2015-16 Points of Pride

Transcription

Alief ISD Points of Pride
Week of September 1, 2015
Alief ISD’s Accountability and Assessment Department was recognized as Data All-Stars
in SunGard K-12 Education’s Lead Without Limits Awards program. The department, which
was nominated for this award by Management Information Systems Director Doug Brown, was
selected for its best use of data to positively affect student achievement.
Superintendent HD Chambers was named the Area 6 Champion of Year by the Career and
Technology Association of Texas (CTAT) and the Association for Career & Technical Education
(ACTE) for his work on House Bill 5 and for his support of student choice.
Alief ISD was designated as a Texas Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
(T-STEM) Academy by the Texas Education Agency. Alief Early College High School, Killough
Middle School and Olle Middle School are the current sites during this inaugural year. T-STEM
Academies are rigorous secondary schools focusing on improving instruction and academic
performance in science and mathematics-related subjects, with a goal of increasing the number
of students who study and enter careers in STEM.
Alief ISD earned an Exemplary rating in the district’s release of Community and Student
Engagement Ratings under the State Required Local Accountability System. Twenty-four of the
district’s schools and programs were rated Exemplary, while 20 schools and programs were
rated as Recognized.
Alief ISD earned the highest possible rating in the state’s accountability system in results released
by the Texas Education Agency. Alief ISD earned the rating of Met Standard in the state’s 2015
accountability system. All of the district’s high schools, middle schools, intermediate schools and
21 of the district’s elementary schools earned the Met Standard rating.
Kerr High School student Hong Nguyen placed third in Business Procedures at the national
Future Business Leaders of America competition this summer in Chicago.
Kerr High School student Huy Bui advanced to the national semifinals this summer in
declamation and storytelling at the middle school national tournament sponsored by the National
Speech and Debate Association. Other former Olle Middle School students who attended
nationals with Bui include Kimora Kelley (AECHS), Savannah Autin (ENGC), Victoria Lodico
(AECHS) and Savanna Franco (Kerr).
A collaborative sculpture created by students from Elsik High School won the Most
Effective All-Over Interpretation Award at the International Interdependence Hexagon Project Art
Show. The sculpture will be displayed in Pennsylvania. The following students participated: Dan
Damian, Paul Delesbore, Jacob Sturm, Mayra Gomez, Omolola Onatoye, Eniola Idowu, Joshua
Alix, Oscar Sapon, Gerardo Ramos, Chialuka Nwaigbo and Michel Dominguez.
Hastings High School student Ann Morris has been named to the 2014-2015 All-State
Journalism Staff. To be a member of the All-State Journalism Staff, students have to accumulate
points earned through their performance in University Interscholastic League (UIL) journalism
contests and other competitions throughout the year. Morris earned almost twice the minimum
number of points required.
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Ten Alief ISD students were recognized in the Houston World Series of Dog Shows Dr. Mari Jon
Filla Student Art Exhibit & Contest. Former Smith Elementary student Arpan Neupane received
the Best in Grade Award. Elsik High School students Jonathan Pena, Jonathan Lopez, Jonan
Mulindwa and Wenxiu Lei received Blue Ribbon Excellence Awards. Becky Hernandez, Bao
Pham, Gina Reyes, Alexis Santos and Jiamin Yan received Red Ribbon Merit Awards.
Hastings High School student Amber Morris recently graduated from the Junior Statesman of
America Summer School at Georgetown University, where she studied International Relations.
She visited several embassies, the United States Capitol and many other sites.
Elsik High School teacher Courtney Caesar was awarded the Diamond Teacher Award by
the Kaduceus Pharmacy Technician Program. This prestigious honor is awarded to one Texas
teacher annually. Courtney received the award for maintaining a high passing rate on the
I.V. Certification Exam, which tests students on how to properly prepare sterile, intravenous
medications for patient administration.
Hastings Ninth Grade Center Library Information Specialist Charla Hollingsworth
co-authored an article published in VOYA, a national library magazine. The article is titled, “Ten
Ways to Transform 21st Century Libraries.”
Alief ISD Elementary Language Arts Intervention Specialist Karen Hays will have an article
published in the 50th anniversary issue of the Texas Council of English Language Arts journal,
English in Texas. The article is titled, “Beyond Belle Letters: Using Music to Develop Forensic
Metacognition.”
District Instructional Technology Integrator Ashley May wrote “Six Ways Google Makes
Research Easier,” which was included in the August 2015 edition of TechEdge, a Texas Computer
Education Association publication.
Alief ISD Executive Director of Curriculum & Instruction Kathy Jahn was selected to serve
as the Region 4 President for the Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association.
Taylor High School Theatre Director Bob Maddox will be starring in Vanya and Sonia
and Masha and Spike at Theatre Southwest. This 2013 Tony winner for Best Play runs from
September 11 through October 3.
Kerr High School graduate Denny Dang was selected to compete in Certiport’s 2015 Microsoft
Office Specialist US National Championship. Dang was invited to this prestigious event for
receiving a perfect score on his Microsoft Office Specialist PowerPoint 2010 exam.
Alief ISD graduate Drake Thomas won Grand Overall in the Livestock Judging Division in the
Autobahn Longhorn Scholarship Show over the summer. The former Alief FFA student, who
graduated from Hastings, received a $1,100 scholarship, which he is using to attend Texas A&M
University-Kingsville to study animal science and to become an agriculture science teacher.
Help us share the news about our Points of Pride!
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Rees Elementary is one of 75 Texas public school and district entities that have been
named semi-finalists for the “Raising Blended Learners” grant from the non-profit
organization, Raise Your Hand Texas. The five winning teams, which will be named in April,
will receive up to $500,000 over three years and at least one year of technical assistance
to use blended learning to personalize instruction and improve student achievement while
closing persistent achievement gaps.
Hicks Elementary has partnered with the Houston Ballet to offer a “Learning from the
Masters” dance class to students from second grade through fourth grade. Every Thursday
for the next six weeks, 25 students will be taking a jazz class facilitated by a Houston
Ballet instructor. This is a free program that was awarded to the campus as a result of its
partnership with the Houston Ballet.
The Kerr High School Speech & Debate Team started an outstanding school year by
placing first and second place sweepstakes at the Foster and Westside tournaments. The
team competed against 50 other schools in one of the most competitive areas in the state.
District Social Studies Integration Specialist Wendy Warren and Hastings High
School teacher Katiusca Cirino have been invited to participate in a two-day conference
by the Central European Center for Research and Documentation. The trip will be paid
for by the State Department. Warren and Cirino were chosen because of Celebrating
Alief: A Community of Cultures, which included Hastings being the only Texas host for the
international exhibit, Survival in Sarajevo. Their visit in October will involve collaboration
with other teachers from around the world, sharing the work they do with curriculum and
how we in Alief have both academic and social success with diverse student populations.
O’Donnell Middle School Orchestra Director Dr. Richard Spitz performed with the
Gilbert and Sullivan Society Houston Orchestra in its recent production of The Pirates
of Penzance. He also performed with The Best Little Klezmer Band in Texas in the 3rd
Annual Houston Symphony Free Day of Music at Jones Hall.
Chambers Elementary Primary Math Specialist LaDreka Vaughn will be a published
author. Her children’s book, The Adventures of the J.E.T.S. Mug of War, will be released
on October 6. The book is a part of a series that shows how exciting it is to play outside.
Cummings Elementary teacher Megan Blick received a $4,000 grant from The Oliver
Foundation. Program Director Sandy Bristow presented Blick with the check, which will
be used to purchase a kinesthetic teaching table to promote movement while learning.
Kerr High School graduate Junyuan Tan placed tenth in the nation in Congressional
Debate at the National Speech and Debate Tournament this summer before teaching for
two weeks at the Harvard Public Speaking Workshop. Tan is a 2015 graduate.
Six current Alief ISD students were named Advanced Placement (AP) Scholars with
Distinction or Honor based on their AP exam scores from last school year. Steven Gu
(Hastings) was named AP Scholar with Distinction for receivng an average score of at
least 3.5 on all AP exams taken and scores of three or higher on five or more of these
exams. Drew Bernard (AECHS), Dinaluz Castilla (Elsik), Edwin Tolon Tecu (Elsik), Dang
Luu (Kerr) and Khang Nguyen (Kerr) were named AP Scholars with Honor for receiving
an average score of at least 3.25 on all AP exams taken and scores of three or higher
on four or more of these exams. Thirty-two current Alief ISD students were named AP
Scholars, which means they received scores of three or higher on three or more AP
exams. Only 22 percent of the 2.2 million students worldwide who took AP exams earned
an AP Scholar Award.
Four Alief ISD students participated in the Education in Action’s summer 2015 Lone
Star Leadership Academy. Albright Middle School student Charles Robins, Klentzman
Intermediate student Annaliese Massicot, Miller Intermediate student Renemax Casimir
(formerly Petrosky Elementary student) and Youngblood Intermediate student Chris
Henriquez were selected for the academy based on demonstrated academic success and
leadership ability, an educator recommendation and involvement in school or community
activities. During the week-long academy, the distinguished students developed leadership
skills while learning about the state of Texas.
Alief Early College High School teacher Dr. Noemi Dimaliwat-Frias is invited to share
her experience with helping students achieve their science fair goals at the 2nd Annual
Science Fair Seminar. Dimaliwat-Frias was named the recipient of the 2015 Science
Engineering Fair of Houston Teacher of the Year Award.
O’Donnell Middle School teacher Dr. Richard Spitz will be playing in the professional
orchestra for Spring Branch ISD’s production of the Tony Award-winning musical production
In The Heights. The show, which will be a collaboration featuring theatre students from
across the Houston area, will be directed and choreographed by Taylor High School
SEMS Clerk Monroe Moore.
Alief ISD graduate Frederick Nelson recently completed an internship with the University
of California, Davis (UC Davis), researching the effects of climate change on an Antarctic
fish species. Nelson, who is currently attending Howard University, was spotlighted by
UC Davis for his work on the project. He attended Kennedy, Mata and Holub while in Alief
and graduated from Alief Early College High School in 2013.
Alief ISD was recently spotlighted by the Harris County Department of Education for the
Memorial Hermann Alief Clinic. Located on Bear Ram Road, the clinic provides free health
services to Alief students who attend Taylor High School, Hastings High School, Hastings Ninth
Grade Center, Elsik High School, Elsik Ninth Grade Center, SOAR/LINC/NHS, Crossroads
and Alief Middle School. Services include well child visits, illness visits, immunizations, school
and sports physicals, asthma management, dietitian counseling, mental health counseling and
dental services.
Hastings High School student Tia Jones and teacher Corey Brotherton worked side by
side with Houston Rockets basketball player Dwight Howard this past weekend to teach basic
basketball fundamentals to more than 300 children at Howard’s pro camp. Brotherton was
selected from several coaches in the Houston area to be an instructor for the camp and had
the opportunity to choose one player to volunteer for this opportunity. Jones was on the 23-6A
All-District Basketball Team last year. She is also a member of the Hastings PALS, Accounting
Club and is an AP student with a 3.3 grade point average. She is currently being recruited by
several schools to play collegiate basketball.
The Taylor High School Speech and Debate Team had a dynamic showing at the Elkins High
School Texas Forensic Association Qualifying Tournament. The team won the first place overall
sweepstakes award, and several students received top honors.
• Connie Ogiamien - first place in both Student Congress and Novice Poetry
• Kaily Edison - first place in Dramatic Interpretation
• Jessica Daviss - first place in Humorous Interpretation
• Leticia Nketiah - first place in Novice Prose Interpretation and second place in Student
Congress
• Keturah Bridges - second place in Humorous Interpretation
• Hannah Ekwere - second place in Novice Prose Interpretation and third place in Novice
Poetry
• Ever Cruz - third place in Humorous Interpretation
Petrosky Elementary teacher Cheryl Walker was among 52 artists from around the country
who was invited to showcase her artwork in the special annual Collector’s Edition of the national
publication, Southwest Art Magazine. Next month, her watercolor piece, titled Another Day in
Texas, will be included under the section, ONES TO COLLECT.
