Tag Archives: Burnet ES

Volunteering duo can’t wait for Read Houston Read to start back up again

In this week’s I Am HISD, which features district students, graduates, employees, and other team members, returning volunteer Sharon Plummer discusses how she and her husband first discovered the Read Houston Read program, why they both immediately signed up to participate, and why they can’t wait for this year’s first mentoring sessions to begin.

Sharon Plummer & Chandler Davidson

Sharon Plummer & Chandler Davidson

I understand you and your husband, Chandler Davidson, both volunteer as reading mentors at Burnet Elementary School through Read Houston Read. How did that arrangement come about?

We had actually been looking for an opportunity to read to elementary students for quite some time. Maybe even a couple of years. We had made several inquiries with various organizations, but just could not find a good fit. Then I happened to see this. And I thought, “Oh, my gosh, this is it!”

What is it about reading to young children than appeals to you? Continue reading →

Surprise! Shearn ES students find new program, meet the superintendent

Shearn Elementary School is one of 14 HISD schools launching the school year today as a dual-language campus, with instruction in both English and Spanish, and students had a special visitor this morning.

Dr. Terry Grier dropped in as the school day began to greet students and parents, and to pump up their enthusiasm for dual-language. “I sure wish we had this when I was in school,” Grier told a trio of fifth-grade school leaders who guided him on a tour of Shearn.

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Marques Foster was delighted to hear about the new program. “I really want to learn Spanish,” she said. “I know it’s important to have more than one language.” Continue reading →

Countdown to 2014-2015: What’s new in HISD #5 — Dual-language programs expanding to 14 more schools

This is the sixth in a series of stories counting down to the start of school, spotlighting what is new in HISD in the coming year.

When the school bells sound Monday in HISD, 14 additional elementary campuses will be conducting classes in two languages, as the district expands its successful dual-language program to a total of 32 schools.

The structure offers foreign language immersion for English-speaking students and a bilingual program for Spanish speakers.

The expansion process started a year ago, when all HISD elementary schools were invited to apply for the successful program. Those chosen have spent months preparing. HISD has a six-year plan to turn at least half its elementary campuses into dual-language schools by 2020. Continue reading →

Principals prepare for launch at New & Emerging Leaders Institute

Almost two dozen new principals will take the driver’s seat for the first time this fall at various HISD campuses, and the district’s New & Emerging Leaders Institute is helping to prepare them for success.

The intensive four-week training program, which started July 7, provides new and aspiring campus leaders with information on both practical matters, such as balancing budgets and analyzing data subjects, and more ethereal subjects, such as managing change, building community, and providing leadership.
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White ES Latest to Benefit from Partnership with Target, Heart of America

Students at HISD’s White Elementary School got food for thought and a head start on creating home libraries on Oct. 18, thanks to Target, its nonprofit partner—the Heart of America Foundation, and the Houston Food Bank.

White was one of 25 campuses from across the nation to be selected for a complete facelift through Target’s School Library Makeovers program, which has transformed hundreds of facilities since its inception in 2007.

The renovated library features 2,000 new books, furniture, rugs, and paint, as well as upgraded technology that included new iPads and desktop computers.

Continue reading →