Tag Archives: Community Partnerships

Celebrated Hispanic astronaut gives HISD students out-of-this-world surprise

As students gathered in the Deady Middle School auditorium on Friday, Sept. 15, they thought they knew what they were in for. Deady students, along with students from Milby High School and Davila Elementary, were treated the day before to a preview screening of the new Amazon Prime film, A Million Miles Away, the life story of astronaut José Hernández. Little did they know that José Hernández himself was waiting in the wings to surprise them.

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Houston Texans provide Blackshear ES students with no-cost picture day, new uniforms

Blackshear Elementary School hosted a unique event on Tuesday, Sept. 12, when they welcomed the Houston Texans and local organization CoolxDad for a special no-cost picture day.

Back-to-school expenses, including school photo packages, can add up quickly. So, the Texans’ Maliek Collins, Jerry Hughes, and their teammates brought the team photographer to Blackshear for a one-of-a-kind picture day.

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Take advantage of Immunization Awareness Month with no-cost vaccines throughout Houston

As students prepare for a semester of new classrooms and old friends, and parents ready them with new pens and cool haircuts, it’s easy to overlook one of the most important new school year preparations: immunizations.

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Your child’s first teacher is you: Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters enrolling now

Early childhood education puts great emphasis on setting up children for success in their academic journey. HISD parents have the option of helping their little scholar get a head start with HIPPY, an evidence-based, at-home learning program for children ages two through kindergarten.

HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) is a free program for future HISD students, designed to train parents to teach their toddlers the educational cornerstones that they need thrive once they grow into a traditional classroom.

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HISD community partners help student parents on path to graduation

Rising 11th grader Chelsea Almendarez is no stranger to a challenge. A dedicated student, Almendarez recently earned her driver’s license and has ambitions of joining JROTC in her junior year. Driving and high school graduation did not always seem to be within reach for Almendarez, who became a mother during her freshman year. That is where HISD’s Parenting Summer Workshop came in.

HISD’s Parenting Summer Workshop was designed to help pregnant or parenting students connect with resources in their community that can help them and their children to thrive despite the challenges and stigma of teen parenting. 

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HISD students to get school supply ‘boost’ from Kroger shoppers

HISD students will start the new school year off right with help from community donations through Kroger’s annual school supplies drive.

Backpack Boosters provides students with kits filled with the essential school supplies they need for a successful school year.

Now through July 31, shoppers can donate $2, $5, or $10 dollars at the register in any Kroger store to help local students. Click here to find your local Kroger store.

HISD taps community program to feed Houstonians in need

HISD’s Student Assistance Department knows that students can’t learn on an empty stomach. While Nutrition Services provides students with three nutritious meals a day, Student Assistance strives to provide support for the whole student, and sometimes, that means also supporting their families and communities.

Student Assistance partnered with Second Servings, a local nonprofit that specializes in “food rescue,” the practice of recovering and redirecting edible food from grocery stores and other food retailers that would otherwise go to waste. Second Servings works with these retailers to collect short-dated or unsold food items and redistribute them to people in need.

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HISD partners with community donors for Back-to-School Bonanza

For students, summer vacation is in full swing, but HISD is hard at work preparing for the impending fall semester. Preparing for almost 190,000 students for a new school year isn’t a task that can be done alone, however, this is where the collaboration of community partners is vital.

HISD’s Community Partnerships Department, with the help of local businesses, is working to secure resources for its annual Back-to-School Bonanza, an effort to support multiple back-to-school supply drives throughout the district. 

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HISD partners with the Astros Foundation to encourage student re-enrollment

A quiet meeting room on the third floor of Minute Maid Park became a command center of dialing phones on June 28 and 29 as HISD employee volunteers rallied to contact unenrolled students and encourage them to come back to school in the fall.

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HISD teacher artwork creates a poignant dialogue at CAMH exhibition

The HISD Teacher Advisory Group (TAG) is a group of 14 passionate educators assembled by the Contemporary Arts Museum of Houston (CAMH) with the purpose of sharing their knowledge and experiences with CAMH staff in order to guide and inspire future programs within the museum’s Education and Public Programs department.

Photos courtesy of Tasha Gorel

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