Horn Elementary Principal Mary Starling was selected to be a member of the Playworks
Texas Board of Directors. She brings an educator’s perspective to Playworks and will be a
liaison for Playworks in the community. Horn participates in the Playworks program, which
provides academic enrichment and character-building opportunities to students during recess.
Albright Middle School teacher Patrick Sloan played the jazz bass as a featured artist in the
rhythm section with 10-time Grammy-winning artist Arturo Sandoval. The sold-out concert was
with the Symphony of Southeast Texas on September 19.
Week of October 7, 2015
Six art pieces by Alief ISD students were on display at the Texas Association of School
Boards (TASB) art exhibit. Martin Elementary student Keiri Sandoval, Kerr High School
student Connie Van, Taylor High School graduate Jasmine Escobar-Perry and Hastings
High School students AJ Salas, Stephanei Almond and Andy Torres were selected for this
prestigious honor.
An art piece by Mata Intermediate student Brandon Tzorin was chosen to be put on
this year’s Texas Art Elementary Meet “TEAM” t-shirt. His art piece, “Blue Sunflower,” was
selected from last year’s winners. Tzorin was attending Kennedy Elementary when he
created the art piece. The TEAM t-shirt is a new Texas Art Education Association project.
The Hastings High School Marching Band received a unanimous Division 1 rating at the
Katy Marching Festival this past Saturday. The marching band also participated in the U.S.
Bands Competition in Conroe, where it was one of only 10 bands to earn a spot in finals
competition after its preliminary performance. The band finished with a 4th place overall in
its class.
Thirty-eight Alief ISD choir students advanced to UIL regionals. Eighteen Kerr High School
students advanced, while 10 Elsik High School students moved onto the next round. Nine
Taylor High School students advanced, and Hastings High School student Fortune Onwunali
also advanced to UIL regional choir competition.
Scholar Athletes for September:
• Kristal Jovellanos represents the Elsik High School tennis program. She is currently
ranked fifth in her senior class. Jovellanos, who has been in the tennis program since
her sophomore year, is also a member of the National Honor Society and LEO Club. In
her spare time, she volunteers at her church. Jovellanos previously attended Hearne
Elementary, Petrosky Elementary and Killough Middle School. She hopes to attend the
University of Houston to study information technology.
• Luke Rodriguez represents the Elsik High School football program. He is currently
ranked eighth in his class. Luke has been a member of the football program for four years
and is also a member of Student Council. He has been a UIL regional qualifier in choir
for the past three years. Rodriguez plans to major in Computer Information Systems at
the University of Houston and aspires to be a technology specialist for a company or a
school district.
Miller Intermediate staff members Melissa Chapa and Sarah Watson were selected
to participate in the Society of Petroleum Engineers energy education outreach program,
Energy4me. This program invites 200 Houston-area science teachers to learn how to teach
energy topics in hands-on and innovative ways. As a part of Energy4me, they will receive a
variety of free instructional materials to take back to the classroom.
Alief ISD graduate Caleb Bedford was named Conference Offensive Player of the Week
at the Heart of America Athletic Conference. Bedford is a quarterback for Central Methodist
University. Bedford graduated from Elsik High School in 2013 and attended Alief ISD schools
from Pre-Kindergarten through his senior year.
Eleven Alief ISD high school students have been named commended students in the 2016
National Merit Scholarship Program. About 34,000 commended students throughout the nation
are recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Commended students place among the
top five percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2016 competition by taking the
2014 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT).
• Alief Early College High School student Madison Mahoney
• Hastings High School student William Ward
• Kerr High School students Juan Miguel Fulgencio, Dang Luu, Hong Nguyen, Jannette
Nguyen, Khang Nguyen, Khoung Nguyen, Tiffany Nguyen, Navoda Perikala and Duong Vu
Hastings High School student Gerardo Leon was selected as a winner of a computer coding
contest sponsored by the Entertainment Software Association and the Hispanic Heritage
Foundation’s Leaders on Fast Track (LOFT) Fellowship. He was flown to Washington DC for the
awards presentation and for a meeting with the White House Science Advisory.
Elsik High School teacher Ernie Lozano’s video on the Blue Cetane Team was selected
as one of the final four entries in KHOU’s Inspiring Curiosity Contest. The finalist with the most
votes will receive $2,000 to further STEM education. Visit this link from your personal device to
vote for our students through the “Inspiring Curiosity” app. Vote daily through Sunday, November
1, at 5:00 p.m.
The following Alief ISD orchestra students advanced to UIL regional competitions:
• Hastings High School: Steven Gu (violin) and Josue Reyes (double bass)
• Kerr High School: Joshua Tuano (cello), Sharon Montes (bass) and Julianne Escanan
(violin)
Alief ISD students advanced to regional competitions after placing at the District 23-6A Cross
Country Meet at Bear Creek. The Elsik High School girls team and the Hastings High School
boys team both placed second, while the Taylor High School boys team won third place.
Congratulations to the following high school journalism students for their awards from
the Texas Association of Journalism Educators Fall Fiesta:
• Hastings High School: Gaby Ytuarte (Honorable Mention for her on-site photo), Ann Morris
(Excellence Award for her feature story) and Estefany Mejia (Superior Award for her on-site
photo)
• Kerr High School: Yazan Abuashour (Excellence Award in Editorial Writing), Michael Bui
(Excellence Award in On-site Photography) Chance Nguyen (Honorable Mention in On-site
Photography) and Nausheen Zaidi (Honorable Mention in Cell Phone Photography)
The Kerr High School Speech & Debate Team won first place sweepstakes at the Langham
Creek Tournament. The team, which defeated 30 other schools, has won first place sweepstakes
four times in a row this season. As a result of this tournament, qualifiers for the National Individual
Event Tournament of Champions competition in Colorado include Mariah Menendez and Jannette
Nguyen. Nguyen, Menendez and Rem Aitbouchireb are also state qualifiers.
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Art work by Alief ISD students was featured in the First Community Credit Union (FCCU) 201516 academic calendar. Half of the calendar consisted of art by Hastings High School students
Stephanei Almond, Osman Gani and AJ Salas and Alief ISD graduates Duyen (Jessica) Vo,
Laura Vargas and Yajaira Nevarez. In addition to being featured in the calendar, Vo’s art work
was selected as the first place winner for 12th grade in the student art calendar contest, and
Almond received first place for 11th grade.
Alief Early College High School students Victor Williams and Faiza Qazi are two of 36 high
school students selected from the Houston area to serve on the Youth Police Advisory Council.
The council is sponsored by the Houston Police Department and Chief Charles McClelland, Jr.
The Cummings Elementary Spirit Team will perform during the half-time show at Rice University
on October 24. The students will perform with hundreds of other dancers and cheerleaders for
the Cheerleaders of America Extravaganza Show.
Hastings High School teacher Andrea Negri became one of the first recipients of the Texas
Association of Journalism Educators Pathfinder Award, a new honor that recognizes outstanding
young journalism advisers. Negri, who graduated from Kerr High School, currently advises the
Hastings newspaper and yearbook staff.
Multiple DonorsChoose.org projects from across the school district were recently funded by
district business partner Chevron, including:
• Killough Middle School teacher Brenda Fluker’s funded project, “STEM Problem Based
Learning Sparks Student Learning,” will provide constant speed vehicles, a density set,
friction cubes and other supplies for hands-on STEM labs.
• Hastings Ninth Grade Center library information specialist Charla Hollingsworth’s
funded project, “Expanding Horizons with eBooks 2015,” will provide NOOK eReaders,
eBooks and screen protectors for the HNGC library.
• Heflin Elementary teacher Ashley Shelton’s funded project is “Technology Will Lead the
Way in K!” Her Kindergarten classroom will receive a Microsoft Surface 3 tablet, a printer and
accessories for the Surface tablet.
• Two Cummings Elementary projects were also funded. Sara Hodges’s class will receive
six Kore Wobble Chairs for guided reading. Jennifer Goodson’s class will receive iPad minis
with cases and screen protectors, classroom magnetic letter kits and magnetic story boards.
Alief ISD graduate Raymond Sun Adams was recognized by the City of Houston. Adams
became the fifth Houston entertainer to receive his own day by mayoral proclamation. July 28
will now be known as Sun Day in Houston. Adams gives back to Alief ISD through wellness fairs,
donations, holiday food drives and other initiatives.
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Alief ISD teachers have been selected to receive training from non-profit organization
Neuhaus Education Center. The center understands Alief ISD is committed to quality literacy
instruction, and the selected pre-kindergarten teachers will receive customized job-embedded
coaching, four full days of training sessions and assessment data to drive instruction. The
teachers chosen to participate are: Rachel Gray (Heflin), Sarah Heinsbroek (Heflin), Cathy
Nguyen (Heflin), Ashley Digan (Youens), Bonnie McCarthy (Chancellor), Kirsten Carlson
(Boone), Amy Martinez (Rees), Nicole Craddock (Petrosky), Brittany Walker (Alexander), Lisa
Joe (Liestman) and Shelia Evans (Outley).
Scholar Athletes for October:
• Charlesia Jones represents the Elsik High School volleyball program. She is currently
ranked sixth out of a class of 856 students. Jones is a three-year varsity letterman in
volleyball and also plays club volleyball year-round. She plans to attend Charleston
Southern University on a volleyball scholarship and plans to major in finance. Jones, who
previously attended Chambers, Chancellor and Alief Middle, hopes to build a career as an
investment banker.
• Temisan “TK” Kuyatsemi represents the Hastings High School football program. He has
been a member of the football program for four years and has been a starter on the varsity
team for three of those years. Kuyatsemi also has been a part of the basketball and track
teams for the past three years. He has volunteered for several Alief ISD events and is a
member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Kuyatsemi previously attended Cummings,
Boone, Mata and Holub. Kuyatsemi is being recruited to play football for Stephen F. Austin
University and the University of Houston and plans to study Anatomy and Kinesiology. He
hopes to pursue a career as a strength and fitness trainer.
The Hastings High School Marching Band earned straight 1’s at the University Interscholastic
League (UIL) Region 23 Marching Competition. This is the first time in almost 20 years that
the Hastings Marching Band has earned the Sweepstakes Superior Rating at UIL. Elsik and
Taylor’s bands both made a 2 (Excellent Rating).
O’Donnell Middle School student Johnny Nguyen won a spot in the UIL Region 23 Middle
School Philharmonic Orchestra. Nguyen, who plays the violin, was the only Alief ISD student
to advance.
Alief ISD Career & Technical Education students placed at the Harris County Fair. Gustavo
Rodriguez (Elsik) placed first and made it to the auction with his plant design in dish gardens.
Gardenia Leon (Elsik) also placed first with her floral design, while Joy Ihenwe (Elsik) placed
second in the horticulture 10-inch basket design.
Elsik High School teacher John Branch Jr. recently attended the St. Jude Celebration of
Hope Event as the National Director of Community Service of the Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.
This celebration was aimed at recognizing all of those individuals and organizations who have
raised money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital this year.
Week of November 4, 2015
Alief Early College High School received the AVID Schoolwide Site of Distinction. This is the
highest level of AVID implementation fidelity demonstrating excellence in instructional practice and the
promotion of college readiness schoolwide. Less than 10 percent of all AVID middle and high schools
worldwide are a part of this elite group of schools.
Elsik High School student Dontavious Jackson was selected to play in the 2016 Under Armour
All-America High School Football Game. The game is slated for January 2 at the Orlando Citrus Bowl
and will be televised live on ESPN2. Jackson is a linebacker for the Rams.
Alief ISD choir students were recognized at the Texas Music Educators Association all-region
competition.
• Elsik High School: William Phi advanced to all-state pre-area auditions.
• Hastings High School: Fortune Onwunali also advanced to pre-area auditions. Sheila Page,
Elvira Vega, Cheyenne Reyes, Christebany Macario, Deamonta Harrell, Dominique Jackson,
Christopher Hall and Edwin Sandoval were selected to be members of the region honor choir.
• Kerr High School: Hoang Nguyen, Khuong Nguyen and Steven Tan advanced to pre-area auditions
and also made the region mixed choir. Cecilia Cardenas, Hong Nguyen, Misti Fulmer, Kathryn
Negri, Serra Vu, Vera Nweke and Alexandria Parson made the region women’s choir. Charlie
Grisson also made the region mixed choir.
