Twain ES Teacher Doesn’t Let Heart Attack Slow Him Down

Robert Bonn with student

Fourth-grade teacher Robert “Bobby” Bonn suffered a major heart attack just three short months ago — but you’d never know it just by looking at him.

The Twain ES educator still hasn’t missed a single day of class due to his health challenges, despite a fairly grim diagnosis initially.

“The outlook was pretty bleak three months ago,” said Twain Principal Melissa Patin. “The damage was so significant that he had to wear one of those LifeVests [a portable defibrillator for patients at risk of sudden cardiac arrest]. And he was told that there wasn’t much they could do.”

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Ivy League Universities Actively Courting HISD Students

HISD is producing some of the brightest students in the nation—and now those students are attracting attention from some of the most prestigious universities in the country.

Two deans and a professor from Yale visited two HISD campuses recently to spread the news that an Ivy League education is well within even the most financially challenged student’s reach—and that they want HISD students in particular.

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Community Meetings to Share Preliminary Design Concepts for 2012 Bond Schools

Attendees will have the chance to weigh in on proposed drawings and concepts  

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect new meetings dates.
The Houston Independent School District is hosting a series of community meetings for the first 17 schools slated for construction in the 2012 bond program to give participants a chance to review draft designs and concepts.

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Group Helps District Stay Connected to Hispanic Community

Almost 63 percent of HISD students are Hispanic, and that number is likely to increase as the Houston community continues to diversify. As part of the district’s continuing efforts to engage and empower the local Hispanic community, HISD has created a special advisory committee. The HISD Hispanic Advisory Committee is made up of community leaders from local educational institutions, businesses, government, and faith-based organizations.

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Science Teachers Have Opportunity to Make Schools Greener

The National Wildlife Federation is hosting a workshop on Saturday, Nov. 2, for middle school science teachers to provide them with the framework to implement a student-based energy efficiency program at their school that applies STEM teaching methods.

Teachers who attend will receive a $100 stipend, 6 CPE credits and TEKS aligned curriculum. Schools that send a team of two to three science teachers will be eligible for a $500 grant from the NWF to help their school become more sustainable.

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HISD Supplier Diversity Team Networks with M/WBEs at Expo

The district’s supplier diversity team got the chance to tout business opportunities with HISD on Wednesday at the Houston Minority Supplier Development Council Business Expo.

The event, which attracted more than 1,500 corporate buyers, government agencies and educational institutions, provided a way for participants to network and build relationships. HISD took part in hopes of identifying more minority- and women-owned business enterprises (M/WBEs) that might be interested in future procurement opportunities in the district.

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Teachers Collaborating and Connecting in Record Numbers

HISD teachers across the district are collaborating and connecting in record numbers thanks to the innovative use of technology. This school year, teachers began using Edmodo, which is a free social-learning platform that allows educators to share resources, ideas, and best practices with colleagues on their campus, at other HISD schools, and with educators around the world. In just a few short months, thousands of teachers have signed up and embraced the online platform, which has resulted in HISD being named as one of the most collaborative Edmodo school districts across the nation.

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Four HISD Teachers Experience ‘A Day Made Better’ Thanks to OfficeMax

Four HISD teachers experienced “A Day Made Better” recently, when they were chosen along with hundreds of educators across the nation to be honored by OfficeMax for their contributions to the profession.

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Applications Now Available for Program that Prepares Students for Ivy League Schools

High school students in grades 9-11 are encouraged to apply for the HISD EMERGE program, which prepares talented HISD students from underserved communities to successfully attend and graduate from Ivy League and other top-tier colleges. The program, which was founded in 2011 at Chavez High School by Yale graduate and then-HISD teacher Richard Cruz, is expanding this year to include 13 additional school sites.

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