LaShonda Bilbo-Ervin named new principal of Holland Middle School

LaShonda Bilbo Ervin poses for a photograph, September 2, 2015. (Houston ISD/Dave Einsel)LaShonda Bilbo-Ervin has been selected as the new principal of Holland Middle School. Bilbo-Ervin, who has 14 years of experience in education, began her career as an English and science teacher at Peck Elementary School. She also served as an instructional coordinator at that same campus, and as an assistant principal at Washington High School. She most recently served as the principal at Washington.

Bilbo-Ervin earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Louisiana at Monroe and a master’s degree in school administration from Prairie View A&M University.

Laura Alaniz named new principal of Harvard Elementary School

Laura Alaniz poses for a photograph, January 13, 2016. (Dave Einsel/Houston ISD)Laura Alaniz has been named the new principal of Harvard Elementary School. She previously served as the principal at Gabriela Mistral Center for Early Childhood for five years.  Under her leadership, the school established a working collaboration with Rice University to create the Rice Oral and Written Language Lab, which operates as a teaching lab for educators in the greater Houston community.

Alaniz has an extensive career in education. She has served as an elementary teacher, a bilingual evaluation specialist, a parent involvement manager, and an assistant principal at a comprehensive high school.

Laura received a bachelor’s degree in education from Our Lady of the Lake University and a master’s degree from the University of the Incarnate Word.

Carlos Ramirez named new school support officer

Carlos Ramirez poses for a photograph, September 2, 2015. (Houston ISD/Dave Einsel)Dr. Carlos Ramirez has been named a new elementary school support officer. He has served in a variety of roles, including teacher, assistant principal, principal, and deputy superintendent over the course of his 24 years in education.

Dr. Ramirez began his career in California as a fourth–sixth-grade teacher in Rio Linda and Sacramento City Unified School Districts. He served as an assistant principal for three years in San Francisco Unified School District. During his 16-year tenure as principal, one of his campuses received the high honor of being named a California Distinguished School.

Having demonstrated strong instructional leadership skills, Dr. Ramirez was recruited to lead two Texas schools through the Primary Years Programme (PYP) and Middle Years Programme (MYP) International Baccalaureate authorization process.  Most recently, Dr. Ramirez served as deputy superintendent for Stafford Municipal School District.

Dr. Ramirez earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Davis, a master’s degree from Chapman College, and a doctorate in educational administration from the University of North Texas.

Erin A. Chávez named new principal of Looscan Elementary School

Erin Chavez poses for a photograph, January 13, 2016. (Dave Einsel/Houston ISD)Erin A. Chávez has been selected as the new principal of Looscan Elementary School. She has been a part of Team HISD for seven years, and has served as a bilingual teacher, dual-language teacher, magnet coordinator, and most recently an assistant principal at Bonham Elementary School.

Chávez has also served in several other leadership capacities, including Limited English Proficient coordinator, Title I coordinator, summer school coordinator, testing coordinator, Gifted and Talented coordinator, and Intervention Assistance Team chairperson.

Chávez completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Houston Central Campus with a bachelor’s degree in psychology.  She received her master’s degree in education administration with a concentration in urban schools from the University of Texas. Chávez and her husband are proud products of HISD, and their two daughters attend HISD schools as well.

Adam Stephens named officer for innovative curriculum

Adam Stephens has been selected as the new officer for innovative curriculum. He will report to Chief Academic Officer Drew Houlihan.

Stephens joined HISD in 2003 and began his career as a special education teacher. He has held various other positions over the past 12 years, including regional manager, assistant principal, and principal. He most recently served as the assistant superintendent of Linked Learning. In this role, Stephens provided leadership in the areas of program conceptualization, design, implementation, and evaluation for the $30 million dollar Race to the Top District Grant.

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Futures Academy seniors get valuable industry experience through Walgreens internship

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Sometimes, opportunity dwells just down the street. Twenty-two rising seniors from the Futures Academy at Jane Long Academy are discovering this truth through pharmacy technician internships at Walgreens locations across the city.

The Long students involved have all taken dual-credit pharmacy classes at Houston Community College (HCC). They will receive additional credit from HCC upon completing their internships at Walgreens, which could easily lead to pharmacy technician jobs or scholarships to attend pharmacy schools. Two interns, rising seniors Marilyn Mendoza and Jonathan Urguilla, have already received job offers from the stores at which they are interning.

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Six more HISD students win National Merit College-Sponsored Scholarships

Six more Houston Independent School District students were selected this week to win National Merit scholarships financed by U.S. colleges and universities, bringing the total number of HISD winners up to 23 this year.

The students — Afton Widdershins from Bellaire High School; Ariel Hayes, David Lee, and Camille Potts from Carnegie Vanguard High School; and Sloan Lalinde-Barnes and Jessica Rollinson from DeBakey High School for Health Professions — received college-sponsored National Merit Scholarships from the College of Wooster, University of Houston, University of Southern California, Texas A&M University and Trinity University. Continue reading →

Class of 2015 beats previous year’s scholarship offers by $10 million

Several HISD schools saw significant increases in the amount of scholarship and financial aid offers their seniors received this year. Recent HAIS graduates Karina Barbosa (left) and Rynique Lucas received more than $1.7M between them.

Several HISD schools saw significant increases in the amount of scholarship and financial aid offers their seniors received this year. Recent HAIS graduates Karina Barbosa (left) and Rynique Lucas received more than $1.7M in scholarship and financial aid offers between them.

The numbers are in, and HISD’s Class of 2015 has received almost $265 million in scholarship and financial aid offers.

At $10 million more than the Class of 2014, Director of College Readiness David Johnston called the figure “a testament to the district’s college readiness efforts.” A handful of campuses have also seen significant increases in the amount of money their seniors have been offered from last year to this one.

College Success Manager Pamela Joyce Williams attributes Washington High School’s jump from about $2,360,000 in 2014 to more than $7,223,000 in 2015 to a year-long outreach campaign, in which she sent students and their parents regular progress reports and email reminders about deadlines through Naviance. Continue reading →

Nutrition Services helps feed Houston’s hungry

Audene Chung and Amanda Oceguera listen to HISD’s Student Congress Representatives request to help less fortunate Houstonians.

HISD’s Audene Chung and Amanda Oceguera listen to Student Congress representatives’ request to help less fortunate Houstonians.

When Houston ISD’s Student Congress visited the district’s Nutrition Services production facility recently, a new partnership to help feed the hungry in Houston was born.

In May, the Student Congress lobbied Nutrition Services to make food donations to Second Servings, an organization that collects and donates leftover food. While Nutrition Services is unable to donate school lunches, it did find a way to make donations through its catering kitchen operations, and the district recently signed a charter to donate leftover food. Continue reading →

Students enjoy hot dogs with a side of literacy at inaugural ‘Book-Nic’

Photos courtesy Ericka Hernandez at United Way Houston

Photos courtesy Ericka Hernandez at United Way Houston

Students attending HISD’s Sherman Elementary School celebrated summer with a hot dog and a book on July 2, as part of the United Way of Greater Houston’s annual “Day of Action.”

The United Way teamed up with Houston Public Media and the Wesley Community Center to host its inaugural “book-nic” (or book picnic) at the Sherman campus that day. This year, the theme was summer reading, and more than 300 families received a free book to take home. Students could also take part in interactive activities, such as the “make your own book” station, and Wesley Community Center staff members offered free grilled hotdogs and other typical picnic fare to visitors. In addition, the United Way set up its Tiny Library, a free lending library aimed at giving neighborhoods increased access to books. Continue reading →