• Taylor High School: Page Campbell and Samantha Jimenez made the region treble choir.
Alief Early College High School students Aneeqa Khan, Menha Akram, Parul Biswas, Kim
Dang, Odett Salazar, Shahad Rawdhan, Faiza Qazi, Arianna Harwell, Victor Aguilar and Beverly
Moreno have been accepted to the Saturday Morning Science 2 Program through the Baylor College
of Medicine.
Martin Elementary Principal Dr. Ting-Ling Sha was recognized by the Organization of Community
Advocates. Sha was honored for her outstanding community service in and around the Alief area,
including serving as a Chinese Community Center of Houston board member.
Taylor High School teacher Kelvin Kibler and his students were spotlighted by Houston Style
Magazine. They were featured for their usage of the materials Chevron sponsored through the Fuel
Your School campaign on DonorsChoose.org. The materials are used in Taylor’s Earth and Space
Science class.
District business partner Chevron funded the following DonorsChoose.org projects as a part
of its Fuel Your School campaign. Congratulations to the following recipients:
• Martin Elementary teacher Margarita Garza received Hooki stools to encourage movement
while learning in the classroom.
• Mahanay Elementary teacher Jessica Barron received home readers and book bins with a
storage cart to instill a love of reading in our students.
• Cummings Elementary teacher Mark Moore received action-based learning equipment for his
classroom to implement physical activity in a meaningful way.
• Holmquist Elementary teacher Shanaz Ghani received laptops to increase the use of technology
in the classroom.
Hastings High School senior Priscilla Cao was nominated to attend the National Youth
Leadership Forum: Medicine. This high school medical summer program in Washington, D.C.
will allow participants to gain real-world medical career experience and explore professional
career opportunities in the expanding fields of medicine and health care.
Taylor High School student Vivian Duong was chosen to join The Junior Academy of the
Global STEM Alliance. The program connects students to premier educational opportunities,
mentoring, a community of peers and support networks to encourage the pursuit of careers in
STEM.
Alief Early College High School students Aneequa Khan, Faiza Qazi and Veccino Rogers
have been selected to participate in the online distance learning portion of the Texas High
School Aerospace Scholars program, which is sponsored by the NASA Johnson Space Center.
According to the NASA Aerospace Scholars Education Team, the students were chosen by a
selection panel, and the applicant pool was very competitive.
The Killough Middle School Band won first place in the middle school category at the Texas
Renaissance Festival School Days Music Festival. The band played three musical pieces and
competed against schools from the greater Houston and surrounding area.
Miller Intermediate School families have been chosen by the Chester Pitts Charitable
Foundation to attend the Holiday Shopping Spree for Single Fathers on December 1. Chester
Pitts, who played for the Houston Texans, and Costco employees will give the families the
opportunity to enjoy an evening of fun and holiday cheer. Each Miller family sponsored by the
foundation will receive $350 to shop at Costco. Each child will make a wish list of at least three
items, and the Costco employees will make them a part of their angel tree program.
Scholar Athletes for November:
• Isaiah Leviege represents the Taylor High School football program. He is a two-year
football letterman and has earned Second Team All-District and Academic All-District
Honors in football. As a member of the varsity track team, Leviege runs the 400-meter
dash and is on the 4x400 meter relay team. He has also received the Presidential Award
for academics and is in the AVID program. Leviege also volunteers for the Houston Food
Bank in his spare time. He previously attended Boone, Outley, Petrosky, Hicks, Best, Miller
and Albright. Leviege plans to attend either Sam Houston State University or Prairie View
A&M University to study kinesiology or sports medicine. He hopes to have a career as a
physical therapist.
• Sarah Faulhaber represents the Hastings High School basketball program. She is
currently ranked number 12 out of a class of approximately 668 students. Faulhaber has
been a member of the basketball program since her freshman year and is also a member
of the volleyball, cross country and tennis programs. She is involved in PALS, choir and
yearbook. Faulhaber previously attended Mahanay, Youngblood and O’Donnell. She plans
to attend Sam Houston State University and major in clinical psychology.
Alief ISD was recognized by the Children’s Defense Fund and AASA, the School Superintendents
Association, as a Texas educational leader working to provide resources to uninsured students
and their families so that they can obtain low-cost or free health care coverage. According to the
Children’s Defense Fund Texas Associate Director Laura Guerra-Cardus, school districts like
Alief have been “natural allies” in its efforts “to ensure every Texas child has a healthy start in life.”
Taylor High School student Jeffrey Ehimuh and Hastings High School student Kairon
Deschamps will be participating in this year’s Via Colori Street Painting Festival on November
21-22. Via Colori benefits the Houston Center for Hearing and Speech and has grown into one
of Houston’s signature art events. The event is free to the public and is the only street painting
festival in the region.
O’Donnell Middle School, Olle Middle School and Alief Middle School finished first, second
and third place respectively at the annual Academic Plus competition. The event, which was
hosted by Olle this year, is the University Interscholastic League (UIL) academic competition
for middle school students in Alief ISD. Approximately 230 students from Alief’s middle schools
competed in the following five UIL events: dictionary skills, listening, mathematics, science and
maps, graphs and charts.
The Hastings High School Marching Band and Cummings Elementary received first and third
place respectively for their showmanship in the Alief Community Association’s Alief International
Parade.
Taylor High School student Leonardo Zavala was selected to participate in the online distance
learning portion of the Texas High School Aerospace Scholars program.
Killough Middle School Assistant Principal Linda Henderson and Administrative Intern
Krystal White were selected to present at the American Educational Studies Association
conference in San Antonio. Their presentation on effective mentoring practices was well-received.
Much of the presentation highlighted the successful mentoring program established at Killough
during the 2014-15 school year.
Congratulations to the following projects funded through DonorsChoose.org:
• Mahanay Elementary Library Information Specialist Lora Nance received funding for
scripts and costumes. The items will be used for Readers Theater, an integrated approach
for involving students in reading, writing, listening and speaking activities to improve their
fluency. This project was funded by Gymboree and its Let’s Color Together campaign.
• Heflin Elementary teacher Ashley Shelton received funding for various hands-on puzzles,
literacy centers and folder games to help her kindergarteners become successful readers.
This project was funded by OshKosh B’gosh.
• Cummings Elementary Library Information Specialist Karen Shiver received funding for
prepared slides, magnifiers and USB microscopes to help students explore the world around
them in detail and to spark their interest in science. This project was funded by Chevron and
its Fuel Your School campaign.
Week of December 3, 2015
Elsik High School art students were featured in the November/December edition of Texas School
Business Magazine. The article was written by teacher RJ Christensen and spotlighted the Elsik art
program and his students.
Alief Jazz Ballet officer Trevon Anderson (Hastings High School) received a $500 scholarship
to attend the Broadway Dance Center in New York to continue his training in dance. He was chosen
for the scholarship at the “Pulse on Tour” dance convention in Dallas, where among many other male
dancers, Anderson performed in special selected groups that famous choreographers chose to watch.
Elsik High School student Luke Rodriguez was awarded $5,000 through the Reliant Scholarship
for Champions program. Rodriguez, who is a member of the football team and the Elsik choir, was
presented the check by former Houston Texans player JJ Moses and Briggs Webster from NRG.
Rodriguez currently has a 4.3 GPA and is ranked eighth in his class out of 813 students. He plans to
attend the University of Houston to major in Computer Information Systems.
The Petrosky Elementary Student Council collected 465 canned goods and 115 boxed foods
from Petrosky families and staff during a Thanksgiving food drive. The items were donated to the
Southwest Bridge Church food pantry to assist with its Thanksgiving Basket Giveaway.
23-6A All-District Football:
• Offensive MVP: E.J. Davis (Elsik High School)
• Academic Team:
• Hastings High School — John Mai, John Paschall, Temisan Kuyatsemi, Bond Isaac-Obiefuna
and Giovanni Gardner
• Taylor High School — Eleasah Anderson, Isaiah Leviege, Ja’Kobe Johnson, Travis Blanks,
Cedric Brown, Kalen Chatman, Cavous Griffin, Jeremiah Haydel, Brodrick Mourning, Joseph
Ogunbanjo, Rene Sanchez, Marquiese Thompson, Jesse Walker and Dontay Warren
• First Team:
• Elsik High School — Amorama Noel, Jimmie Banks, Javante Hubbard, Dontavious Jackson,
Chris Brown and Aaron Jackson
• Taylor High School — Osi Odume, Kobie Whiteside, Louis Hamilton, Marquiese Thompson,
Ja’Kobe Johnson, Benjie Franklin, Dontay Warren, Emon Pought, Jeremiah Haydel, Eleasah
Anderson and Brandon Alilionwu
Petrosky Elementary teacher Kim Moyer received funding through DonorsChoose.org for triple
beam balances for hands-on science investigations and measuring in math.
Alief ISD graduate Chris Hardeman was selected to first team on the 2015 Academic All-Big 12
Football Team. First team players were selected for having a GPA of 3.2 or higher. Hardeman, who
plays cornerback for Oklahoma State University, graduated from Taylor in 2014 and previously
attended Cummings Elementary.
Taylor High School graduate Cyril Clarke (Class of 2012), who is a senior at the University
of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, recently played his last senior game against the Houston
Baptist Huskies. Clarke, who is a halfback on the Cardinals football team, previously attended Heflin
Elementary, Budewig Intermediate and O’Donnell Middle School.
Taylor High School students Isaiah Holloway and Sedia Woods were named first in the state of
Texas in Duet Acting after competing for Mainstage at the Texas Thespians State Festival. Holloway
and Woods had the honor of performing their Duet Acting scene at closing ceremonies in front of
6,400 people in attendance and received a standing ovation. This is one of the highest honors a high
school theatre student can achieve. In addition, Holloway and Woods are nationally qualified in Duet
Acting, and Woods received a $1,000 scholarship from Texas State Thespians.
Kerr High School also had 13 national qualifiers in seven different categories following the Texas
Thespians State Festival. The qualifiers are Christina Tahtouh and Mariah Menendez (Duet Acting),
Andrew Lam (Costume Design), Kevin Cortez (Set Design), Gaby Rodriguez, Jesus Pineda and
Helen Do (Group Acting), Rem Aitbouchireb (Monologue), Vivian Vu (Lighting Design) and Kerean
Vu, Quincy Robinson, Saul Flores and Jose Ramos (Group Acting). Gaby Rodriguez also earned
the top award at the festival, a $5,000 scholarship for service to troupe and community, teamwork,
and leadership and general theatre skills.
The Alief Super Stars Special Olympics Team recently competed at the area level bowling
tournament. Fourteen students received medals, and seven others earned ribbons.
• Gold medal recipients: Jana El-saleh (Youngblood), Osato Osuan (Hastings), Sierra Davis-Latin
(Elsik), William Nguyen (Hastings) and David Nnama (Elsik)
• Silver medal recipients: Brianna Wilson (Albright), Emmanuel Castro (Albright), Terrance Simms
(Taylor), Diego Sanchez (Hastings), Timothy Hinson (Hastings) and Carlos Ramirez (Hastings)
• Bronze medal recipients: Xavier Boyd (Hastings), Celeste Montes (Hastings) and Alison Nguyen
(Taylor)
Petrosky Elementary student Dimitri Barnett was selected to represent his local Youth Football
Association in the 2015 American Youth Football (AYF) and Cheerleading National Championships
in Florida. AYF is a nationally recognized non-profit youth sports organization which champions
education and rewards academic achievement.
Albright Middle School has the distinct honor of being an Oliver Foundation recognized school.
The Oliver Foundation is a non-profit organization that focuses on prevention of childhood obesity.
Albright was awarded a $500 grant to develop a student-driven wellness organization. As a result,
the Albright Student Wellness Ambassadors were created to implement wellness programs and
health awareness programs for the campus student body.
Elsik High School student Joy Ihedilionye and Alief Early College High School student Daniel
Chica both were awarded the Quest Bridge Scholarship, a full four-year scholarship worth more
than $200,000. The scholarship includes tuition & fees, room and board, books and supplies and
travel expenses. Ihedilionye will be studying Biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame. Chica will
be studying Aerospace Engineering at Cal Tech University.
