Category Archives: School days

HSPVA groundbreaking

Posted on December 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out. A slab of cracked cement painted over with yellow parking lines sits at the corner of Rusk and Austin – with downtown skyscrapers looming overhead. Come Tuesday, the cement will be ripped … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HSPVA groundbreaking

How Texas can improve its pre-k programs

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From Raise Your Hand Texas: Raise Your Hand Texas recently released a report highlighting research-driven practices proven effective in public pre-kindergarten programs across the country, and comparing how Texas’ pre-k program stacks up. “Pre-Kindergarten for the Modern Age: A scalable, … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on How Texas can improve its pre-k programs

Re-redistricting HISD

Posted on December 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Well, this would be different. The Houston school board would grow from nine elected trustees to 17 under a bill filed by state Rep. Senfronia Thompson, who said she wants to give residents of the former North Forest school district … Continue reading →

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

Texas asks for federal funding for pre-k vouchers

Posted on November 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Not sure how I feel about this. Teacher groups are up in arms as Texas seeks millions from the federal government to fund a new pre-K voucher program that would begin next fall. Last month, the Texas Education Agency applied … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Texas asks for federal funding for pre-k vouchers

HISD Board approves one cent tax rate increase

Posted on October 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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

Early Matters presents its case

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

They’ve got a good coalition. Let’s see where they can go with it. Access to preschool programs – and their quality – varies widely across Texas. A broad coalition of Houston-area executives, educators and nonprofit groups assembled by Houston’s premier … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Early Matters presents its case

On school districts selling stadium naming rights

Posted on September 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Raise your hand if this surprises you. When Bert Brocker wanted to advertise his auto business on the entrances of New Caney ISD’s new football stadium recently, the district offered another, bigger possibility: Naming rights to the entire $20 million, … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on On school districts selling stadium naming rights

More on Early Matters

Posted on September 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Scott McClelland, president of H-E-B Houston and also the chair of the Greater Houston Partnership Education Advisory Committee, pens an op-ed about the importance of pre-kindergarten and the latest effort to provide for it. It’s hard to believe, but more … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on More on Early Matters

HISD should not be on the hook for North Forest’s liabilities

Posted on September 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Come on! Fourteen months after the Texas Education Agency ordered Houston ISD to take over the long-troubled North Forest school district, some unexpected disputes over funding have surfaced. The Houston school board has authorized its attorneys to challenge a Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD should not be on the hook for North Forest’s liabilities

HISD approves its redistricting plan

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, HISD now includes all of the former North Forest ISD, and with that new territory came the need to reapportion its Trustee districts. They completed that task last week with a minimum of fuss. The Houston school … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD approves its redistricting plan

HISD’s volunteer reading army

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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

Teachers are doing it for themselves

Posted on August 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I know this is intended to be an upbeat story, but I can’t help but find it a little depressing. Some tech-savvy teachers turned to the Web this summer to try to offset the nearly $500 typically spent to ready … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Teachers are doing it for themselves

Trying again with pre-K

Posted on August 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Different approach, hopefully a different result will follow. On the first day of school for most Houston-area children, a coalition called “Early Matters” organized by the Greater Houston Partnership announced Monday it would release a 10-year “game plan” at a … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Trying again with pre-K

HISD passes its budget

Posted on June 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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

Bad signs of the times

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t even know what to say. Cypress-Fairbanks ISD will spend $55 million to tighten school security, including installing strategically placed panic buttons on campuses and replacing existing entry windows with bullet-resistant glass – upgrades experts call a necessary but … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Bad signs of the times

HISD prepares its budget

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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 hires its defenders for the teacher evaluation lawsuit

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I have to say, I’m a bit uncomfortable with this. Earlier this year, seven teachers sued the Houston Independent School District in federal court over their evaluation system. That system uses a statistical formula and student test scores to grade … Continue reading →

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

Digital textbooks are on their way

Posted on June 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

HISD is on the leading edge. HISD is the first of Texas’ large districts – and among the first large districts in the nation – to radically rethink the way it buys new high school instructional materials, shifting from printed … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Digital textbooks are on their way

HISD magnet funding vote delayed till next week

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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?

Posted on May 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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?

Meet T-TESS

Posted on May 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Texas has a new teacher evaluation system on the way. It won’t come without a fight. Texas’ more than 380,000 public school teachers are girding for a tumultuous few years as a new method of grading their performance is expected … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Meet T-TESS

More on Achievement School Districts

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Chris Barbic, the founder of YES Prep and the superintendent of Tennessee’s Achievement School District, one of the models for Greg Abbott’s education plan, weighs in on what these things are and are not. First, by law, the Tennessee ASD … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on More on Achievement School Districts

Jay Aiyer: Consider a local option for pre-k

Posted on May 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Note: From time to time, I solicit guest posts from various individuals on different topics. While I like to think I know a little something about a lot of things, I’m fortunate to be acquainted with a number of people … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Jay Aiyer: Consider a local option for pre-k

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

Posted on May 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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

More on the Bush Foundation literacy effort

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

We had the preview story, now we have the rollout story about the efforts by the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation to tackle the problem of illiteracy. The nascent campaign to improve Houstonians’ reading skills got a $300,000 kick-start Thursday … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on More on the Bush Foundation literacy effort

On improving literacy

Posted on April 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this story. In Houston, a city known for its brilliant doctors and energy executives, adults are waiting in line for classes that teach basic literacy skills – reading, writing and speaking clearly. They … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on On improving literacy

Two truths about testing

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Falkenberg boils it down. While there’s no doubt standardized tests are an important part of student assessment, somewhere along the way, they became too important. We’ve tethered them to everything from student promotion to teacher pay to school reputation. … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

SBOE does something OK

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I know, I’m as surprised as you are. Instead of making Mexican-American studies an official high school course, the Texas State Board of Education has settled on a tentative compromise that would allow school districts to decide whether to offer … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on SBOE does something OK

HISD board votes for Mexican-American studies class

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

You would think this wouldn’t be a big deal. The Houston school board, representing the largest district in Texas, threw its support Thursday behind the creation of a Mexican-American studies course in Texas public schools. The 9-0 vote followed some … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD board votes for Mexican-American studies class

The new North Forest High School

Posted on April 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’m really rooting for them to succeed. It’s not going to be easy. While most schools measure progress by test scores and scholarship dollars, North Forest High School students point to the lack of bathroom fires as a sign that … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on The new North Forest High School

Calculator apps

Posted on March 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This seems reasonable to me. Despite concerns about test security, Texas Education Commissioner Michael Williams announced Thursday that he would allow some students to use calculator “apps” on state exams next school year. Under current rules students may use only … Continue reading →

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

Makeup days

Posted on March 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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

Let them sleep

Posted on March 24, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Jilly Dos Santos is a hero to teenagers everywhere. Jilly Dos Santos really did try to get to school on time. She set three successive alarms on her phone. Skipped breakfast. Hastily applied makeup while her fuming father drove. But … Continue reading →

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

Dodson to be closed, Jones to be revamped

Posted on March 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

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