Muralist’s artwork across HISD recognized during city’s annual Proud Partner Awards

The Houston Independent School District on Monday received a Proud Partner Award from Mayor Annise Parker, honoring the murals of Israeli expatriate Anat Ronen, who has work featured at nearly a dozen HISD schools.

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From left: Kim Urban, Accounting Manager for HISD’s Construction and Facilities Services, Houston Mayor Annise Parker, and HISD Energy and Sustainability Senior Manager Kellie Williams.

The 31st annual Mayor’s Proud Partner Awards, hosted by Keep Houston Beautiful, recognized outstanding work by local organizations and individuals who work to create, enhance, and maintain the landscape of Houston through environmental and beautification projects.

Read more about artist Anat Ronen

The district also received honorable mentions for two other initiatives: The Green Schools Challenge and Houston ISD Recycle. Under HISD’s Energy and Sustainability Department, the programs aim to implement environmental awareness and energy efficiency projects throughout the district.

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Nutrition Services adds more fresh fruits and vegetables to menu

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DeChaumes Elementary School students enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables at lunch.

USDA’s MyPlate recommends children eat three and a half cups of fruits and vegetables daily, and the fresher they are, the more nutrients they contain. HISD Nutrition Services is offering healthier choices for students by adding more fresh fruits and vegetables to school menus.

“We want to offer more varieties of fresh fruits and vegetables to get the students excited about eating healthy foods at school,” said HISD Dietitian Amanda Oceguera. “It was rewarding to see the students’ positive reactions to our Texas-grown watermelon, and we plan to continue offering more items like it.”

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HISD project-by-project analysis shows 2012 Bond could need additional $212 million

The Houston Independent School District could need up to $212.4 million in additional funding for 2012 bond projects, according to a comprehensive, project-by-project analysis completed by district officials.

[su_box title=”Download” box_color=”#ededed” title_color=”#000000″ radius=”5″]2012 Bond Project-By-Project Analysis[/su_box]

The review was done to outline how much additional funding the district potentially could need to ensure all work is completed as initially described in the 2012 bond election. Continue reading →

Vote now for HISD teacher in STEM competition

Beverly Carson is one of four finalists in “Inspiring Curiosity in STEM,” a contest sponsored by KHOU and Halliburton. If Carson gets the most votes on KHOU’s Facebook page, she will receive $2,000 to spend on supplies for her classroom.

Carson teaches STEM at Garden Oaks Montessori Magnet School, where her students are enthusiastic learners, thanks to her innovative lesson plans. She would like to purchase microscopes with the prize money, but some of her students would rather have a 3D printer.

Parents, HISD staff, and supporters can vote here daily through Sunday, Nov. 1.

To see the KHOU video and story, click here.

District’s efforts to support refugee students gaining state, national attention

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Representatives from PBS News Hour film students at Mistral Early Childhood Center for an upcoming segment on refugee students.

Children who have fled their native countries due to war, drug-related violence, or other conflicts often need special types of support once they arrive in the United States.

That’s why two organizations came to HISD this week to learn more about how the district is assisting its refugee students. Representatives from Raise Your Hand Texas visited two campuses — Daily Elementary School and Westside High School — while producers from PBS News Hour spoke with leaders at Mistral Early Childhood Center (ECC) and Las Americas Newcomers School.

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HISD, Houston Symphony, BBVA Compass announce new music program at Crespo ES

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Houston Independent School District, Houston Symphony and BBVA Compass announced Friday a joint partnership that will integrate the Houston Symphony and orchestral music into the lives of students in grades 3-5 at Crespo Elementary School in southeast Houston.

The Houston Symphony School Residency at Crespo Elementary presented by BBVA Compass, in its pilot phase during the 2015-16 school year, will be structured around lessons, instrument demonstrations and performances. Continue reading →

Service Excellence ‘Employees of the Month’ recognized for October

Four HISD employees were selected as October’s Employee of the month for Service Excellence and recognized during a special breakfast on Wednesday morning.

Each month, HISD’s Business Operations department hosts the event to celebrate employees from the areas of Transportation, Police, Nutrition Services, Construction and Facilities Services, and Business Assistance who provide exceptional customer service throughout the district. Continue reading →

Academic Parent Teacher Teams (APTT) set the stage for student success

This year, in nearly 200 classrooms at nine HISD elementary schools, parents are experiencing a new kind of parent-teacher conference that gives them the tools both to expand their children’s learning and to monitor their progress.

Schools in their second or third years of implementing the Academy Parent-Teacher Teams (APTT) program are continuing to perfect and expand the new model of meetings to empower parents to help their children learn outside of school.

Eliot, Gallegos, Kennedy, Mitchell, Piney Point, Shadowbriar, and Tijerina elementary schools, as well as Fonwood Early Childhood Center and the Wharton Dual Language Academy, all recently completed their first round of fall APTT meetings.

The model replaces traditional parent-teacher conferences with three 75-minute group meetings involving all parents in the class, and one 30-minute individual session with the student, teacher, and parents. During group meetings, teachers share student performance data and expectations for the class, review skills, and model hands-on activities parents can do at home to help their children master skills. Parents practice the activities at home with their kids over a 60-day period until their next meeting, when they can again review the data and see how their child has progressed. Continue reading →

New schools in North Forest making construction progress

Driving along Mesa Road in the North Forest neighborhood in HISD, steel columns can be seen rising from the sites of North Forest High School and North Forest Early Childhood Center, as both projects have begun vertical construction and are proceeding on schedule.

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