Two teams from the O’Donnell Middle School Robotics Club earned a gold ticket at the
FIRST Lego League regional qualifier and will advance to the regional championship tournament
in February. The team also took home the award for Core Values, which is given for exceptional
teamwork and sportsmanship.
Page 1 of 3
Cummings Elementary was spotlighted on KPRC Channel 2 when the station’s meteorologist
Britta Merwin visited the campus and conducted a science experience with the students.
December Scholar Athletes:
• Natalie Brannon represents the Taylor High School basketball program and is in the top
quarter of her class. She has been a member of the basketball program since her freshman
year and is also active in the volleyball program. Brannon is involved in Texas Association of
Future Educators, Christians in Action and the African American Association. She is involved in
the youth ministry as a bible teacher at her church. She previously attended Outley Elementary,
Miller Intermediate and Albright Middle School. Brannon will continue to play basketball at South
Western Christian College, where she will be pursuing an English and Kinesiology degree with
plans to become an educator and coach.
• Ejike (EJ) Okocha-Ojeah represents the Hastings High School basketball program and is
currently ranked 15th in his class. He is a three-year letterman for the basketball program, has
been in PALS and is active in the Civil Engineering and Architecture Program. Okocha-Ojeah
also volunteers for the youth group at a local church. He previously attended Rees Elementary,
Miller Intermediate and Albright Middle School. He plans to study Aerospace Engineering at
Texas A&M University and hopes to have a career in the aerospace industry.
Hastings High School student Victor Pichardo signed to play baseball at Finlandia University.
The university is located in Michigan.
Hastings High School journalism students competed against other students from across the
state in the CenTex UIL Invitational Meet. William Ward placed second in Editorial Writing and third
place in Feature Writing and in Headline Writing. Ann Morris placed second in Headline Writing.
Five Alief ISD students received recognition from the Houston Fire Museum for their fire prevention
posters. Martin Elementary student Daniel Soto received first place in the fourth grade division,
Sneed Elementary student Ericka Martinez and Chambers Elementary student Abraham Martinez
received second place in the first grade and third grade categories respectively. Alief Early College
High School student Jasymne Trishell received third place in the ninth grade division while AECHS
student Tianyin Xu received honorable mention. The art posters are on display at the Houston Fire
Museum until the end of 2015.
Hastings High School student Fortune Onwunali, who advanced to the final audition for the
Texas All-State Choir, will perform at the area audition in January in an effort to earn a coveted spot
in the Texas All-State Choir.
The Alief Early College High School Speech and Debate Organization won first place sweepstakes
at both the Bay City High School and the Brazoswood High School Speech and Debate Tournament.
AECHS defeated 25 area high schools for the title.
The Kerr High School Speech and Debate Team took home first place sweepstakes at the Taylor
High School tournament.
Page 2 of 3
Alief ISD students are spreading holiday cheer. Alief FFA students from Elsik and Hastings High
School recently brought holiday cheer to the children at Memorial Hermann Children’s Hospital. The
students were able to deliver eight trash bags full of toys to the kids. While Martin Elementary choir
students were performing holiday carols to patients and visitors at the Houston Methodist Hospital,
the school’s art students gifted cancer awareness bracelets to the staff, patients and guests.
Horn Elementary students and staff collected $2,613.38 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
The collection was in honor of the son of campus staff member Yaneth Mejia, whose son Eduardo
is in the maintenance stage of his leukemia treatments and is well on the way to being in remission.
The Chambers Elementary Student Council held a successful Holiday Food Drive in which
more than 900 items were collected. The items were donated to the House of Amos, which provides
assistance to people in the Alief community through emergency food pantry operations and services
designed to assist individuals in gaining healthy families, meaningful employment and achieving
self-sufficiency.
Hicks Elementary received funding through a Texas Commission on the Arts grant to have Carranza
Puppets perform Hansel & Gretel to the school’s Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students.
Taylor High School teacher Roxanna Barnes received the 2015 Alma Slawinski Leadership Award
for Excellent Work in Theatre Education. In order to receive this award you have to be nominated by
theatre teachers from across the state, have 10 or more years of service as a theatre educator and
must be voted on by the Texas Thespians State Board. Barnes received the honor during the Texas
State Thespian Festival.
District Technology Integrator Ashley May’s article was published in the November edition of
Tech Edge. The article, titled Game Time, talks about how to recognize who the technology leaders
are on each campus. Tech Edge is a publication by the Texas Computer Education Association.
Albright Middle School teacher Adriana Hernandez and her students were highlighted as
“Classroom of the Month” on the website of Six-Word Memoirs. The profile celebrates Albright’s
student writers.
Mahanay Elementary teacher Kayla Coutouzis received funding from DonorsChoose.org for
iPads in her classroom. The project was funded by district business partner Chevron.
Alief ISD graduate Robert Jackson was named one of the 10 most influential students at New York
University. Jackson, who is currently a senior, was chosen for his work in empowering young black
and Latino communities. He graduated from Hastings High School in 2012 and previously attended
Chambers Elementary, Owens Intermediate, Miller Intermediate and Albright Middle School.
Elsik High School graduate Devohn Reed (Class of 2013) was named to the 2015 All-SWAC
(Southwestern Athletic Conference) Football Team. Reed is currently a defensive lineman for
the Prairie View A&M University Panthers and previously attended Best Elementary, Chancellor
Elementary, Mata Intermediate and Holub Middle School.
Page 3 of 3
Week of January 7, 2016
Seven Alief ISD seniors were named Posse Scholars. The students were selected for
their extraordinary academic and leadership potential. They will each receive a four-year,
full-tuition leadership scholarship from the Posse Foundation’s partner colleges and universities.
Congratulations to the following students:
• Alief Early College High School
• Drew Bernard (The University of Texas at Austin)
• Hastings High School
• Christian Gonzalez (The University of Texas at Austin)
• Kerr High School
• Mariah Menendez (Carleton College)
• Jannette Nguyen (University of Virginia)
• Khuong Nguyen (University of Virginia)
• Emmanuel Valencia (Texas A&M University)
• Taylor High School
• Allison Sanborn (Texas A&M University)
Two Alief ISD student groups performed in the community during Winter Break on December
21. The Alief Middle School Girls’ Harmony Choir performed on Univision’s Morning Show,
and the Collins Elementary Choir performed a holiday song at the Toyota Center. The Collins
performance was part of the pre-game show before the Houston Rockets took on the Charlotte
Hornets.
Hastings High School students Cristian Gutierrez (tuba), Dennis Pena (clarinet), Gideon
Mukoro (french horn), Hector Mexquitic (trumpet), Saul Diaz (trumpet) and Jose Gutierrez
(euphonium) earned spots in the Region 23 Honor Band. Dennis Pena and Cristian Gutierrez
also advanced to area competitions, where they will audition for the Texas All-State Band.
Kerr High School teacher Steven Bolting was presented the 2015 Inspiration Award by The
University of Texas at Dallas’s Erick Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.
Bolting, who was nominated by his former students, was recognized for motivating and
inspiring future computer scientists.
Educational Diagnostician Candace Cockrell recently received her doctorate degree from
Sam Houston State University in Educational Leadership. Her dissertation focused on the
academic performance of students attending early childhood programs.
O’Donnell Middle School teacher Dr. Richard Spitz performed with the Theatre Under the
Stars orchestra in the recent production of A Christmas Story.
Heflin Elementary teacher Irene Oloko received funding for two projects through
DonorsChoose.org. She received funding for healthy snacks to help keep kindergarteners’
brains alert and energized for school work. She was also awarded iPads as learning tools.
Kerr High School students Julian Trinidad (trombone), Matthew Davis (trumpet) and Ivan Pham
(bass clarinet) will be performing in the Honors Performance Series Band at Carnegie Hall in New
York City in February. These talented students earned finalist spots after competing against more than
20,000 other applicants from approximately 15 countries across the globe.
Hastings High School student Tia Jones was named by the Houston Chronicle as a High School
Athlete of the Week for the week of January 5. She was recognized for multiple double-digit scoring
games, including 21 points against Fort Bend Clements High School.
Elsik and Taylor High School were named members of the Super Bowl High School Honor Roll.
The initiative, launched by the National Football League, recognizes schools and communities that
contributed to Super Bowl history and positively impacted the game of football. Both schools were each
given a commemorative Wilson Golden Football in honor of their respective graduates who were on
active Super Bowl rosters. Tony Hills (Elsik Class of 2003) previously attended Youens, Youngblood
and Alief Middle and currently plays for the New Orleans Saints. Michael Bennett (Taylor Class of 2004)
previously attended Mahanay, Albright and Elsik and currently plays for the Seattle Seahawks.
Kerr High School student Hong Nguyen was awarded the Quest Bridge Scholarship, a full four-year
scholarship worth more than $200,000. Nguyen, who is one of three Alief ISD students to receive the
scholarship, will attend the University of Pennsylvania.
Five Alief ISD Career & Technical Education (CTE) students earned the top level award in the
WorkKeys Career Readiness Certification Program. Deshaun Greco (Hastings), Juan Ligas (Elsik),
Juan Castaneda (Elsik), Marco Corona (Hastings) and Natalia Gomez (Elsik) received gold certificates
based on their results in Reading, Math and Locating Information. A total of 95 CTE students received
a bronze, silver or gold certificate based on their test scores.
O’Donnell Middle School received a $4,500 grant from best-selling author James Patterson to support
the school library. The Scholastic Reading Club will also match each dollar of Patterson’s donation
with bonus points that teachers can use to acquire books and other materials for their classrooms.
O’Donnell was selected from approximately 28,000 applications.
The Holub Middle School Art Department received a Target field trip grant. Holub students will have
the chance to take field trips to the University of Houston, including visits to the school’s Art Department
and to the Moores School of Music.
Killough Middle School teacher Gayle Price has been nominated for the 2015-16 LifeChanger of the
Year Award. The program recognizes and rewards the best K-12 public and private school educators
and employees who are making a difference in the lives of students by exemplifying excellence, positive
influence and leadership. Price is also up for the “LifeChanger Spirit Award,” which will be given to the
nominee whose community demonstrates the most support for his or her nomination. Support can be
demonstrated through positive comments on the nominee’s profile page.
Alief ISD graduate Soheil Nanjee was recently promoted to Broadcast Director at the University of
Houston’s Video Production Program. This is a paid position for Nanjee, who as a student at Taylor
served as the Video News Director in the school’s CTE Video Production Program. Nanjee graduated
from Taylor in 2013 and previously attended Smith, Chancellor and Alief Middle.
Alief Early College High School and Kerr High School are among 26 public schools in the
entire state of Texas to be nominated for national Blue Ribbon Schools recognition. It is very rare
for a district to have multiple campuses nominated. Alief Early College and Kerr were selected as
exemplary high performing schools as measured by state and national assessments.
District Secondary Science Fair Winners
• Junior Division (Grades 7-8)
• Tied for first place: Patrick Dang (Albright), Damilola Afolabi (Killough), Vivian Lam
(O’Donnell) and Edgar Leon (Olle)
• Ninth Grade Division
• Tied for first place: Raveena Mahabir (Taylor) and Victoria Lodico (AECHS)
• Tied for third place: Ashley Bui (ENGC) and Miguel Velasquez (AECHS)
• Senior Division (Grades 10-12)
• Tied for first place: Oscar Rodriguez (Elsik), Oluwaseun Fenuyi & Kacey Vuong (Hastings)
and Cindy Diep, Anh Minh Nguyen & Talia Milan (AECHS)
Heflin Elementary student Aaliyah Williams and Chambers Elementary student Danelis
Rodriguez Urbina were named winners of the 2015-16 Module One Excellence Award from the
Dare to Dream Program. Winners are selected from Dare to Dream Program schools across the
Houston area. The two students were nominated by their teachers for exemplifying the six pillars of
character and being true leaders.
Youens Elementary student Ngan Vo’s artwork was selected for the 2016 PBK Calendar.
Winning students will receive a calendar, a certificate and a gift card to Barnes & Noble. PBK is an
architectural company that builds schools in the Houston area.
