HISD Taking Applications for All-Boys/All-Girls College Preparatory Academies

 (HISD News Release)

December 17, 2010 – HISD is currently accepting applications for admission to the new all-boys and all-girls college preparatory academies recently approved by the HISD Board of Education. Both schools will open in the fall of 2011 with sixth and ninth grades only. Subsequent grades will be added on a yearly basis.

The mission of the two schools will be to develop the full potential of every student by fostering an educational environment that encourages critical thinking, inspires student confidence, and nurtures both the intellectual and social development necessary to attend and graduate from college. Both academies will feature a rigorous curriculum which includes pre-AP and AP courses.

 The all-girls school is being developed in partnership with the Foundation for the Education of Young Women, which has five other campuses for young-women in Texas. The all-boys campus is being modeled after successful male college preparatory academies in Chicago and Harlem.

Incoming sixth and ninth grade students interested in applying to the gender-based schools for the 2011 school year must do so by January 31. In order to apply, students must have a 75 percent or better average in all classes, have a desire and commitment to attend a four-year college or university, have good attendance and behavior, and meet state requirements for the advancement to the next grade level.

Those students who are deemed eligible will be selected by a lottery process after review of their application, teacher recommendations, and a student essay. If selected for admission, the student must attend an in person interview and orientation session with their parents or guardian.

To apply for admission to either academy, students can fill out an application found on the district’s website or by clicking here.

Completed applications should be mailed to the Office of School Choice at district headquarters located at 4400 West 18^th Street, Houston, TX 77092-8501. Questions regarding the admissions process and enrollment requirements for both schools may be directed to the Office of School Choice at 713-556-6947.

 

The Houston Independent School District is the largest school district in Texas and the seventh-largest in the United States with 298 schools and more than 200,000 students. The 301-square-mile district is one of the largest employers in the Houston metropolitan area with nearly 30,000 employees.