Two HISD Teams Headed for Round 2 Playoff Action

Reagan senior Magnus Kinne (30) and sophomore Cedric Pickrom (5) teamed up for a key tackle as the Bulldogs knocked off Tomball Memorial. (Photo by Michael Sudhalter/The Leader News)

After tough first-round playoff action for 12 HISD varsity squads last weekend, Lamar and Reagan high schools have survived to meet more suburban opponents in the second round of playoffs.

Lamar prevailed over Morton Ranch, 38-14, and will face Alief Taylor at 2 p.m. Saturday at Delmar-Tusa Stadium. Click here for an account of the game.

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Leadership Development Gets Campus Teams Ready for STAAR/EOC

Smooth-running, secure STAAR End-of-Course (EOC) testing was the focus of three days of training at Forest Brook Middle School last week for 604 educators from HISD campuses.

The Leadership Development Department teamed up with representatives from Student Assessment, Multilingual Programs, and Special Education to offer practical exercises for those involved in the testing at all grade levels, both veterans and newcomers.

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HISD Schools Celebrate Thanksgiving by Fighting Hunger in the Community

M. C. Williams Middle School is partnering with Harris County Precinct One Constable Alan Rosen to distribute bags of groceries to some 100 families in the Acres Homes community. At 1:30 p.m. on Nov. 26 various tow trucks and wrecker services will arrive on campus with traditional Thanksgiving favorites. M. C. Williams students will sort them into grocery bags, which will be distributed starting at 3 p.m. The groceries will be given to needy families previously identified by area churches and the middle school.

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Video Demonstrates Students Receiving Special Education Services Performing Well in Regular Classes

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/78588097/ w=320&h=205]

HISD’s Gregg Elementary is having great success placing children with special needs into the general student population and is getting national recognition for those strides. Susan Pansmith, senior manager for the district’s Elementary Special Education Services, presented the HISD video, which details Gregg’s advances, to 300 participants at a conference in Chicago on “Success at an Early Age: Improving Outcomes for Young Children With Disabilities.”

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Board of Education Approves Sale of High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Campus

Trustees sell campus to St. Thomas High School for $60 million

The Houston Independent School District Board of Education on Thursday authorized the sale of the campus housing the district’s High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice.

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First-Year Teacher: Benchmark Tests Measure Understanding

The window is closing in HISD Friday on two weeks of benchmark testing for grades and courses that are assessed by STAAR. The testing, which will be repeated in the spring, is a way to allow students, teachers and families to get a measure of performance along the way in those courses.

One of our new HISD teachers chronicling their experiences in the 177days.com blog made that her topic this week. Mariela Niland wrote:

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Thousands of Families Turn Out For PowerUp Parent Nights

HISD parent Cecil Perry is thrilled that her daughter, Tamara, will soon have her own laptop to use while attending classes at Madison High School and at home. “She is going to need computer skills in order to be successful after high school when she goes on to college and eventually gets a job,” said Perry. “Hopefully she will teach me a thing or two along the way.”

Perry is one of several thousand parents who have turned out for PowerUp meetings over recent weeks to learn more about the districtwide one-to-one initiative that will eventually provide a laptop for every high school student at HISD. As part of phase one of PowerUp, nearly 18,000 students will receive laptops this coming January; but before they do, HISD wants to ensure that both they and their parents understand the responsible use of technology, good digital citizenship, and Internet safety.

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Reagan and Hogg Celebrate New IB Status

Reagan High School and Hogg Middle School are officially celebrating their new status this week as International Baccalaureate (IB) World Schools, the latest HISD campuses to receive official authorization. After receiving approval July 5, the schools were able to begin offering the rigorous IB program when the new school year launched, creating the first continuous IB feeder pattern in the historic Houston Heights. Students begin the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) at Harvard Elementary and progress to the Middle Years Programme (MYP) at Hogg and Reagan.

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Milby Community Learns More About Initial Design Concepts for School

More than 150 parents, teachers, students and alumni of Milby High School turned out Tuesday night to learn more about the preliminary designs and concepts for the new school being funded by the 2012 bond program.

Milby is slated to be rebuilt into a 21st century facility while maintaining the campus’s architecturally significant building structure. On Tuesday, HISD staff and the school’s architects fielded many questions about the project, including size, classrooms and athletic fields.

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HISD Asian-American College & Career Day scheduled for Nov. 16

What: HISD Asian-American College & Career Day, hosted by the HISD Asian Advisory Committee. Asian-American middle and high school students will hear about career options from prominent, successful Asian-American business representatives and learn what they should be doing to prepare for college. They’ll also learn how to navigate the scholarship and financial aid application process. Middle school students also will get tips on making the transition to high school. Parent sessions about the college preparation process will be offered in English, Mandarin and Vietnamese. Registration is encouraged: www.houstonisd.org/asiancareer.

Who: State Rep. Gene Wu will serve as the keynote speaker. Various other prominent, successful, Asian-American business representatives — including FBI Special Agent Gigi Joyner, US Secret Service Special Agent Kim Smith and KHOU News Anchor and Reporter Lily Jang — will speak.

When: Saturday, Nov. 16, 2013, 8 a.m. to noon. Registration and Career Fair begin at 8 a.m. followed by an opening session at 9 a.m. Individual workshop sessions for students and parents begin at 9:30 a.m.

Where: Bellaire High School, 5100 Maple Road, Bellaire, Texas, 77401