January Scholar Athletes
• Lydia Taylor represents the Elsik High School basketball program, which she has been a
member of since her freshman year. Taylor has also been a member of the volleyball, track and
cross country programs. In addition to participating in athletics, Taylor is the Class of 2016 Vice
President, volunteers at Alief elementary schools and works at H-E-B. She previously attended
Kennedy Elementary School, Mata Intermediate School and Holub Middle School and will
attend Stephen F. Austin University, where she plans to major in Business and Communications.
• Babajide (BJ) Odole represents the Taylor High School basketball program. He has been a
member of the program for four years and has been a varsity player for the past two years.
Odole has also been a member of the Taylor boys track team. He is a member of the African
American Student Association and volunteers for his church. Odole previously attended
Chancellor Elementary School and Alief Middle School and plans to major in Computer
Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin.
LINC Program teacher Tanesha Turner received funding from DonorsChoose.org for two
projects. With the first donation, the school received ACER notebooks, headphones, flashcards,
grammar and writing posters and snacks to help new students with their language acquisition. With
the second donation, LINC received snacks and hooded jackets to provide new students with some
of their basic needs.
The Alief ISD Purchasing Department earned the Texas Association of School Business
Officials (TASBO) Award of Merit with Recognized Status in Purchasing Operations for the
fourth year in a row. Purchasing was recognized for its commitment to professional standards
in the acquisition of goods and services. The application process is an in-depth review of staff
training, policies, practices, written documentation, vendor communication and audit results.
School districts receiving recognized status are considered the most innovative in Texas.
Alief Early College High School was ranked the seventh best high school in Houston by
website Niche. The ranking was based on factors such as graduation statistics and student
and parent reviews.
The Hastings High School 2015-16 yearbook was selected as one of this year’s Balfour
Yearbooks National Samples. Sample yearbooks are used as journalism resources in
workshops across the country. This select group makes up fewer than 3% of publications
Balfour will produce this year, and books are selected based on the quality of the work.
Alief Early College High School students Daniela Melendez, Beverly Moreno and Elsy
Moreno received funding from the International Management District. The students will be
attending the Congress of Future Medical Leaders in Boston, and the invitation was extended
to them for being “America’s highest achieving high school students.” The event is hosted by
the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists.
Cummings Elementary and Martin Elementary have been selected to participate in Young
Audiences of Houston’s Full STEAM Ahead initiative (FSA) during the spring 2016 semester.
As FSA participants, educators will be eligible to receive professional development credit
for learning how to use arts-based strategies to teach science, technology, engineering and
mathematics (STEM) subjects, an in-classroom partnership with a master teaching artist/
mentor from one of Houston’s leading arts education organizations, admission to the 2016
Houston Arts Partners Conference to connect with more arts integration experts and online
STEAM resources to showcase, share and develop lessons.
The Elsik High School Blue Cetane Team received funding from the Westchase District
Community Fund. The organization is the charitable donations component of the Westchase
District. The funds will be used by the Alief ISD Career & Technical Education students in the
Auto Technology Class for the building of another vehicle.
Heflin Elementary teacher Laura Donaldson received funding from DonorsChoose.org for
writing supplies for her classroom.
Alief ISD graduate Adaora Elonu will be representing Nigeria on the Nigerian Olympic
Team in the 2016 FIBA - International Basketball Federation Women’s Olympic Qualifying
Tournament in June. Elonu, who is currently playing professional basketball in Spain, aims to
compete in the Rio 2016 Olympics this summer. She previously attended Liestman, Kennedy,
Mata and Holub and graduated from Elsik in 2008.
Week of February 4, 2016
Fifteen Alief ISD student athletes announced their commitments on National Signing Day.
Congratulations to the following students:
• Elsik High School: Dontavious Jackson (Florida State University), Chris Brown (The
University of Texas at Austin), Javante Hubbard (Rice University), Aaron Jackson (Texas
A&M University-Kingsville), Amorama Noel (The University of Texas at El Paso), Ernest
“EJ” Davis (Navarro College), Jimmie Banks (Navarro College), Devin Henderson
(Coffeyville Community College) and Nicolas Castleberry (Coffeyville Community
College)
• Hastings High School: Temisan Kuyatsemi (Abilene Christian University), Chris
Mayes (Texas Institute of Agriculture & Technology), Jhonte’ Hawkins (Texas Institute
of Agriculture & Technology) and Ladarren Williams (Texas Institute of Agriculture &
Technology)
• Taylor High School: Louis Hamilton (Navarro College) and Benjie Franklin (Navarro
College)
The Alief ISD Maintenance Department was recently awarded the Environmental
Stewardship Award from Tandus Centiva, the company that provides carpeting to the district.
As old carpet is removed from Alief facilities, it is recycled into new flooring products. Alief
ISD has recycled 56,468 pounds of old carpet.
Holmquist Elementary teacher Dr. Sergio Reyna (Elementary Bilingual), Martin
Elementary teacher Evelyn Corleto (Elementary ESL) and Elsik Ninth Grade Center
teacher Izabel Hlayhel (Secondary ESL) were recently announced as the Alief ISD
Houston Area Association for Bilingual Education (HAABE) Teachers of the Year. These
three educators will represent the district at the HAABE Bilingual/ESL Teacher of the Year
Awards Ceremony in April.
Alief ISD students received 46 Gold Key, Silver Key and Honorable Mention recognitions
from The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards of Harris County. Gold Key winners will compete
at the national level. Congratulations to our Gold Key recipients:
• Elsik High School: Ejovi Obus, Bao Pham, Jailene Reyes, Milla Storey and Cristina
Villasenor
• Kerr High School: Emmanuel Valencia
• Taylor High School: Zayan Ali and Huy Le
Congratulations to the winners of the Alief ISD Sixth Grade District Science Fair:
• First Place (tie): Tammy Dang (Mata) and Kevin Tran (Mata)
• Second Place: Melissa Luna (Mata)
• Third Place (tie): Gabriela Gonzalez (Budewig) and Jessica Nguyen (Youngblood)
The Alief ISD T-STEM Academies were recently recognized by the Galveston Bay
Foundation. The schools were honored for their contribution in saving the coast with the
assistance of district business partner CITGO.
Elsik High School student Grace Akinyemi was recently named the KPRC2 & Mattress 1
One Senior Scholarship Winner. She received a $2,500 scholarship and a $500 certificate for
use at a Mattress 1 One store. Click here to see KPRC2’s Ruben Galvan surprise Akinyemi
during school.
The Alief Jazz Ballet received Best in Contemporary, Best in Hip Hop, Best Story Telling and
Top Duet/Trio from the 2016 West Coast Elite (WCE) Dance Championship. The group was
named second place grand champions for this regional competition.
Thirteen Alief ISD art students received top honors from the Houston Livestock Show &
Rodeo District Rodeo Art Contest. The winning pieces will be on display at the rodeo at NRG
Park in March.
• 2D Art Category:
• Best of Show Winners: Ja’Rae McClelan (Bush Elementary School), Madeline Nguyen
(Alief Middle School) and Angel Lozano (Hastings High School)
• Gold Medal Recipients: Tiffany Dang (Youens Elementary School), Kim Nguyen
(Albright Middle School), Marie Nguyen (Kerr High School) and Marbella Alberto (Elsik
High School)
• 3D Art Category:
• Best of Show Winners: Jennifer Cisneros (Elsik High School), Vy Do (Hastings High
School) and Diana Zapata (Hastings High School)
• Gold Medal Recipients: Daniella Romero (Hastings High School), Karina Giron (Hastings
High School) and Kashaf Fatima (Taylor High School)
The Alief ISD varsity boys and girls swim teams each advanced five swimmers to the Region
VI Championship Meet after competing at the District Championship at Ness Natatorium. The
varsity swimmers qualified for regionals in the Girls 200 Yard Medley Relay, Boys 200 Yard
Medley Relay, Girls 200 Yard Freestyle Relay and Boys 200 Yard Freestyle Relay. Hastings
High School students Lindsay Baldwin qualified for the 100 Yard Breaststroke, while Adrian
Wong qualified for the 100 Yard Freestyle.
Kerr High School students Julianne Escanan, Hannah Bilski, Faye Thai and Dominique
Dinh performed after the Houston Symphony Orchestra’s 2016-2017 season announcement at
Jones Hall. The students make up the Kerr Cambiata String Quartet.
Congratulations to the following Alief ISD staff members who received funding for their
projects from DonorsChoose.org:
• Heflin Elementary - Mary Bondurant
• Budewig Intermediate - Florentino Liguden and Lashanna Daniels
• Alief Learning Center - Rebecca Barnett, Gabriel Parshall, Temitope Okanlawon, Rose
Green and Darrence Phillips
Alief ISD graduate Michael Bennett was named Defensive MVP during this year’s NFL
Pro-Bowl in Hawaii. Bennett, who plays for the Seattle Seahawks, graduated from Taylor in
2004 and previously attended Mahanay, Albright and Elsik.
The Alief FFA brought home many awards from the San Antonio Livestock Show. Christian
Macedo (Elsik) won Reserve Grand Champion Overall with his longhorn bull. Daniella Romero
(Hastings) placed first in her class with her longhorn steer. Xavier Ahmed (Hastings) won third
in his class with his longhorn bull.
The upcoming Family U Conference was recently spotlighted by the Harris County
Department of Education. The event will be held on Saturday, March 5.
Taylor High School student Marcos Mendez advanced to the UIL state quarterfinals in Film.
His narrative video is titled,” H.O.P.E. in the beginning.” The Taylor High School Communication
Center was also recently featured by KPRC Channel 2.
Daniel Vazquez (Klentzman Intermediate), Trichelle Jones (Holmquist Elementary) and
Eduardo Ramos (Miller Intermediate) were respectively named the first, second and third
place Alief ISD District Spelling Bee winners. Vasquez will compete in the 2016 Houston Public
Media Spelling Bee on April 2.
The Alief ISD Culinary Arts Team recently won first place at the 4th Annual Soup’er Bowl
Soup Cook-Off. The students won the title in 2013 and 2015 and finished third in 2014.
The following Alief ISD students recently received scholarships through the 2016 Salvation
Army Youth of the Year Scholarship Competition:
• Maria Slater (Elsik High School) - $20,000
• Kimberly Hernandez (Elsik Ninth Grade Center) - $2,500
• Ingrid Torres (Hastings Ninth Grade Center) - $750
• Noemy Albiter (Killough Middle School) - $500
Teams from Albright Middle School, Killough Middle School, O’Donnell Middle School,
Olle Middle School, Alief Early College High School and Kerr High School will advance
to the Navy’s Regional SeaPerch Competition on March 26 based on their times at district
competitions. SeaPerch is an underwater robotics competition.
Elsik Air Force JROTC student Cadet Staff Sergeant Marco Soto came in second place out
of more than 200 cadets in the Individual Drill Down Event at the Cleveland High School Drill
Meet. Cadet Second Lieutenant Jennesis Dominguez recently had the honor of introducing
Former Central Intelligence Agency Director General David Petraeus at a lecture with the
World Affairs Council of Greater Houston. Dominguez and Cadet Technical Sergeant Kler Soe
also had the opportunity to participate in a forum discussion with the general.
Three Alief ISD athletic teams made it to playoffs. Taylor High School and Elsik High School’s
varsity boys basketball teams both advanced to area competitions and will play Manvel and
Dobie at 6:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. respectively tonight at Wheeler Field House. The Hastings
High School varsity girls basketball team also competed at area competitions.
Page 1 of 2
Hastings High School students won many awards from the Needville UIL Invitational. Duy
Dinh, Harry Khuc and Brooke Addis were named second place Accounting Team. Ann Morris
placed first in News Writing, second in Headline Writing and third in Feature Writing. William
Ward placed first in Headline Writing and second in Feature Writing. Eloisa Cortinas placed
second in Editorial Writing. Jasmin Garmendia, Jessica Villamar, Cortinas, Morris and Ward
were named first place Journalism Team.
The Kerr High School Speech and Debate Team took home first place sweepstakes at
Klein High School. The team competed against more than 40 schools. Ten students will be
competing at state.
The Elsik High School varsity track team placed second at the Pearland Track Meet, while
the junior varsity team won first place at the Hastings Track Meet.
