A long red carpet adorned with gold stars and flanked by large striped boxes overflowing with white and yellow balloons posing as popcorn helped set the stage for a celebration at Mitchell Elementary School.
Eager students grabbed bags of popcorn and gathered for classroom watch parties, loudly counting down the seconds until the premiere of the new school’s virtual grand opening.
Continue readingThe autumn chill did not stop the Mitchell Elementary School community from gathering Thursday on the site where their new school soon will stand to celebrate the progress being made on their new building.
Students in matching yellow T-shirts kicked off the event with a heartwarming rendition of “There’s a Leader in Me.” Mitchell Principal Elizabeth Castillo-Guajardo then spoke to the crowd in English and Spanish.
“We are so proud of the resiliency everyone has shown throughout this process,” Castillo-Guajardo said. “Our new school will be a symbol of promise and hope that will propel our students into their bright future.”
Continue readingConstruction on the new Mitchell Elementary School is progressing as the concrete foundation and hollow core planks are now complete.
Crews have begun the erection of the structural steel and site paving is nearly complete.
The campus is one of four elementary schools — Braeburn, Mitchell, Scarborough, and Kolter — being rebuilt as a result of damages sustained in 2017 during Hurricane Harvey.
“Although Harvey tested our resiliency, it also created an opportunity for our community to be blessed with a new school for our very deserving students,” Mitchell Principal Elizabeth Castillo said. “We are so eager as we watch the progress of our building. With the foundation being poured, we know that our Mitchell 3.0 will be a beacon of hope as we work to revitalize our community after Harvey.”
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When Hurricane Harvey ravaged Houston last August, it left a devastating mark on nearly everything it touched — including schools.
Nearly every campus in HISD received some damage, but there were four elementary schools — Scarborough, Mitchell, Kolter, and Braeburn — that received damage so significant that they had to be rebuilt.
That process is now underway. Design plans have been approved, and construction on the new schools is soon to begin. The students and staff from each of the four schools will remain in temporary spaces until their home schools are rebuilt and opened, which is expected in January 2020.
Work has begun at Mitchell Elementary School, where abatement is underway, and demolition is soon to start.
The campus is one of four elementary schools — Braeburn, Mitchell, Scarborough, and Kolter — being rebuilt as a result of damages sustained last year during Hurricane Harvey.
Mitchell’s $23 million facility will accommodate about 750 students. The two-story 91,300-square-foot-building will feature open, brightly colored learning spaces, large windows, abundant natural light, and extended learning spaces throughout the building for individual and group collaboration.
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Thanks to Adopt-a-Gym, students at five HISD elementary schools have new soccer balls and helmets, hula hoops, and more new gym equipment. Founder Kevin McGrath was in Houston on Friday, May 18, presenting athletics supplies to five elementary schools: Hilliard, Pugh, MacGregor, Mitchell, and Anderson.
McGrath selected these five schools to receive a total of $15,000 worth of equipment because of all they lost during Hurricane Harvey. Adopt-a-Gym is a “by kids, for kids” fundraiser, where schools raise funds to purchase physical education equipment for other schools that are short on resources. Funds are raised through fitness events such as fun runs, dance-a-thons, and other active events.
The program is several years old and operates out of Charles Barrett Elementary School in Alexandria, Va., where McGrath teaches. To see other schools Adopt-a-Gym has donated to, visit their website here.
The HISD Business Assistance Supplier Diversity team is holding an outreach session on Friday for minority- and women-owned business enterprises (M/WBE) interested in working as subcontractors on the projects to rebuild four schools damaged by Hurricane Harvey.
Last week, the HISD Board of Education selected Satterfield & Pontikes Construction as the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) tasked with overseeing the demolition and construction of the four elementary schools – Kolter, Mitchell, Braeburn, and Scarborough. Continue reading
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced Thursday that the Houston Independent School District together with the City of Houston would serve as the 19th site for their national arts education program.
The Ensuring the Arts for Any Given Child program will take existing resources from HISD, local arts organizations, the City of Houston, and the Kennedy Center and combine them to increase arts opportunities and provide high-quality arts education for 7,000 students at 11 schools.
The schools include Atherton, Benbrook, Eliot, Hartsfield, Hines-Caldwell, Kashmere Gardens, Memorial, Mitchell, Scarborough, and Whittier elementary schools, and Hamilton Middle School. Additional schools are expected to be added in the coming years. Continue reading
Meeting the author of a book can sometimes create a personal connection to a story for readers.
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And that is just what third- through fifth-graders at Mitchell Elementary School got to experience on April 17, when Houstonian and author Noah Rattler visited their campus. Rattler spoke with students regarding his book, “Noah’s Walk,” which is about his 1,800-mile journey to raise awareness about homelessness. Continue reading