Tag Archives: Terry Grier

I still don’t get how Mike Miles is going to do what he says

Let’s start with the big plans that appointed HISD Superintendent Mike Miles is touting. Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles unveiled a dramatically expanded plan for the district at a Thursday board meeting, announcing 150 schools will see “wholesale systemic reform” … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

No decision on Carranza replacement yet

Tabled for now, but likely not for long. Houston ISD trustees on Thursday opted not to appoint an interim superintendent at a school board meeting, leaving it unclear who will run the district after Superintendent Richard Carranza’s anticipated departure later … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on No decision on Carranza replacement yet

“Denied”: HISD and special education

There are problems here as well. Superintendent Richard Carranza announced Thursday that the Houston Independent School District has decided to conduct a detailed review of the way that it serves students with disabilities. The effort will include asking “independent, third-party … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on “Denied”: HISD and special education

We have a superintendent

Welcome to Houston. The San Francisco public schools superintendent won over a divided Houston school board with what members described as his devotion to equity for all students, passion for the arts and willingness to collaborate. The trustees, often split … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on We have a superintendent

Alma Allen for HISD Superintendent?

It could happen. State Rep. Alma Allen, a former school principal, has emerged as a high-profile contender for the HISD superintendent’s job during the early stages of the search. The Houston Democrat, who retired from the Houston Independent School District … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Grier departs HISD

We await his successor. Terry Grier steps aside as Houston’s school superintendent on Monday after a six-and-a-half year tenure marked by aggressive reform efforts, high staff turnover and mixed academic results. His replacement will inherit a stubborn racial achievement gap … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Grier departs HISD

HISD names an interim Superintendent

It’s who we expected. The Houston school board’s search for a new superintendent took a step back Wednesday as trustees severed ties with the firm they selected two months ago and agreed to start fresh with another. The district likely … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD names an interim Superintendent

What do you want in a new HISD Superintendent?

Take the survey and let them know. The Houston school board has started seeking community input on the desired traits for a new superintendent, with the goal of hiring a new leader by July. A survey posted on the district’s … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on What do you want in a new HISD Superintendent?

HISD Trustee runoff overview

There are other races on the ballot this Saturday. Rhonda Skillern-Jones, the board president, faces pastor Larry Williams in the District 2 race to represent north Houston. In southeast Houston’s District 3, Jose Leal, a former HISD administrator, is challenging … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD Trustee runoff overview

Let’s find a super Super

The search is on for a Terry Grier successor. The search for a new HISD superintendent should start in earnest this week. The school board plans to vote Thursday to authorize spending up to $70,000 on the search and to … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Let’s find a super Super

Chron overview of HISD Trustee races

Little late in the game for this sort of thing, but better late than never. With Superintendent Terry Grier leaving in March, the HISD board faces a big decision in choosing his replacement. Voters can help to determine who makes … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

No decision on interim Superintendent

The HISD Board of Trustees is still deciding how to proceed in the wake of Superintendent Terry Grier’s resignation. Trustee Anna Eastman said after [Tuesday’s board] meeting that she continues to have a lot of questions about how the job-order … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

HISD will begin process of renaming schools with Confederate ties

Good. [HISD] trustees plan to start the process with a vote to revise the district’s policy to state explicitly that names should be non-discriminatory. The revised policy also details how the board can initiate renaming schools. Board president Rhonda Skillern-Jones … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What next for HISD?

The board ponders its options for Superintendent while they prepare to search for a successor to Dr. Terry Grier. The Houston Independent School District board is set to meet Tuesday morning to discuss the district’s next steps after Superintendent Terry … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Grier to step down as HISD Superintendent

This was sudden. Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier announced Thursday that he is stepping down effective on March 1. Grier became superintendent of Houston in 2009, leading the nation’s seventh largest school district to win the Broad Prize for Urban … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

HISD bond concerns

It’s always something. A key Houston ISD school board member called Sunday for audits of the district’s 2012 bond program amid estimates of a $211 million shortfall and concerns about breaking promises to voters. Juliet Stipeche, chair of HISD’s audit … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Idiots protest at school

Jeez. The kindergarten and pre-K students experienced an early civics lesson Monday morning when they entered Houston Independent School District’s new Arabic Immersion Magnet School for the first day of class. At least a dozen protestors, some wearing red, white … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

HISD Board President backs changing Confederate school names

Fine by me. Amid a growing move to shed symbols of the old, slave-owning South, the Houston school board president said Thursday that she supports renaming six campuses named after Confederate loyalists. Rhonda Skillern-Jones said she plans to discuss the … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

HISD’s test scores

Not so good. Needs to be better. Houston ISD high school students continue to struggle with reading and writing, passing state exams at significantly lower rates than the state average, new results show. The district’s scores in algebra, biology and … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD’s test scores

What now for Terry Grier?

