HISD will be celebrating three of its long-standing community partners by inducting them into the district’s 2012 Hall of Fame during the annual Partnership Appreciation Breakfast on Friday, October 5 at 8:15a.m. at the Royal Sonesta Hotel (2222 West Loop South).

This year’s honorees, KBR, Port of Houston Authority, and Prepared 4 Life,will be recognized for their continued support and efforts to provide extra resources and opportunities for HISD students.

“We depend on our community partners to help us better serve our students and provide them opportunities that will prepare them for the workforce,” HISD Superintendent Terry Grier said.  “They are vital to the success of the children in Houston.  We can’t thank them enough for their continuous commitment to helping Houston’s students.”

The 2012 event’s theme, “Partnership Champions,” will recognize the partners’ efforts to go above and beyond to help HISD students achieve their dreams through their collaboration.

The KBR partnership began with the original HISD-Halliburton partnership in the 1980s.  This partnership provides HISD with volunteers and financial contributions as well as support for organizations that help the district’s students.  The KBR Discover Engineering group has volunteered for HISD programs as judges for science fairs, Youth Inventors’ Showcases, HISD/KBR Science Teacher Award, and FIRST Robotics Competitions.  KBR is known for its three year commitment of $25,000 per year beginning in 2009 for the KBR Science Teacher of the Year Award. 

The Port of Houston Authority began its partnership with HISD in 1986.  Since then, the partnership has evolved to focus on encouraging students to pursue career opportunities in maritime transportation or associated fields.  Thousands of students have taken tours of the Ship Channel on the Sam Houston inspection boat.  The cornerstone of this partnership is the maritime program at Austin and Yates high schools.  Students participating in the maritime program have the benefit of dual course credits, field trips, internships, college scholarship opportunities and maritime industry themed forums. Students also participate in the Port of Houston Authority/Texas Southern University summer transportation academy program and the Boy Scouts of America’s Venturing program.

Prepared 4 Life has been an HISD partner since 2005.  The partnership began with after-school activities offered at select middle schools to instill life skills, character education and self-reliance.  An E-mentoring program was later implemented to help students as well. Prepared 4 Life is noted for sponsoring Lemonade Day which began in 2007 and offers students entrepreneurial experience by encouraging them to select lemonade stand sites while schools choose to have school, grade-level, or classroom stands.  To extend the entrepreneurial experience to more students, Serving Up Lemonade was implemented in 2010 for sixth-grade students and expanded the next year to include seventh-grade students.