Volunteers needed Oct. 19 to help set world record

Volunteers are needed at HISD schools on Monday, Oct. 19, to help set a Guinness World Record for the largest number of children being read to in a 24-hour period. During the event, called Read Across the Globe, 92 HISD elementary campuses will join schools in other cities and countries across the world in a mass reading of “Farmer Will Allen and the Growing Table,” by Jacqueline Briggs Martin. The goal is to read to 300,000 children simultaneously, smashing the current record of 238,000.

Parents, community members, and HISD staff can participate in Read Across the Globe by volunteering to be a classroom reader, timekeeper, or witness. Volunteers need to be over 18 years old and should plan on being at an HISD elementary campuses from 8 to 11 a.m. or noon to 3 p.m. on Monday, October 19. To sign up and to pick a campus, go to www.Connect4Literacy.org/readacrosstheglobe. Continue reading →

HISD Board president discusses district’s M/WBE program at Workshop Wednesday

This month’s Workshop Wednesday featured HISD Board of Education President Rhonda Skillern-Jones speaking on the importance of the district’s minority- and women- owned business enterprises (M/WBE) program.

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Peru: Ancient cultures, colonial architecture, and a multiethnic melting pot

Located on the western coast of South America, the Republic of Peru boasts a mixture of historical, cultural, and natural beauty. It once was home to various civilizations, but it is perhaps most widely known for being home of the Inca civilization — considered the largest empire in the Americas, prior to the arrival of Europeans. One of the most iconic representations of the Incas is Machu Picchu, a site located almost 8,000 feet above sea level. It is believed to have been built around 1400 AD, for the Incan emperor, Pachacuti. Machu Picchu is one of the top archeological sites in the world and it has been declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO. In Peru, you can also find the Nazca Lines, giant sketches that can only be seen from the air, by flying over the Nazca Desert. These are believed to have been made by the Nazca Indians from 200 BC to 700 CE. Hundreds of designs include human body shapes, hands, trees, condors, hummingbirds, monkeys, sharks, llamas, and fish.

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Students make the most of Top-Tier College Night

HISD hosted its annual Top-Tier College Night on Oct. 6, and hundreds of students and their families came out to learn more about what Ivy League and other high-profile institutions have to offer, as well as what qualities they are looking for in applicants.

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“Some of our students have amazing grades, and some don’t,” explained Justin Segal, a representative from the University of Pennsylvania. “But comparing yourself to others is not really fair, because grades don’t tell the whole story. We’re more focused on if your application is consistent with your stated interests. Because if you’re applying to business school, but all you’ve done so far is arts and theatre, there’s a bit of a disconnect there.” Continue reading →

Sharpstown International School holds second bond community meeting

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Sharpstown International School held its second community meeting on Tuesday to brief more than 50 students, parents and community members on district plans to renovate its existing campus.

“The (Project Advisory Team) and design team worked very hard for the last eight months for the vision and future of Sharpstown International,” said Michael Sabouni, architect at Autoarch Architects. “We are very happy to share the journey of success of how will we transfer a school built 50 years ago into a 21st century educational facility that is going to serve us for an additional 50 years.”

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Bellaire HS grad gets $100,000 grant to fund her ‘bright’ idea

After a devastating earthquake hit the island of Haiti, one Bellaire High School graduate was inspired to do something — and one of the nation’s largest banks is helping her in her quest to light up the world.

Andrea Sreshta (Bellaire HS Class of 2002) and one of her Columbia University graduate-school classmates invented a solar-powered light that is collapsible, lightweight, and affordable. They called it LuminAID, and made the first 50 prototypes by hand in 2010. It has since been used in more than 70 countries around the world, and during disaster relief after Hurricane Sandy, Typhoon Haiyan, and a recent earthquake in Nepal. Continue reading →

Paraguay: Guaraní culture and hydroelectric resources

Paraguay is one of the only two landlocked countries in South America. It is bordered by Argentina, Brazil, and Bolivia. The country is home to the Paraguay River, one of the most important waterways in South America, which flows through Brazil, Bolivia, and Argentina. The river divides the country into two very different geographical regions. Paraguay consists mostly of grassy plains and wooded hills in the eastern region and low, marshy plains in the western region. Because of the absence of mountain ranges to provide a natural barrier, winds can reach speeds as high as 100 mph. This can significantly impact changes in temperature within a short span of time.

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Volunteering duo can’t wait for Read Houston Read to start back up again

In this week’s I Am HISD, which features district students, graduates, employees, and other team members, returning volunteer Sharon Plummer discusses how she and her husband first discovered the Read Houston Read program, why they both immediately signed up to participate, and why they can’t wait for this year’s first mentoring sessions to begin.

Sharon Plummer & Chandler Davidson

Sharon Plummer & Chandler Davidson

I understand you and your husband, Chandler Davidson, both volunteer as reading mentors at Burnet Elementary School through Read Houston Read. How did that arrangement come about?

We had actually been looking for an opportunity to read to elementary students for quite some time. Maybe even a couple of years. We had made several inquiries with various organizations, but just could not find a good fit. Then I happened to see this. And I thought, “Oh, my gosh, this is it!”

What is it about reading to young children than appeals to you? Continue reading →

Get to know your neighbors on National Night Out October 6

Knowing who lives next to you can sometimes be the first step in preventing crime—and that’s why police departments across the country have been encouraging people to step outside on one evening each year to meet their neighbors.

This year marks the 32nd anniversary of National Night Out, a crime/drug prevention event created and sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch.

In Texas, official activities will take place from 6–9 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2015, and all Houston-area residents are encouraged to put on a smile, lock their doors, and go outside to meet their neighbors.

Want to meet Houston ISD police officers? They are holding an event at Peck Elementary, 5001 Martin Luther King Blvd., from 6-8 p.m.

Backpack Buddy program helps fill weekend ‘food gap’

HISD Nutrition Services and the Houston Food Bank have been working together since 2014 to deliver extra food to needy students through the latter’s “Backpack Buddy” program. Its goal is to fill the food gap that exists at certain students’ homes over the weekends. Last year, about 89 schools participated. This year, that number has increased to 101, making this partnership a lifeline for disadvantaged HISD students.

“It’s really sad,” said HISD Dietitian Nan Cramer. “We have children who come in Monday morning starving because their last meal was the previous Friday afternoon in school.”

The district recently received its first 25 pallets of food for distribution. And last Friday, students at participating campuses were discreetly issued their food sacks, so that they could enjoy healthy, nourishing meals even after school hours. Continue reading →