Website Wins Award

Brownsville ISD’s website won 2nd place in the national 2011 SchoolE Awards. Brownsville, with 1,886 votes, was edged out by Clear Creek ISD with 2,106 votes in the large district category. The SchoolE Awards recognize the best in school district website design and strategy. The voting included hits from more than 60 countries and thousands of people. Brownsville ISD’s website registers over 400,000 hits each month.

Vela Choir is Tops

The Vela Middle School A Cappella Choir has been selected to perform as an Honor Choir at the 2012 Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) All-State Conference. Hundreds of choirs submitted recordings in a competitive process to select 3 or 4 honor choirs. The Vela choir triumphed again having been selected once before in 2004. Congratulations to the Vela students, Director Melody Eriksen, and Assistant Director Ginger Wheelock.

VIP at Hanna

U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis will speak to Hanna High School students on Friday, May 20 at 2:00 pm in the school’s gym. Solis will be in Brownsville to address graduates at Spring Commencement at the University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College on Saturday, May 21.

Prior to her confirmation as Labor Secretary, Solis represented the 32nd Congressional District in California, a position she held from 2001 to 2009. A nationally recognized leader on the environment, Solis became the first woman to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award in 2000 for her pioneering work on environmental justice issues. Her California environmental justice legislation, enacted in 1999, was the first of its kind in the nation to become law.

Honors Day on Thursday

BISD will host Honors Day 2011 on Thursday, May 19 from 8:30 am – 1:30 pm at the district’s outdoor encampment located on FM 1421, west of Rancho Viejo Resort. Every year, the district rewards high school top 5% and achievement award winners with a fun-filled day of refreshments, food, music, and outdoor activities.

Weather Make-Up Days

BISD will hold classes on Friday, May 27 and Monday, May 30 although these days were originally designated as holidays on the BISD calendar. The District-wide Educational Improvement Council voted to use these days as make-up days to replace the two instructional days lost on February 3 and 4 due to inclement weather. The Texas Education Agency did not grant waiver days for this severe weather and the two instructional days must be made up.

Showcasing Our Students

The BISD Department of Advanced Academic Services will host the annual Galaxy Showcase of Stars on Tuesday, May 24 from 6:00-8:00 PM in the Central Administrative Building (CAB) cafeteria and auditorium, located at 708 Palm Boulevard. Gifted and Talented students will share their creativity and talents with parents and the community through project displays and artistic performances. Everyone is invited to help celebrate our G/T students and acknowledge their hard work.

Rising Student Stars

Brownsville ISD has 24 students who were selected to participate in The Academy for Rising Leaders, Subiendo, a five-day intensive summer program that brings together aspiring high school seniors, current juniors, for an unforgettable leadership development experience. Participants will have an opportunity to problem solve real-world issues with top business and political leaders. There is no cost for students to attend and travel is provided for students who need assistance getting to Austin. Click here to see the BISD students selected for Subiendo.

Supporting Our Dyslexia Program

Former First Lady Barbara Bush awarded Dr. Elsa Hagan, a local bilingual speech language pathologist, a check for $15,000 to match a challenge grant from the Brownsville Foundation for Health and Education for BISD’s Dyslexia Program. The funds are being used to assist all BISD dyslexia teachers in becoming licensed dyslexia practioners. No other school district in the United States has achieved this goal. BISD is partnering with the Neuhaus Education Center of Houston to mentor BISD’s dyslexia teachers and help prepare them to take the national examination and practicum. The former first lady gave the award at the 2011 Celebration of Reading Event held in Houston on April 28 to benefit the Barbra Bush literacy programs. Several Bush family members participated in the event including Former Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush.

Elementary Scientists at Work

Several hundred of BISD’s best young scientists will participate in the Elementary Science Fairs to be held at four middle schools across the city on Saturday, May 21. Click here to view the sites and schedule.

Trio Earns Grants

Three BISD elementary schools, Canales, Morningside, and Sharp, received grants of up to $5,000 from the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries. The money will be used to expand, update and diversify their library book collections. A total of 241 school libraries received $1,086,926 in grants for 2011. Two McAllen schools were the only other Rio Grande Valley schools to receive library grants this year. The Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries was founded in 2002 as a fund of The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region. Since its inception, the Laura Bush Foundation has awarded more than $8.4 million to 1,624 schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Marshall Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Top Seniors Recognized

Two standout seniors from each of the five BISD high school graduating classes were recognized by The Brownsville Herald as 2011 Academic All-Stars on Sunday May 8. Each student wrote an essay, took a photo, and was videotaped. Congratulations to Luis Fernando Baez and Kimberly Carmona, Pace; Ana Blanco and Diana Reyes, Lopez; Joanna Patricia Lyles and Alejandro Eduardo Vargas, Porter; Cristina Alejandra Averill and Ravi Arvind Thakker, Hanna; and Monica Mendoza and Felipe de Jesus Velez, Rivera, on their outstanding achievements.

Telephone Book Recycling

BISD students, parents, and employees are invited to participate in an expanded district-wide recycling effort by donating their outdated phone books.

The BISD Going Green Truck will pick up phone books with the usual recycled materials during the week of May 16-20. The truck will follow the standard pick-up schedule.

Summer Learning

Brownsville ISD offers summer programs to meet the academic needs of all students. Please note that summer school programs will follow the Monday-Thursday district schedule. Click here to view the complete 2011 Summer School booklet.

BISD Seniors Earn Recognition

Eleven BISD seniors earned 2011 academic recognition from the National Hispanic Recognition Program (NHRP). Congratulations to Lauren A. Atkinson, Dino X. Chavez II, Nicole M. Kidd, Karla V. Martinez, Leah R. Ramirez and Adam Tullos from Hanna High School; Lazaro E. Hernandez, Guillermo M. Montelongo, and James I. Murray from Porter High School; and Humberto F. De la Garza and Jose Rivas from Pace High School. Qualification for recognition is based on critical reading, mathematics and writing skill scores on the PSAT/NMSQT. A minimum grade average of 3.0 is also required. The NHRP identifies nearly 5,000 outstanding Hispanic/Latino students each year. A list all recognized students is sent to subscribing colleges and universities.

BISD Students Earn Duke Accolades

A total of 16 BISD seventh grade students have been qualified to participate in the State Recognition Ceremony of this year’s Duke University Talent Identification Program (TIP). To qualify for the Duke TIP 7th Grade Search, a student must have scored at the 95th percentile or higher on the national norms of a grade-level standardized achievement, aptitude or mental ability test. A student qualifying for State Recognition is in the top 25th% of the Talent Search Pool. This year, 125 BISD 7th grade students participated in the Duke program. Click here to see the 16 BISD students who qualified for State Recognition.