The Houston Independent School District is partnering with the Houston Health Department to provide free on-campus COVID-19 testing to students and staff at numerous campuses.
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Student Assistance lends a hand at Back To School Extravaganza
Houston Independent School District Student Assistance held a “Back To School Extravaganza” drive-thru event Friday at Bethel’s Empowerment Center.
The event featured a drive-up that included free vaccinations (including for Covid-19), backpacks, supplies, fresh produce, local vendors, giveaways, Medicaid and CHIP renewal applications, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applications, and HISD Community Partnerships.
Continue readingCarranza to be part of NAACP Houston’s ‘Let’s Talk Education’ conversation
Four Houston area school superintendents, including HISD’s Richard Carranza, will be part of NAACP Houston Branch’s quarterly conversation on Dec. 7 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Carl Walker Jr. Multipurpose Center (4300 Noble St., 77020).
Attendees should RSVP by Dec. 6 here.
Admission is $25 for general seating, $35 for reserved seats (available through Dec. 1), and $35 at the door.
The other superintendents attending are H.D. Chambers, Alief ISD; Charles Dupre, Fort Bend ISD; and Angi Williams, Galena Park ISD. Co-Moderators are Dr. Roderick Paige, former U.S. secretary of education, and Dr. Jasmine Jenkins, executive director of Houstonians for Greater Public Schools.
For questions, email QCS@naacphouston.org or call 713-526-3389.
Superintendent participates in live town hall discussion on DACA at UH-Downtown
Superintendent Richard Carranza participated in a live town hall meeting at UH Downtown on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, assuring those in attendance that HISD schools are a safe place for all students – regardless of their immigration status.
The meeting, sponsored by ABC13 and Univision 45, was a non-partisan conversation on Monday night between students and five local panelists about the program and the impact of DACA’s suspension to the city and its residents.
Carranza said there is an estimated 1,500 seniors in HISD who are DACA students, but there may be more since the data is not tracked. He added that the district is providing resources and counseling to those students, many of whom have college and career aspirations. Carranza also reassured students that the district is also busy advocating at the state and national level on the issue.
“I want to reiterate … as a school district, we will not allow students to be pulled from our schools,” Carranza said. “Over my dead body will a student be taken out of our school district because of an immigration raid.”
DACA recipients whose status is set to expire in the next six months will lose their protection from deportation and their work permit this year under the plan to start phasing out the program – unless they reapply for a two-year renewal by Oct. 5.
The Department of Homeland Security will no longer consider new applications for legal status and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said it was rejecting all new DACA requests and employment authorization document (EAD) applications received after the Sept. 5 memo.
ABC13 and Univision 45 moderated the event, which also included United We Dream’s Oscar Hernandez, Baker Ripley managing attorney Jill Campbell, St. Frances Cabrini Center for Immigrant Legal Assistance program director Zenobia Lai, and Dawn McCarty from UHD’s social work department. Questions from UHD students were submitted anonymously and read by their peers.
HISD to host Dream Summit for students on Dec. 9
Superintendent Carranza issues special message on DACA repeal
HISD, university partners meet to strengthen collaboration
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As HISD works to find an effective teacher for every classroom, one of the district’s renewed focuses in on strengthen partnerships with colleges and universities to recruit and better prepare new teachers.
To help achieve this, HISD hosted representatives from several universities Wednesday to begin a discussion on how the district and higher education institutions can improve the lines of communication when it comes to teacher training and support. Among those in attendance were the University of Houston, University of Houston-Downtown, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Texas State, Sam Houston State, Texas Southern, Prairie View A&M, and University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
Superintendent takes questions from HISD community during Virtual Listen & Learn broadcasts
Superintendent Richard Carranza wrapped up his Listen & Learn Tour on Monday night with two virtual sessions in both English and Spanish, which were streamed live on HISD-TV, the district’s website, and Facebook.
Topics included the issue of recapture and how the state’s current school funding structure is affecting the district, equity, dual language programs, fine arts access, serving the whole child, standardized testing, special education, and what the superintendent is looking for in future district leaders.
A message from HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza
The following is a message for the community from HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza in which he shares his excitement about joining HISD and a few of his goals for the district.
At the start of every new school year, I would get “butterflies,” whether I was a parent sending my child off to a new grade, a teacher meeting my next crop of young scholars, or a principal in charge of an entire campus. It’s no different as superintendent, but I promise you these are good butterflies – they signal excitement and anticipation about the great possibilities of what’s ahead.
The 2016-17 school year has begun, and my first act as your new superintendent was visiting several HISD campuses across this vast and diverse district on the first day of classes.
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Superintendent Carranza goes on whirlwind tour of district on first day of classes
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New HISD Superintendent Richard Carranza embarked on a whirlwind tour today of six HISD campuses – which took more than six hours and spanned 60 miles – on the first day of classes in the district.
Carranza’s itinerary covered each geographical area of HISD, and he visited with students, school staff, and community members at each location.
His first stop was at Law Elementary School on the south side, where he had the opportunity to visit a dual language classroom. Next up was Stevenson Middle School to the southeast, where he observed the launch of the district’s Literacy in the Middle program, which aims to improve middle school reading skills. Carranza then traveled to the Third Ward to Yates High School to learn about the school’s communications and maritime magnet programs. The tour then took him to Carnegie Vanguard High School near downtown, which is one of the district’s nationally acclaimed magnet schools. Next up was Wisdom High School (formerly Lee) to the west, HISD’s most diverse comprehensive high school. Carranza wrapped up the tour at Fonwood Early Childhood Center, where he observed pre-K students on their first day in a brand-new building.
Student laptop distribution underway as part of PowerUp initiative
More than 18,000 students to receive computers this month to use at school and at home
More than 18,000 students are receiving laptops this month as part of HISD’s one-to-one initiative that will eventually give every high school student a computer. The initiative, called PowerUp, not only will offer students 24-hour access to a laptop and a variety of software, but to digital-age instruction that will transform teaching and learning both inside and outside the classroom.
“PowerUp is not about the device,” said Superintendent Terry Grier. “This is about creating anytime-anywhere learning for our students so they can have the world at their fingertips. We want to make sure they learn the skills that complement technology so they aren’t replaced by technology.”
HISD’s Terry Grier named finalist for AASA National Superintendent of the Year
HISD Superintendent Terry B. Grier has been selected as one of four finalists for the American Association of School Administrators’ (AASA) National Superintendent of the Year.
Under Grier’s leadership, HISD was awarded the prestigious Broad Prize for Urban Education, an award that recognizes gains in student achievement and comes with $550,000 in college scholarships for high school seniors. Houston is the only district in the country to receive the award twice, winning the inaugural Broad Prize in 2002 and again in 2013. The district was one of four national finalists in 2012.