Page 1B • The Leader • August 17, 2013 • www.theleadernews.com
Back-To-School
‘Learn Local’ at Hogg Middle School by Emily Guyre For The Leader I am a third-generation Houstonian, raised on the southeast side of our incredible city, and I am the product of our Houston ISD magnet program. I lived in an area where attending your zoned school was undesirable, so I am very familiar with how “the system” works. As an exiting fifth-grader, my life became somewhat stressful waiting to receive an acceptance to the middle school that I wanted to attend. My first choice did not choose me, so my parents enrolled me at my second choice. In the end, this decision was wonderful, but it was obviously difficult to have that kind of foresight when I was 11. Unfortunately, the same process continued for me as I entered high school, but that, too, had a happy ending. While my magnet story was successful, I would be remiss if I did not mention that I spent a significant amount of time traveling to schools across the
city, and it was difficult to live such a great distance from my classmates. My husband and I were married in 2002, and shortly after we purchased our home in the Heights area. We knew we would be zoned to Travis Elementary, and we had a clear plan that we would become part of that family one day. Flash-forward 11 years, and we are now very ingrained in the Travis community, as we have a son and daughter entering third- and firstgrade, respectively. Many of our friends had fifth-graders this past school year, and the magnet transfer process became a routine topic of discussion. The feelings that I had from my own experiences came bubbling to the surface. My instincts told me that now was the right time for me to start making connections with our zoned middle school. In April, I met with Dr. Mina Schnitta, principal of Hogg Middle School, and pitched my “Learn Local.” campaign idea to her. As soon as the
words hit her ears, her eyes lit up with excitement. Since then, she and I have worked together to form a group of community leaders and partner with CORE Design Studio to create our visual presence. Hogg received its International Baccalaureate World School recognition over the summer, in addition to its already successful STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) program. And we have elementary school liaisons: Megan Taverna and Jennifer Jordan at Travis, and John DiFilippo and Sarah Stone at Harvard Elementary. David Jordan, our community relations chair, is currently working on our 501(c)3 status.
Our mission statement is to establish a bridge for our children between our successful Heights neighborhood elementary schools and Hogg Middle School, an IB World School and STEM campus, enabling progression within our strong, unique community. Our inaugural meeting will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 20 at 7 p.m. in the Hogg MS cafeteria. Dr. Schnitta, Anna Eastman, HISD District I trustee; Tom Day, Travis principal, and Kevin Beringer, Harvard principal, will be in attendance along with several parents from the area. Please join us if you’re interested in being part of a movement to localize education for our children.
Hometown principal pleased with Reagan’s progress
by Michael Sudhalter michael@theleadernews.com
Reagan High principal Connie Berger enters her eighth year at the school and sees many ongoing positive developments. Reagan’s graduation rates are improving, more students are taking and passing the Advancement Placement (AP) tests, the International Baccalaureate (IB) program will be starting, and academic and athletic extracurricular activities are succeeding. “We’re all about globalization and having the students understand competition and awareness of the world,” Berger said of the IB program. Berger proves true the old adage that quality work gets done when a person enjoys the work they’re doing. “We want to get 100 percent of the students to graduate, and they all should be college or career ready,” Berger said. Born at Heights Hospital, Berger graduated from Harvard Elementary and Hogg Middle, before walking across the stage to accept her Reagan diploma in the spring of 1979. She earned the Jesse H. Jones Scholarship, which paid for her education at the University of Houston. Four years after graduation, and with a UH education degree in hand, she was walking the Reagan halls again -- this time as a Psychology, History and German teacher. “I was a student who always respected the teachers,” Berger said. “I still called them Mr. and Mrs. They said you can call me by my first name. I didn’t know it.” Berger was hired by then-principal Joel Sturdivant, who was her principal as a student, too. She was influenced by Sturdivant and has carried on many of the traditions he started, and stays in touch with the former principal. Sturdivant started Reagan’s Hall of Fame, something that has continued under Berger’s tenure. “He was a very professional principal,” Berger said. “He connected very well to the Heights community and the Heights businesses. He understood the importance of making those business connections.” The connections with Reagan’s alumni is also a Sturdivant tradition that Berger continues. “We have four different alumni groups that gave scholarship money,” Berger said. “Our alumni golf tournament was a really big help.” Berger taught at Reagan from 1983-’90 and then spent 18 years as an administrator else-
Rituals and tips from the trenches
Trevor “Bear” Idol fans himself to keep falling hair off his face, as he gets his back-to-school trim. (Submitted photo) by Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com
Connie Berger, Reagan High principal. (Submitted photo) where in Houston ISD. She earned an administration master’s degree from Stephen F. Austin. She had an opportunity to return to Reagan as principal in the fall of 2006. “I’m very privileged and very honored,” Berger said. “It’s the school I’ve seen ever since I was a little bitty girl. You get the opportunity to shake hands with the students when they’re graduating. You reap the reward at the end (of their secondary education).” From a young age, Berger knew she wanted to work in education. She was insipired by Mrs. Killion, a sixth-grade teacher at Harvard, who
took time on Saturdays to organize a recycling project for the students in the early 1970s. Berger, who was a class officer, a Reagan Redcoat and a cheerleader among other activities at Reagan, said extracurriculars are very important. Reagan started a debate team since Berger became principal, and last year, every RHS athletic team reached the playoffs. “Our students come from all over,” Berger said. “There are lots of opportunities out there for students. It’s real important that they’re involved in clubs and organizations. It gives them real ownership of the school.”
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The summer is coming to an end, and with it comes a new beginning for school children in Leader neighborhoods. Whether it’s a first timer anticipating kindergarten or a veteran gearing up for another year, kids (and their parents) are getting ready and laying the groundwork for some new traditions. Re-establishing a schedule is important for many. Barbie Wood enrolled her children in swimming lessons the first two weeks of August in the mornings. “It’s given us a chance to get back into more of a routine, and getting everybody to bed on time, up and ready and out the door. We will definitely do this next summer, because we’re getting quality time together by staying after and playing at the pool. I’m going to miss them.” Kimberly Flynn intentionally scheduled her daughter for a half-day week-long camp at her school just before it starts “so she is used to getting up and out the door by a certain time, and it gets her used to the campus (as well as reconnecting with friends at school).” “We start an early bedtime a week before school,” said Jennifer Faulk. “We always have our uniforms and backpacks ready the night before.” As part of a more structured evening routine, Holly Inderrieden got a great tip from a cousin who shared her playlist with some fun songs to help children focus on what they are supposed to be doing: Splash Splash or Rubber Duckie for Bath, Peanut Butter Jelly Time for pajamas; Flight of the Bumblebee for cleaning their room; Brush your Teeth by Adam Blau for dental hygiene; Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 8 for reading, and Grateful by Brian Stokes Mitchell, both for reading and time to sleep. Olivia Long tries to make the annual rite of passage as special as possible for her high-schooler, as well as for her third- and fifth-graders. “We will take each girl back to school shopping. It doesn’t really matter if they don’t need much, because they all need something new for school,” she said. “It puts some excitement into that first day.
see Rituals • Page 5B
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