HOUSTON -- The Houston Independent School District had more schools meet the No Child Left Bend standards for the second straight year, KPRC Local 2, Your Education Station, reported Tuesday.

The Texas Education Agency announced that HISD had 238 schools make "adequate yearly progress" under the federal standard, which is up from 233 schools last year.

Thirty-three HISD schools did not meet the federal standard for progress, down from 42 schools last year.

Ten Houston schools won their appeals from the preliminary ratings, including Milby High, Burbank Middle, Long Middle, McReynolds Middle, Fondren Middle, Key Middle, Briargrove Elementary, Kennedy Elementary, Wilson Elementary and MacArthur Elementary.

Twenty-three schools were not evaluated.

"We are very pleased that nearly nine out of every 10 HISD schools rated met the federal standard for progress," HISD Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra said. "We have made great progress the last few years and we are going to continue to work hard to make sure all of our schools are great schools. We still have a lot of work to do, especially at the high school level, but we are making good progress."

Wilson Elementary Principal Gayle Curtis praised the new federal rating and said the school's goal remains to become an "Exemplary" campus under the state accountability system, according to an HISD news release.

At Long Middle School, Principal Diana de la Rosa said staff and students "never doubted our hard work would pay off. The teachers and students at Long have been showing steady progress so the recognition for our efforts is the stamp of approval that is well-deserved."

McReynolds Middle School Principal Jorge Arredondo said his school's mission "has always been to improve the quality of teaching and learning and to raise the expectations and level of engagement of our students, parents and business partners. After working so hard to improve our math and reading scores for all students, it was hard to believe that our school would not meet AYP requirements because of the participation of our ESL students. Thankfully, we were able to provide evidence that this was an error in coding some test answer documents and not actually student participation."

Eighth-grader Marcus Knolls said there is a noticeable difference.

"When I first got here, the teacher didn't quite control the class. But now, we have more maintenance of the class. You can learn a lot more," Knolls said.

"We've been able to see that level of motivation increase tremendously," Arredondo said.

Arredondo set out to change the culture of the school. He did it by replacing more than half the teachers and by putting an emphasis on learning.

All of the students get 90 minutes of math and 90 minutes of reading instruction daily.

Every six weeks, students who progress are recognized at an academic pep rally.

Students who lag behind are tutored now. Attendance is mandatory.

"These students are fully capable and also expect to be successful, and so when the adults come together and have a good plan, success can definitely happen," Arredondo said.

"I am excited for the faculty, staff, students and this wonderful community for us to be able to make such progress in one school year," MacArthur Principal Leola Lawrence said. "It was a team effort, and it will require a team effort for us to continue to move forward. I knew this time last year that we'd be where we are now. It's just a wonderful accomplishment."

Schools Making Adequate Yearly Progress For 2007:

Elementary Schools:
Alcott, Allen, Almeda, Anderson, Ashford, Askew, Atherton, Banneker-McNair, Barrick, Bastian, Bell, Bellfort Academy, Benavidez, Benbook, Berry, Blackshear, Bonham, Bonner, Bowie, Braeburn, Briargrove, Briarmeadow, Briscoe, Brookline, Browning, Bruce, Burbank, Burnet, Burrus, Bush, Cage, Carrillo, Codwell, Condit, Coop, Cornelius, Crawford, Crespo, Crockett, Cunningham, Davila, DeChaumes, DeZavala, Dodson, Dogan, Durham, Durkee, Eliot, Elrod, Emerson, Energized for Excellence, Fairchild, Field, Foerster, Fondren, Foster, Franklin, Frost, Gallegos, Garcia, Garden Oaks, Garden Villas, Golfcrest, Gordon, Gregg, Gregory-Lincoln, Grimes, Grissom, Gross, Halpin, J.R. Harris, R.P. Harris, Hartsfield, Harvard, Helms, J.P. Henderson, N.Q. Henderson, Herod, Herrera, Highland Heights, Hines Caldwell, Hobby, Hohl, Horn, Houston Gardens, Isaacs, Janowski, Jefferson, J. Will Jones, Kashmere Gardens, Kelso, Kennedy, Ketelsen, Kolter, Lantrip, Law, Lewis, Lockhart, Longfellow, Looscan, Love, Lovett, Lyons, MacArthur, MacGregor, Mading, C. Martinez, R. Martinez, McDade, Memorial, Milne, Mitchell, Montgomery, Moreno, Neff, Northline, Oak Forest, Oates, Osborne, Park Place, Parker, Patterson, Peck, Petersen, Pilgrim, Piney Point, Pleasantville, Poe, Port Houston, Pugh, Red, Reynolds, Rhoads, Rice School, River Oaks, Roberts, Robinson, Rodriguez, T.H. Rogers, Roosevelt, Ross, Rucker, Rusk, Sanchez, Sands Point, Scarborough, School at Post Oak, Scott, Scroggins, Seguin, Shadowbriar, Shearn, Sherman, Sinclair, E.O. Smith, Kate Smith, Southmayd, Stevens, Stevenson, Sugar Grove, Sutton, Thompson, Tijerina, Tinsley, Travis, Turner, Twain, Valley West, Wainwright, Walnut Bend, Wesley, West University, Wharton, Whidby, White, Whittier, Wilson, Windsor Village, Woodson, Young
Middle Schools:
Attucks, Black, Briarmeadow, Burbank, Clifton, Cullen, Deady, Dominion Academy, Edison, Energized for Excellence, Fleming, Fondren, Fonville, Grady, Gregory-Lincoln, Hamilton, Hartman, Henry, Hogg, Holland, Jackson, Johnston, Kaleidoscope, Key, Lanier, Long, Marshall, McReynolds, Pershing, Pin Oak, Project Chrysalis, Revere, Rice, T.H. Rogers, Sharpstown, Stevenson, Thomas, WALLIP, Welch, Westbriar, Woodson
High Schools:
Bellaire, Carnegie Vanguard, Challenge Early College, Community Services, DeBakey High School for Health Professions, Eastwood Academy, Houston Night High School, High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, High School for Performing and Visual Arts, Barbara Jordan, Lamar, Milby, Newcomer High, REACH Charter High, Reagan, Westside.
Combined Schools:
Community Services, Kandy Stripe

HISD Schools That Did Not Make AYP

Elementary Schools:
McNamara, Pleasant Hill, Young Scholars
Middle Schools:
CLC, Dowling, Las Americas, Ortiz, Ryan, E.O. Smith, Williams
High Schools:
ALTA, Austin, Chavez, CLC, Davis, Empowerment, Furr, Sam Houston, Jones, Kashmere, Lee, Madison, Scarborough, Sharpstown, Sterling, Waltrip, Washington, Westbury, Wheatley, Worthing, Yates
Combined Schools:
Carter Career Center, Provision

More Information:

Response Letter To HISD's Appeal For Schools