adjustments at 10 schools

The Houston Independent School District Board of Education voted Thursday to adjust neighborhood attendance boundaries at 10 elementary schools to address classroom overcrowding resulting from growth throughout the city.

The attendance boundary proposals were created in response to state law, which requires kindergarten through fourth-grade classes to have no more than 22 students per classroom. Classes that exceed that number must request a state waiver. Continue reading →

Thirty-two schools advance to the next round of Read to the Final Four

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Celebratory pep rally gives special shout out to top five

In a fun-filled ceremony at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, a crowd gathered (and some watched live, online) to hear the announcement of the 32 schools who will advance to the next round of the NCAA Read to the Final Four Literacy Challenge.

The competition was created by the district in partnership with the Houston NCAA Final Four Local Organizing Committee, Houston Public Library, and the University of Houston. Houston will host the 2016 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four April 2–4 at NRG Stadium. Thus far, elementary school students in the literacy challenge have reported 1,141,283 minutes of total reading time. Continue reading →

HISD Board of Education to consider attendance zone adjustments at 10 schools

The Houston Independent School District Board of Education on Thursday will consider adjusting neighborhood attendance boundaries at 10 elementary schools to address classroom overcrowding resulting from growth throughout the city.

The attendance boundary proposals were created in response to state law, which requires kindergarten through fourth-grade classes to have no more than 22 students per classroom. Classes that exceed that number must request a state waiver. Continue reading →

Parents: Get kids enrolled in health insurance now

The month of November is the time that many U.S. workers select their families’ health insurance benefits for the coming year — and parents of HISD students are no exception.

The Open Enrollment period for 2016 coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) runs from Nov. 1, 2015, through Jan. 31, 2016, but did you know that eight out of every ten people who enrolled in health coverage plans through HealthCare.gov qualified for financial help to make their monthly premiums more affordable?

Continue reading →