Alief ISD students Ejovi Obus (Elsik), Emmanuel Valencia (Kerr) and Huy Le (Taylor)
have their gold key art pieces from the Scholastic Art Awards on display at the Archway Gallery.
These are three out of 251 gold key pieces selected for the exhibition showing until March 7.
Scholar Athletes for February:
• Faridat Agboola represents the Hastings High School tennis program, which she has
been a member of since her freshman year. In addition to participating in athletics, she
is ranked third in her class, she is a section leader in the school band, a class officer, the
National Science Honor Society President, the Math Honor Society President, a member
of the African Students Association and a participant of the Academic Decathlon. Agboola
previously attended Liestman Elementary, Youngblood Intermediate and Killough Middle
School. She has already been accepted to The University of Texas at Austin, where she
plans to major in Biology to become a gastrointestinal surgeon.
• Jorge Martinez represents the Hastings High School soccer program, which he has been
active in for four years. He has also been a member of the Hastings cross-country and track
teams. In 2015, Martinez was a Regional Qualifier in the 1600 meter run. Outside athletics,
he is a member of the Hastings Marching Band and the National Science Honor Society.
Martinez attended Smith Elementary, Mahanay Elementary, Klentzman Intermediate and
Killough Middle School. He plans to attend Texas A&M University to major in Biology. He
hopes to attend medical school to become a heart surgeon.
Alief ISD graduate Jennifer Watts was recently spotlighted by the local media. She is a part
of a team of cancer biologists at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) that created
a way to make cancer cells destroy themselves in animal trials. Watts, who attended Martin
Elementary, Owens Intermediate and Olle Middle School and graduated from Taylor High
School in 2011, is currently a senior at UTSA. She was inspired by her mother Judy Watts, a
cancer survivor and Klentzman Intermediate 5th Grade Math Specialist.
Page 2 of 2
Week of March 29, 2016
Alief ISD was recognized at the Texas School Public Relations Association (TSPRA) Star Awards
for outstanding education communications. In the division for school districts with more than 30,000
students, Alief ISD received four Gold Stars, four Silver Stars and four Bronze Stars for projects
including The Alief Communicator district newsletter, the Alief Proud campaign, Points of Pride and
the staff birthday cards.
Alief ISD high school band, orchestra and choir students earned 525 medals at the University
Interscholastic League (UIL) Solo & Ensemble Festival. A grand total of 278 students advanced to
the state competitions.
Twenty-five Alief ISD high school art students advanced to state competitions for the Visual Arts
Scholastic Event (VASE).
Five Alief ISD students from Alief Middle School and Albright Middle School advanced to the
Exxon Mobil Texas State Science Fair after placing at the Science and Engineering Fair of Houston.
Alief Early College High School student Clinton Thai received first place in the poster contest’s senior
division. Ten other students either won awards or received summer internship opportunities.
Alief Early College High School was highlighted in the Houston Chronicle as one of 10 schools
with small or nonexistent achievement gaps that also serve mostly low-income students.
The Alief FFA had a great start to the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo. Kiowa Davis (Elsik)
participated in the calf scramble and was the first student to catch a calf that night and to pull it
across the line. He received a belt buckle and will receive money to purchase his heifer for next year.
FFA also won second place as tour guides. They toured the younger children around the rodeo and
educated them on the animals.
The annual Alief ISD Family U Conference had a successful turnout with a total of 470 Alief ISD
adults, children and staff participants. More than 200 families engaged in about 20 sessions in
English and Spanish.
Three students from the Hastings Ninth Grade Center ARC PROJECT STEM Club advanced
to the Texas Alliance for Minorities in Math and Science State STEM Competition scheduled for April
30. The students are April Brito, Elisa Melara and Munachimso Metu.
Alief Early College High School student Drew Bernard received the Horatio Alger Scholarship
from the Children’s Defense Fund. He will be recognized in a ceremony in Washington, D.C. in April.
The Hastings High School Color Guard recently earned second place at the Pearland Texas Color
Guard Circuit competition.
The Elsik High School Encore Show Choir sang for the African Pan American iXchange Women’s
Leadership Conference. After singing for the opening gala, students got to meet and greet Ndileka
Mandela, who is Nelson Mandela’s granddaughter. She asked to speak to the students about her
grandfather overcoming adversity.
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Week of March 29, 2016
O’Donnell Middle School students were featured in the Houston Chronicle for their participation in
a presentation by NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. O’Donnell was also selected to participate in
the Rockets Science program, a collaboration between the Houston Rockets, NASA Space Center
and Houston Community College. The students will build rockets and launch them in April.
Hastings High School student Krisseyda Noemi Espinal is a delegate to the Congress of Future
Medical Leaders this summer. The congress is a program for students who want to become physicians
or to go into medical research fields. She was nominated based on her academic achievement,
leadership potential and determination to serve humanity in the field of medicine.
Scholar Athletes for March:
• Alejandra Salas represents the Taylor High School tennis program, which she has been a
member of since her freshman year. In addition to participating in athletics, she is a member of
the marching band, is in Student Council and works a part-time job. Salas previously attended
Liestman Elementary School, Youngblood Intermediate School and Killough Middle School. She
has already been accepted to Arkansas State University and Oklahoma State University.
• Anthony John represents the Taylor High School track and field program, which he has been
active in for four years. Outside of athletics, he is the president of the National Honor Society
as well as the Gents Club. He is also a Superintendent’s Academically Talented Scholar and is
active in Student Council, the Taylor African-American Student Association and wind ensemble
band. John also works a part-time job. He previously attended Youens Elementary School, Boone
Elementary School, Horn Elementary School, Petrosky Elementary School, Miller Intermediate
School and Albright Middle School. He has received offers from Brown University and Houston
Baptist University to continue his running career.
Five Holub Middle School students were given special recognition as the only youth performing
with 27 adult handbell choirs. Handbell ringers Kaitlyn Imhoff, Treveon Pollard, Andy Romero,
Carolina Solis and Xavier Sutton performed in the FebFest, a massed ringing and festival concert at
the Stafford Centre. The event was sponsored by the Greater Houston Handbell Association.
Elsik High School student Blessing Yemi-Ese received a $1,000 scholarship from the Gulf Coast
Regional Blood Center. The center awarded the scholarship to the school with the largest blood drive
held after Winter Break.
Hastings High School students Cindy Tran and Ann Morris received Best of Show and first
place respectively from the Association of Texas Photography Instructors Winter Conference. Tran
received her award in digital editing, while Morris received her recognition in the picture package
contest.
Alief ISD graduate Amos Olatayo recently received a contract to play professional basketball in
Madrid, Spain. Olatayo graduated from Elsik High School in 2010. He previously attended Best
Elementary School, Alexander Elementary School, Mata Intermediate School and Holub Middle
School.
Page 2 of 2
Week of April 15, 2016
Alief Early College High School and Kerr High School advanced to the SeaPerch National
Competition after qualifying at regionals. Teams Fresh Off the Perch (AECHS) and One Direction
(Kerr) will compete against more than 175 teams from across the country and Puerto Rico at the
national competition in May. Killough Middle School also won first place in the middle school division
at the regional competition. The underwater robotics competition is supported by the U.S. Navy
Department of Outreach.
Liestman Elementary student Dannielle Liggans met and introduced herself to President Barack
Obama during the South by Southwest Conference in Austin. Liggans is a kindergartener in the
school’s dual language program.
Students from the Hastings High School Fashion Department won scholarships from the Fashion
My Future Career Conference state-wide design competition. Ana Nolasco, Deily Navas and Elvia
Rodriguez placed first, second and third respectively, and each student received a scholarship.
Alief ISD high school speech and debate students were recognized at the Texas Forensic
Association’s state tournament. Mbolle Ekane (Elsik) won third place in Prose Interpretation.
Rebecca Grant (Hastings) made it to state finals in Congress. Ever Cruz (Taylor) and Kaily Edison
(Taylor) were state quarterfinalists in Informative Speaking and Programmed Oral Interpretation
respectively. Leticia Nketiah (Taylor) was a state finalist in Student Congressional Debate.
Alief ISD Career & Technical Education students were recently named regional semi-finalists
in the Stratasys Systems 2016 Extreme Redesign 3D Printing Challenge. The following students
were spotlighted: Luigi Defoe (Elsik) for his drone innovation, Eduardo Cantu (Elsik) for his lighter
military vest innovation, Tianna John (Hastings) for her baby bottle innovation and Richard Tran
(Hastings) and Andrew Diep (Hastings) for their hoverseat innovation. The students are in the Intro
to Engineering class.
Million Mile Month Update:
• Team Leaderboard: Administration Instruction is currently in the lead.
Administration Business and Collins Elementary are in second and third
place respectively.
• Individual Leaderboard: Sue Page (Administration Instruction), Roxana
Subonj (Collins) and Rita Minter (Holub) are in first, second and third place
respectively.
Alief Jazz Ballet students Blessing Yemi-Ese (Elsik) and Jose Gonzales (Hastings) received
scholarships from the Velocity Dance Convention. Yemi-Ese placed second for her solo in the
contemporary category. She also received a dance scholarship to the Edge Performing Arts Center
in Los Angeles, where she can continue her dance training with free classes. Gonzales received first
runner up “Maximum Velocity Artist” out of all of the senior boys and received a dance convention
scholarship at any touring city for a year. He will be attending the national convention and competition
in Las Vegas this summer.
Two Alief ISD Special Olympics Teams placed at area competitions. The Alief Superstars and the
Alief Shooting Stars placed second and third respectively in their brackets at the Special Olympics
Area Basketball Tournament in Cy-Fair.
Page 1 of 3
Mata Intermediate School students Qayyum Ayilara and Arwon Thanars won Individual Student
Award prizes in the Think Through Math 2016 Lonestar Math Cup. Students across Texas spent
more than one million hours and completed 305 million lessons and 102 million math problems in
29 days. Each student won a Wal-Mart gift card.
Sneed Elementary students in Marco Dosal’s third grade bilingual glass reached its first goal
of 500,000 points using Think Through Math and will donate points to the non-profit organization
NO KIDS HUNGRY. The class hopes to win another 500,000 points so that it can donate to the
St. Jude Children’s Hospital.
Hastings High School student Ahmir West, who is a point guard for the varsity girls
basketball team, was selected to participate in the Houston Area Girls Basketball Coaches
All-Star Game. After graduating, West will play basketball at Adams State College in Alamosa, Colo.,
on a full athletic scholarship.
District University Interscholastic League (UIL) Results:
• Accounting: Eri-Ife Divine Adepoju (first place/Kerr), Duy Dinh (second place/Hastings) and
Sheila Page (third place/Hastings)
• Current Events: Vera Nweke (third place/Kerr)
• Computer Applications: Thanh Nguyen (first place/Elsik)
• Editorial Writing: Marisa Cherry (first place/Taylor)
• Feature Writing: Ann Morris (first place/Hastings) and Estefania Rodriguez (third place/Taylor)
• Headline Writing: William Ward (first place/Hastings) and Ann Morris (third place/Hastings)
• Persuasive Speaking: Vera Nweke (second place/Kerr)
• Poetry Interpretation: Gwendolyn Natividad (first place/Kerr), Kimora Kelley (second place/
AECHS) and Connie Ogiamien (third place/Taylor)
• Prose Interpretation: Rem Aitbouchireb (first place/Kerr), Huy Bui (second place/Kerr) and
Fortune Onwunali (third place/Hastings)
• Ready Writing: Heather Beans (third place/Hastings)
• Social Studies: Hang Tran Nguyen (second place/Kerr)
• Teams: Hastings High School (first place in Accounting and journalism) and Kerr High School
(first place in Speech and third place in Computer Science and CX Debate)
The Hastings High School Journalism Program recently received honors from two organizations.
The campus newspaper has been named as a finalist for “Star” rating for the Interscholastic League
Press Conference (ILPC) from the University Interscholastic League. The rating indicates that the
newspaper has done an outstanding job in all areas of journalism. Current Yearbook Editor-in-Chief
Ann Morris and 2015 Editor-in-Chief Claudia Irra both have photos featured in the 30th edition of the
Yearbook Yearbook. Produced by Balfour, the publication contains examples of original themes and
designs as well as unique photos and coverage ideas from schools across the country.
