Community meetings are being held this month for three HISD campuses, which are set to be renovated or rebuilt as part of the district’s 2012 Bond Program.
The three schools, Barbara Jordan High School for Careers, Westbury High School, and Askew Elementary School, recently have entered the construction phase. The meetings will cover construction plans, timelines, and safety information, which could impact stakeholders at each facility.
[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000oTYSf5LdF4Y” g_name=”20160510-Jordan” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]
Students, staff and community members at Barbara Jordan High School for Careers received an update on the design and construction process for their new school during a community meeting Tuesday night.
Located in northeast Houston, Jordan is receiving $36.6 million for a new facility featuring labs to support its myriad of career training programs. Jordan currently is transitioning from a career magnet school to a regional Career Hub, allowing students to spend half their day at their home school and the other half at Jordan participating in high-demand, career curriculum.
The new facility will provide 600 to 800 students from area high schools with access to real-world experiences in a variety of professions, including auto/diesel, audiovisual, cosmetology, culinary arts, construction management, marketing, STEM (electronics), and welding.
“We want to make this the best career center that we can put forward,” Jordan High School Principal Ross McAlpine said. “With a lot of the input we’ve received from our CTE teachers, community members, business partners, and trips we’ve taken, I think we really have a good school.”
Carnegie Vanguard High School has been ranked as the 10th best high school in the country, according to the U.S. News & World Report’s 2016 Best High Schools rankings.
Three additional Houston Independent School District schools were ranked in the top 100 — DeBakey High School for Health Professions, which was ranked 29th, Eastwood Academy, which came in at the 50th spot, and Challenge Early College High School, which was ranked 78th. Continue reading
Rising juniors at nine HISD high schools have the opportunity to explore different careers without changing schools, thanks to the district’s first regional career and technical education center at Barbara Jordan.
The Barbara Jordan Career Hub is now taking applications from 10th-grade students zoned to Davis, Furr, Kashmere, North Forest, Reagan, Sam Houston, Washington, Wheatley, and Yates high schools to participate in the specialized program at Jordan, where they will get specialized education and training in high-demand fields.
Barbara Jordan High School is receiving $36.6 million under the bond program for a new school that will serve as a career and technical training hub for any interested students attending nine nearby high schools: Davis, Furr, Kashmere, North Forest, Reagan, Houston MSTC, Washington, Wheatley, and Yates.
Students will spend part of the day at their home school and the other part at Jordan. The transition to a career hub will take place as the school is rebuilt.
The school held its first community meeting in October to gather feedback on proposed design concepts. The new school would feature a central administration area, with the automotive shop, precision metal, and construction programs in one wing of the building and quieter programs, such as human sciences, on the other side.
The main entrance would be off Kelley Street, but the school also would offer an equally welcoming space for students coming into the school from the back, where buses would drop off. The goal is to create a building that will have a presence on a very visible site. Jordan is located at 5800 Eastex Freeway, at the intersection of U.S. 59 and Loop 610. In addition to lab space, the school would feature a learning commons with a monumental staircase that could be used for everything from studying to lectures. Because students will be traveling to Barbara Jordan from their home campuses, the building would feature grab-and-go lunch options.
Construction is tentatively slated to start in the second half of 2016, and would take approximately two years. A second community meeting to discuss the design development will be held in mid-2016.
[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000wqBA2qSv_ww” g_name=”20151020-Jordan” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]
The early designs of a new Barbara Jordan High School for Careers showcase a building that would give students the tools and labs to learn the latest skills for professions as diverse as welding and marketing.
“We want to use all of this building,” Principal Ross McAlpine told a small gathering of parents and alumni Tuesday night. “We don’t want any wasted space. We really need this school to work for the kids.”
[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G00008IH.mDjtXac” g_name=”20150529-Design” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]
Project Advisory Teams for Madison and Jordan high schools participated in a two-day workshop last week to put together initial design concepts for the schools’ new 21st century campuses.The design workshop, known as a charrette, marks the threshold from the planning to design phase of the two building projects.
[photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000bS9mSiJoG7g” g_name=”20150408-PAT-Tours-DFW” width=”600″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ]
HISD educators are looking at the district’s $1.89 billion building program as a unique opportunity to align their buildings with 21st century education – especially career and technical programs.
Teenage girls at Jordan High School had the opportunity Friday to meet with about 40 female professionals to learn about careers in the property development field that they may choose to pursue.
Event will feature student chefs, free health services and fun family activities
In an effort to encourage healthy, active lifestyles, the Houston Independent School District’s Food Services Department is hosting its inaugural Community Health and Wellness Festival on September 21 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at North Forest High School, 10725 Mesa Drive. The event is free and open to the public.