The HISD Superintendent is in the last year of his contract, and it’s not clear whether it will get extended or not. Kashmere has made limited strides as one of the schools in Superintendent Terry Grier’s signature reform effort, called … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Where the education reform bills stand

As we know, the attempt to take a first stab at school finance reform did not make it to the House floor. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t some action on school-related issues. This Chron story from the weekend recapped a … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Where the education reform bills stand

HISD mostly declines to rezone its schools

Lots of noise, not nearly as much action. A divided Houston school board on Thursday rejected most of the rezoning proposals designed to reduce class sizes after dozens of parents expressed concerns about families having to send their children to … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD mostly declines to rezone its schools

HISD postpones redrawing school boundaries

This stuff is hard, y’all. The school board [had planned] to vote Thursday on the district’s biggest rezoning plan in recent years, involving more than two dozen campuses. The proposal mostly would redraw attendance boundaries to shift homes from more … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD postpones redrawing school boundaries

January campaign finance reports – HISD trustees

Four HISD Trustees are up for re-election this year. There are nine Trustees in all, and they serve four-year terms, so in a normal year either four or five are up for re-election. As things stand right now, all four … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2015 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on January campaign finance reports – HISD trustees

HISD Board approves one cent tax rate increase

Still a low tax rate, just slightly higher now. As architects prepare designs for dozens of new campuses, the Houston school board on Thursday approved a 1-cent tax rate increase to help pay down debt from the largest school district … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD Board approves one cent tax rate increase

HISD’s volunteer reading army

HISD’s number one priority is, or at least needs to be, improving reading performance. I really hope this will help. Leaders of the Houston Independent School District turned to the community on Thursday, launching the district’s largest volunteer recruitment effort … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

HISD passes its budget

They restored a lot of funding, but it’s the changes to magnet school funding that everyone is talking about. Bouncing back from recent cash-strapped years, the Houston school board Thursday approved a bigger budget that gives raises to all employees, … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

HISD prepares its budget

Teacher pay raises and magnet school funding changes are the main points of interest. Thanks to rising property values, all Houston ISD employees would receive raises and schools would get more money for supplies, field trips or tutors next year … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD prepares its budget

HISD magnet funding vote delayed till next week

You still have time to talk to your trustee about this. Superintendent Terry Grier’s administration has proposed standardizing how the programs are funded – a plan that would result in some schools losing tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD magnet funding vote delayed till next week

What is the deal with Vanguard funding?

It started with an urgent action email sent to Travis Elementary School parents: As you may have heard, the Houston ISD Board’s proposed budget for the 2014-15 school year would eliminate HISD Vanguard Magnet funding. These drastic cuts would threaten … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on What is the deal with Vanguard funding?

HISD does have a role to play in the Bush Foundation literacy effort

I learned this from a Terry Grier op-ed in the Chron. That’s why last week’s release of the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation’s “Houston’s Literacy Crisis: A Blueprint for Community Action,” was such a welcome event. The foundation’s plan to … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on HISD does have a role to play in the Bush Foundation literacy effort

HISD unveils new mascots

Here they are. The cafeteria at Hamilton Middle School showcases a painting of a Native American in a feathered headdress. Students wear collared shirts with a similar symbol. They were, until Tuesday, the Hamilton Indians. Now, with a new school … Continue reading

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD unveils new mascots

Makeup days

Sorry, kids. Houston area schools are facing possible cuts in state funding, and a bruising in the court of public opinion, by making up days missed earlier this year because of icy roads. With little fat built into the spring … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Dodson to be closed, Jones to be revamped

In the end, only one school was closed by HISD, but a lot of people are still upset about the whole thing. During a rowdy meeting where police had to quiet shouting protestors, the Houston school board narrowly agreed Thursday … Continue reading

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Dodson to be closed, Jones to be revamped