Elsik High School student Miguel Rivas was invited to go to NASA this summer to compete in
the NASA High School Aerospace Program. During the competition, he will join a team of 10 to 12
students to compete in various challenges and will be mentored by NASA professionals. He will also
be able to visit areas not generally open to the public.
The Alief Middle School Harmony Singers received sweepstakes at the UIL Concert and Sight
Reading Competition. Sweepstakes is the highest rating earned at this competition.
Page 2 of 3
Hastings High School students Jorge Martinez and Paul Okwegba received awards at the
Waltrip Jazz Festival. Martinez won best trumpet player of the festival, while Okwegba (saxophone)
won an outstanding soloist award.
Alief ISD Basketball All-District Teams:
• Girls Basketball:
•
Offensive Player of the Year: Ahmir West (Hastings)
•
Co-Coach of the Year: Corey Brotherton (Hastings)
•
First Team All-District: Jolia Spot (Elsik), Ashley Moore (Hastings), Kai-Lee Valentine
(Hastings), Natalie Brannon (Taylor) and Tia Jones (Hastings)
•
Academic All-District: Lydia Taylor (Elsik), Crystal Broussard (Hastings), Sarah
Faulhaber (Hastings), Alia Mortada (Hastings), Tatiyanna Riley (Hastings), Natalie
Brannon (Taylor), Kylah Ingram (Taylor) and Alayshia Jones (Taylor)
• Boys Basketball:
•
First Team All-District: Domonic Morgan (Elsik), Julius Hardison (Hastings), Simon
Falokun (Taylor) and Eric Olonade (Taylor)
Outley Elementary raised $6,861.51 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Elsik High School students Mariah Moore, Rut Ferretiz and Zoria Loague were selected to
participate in the 2016 Houston Methodist Hospital Summer Nursing Externship Program. The
program is sponsored by Communities In Schools.
Alief ISD staff members are avid supporters of wellness initiatives. Holub Middle School teacher
Carl Classen competed in the 40K Woodlands Marathon. Cummings Elementary Principal Jeanette
Byrd won the 5K Lookin’ Good Shamrock Strut Fun Run. She was the first overall 5K female finisher
for this fundraiser, which provides necessary vision services for adults and children.
Elsik Ninth Grade Center Principal Vinson Lewis was recently recognized by the C.A.U.S.E.
Foundation as the recipient of its Excellence in Education Award at the annual banquet. This award
is given to an individual who has shown outstanding achievements in the field of education.
Landis Elementary ESL Specialist Anna Escobar has been selected to present at the Houston
Baptist University’s Teaching and Learning Symposium. She will present on Sheltered Strategies
for the ELL Classroom.
DonorsChoose.org Projects:
• Rees Elementary teacher Amy Martinez received funding from Dwight Howard with the
Houston Rockets for her project. She will receive iPads with cases and wireless headphones for
hands-on learning for her Pre-Kindergarten students.
• Three Heflin Elementary teachers received funding for their respective projects. Mary Bondurant
received funding for collage pots and life cycle vocabulary readers for her Kindergarten students.
Laura Donaldson received funding for bouncy bands to help students focus on learning. Irene
Oloko received funding for a class rug to enhance with class structure.
• Boone Elementary teacher Heather Hughes received funding for music carpets for her music
classroom. Students will use the rugs to learn where to sit.
Page 3 of 3
Martin Elementary teacher Teresa Salinas and Alief Middle School teacher Michaela
Henderson were respectively named the 2016 Alief ISD Elementary and Secondary Teachers of
the Year. Salinas is a 4th grade bilingual teacher, and Henderson is a 7th grade science teacher.
• Team Leaderboard: Administration Instruction is still in the lead.
Administration Business is in second place, while Collins Elementary is in
third place.
• Individual Leaderboard: Roxana Subonj (Collins), Raul Pabon (Hastings)
and Rita Minter (Holub) are in first, second and third place respectively.
Alief Middle School students Thao Le and Crystal Okoh were nominated to compete for
BroadCom Masters. It is a special event that allows participants to meet famous scientists,
senators and Vice President Joe Biden at the White House for a week. In order to be nominated,
Le and Okoh had to rank in the top 10 percent of all middle school students who competed at the
Texas State Science Fair.
Alief Early College High School students Seun Adebanjo and Busayo Okusaga have
qualified for the National Speech Debate Association National Competition in Utah this June.
Adebanjo made it to the finals in both Dramatic Interpretation and in Duo with Okusaga.
Former Martin Elementary student Miguel Morin is currently competing as a part of Team
Yankee on La Voz Kids, a music competition on Telemundo. Morin performed the song
Guadalajara on the show, which is broadcasted across the United States.
The Elsik High School Student Council was elected to the Texas Association of Student
Councils State Office of President. Amina Mabizari will serve as the Elsik student representative.
Alief ISD seniors received scholarships from the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo. The
Metropolitan, Opportunity and School Art Scholarships are each $18,000 over four years.
• Alief Early College High School: Bao Huynh (Metropolitan) and Sarah Babson (Opportunity)
• Elsik High School: Brian Bui (Metropolitan) and Grace Akinyemi (Metropolitan)
• Hastings High School: Faridat Agboola (Metropolitan)
• Kerr High School: Duong Vu (Metropolitan) and Mary Tran (Metropolitan)
• Taylor High School: Allison Sanborn (Metropolitan) and Dinh Le Thuy Anh (School Art)
Hastings High School student Temisan (TK) Kuyatsemi was selected to the Greater Houston
Coaches Association All-Star Football Game. The competition will be held in June. Kuyatsemi is
a senior defensive end football player for the Bears.
The O’Donnell Middle School Robotics Club competed in Rockets Science, a collaboration
between the Houston Rockets, Space Center Houston and Houston Community College.
O’Donnell received the award for “Most Successful Recovery” for its model rocket out of all of
the teams.
Page 1 of 2
The Olle Middle School Skybreakers Team won first place at the Texas Alliance for Minorities
in Engineering (TAME) and Southeastern Consortium for Minorities in Engineering (SECME)
bottle rocket competition.
Elsik High School student Emmanuel Johnson won first place in boys singles at the district
tennis meet. He defeated a tough Dulles High School player in three sets.
Hastings High School students Jasmine Akhiemien, Angelica Montoya Moreno and
Olamide Olotu were selected to participate in the 2016 Houston Methodist Hospital Summer
Nursing Externship Program.
The Hearne Elementary Student Council, with the help from the entire campus, raised
$2,797.01 during its annual Pennies for Patients Campaign. The fundraiser benefits the Leukemia
& Lymphoma Society.
Hastings High School students Josseline Vargas, Marcio Mbongo, Wilfido Ramos, Kevin
Ponce and Jonathon Pruneda were selected for a July backpacking trip to Glacier National
Park in Montana. Hastings students recently completed two backpacking trips to Huntsville and
Lake Livingston.
Kerr High School and Hastings High School students recently traveled to the Interscholastic
League Press Conference (ILPC) Spring Convention. At the Grand Awards Assembly, Ann Morris
(Hastings) was recognized as the state Yearbook Editor of the Year. In addition, Michael Bui (Kerr)
and Estefany Mejia (Hastings) received summer workshop scholarships. The Distinguished
Merit rating was awarded to the Kerronicle (Kerr) Newspaper, Bear Facts (Hastings) Newspaper,
Kerronicle (Kerr) Online Newspaper and the 2015 Bear Tracks (Hastings) Yearbook. Current
students and graduates also took home many first, second and third place finishes for their work
on their school publications in their respective divisions.
Hastings Ninth Grade Center Library Information Specialist Charla Hollingsworth
co-presented at the Texas Library Association annual conference with a fellow librarian. The
presentation was “10 Ways to Transform 21st Century Libraries.”
Hastings High School teacher Kim Smith received $2,000 worth of water sampling equipment
for benthic invertebrates, a weather station, and sling psychrometers to measure relative humidity.
Smith received the funding from DonorsChoose.org.
Alief ISD graduate Mikaley Brooks is a finalist for the 2016 Houston Texans Cheerleaders.
Voting will close at 10 a.m. on Monday, April 25. Click here to vote for Brooks, who previously
attended Chancellor Elementary School and Alief Middle School. She graduated from Taylor
High School in 2012.
Page 2 of 2
Seventeen Alief ISD high school students were named all-state winners at the State Visual
Arts Scholastic Event (VASE) Competition and received medals. Amina Mabizari (Elsik), Vanessa
Manzanarez (Hastings) and Huy Le (Taylor) also received the prestigious Gold Seal Award. Their
award-winning art pieces will be toured throughout the state of Texas. Approximately 100 Texas
students receive Gold Seal Awards. In addition, Mabizari received two state medals. Congratulations
to the following medal recipients:
• Elsik: Amina Mabizari, Sheila Concepcion, Marbella Alberto, Dominique Barard, Taifour
Traore, Jonathan Rivera, Joshua Smith, Jennifer Rivera, Cristina Villasenor and
Cristian Bunuca
• Hastings: April Marty and Vanessa Manzanarez
• Kerr: Thao Ngo and Joseph Bui
• Taylor: Blake Steel, Nick Jimenez and Huy Le
•
Team Leaderboard: Administration Instruction is still in the lead. Administration
Business is in second place, and Hastings High School is in third place.
•
Individual Leaderboard: Roxana Subonj (Collins), Raul Pabon (Hastings)
and Rita Minter (Holub) are in first, second and third place respectively.
Kerr High School student Shafin Amin was recently named the KPRC2 &
Mattress 1 One Senior Scholarship Winner. He received a $2,500 scholarship and a $500 certificate
for use at a Mattress 1 One store. Click here to see the video of the surprise.
Three Alief ISD students’ artwork will be featured in First Community Credit Union’s 2016-17 Annual
Academic Calendar. Adaris Socarras (Hastings), Juan Arrambide (Hastings) and Nina Le (Albright)
will also each receive $100. The students also won $100 for their school art department.
Budewig Intermediate raised $1,221.91 through Jump Rope for Heart. The initiative benefits the
American Heart Association.
Albright Middle School student Treasure Okey-llo is the winner of the third annual Short Story
and Poetry Writing Contest. Hosted by the Arts and Letters Committee of Houston Alumnae Chapter
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., her piece was titled “The Apparition.” Okey-Ilo won an e-reader and
will recite the poem at the group’s May meeting.
Alief Middle School teacher Joseph Senegal was nominated by the Harris County Department
of Education (HCDE) Alternative Certification Program as a candidate for the Texas Alternative
Certification Association (TACA) 2015-16 Intern of the Year Award. Each year, TACA selects three
finalists from a pool of nominees representing educator preparation programs across Texas to be
recognized at the annual conference of the Consortium of State Organizations for Texas Teacher
Education.
Alief ISD graduate Mikaley Brooks was selected as one of the 2016 Houston Texans Cheerleaders.
Brooks, who previously attended Chancellor Elementary School and Alief Middle School, graduated
from Taylor High School in 2012.
Week of May 12, 2016
Elsik Ninth Grade Center teacher Izabel Hlayhel was named the Houston Area Association for Bilingual
Educators Secondary ESL Teacher of the Year. She will move onto the state competition.
The Elsik High School Air Force JROTC Program recently received the Distinguished Unit Award. This
unit was one of 330 chosen out of 887 units worldwide that was selected for the Distinguished Unit Award
for the 2015-16 school year. This award emphasizes community service, and the Elsik JROTC Cadets have
performed more than 2,100 hours of community service in the past calendar year.
The following Alief ISD high school students have qualified for the UIL Academic State Meet after
placing at UIL Regional Competition. They will be competing in Austin in late May.
• Hastings: Duy Dinh (third place/Accounting), Ann Morris (second place/Feature Writing) and Fortune
Onwunali (first place/Prose Interpretation)
• Kerr: Huy Bui (second place/Prose Interpretation)
Three Alief ISD students were named recipients of the Gates Millennium Scholarship. Ibukunoluwa Falana
(AECHS), Grace Akinyemi (Elsik) and Lilian Ebhamen (Elsik) are among approximately 53,000 seniors
from across the nation who applied for this prestigious scholarship. Only 1,000 seniors were selected. Each
scholar will receive a full-ride scholarship for their post-secondary studies.
