HISD’s Terry Grier named finalist for AASA National Superintendent of the Year

HISD Superintendent Terry B. Grier has been selected as one of four finalists for the American Association of School Administrators’ (AASA) National Superintendent of the Year.

Under Grier’s leadership, HISD was awarded the prestigious Broad Prize for Urban Education, an award that recognizes gains in student achievement and comes with $550,000 in college scholarships for high school seniors. Houston is the only district in the country to receive the award twice, winning the inaugural Broad Prize in 2002 and again in 2013. The district was one of four national finalists in 2012.

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January is National School Board Recognition Month

Every January, Texas celebrates National School Board Recognition Month to honor the men and women who serve on the nation’s thousands of Boards of Education. These dedicated public servants become school board trustees because they are committed to improving public education and their communities. They devote many hours of their time to making sure the nation’s children receive a high-quality education that will make them lifelong learners and prepare them for successful, rewarding lives and careers. They make sure America’s school districts provide students with schools that are safe and have the resources and instructional programs they need to educate children to their fullest potential.

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New HISD Chief of Police Robert Mock takes oath

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More than 250 HISD staff and police officers, Houston Police Department officers and local elected officials gave HISD Assistant Chief of Police Robert Mock a standing ovation after he was sworn in Monday as the district’s new police chief.

“I am very honored and humbled to be in this position,” Mock said. “It’s been a journey and personal goal of mine to be a chief of police. But (the journey) doesn’t stop here.”

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Design of new school auditoriums takes center stage

A space that’s usually reserved for student assemblies and performances will become more than a venue for special occasions. A year from now when the new Booker T. Washington High School is built with a new auditorium, the space will become a multifunctional theater with collapsible seating, moveable walls, and a walking grid. It will be a place where students can master production skills in stage lighting, sound, and special effects – like showering snow on an audience.

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HISD to swear in new police chief

District’s Assistant Chief Robert Mock to take helm of police department

What: HISD Police will swear in newly appointed Chief Robert Mock to replace outgoing Chief Jimmy Dotson, who is retiring in January. Mock, 52, has served as assistant chief for HISD Police since 2008. He has more than 27 years of experience in law enforcement in the Houston area, and he is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. HISD boasts the only accredited public school district police department in the nation. The department responds to more than 81,380 calls per year and covers more than 300 square miles in the Houston area.

Who: HISD Police, Houston area law enforcement, HISD staff

When: Monday, Jan. 6, 2014, 2 p.m.

Where: High School for Law Enforcement & Criminal Justice, 4701 Dickson St.

 

Homeless family experiences Christmas ‘miracle’ just in time for the holidays

The three-bedroom apartment went from empty to furnished in 90 minutes, thanks to Gallery Furniture, Bethel’s Heavenly Hands, Harris County Youth Services, Westbury High School, and HISD’s Homeless Education Office. Melissa Smith and her seven children had been evicted from their apartment, and with no place to go, were sleeping outside recently on a cold, rainy night. A compassionate neighbor, Virginia Robinson, took them in, fed them, and gave them a place to sleep. “It hurt my heart to think of them out there in the cold,” said Robinson. “I had to do something.”

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Houston Endowment to release remaining $3 million in Apollo funds to HISD

Houston Endowment informed the Houston Independent School District this week that it will release a $3 million payment for the district’s Apollo school turnaround program in January.

The Foundation deferred the final payment on its three-year, $6 million grant to the HISD Foundation pending its review of the project’s third year report by Dr. Roland Fryer of Harvard University.

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