View Grades Online

Parents are invited to use the district’s GradeSpeed Program to access grades online. Grades for students, elementary and secondary, are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by computer by logging on www.bisd.us. Simply contact the campus to set up a GradeSpeed account or to obtain more information.

Annual Compulsory Attendance Notice

It is the desire of the Brownsville Independent School District to provide each student with the opportunity to receive a free and appropriate public education and to inform parents about compliance with Texas Compulsory School Laws.

A student is truant if he/she has 10 or more days or parts of days of unexcused absences within a six month period or three days or parts of days of unexcused absences within a four week period.

As per State Law (SB1432), it is the parent’s duty to monitor attendance and require students to attend school. Failure to comply will subject parents to legal prosecution. Parents are required to schedule a conference with school officials to discuss excessive absences.

Students and parents will be summoned before a Justice of the Peace for violation of Compulsory Attendance Laws where sanctions may involve court costs, fines, and/or community service.

Know the Rules

During the first two weeks of school, each BISD student will receive a 2009-2010 Student Code of Conduct/Student-Parent Handbook. This booklet, available in English and Spanish, explains the standards for student conduct and provides general information on school attendance, enrollment requirements, lunch hours, textbooks, weather emergencies, field trips, career pathways, homework, requirements for graduation, etc. Students and their parents/guardians are required to sign an acknowledgment form which verifies receipt of this publication. Receipt forms are kept on file by the campuses. Everyone is encouraged to read this booklet thoroughly in order to better understand district expectations.

BISD Middle Schools are implementing a Standardized Dress Code for a second consecutive year. Components include:

Shirts or blouses:
-School color
-Long or short sleeves
-Collar/turtle neck
-Must be tucked into pants or skirts
-Logo spirit shirts in school colors are permissible
-Sagging, baggy, tagged, or gang affiliated attire not permitted
-No tank tops are allowed

Pants:
-Solid in khaki, straight pants, or blue denim jeans
-Girls may wear skirts, long shorts or capri pants in khaki
-Worn at the waist
-No baggy or too tight pants
-Hemmed at an appropriate length
-No frayed or cut cuffs
-Belts are permissible, not woven nor with initials nor hanging down
-Walking shorts that come to tops of knees are permissible
-Skirts must be in school color or khaki

Shoes
-Safe
-No flip flops

Back to School Rally

All BISD employees are invited to celebrate the start of a new school year.
Back to School Rally

Wednesday, August 19, 2009
6:30 PM
Rivera High School Gym • 6955 FM 802

Master of Ceremonies: Tony Forina

Dress casually and enjoy an evening of inspiration, laughter, music and fun with your friends and colleagues.

Telephone Numbers for New Schools

Thomas W. Keller Elementary
(956) 547-4400

Raquel Pena Elementary
(956) 547-7100

Mittie A. Pullam Elementary
(956) 547-3700

BISD is Going Green

Green will be much more than a color when the district begins recycling paper products this school year. By September 1, 2009, BISD will take the first steps in what will be a comprehensive green initiative. Five grants totaling $110,000 are the backbone for BISD’s new 3Rs Program: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. The grants were awarded earlier this year by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in cooperation with the lower RGV Development Council.

These grant funds enabled the district to purchase resource materials from Keep America Beautiful and Keep Texas Beautiful for use by elementary and secondary teachers. All district efforts will be strongly supported by a curriculum of integrated study units aimed at teaching students recycling methods and waste reduction. The green initiative will also incorporate TAKS/TEKS objectives and involve student groups in tracking the volume of paper products that are actually recycled.

The BISD Warehouse Department stands ready to distribute 2,500 blue plastic recycling bins to campuses and departments. Paper products deposited in the bins will be transferred to 150 rolling receptacles designed to work in conjunction with a new collection truck also funded by grants. The paper products will be shredded and transported to a local recycling center. Any revenues generated by district recycling efforts will be used to defray the costs of recycling.

Plans are already in the works to expand the 3Rs Program to include cardboard, aluminum cans, and plastic in the near future.

Middle School Distribution of Class Schedules

All BISD middle schools will host campus student sessions which will include opportunities for students and their parents to pick up 2009-10 class schedules and to receive other important information about standardized attire and scheduled “Meet the Teacher” nights.

6th Grade
Thursday, August 20, 2009
8:00 - 11:00 AM

7th & 8th Grade
Thursday, August 20, 2009
1:00 - 4:00 PM

On Thursday, August 20 and Friday, August 21, middle school counselors will be available at the campuses. All requests for schedule changes must be made during these days.

Transportation Information

Letters regarding school bus stops and bus assignments will be mailed to the homes of eligible students on August 14-17, 2009. If your address has changed or you do not receive a notice, contact your child's school. The BISD Transportation Department will set up a telephone hotline to answer questions on August 20 & 21, 2009 from 7:00 AM-6:00 PM. Call 698-2356 or 698-0274 to speak to a representative.

41 BISD Schools Earn Exemplary/Recognized Ratings

It’s official! A total of 41 schools or 84% of all district campuses are rated either Exemplary or Recognized. The Texas Education Agency confirmed the number this morning with the annual statewide release of the 2009 school accountability ratings. Fifteen BISD elementary schools and the Early College High School earned this year’s top Exemplary rating. Twenty-five elementary and secondary schools were ranked Recognized. Last year, BISD had a total of 37 schools, 4 Exemplary and 33 Recognized.

BISD schools earning Exemplary titles are Aiken, Benavides, Egly, Gallegos, Gonzalez, Hudson, Martin, Morningside, Ortiz, Paredes, Perez, Putegnat, Southmost, Victoria Heights, and Yturria Elementary Schools and the Early College High School.

BISD secondary schools achieving 2009 Recognized status include Pace and Rivera High Schools and Besteiro, Lucio, Perkins, Stell, Stillman and Vela Middle Schools. Recognized elementary schools are Brite, Burns, Canales, Castañeda, Champion, Cromack, Del Castillo, El Jardin, Garden Park, Longoria, Palm Grove, Resaca, Russell, Sharp, Skinner, Vermillion, and Villa Nueva.

Results are based on the latest scores from the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). To achieve a rating of Exemplary, a campus must have a 90% passing rate for all students in reading/English language arts, writing, mathematics, social studies, and science for all applicable subpopulation or must have met the student Texas Projection Measure (TPM) standard where applicable.

To earn a Recognized label, a campus must have a 75% passing rate for all students in reading/English language arts, writing, mathematics, social studies, and science for all applicable subpopulations or must have met the student Texas Projection Measure (TPM) standard where applicable.

Eight other BISD campuses were identified as Academically Acceptable. Scores for the 3 BISD alternative schools are returned to the students’ home campuses.

“Each school year brings us more reasons to celebrate. Brownsville ISD continues to earn state and national recognition based on the exceptional work of our students, parents, teachers, support staff, and administrators. We have a strong, unwavering focus on student academic progress and these ratings reflect our dedication to student achievement,” said Interim Superintendent Brett Springston.