Elsik High School student Grace Akinyemi was chosen as one of only 70 winners from the Houston
area to receive the George and Mary Josephine Hamman Foundation Scholarship. It is valued at $18,000
over four years. Akinyemi has graciously declined the scholarship offer because she would like for the
scholarship to go to another deserving student in need.
Taylor High School student Diana Garcia was awarded the Commit For Life Scholarship. She was one
of only 20 recipients to receive this $1,000 award.
The Alief Jazz Ballet Performance Company took first in the Contemporary and Hip Hop routines at
the 24 Seven Dance Convention. Blessing Yemi-Ese (Elsik), Teyama Lewis (Hastings), Jose Gonzales
(Hastings), Trevon Anderson (Hastings) and Robyn Harris (Kerr) were awarded dance scholarships.
Congratulations to the following Alief ISD high school students, who will each be awarded a $1,000
scholarship by CITGO to pursue post-secondary studies in STEM (science, technology, engineering and
mathematics):
• AECHS: Busayo Okusaga
• Elsik: Wafeeq Ahmad and Abdul Campos Quintanilla
• Hastings: Xin Chen, Fola Okeyemi, Steven Gu, Vinh Le and Kiet Tat
• Kerr: Kathy Nguyen and Angel Phan
• Taylor: Sam Abayomi, Sasha Falaja, Jamese Harris, Chikodi Merenu and Cheyenne Redmond
The following Alief ISD high school students were each awarded a scholarship worth at least $800 by
the Alief Retired Educators Association:
• Kerr: Angel Phan
• AECHS: Alondra Martinez-Almanza
• Taylor: Jarmanese Davis and Allison Sanborn
• Elsik: Taylor Jones and Steven Johnson
• Hastings: Ha Nguyen and Nancy Serpas
Alief Early College High School student Elizabeth Lopez and Taylor High School student Temitayo
Ahmed were awarded scholarships from the Houston Westchase Rotary Club. They will each receive $500
each semester for four years of their college careers. The Houston Westchase Rotary Club is currently
supporting eight Alief graduates.
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The following Alief ISD high school students will each be awarded a $500 scholarship to pursue their
post-secondary education. The scholarship is made possible through the Alief Employee Alumni Association
(AEAA), its members and supporters.
• AECHS: Alondra Martinez-Almanza (AEAA Scholarship)
• Elsik: Timothy Dent (AEAA Scholarship)
• Hastings: Faridat Agboola (AEAA Scholarship) and Ashley Mondragon (AEAA-Raising Cane’s
Scholarship)
• Kerr: Kelly Yu (AEAA Scholarship)
• Taylor: Charee Williams (AEAA Scholarship)
The Alief Superstars Special Olympics Team brought home many awards from the
St. John’s Track and Field Meet. Students competed in different heats in either the 50 meter or the 100
meter event. Timothy Hinson (Hastings), Terrance Simms (Taylor), Jorge Malvaez (Youngblood), Jana
El-Saleh (Martin) and Devin Spaniel-Gunn (Martin) each secured a first place finish. Amanda Santana
(Taylor) and Kimberly Maradiaga (Outley) placed second. Jesus Patino (Hastings), Steve Garcia (Hastings),
Carlos Ramirez (Hastings) and Makayla Polk (Elsik) placed third.
Miller Intermediate’s Cyber Red Robotics Team from the school’s After School Program took second
place in the 4-H Agri-Biotics Competition at Prairie View A&M University.
Eight Killough Middle School students received the Certification of Merit Award from the Society of
Women Engineers of Houston. The students were Ayla Gumataotao, Kenya Mitchell, Omolere Aliu, Sabrina
Ho, Charlotte Garcia, Sally Hoang, Truc Truong and Precious Fowobaje.
Hastings High School student Jelilat Odubayo will be interning this summer with Jackson Walker Law
Firm. This opportunity is an eight-week, full-time, paid position.
Taylor High School teacher Christine Zimmerman was selected to speak at the 2016 AVID Summer
Institute General Session in Dallas. She is the only teacher speaking at the Dallas Summer Institute.
Alief Early College High School teacher Dr. Noemi Dimaliwat-Frias was awarded a certificate of
appreciation by Educate Texas, a public-private initiative of Communities Foundation of Texas. She was
recognized for her dedicated service to STEM education and the students of the Alief Early College High
School T-STEM Academy.
Staff from 16 Alief ISD schools received funding from the Alief ISD Education Foundation. These teacher
mini grants will further student learning across the district. This year’s mini grants funding total is more than
$40,000.
Alief Learning Center won a $5,000 grant through Lowes Toolbox for Education. The grant will be used to
transform its courtyard area into an outdoor classroom with a garden for science.
Budewig Intermediate Language Arts Specialist Pam Baker was recently awarded a $1,000 community
grant by Walmart. The money will go towards the campus’s Real Men Read Program and Literacy Festival.
Alief ISD graduate Martellus Bennett recently gave a TEDx Talk about creativity. Bennett will be playing
football for the New England Patriots this season. He graduated from Taylor in 2005.
Page 2 of 2
Cummings Elementary students performed “On Broadway” at the Hobby Center through the Music
Doing Good Program. The school and its students, administrators and staff were also recognized in
the Music Doing Good Quarterly Notes Spring Newsletter.
Alief Early College High School student Drew Bernard was named the recipient of the Children’s
Defense Fund-Texas Beat the Odds Scholarship. Bernard will receive a $5,000 scholarship over four
years and ongoing mentorship and guidance. He was chosen for overcoming tremendous adversity,
achieving academic excellence and demonstrating community service.
Alief ISD elementary and intermediate art teachers entered 200 pieces of art into the Region
4 Texas Elementary Art Meet (TEAM). Of the 200 pieces, 168 earned gold medals and 32 earned
ribbons. From the entire show, the top 10% are showcased on the Texas Art Education Association
website. Alief is proud to have 27 pieces in the Top of TEAM.
Killough Middle School student Toluwalope Cecilia Fabiyi was accepted into the Baylor College
of Medicine Saturday Morning Science Program. This STEM Program encourages students to pursue
careers in medicine and biosciences while interacting with physicians, tenured scientists, medical
students and graduate students.
Youngblood Intermediate students Jessica Nguyen, Joel Kim, Amie Nguyen and Ai Tran and
their educational videos were recognized at the 2016 DISTCO Digital Storytelling Contest. The
students won in every category in which they competed.
Two Hastings High School art students won prestigious honors. Osman Adams placed second
in the 9th Congressional District Art Competition held at Houston Community College’s Southeast
Campus. Osman’s photograph will be on display in Congressman Al Green’s Houston Office for a
year. Rosa Gomez won first place in the 18th Annual High Art Exhibition Awards Ceremony at the
O’Kane Gallery at the University of Houston-Downtown. Gomez was awarded $300 for her artwork.
The O’Donnell Middle School Tennis Team won its 12th district title in a row. The school won first
place in girls, boys and team.
Taylor High School student Nkechinyere Iwuorie was awarded a $1,000 scholarship from Alpha
Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Chi Omicron Omega Chapter.
The O’Donnell Middle School Robotics Club swept the 4-H Robotics Competition at Prairie View
A&M University. All teams received first, second and third place trophies.
Alief ISD Adaptive Physical Education teacher Mike Idrogo was honored during the 2016 Special
Olympics Greater Houston Area Spring Games Track & Field Competition. Idrogo has been a dedicated
volunteer for 15 years. He is an avid supporter of Special Olympics and is an Alief Super Stars Coach.
Kennedy Elementary teacher Stephanie Edgington and Martin Elementary teacher Kristie
Thorn are the recipients of the Alief ISD Excellence in Technology Award. Both teachers demonstrate
effective integration of technology into student learning.
Week of June 3, 2016
More than 2,700 Alief ISD seniors will graduate from the five high schools on Sunday and
Monday. The Class of 2016 has been awarded approximately $54 million in scholarships
and grants, exceeding the scholarship figures from recent years.
Hastings High School students Ann Morris and Fortune Onwunali are UIL 6A State
Champions. Morris won in Feature Writing, while Onwunali won in Prose.
Approximately 50 art pieces created by Alief ISD student are currently on exhibit at the
Texas Education Agency Building in Austin from now until July 15. This student art exhibit
consists exclusively of Alief ISD art.
The Alief ISD Education Foundation awarded 33 scholarships this year thanks in part to
your support. The scholarships totaled $62,000 for the Class of 2016.
The Alief Superstars were recognized at the Special Olympics Summer Games in
Arlington. Steve Garcia (Hastings) won gold in Softball Throw and silver in the 50M Dash.
Amanda Santana (Taylor) won gold in the 50M Dash and bronze for Softball Throw. Timothy
Hinson (Hastings) won a bronze medal for the 100M Dash.
Alief ISD CTE students Tam Pham, Karla Esquivel, Koncheieiona Schnyder, Joy
Ihnewe, Citlaly Plaza, Faridat Agboola and Katherine Zarate successfully passed
their Floral High School Certification Test. This is a two-part exam testing floral industry
knowledge and requires students to design two floral designs within an hour. The students
attend Elsik and Hastings.
The Elsik High School Choir won various awards at the Director’s Choice Competition
in San Antonio. The group won Superior Rating for Mixed Choir and Women’s Choir,
Excellent Rating for Show Choir and Alief Jazz Ballet and Best in Class for Mixed Choir
and Treble Choir. The Elsik Varsity Choir was also named Overall Outstanding in Class.
Hastings High School students Priscilla Cao, Sarah Faulhaber, Alecia Richard and
Fatou Salla each received the Roy Folse Memorial Fighting Bear Scholarship. The award
is worth $1,500. This is the seventh year for this memorial scholarship.
Rees Elementary, Heflin Elementary, Mata Intermediate and Alief Middle School are
winners of this year’s Alief ISD Battle of the Books Competition.
Outley Elementary recently received a grant from Target and a donation from a parent
sponsor. Thanks to their generosity, third grade students were able to visit NASA.
Page 1 of 2
Week of June 3, 2016
Elsik High School student Brian Mejicanos won the Best Video Award from the 2016
District Film Fest.
Six Hastings High School students signed their letters of intent to play college basketball.
Congratulations to Ahmir West, Sarah Faulhaber, Tia Jones, Ashley Moore, Ireale Singleton
and Lakyra Bedford.
Staff from Alief ISD’s Health Services Department were recently honored. Mata
Intermediate Nurse Wendy Mafumo was honored by Houston Chronicle as one of the
top 150 nurses in Houston. Alief ISD also recognized Dana Irving as the RN of the Year,
Nerissa Cato as the LVN of the Year and Carrington Ekar as the Clinic Aide of the Year.
Cummings Elementary interventionist Robin Ginger, Olle Middle School teacher
Christopher Lacy and Cummings Elementary Principal Jeanette Byrd each received
a Guiding Star Award from the Parents for Public Schools of Houston. Many Alief ISD
volunteers, parents, teachers and administrators were also nominated for this award.
Alief ISD Business and Community Partnerships Coordinator Dee Jones was named
Volunteer of the Year by the West Houston Chamber of Commerce.
Chambers Elementary teacher Tami Rawlins was selected to participate in the 2016-17
Cohort of the Early Literacy Leadership Academy at Rice University.
Elsik Ninth Grade Center Principal Vinson Lewis was selected from a pool of many
qualified Texas principals to attend a Harvard Summer Institute in June. He will attend the
“Urban School Leaders” institute with support from Raise Your Hand Texas.
Landis Elementary SAC Monitor Michael Lucio and his band King Finn will be
performing at the Free Press Summer Festival at NRG Park this weekend. Lucio is a
graduate of Hastings High School.
Elsik High School graduate Christine Ha (Class of 1997) was recognized on CNN
during a show called CNN Inspirations: Breaking Boundaries. She was the Season 3
winner of Masterchef. Ha also attended Heflin Elementary and Albright Middle School.
Alief ISD graduates Jermall and Jermell Charlo are the first twins to hold world titles
at the same time in the same division (junior middleweight). The brothers graduated from
Hastings in 2008.
Page 2 of 2

2015-16 Points of Pride

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