Message From Dr. LaTonya M. Goffney, Superintendent of Aldine ISD

Disponible en: Español

Dear Aldine Community,

Living the Dream
I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It was super special for me this year. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner invited me to ride in the 45th Original Dr. MLK Parade. It was a blessing to see people from all walks of life who came out to remember the one who had a dream.

This week is short, but we are full steam ahead with students learning in our schools and celebrating new opportunities for our community.

Leadership
Last week, we held our first meeting of the new year with school leaders. It is always a great chance to meet one-on-one with staff, hear stories of transformation in our schools, and experience feel-good moments that occur daily across the district. During this meeting, we also took a moment to recognize leaders who embody and are committed to our definition of leadership.

Livestock Show
We recently revealed our “Kiss the Pig Contest” winner — our very own Chief of Human Resources, Dr. Javier Villarreal. It’s all in good fun as we support our FFA students. I encourage you to join us for our 64th Livestock Show next week, starting on Wednesday, January 25, at the M.O. Campbell Educational Center (MOC). The big event, the Livestock Auction, is on Friday, January 27. The Buyer’s Luncheon will be held at 11:30 a.m., followed by the Sale of Champions at 1 p.m. in the MOC-Arena. Click here for more details.

The Livestock Show has been one of the district’s largest annual events since 1959. All proceeds from the Livestock Show go directly back to the students to help further their educations after graduating high school.

Houston Astros
Yesterday, we had a special guest visiting the district. The Houston Astros’ spring caravan made a stop in Aldine. The team is traveling throughout Texas to celebrate with fans. Shortstop David James Hensley made a quick stop in our neck of the woods, visiting staff at the Wanda Bamberg Professional Development and Resource Center. He took pictures and greeted fans after answering a few questions. Volunteers from the Astros Foundation also passed cups to honor us — educators. It was a fun time, especially for one young ‘Stros fan.

Bookworm Festival — Fully Bilingual
There are some events right around the corner. The district is hosting the 2023 Bookworm Festival in partnership with the Blue Willow Bookshop. This year, the festival will be fully bilingual in English and Spanish! We are super excited to expand this opportunity to our Spanish speakers. Click here to learn more about the event on Saturday, February 4th.

#LiteracyMatters Virtual Conference
Our 3rd Annual #LiteracyMatters Virtual Conference is fast approaching! Each year we have over 2,000 attendees joining us from around the world. You still have time to register here to take part in the FREE conference on Saturday, February 11th. And keep checking the conference website where organizers will post information about presenters and sessions. You can also follow #LiteracyMatters on Twitter for special announcements on presenters. If you want to transform reading and writing, join us! So far, Emily Francis, Dorina Sackman-Ebuwa, Patty McGee, Trevor A. Bryan, Nic Stone, Mike Curato, A.S. King, and Callie Patton have pledged to present.

Celebrations
Congratulations to the five students at Stovall Middle School who participated in UIL Region 33 Choir. They were among 150 select musicians.

One of our newer Choice Schools, La Promesa, launched its La Voz podcast deserves a big “Good Job. G-o-o-d J-o-b. Good Job!” for the multilingual learners at the campus for creating the podcast. Teacher and author Emily Francis is so impressed, and so am I.

And last but not least, congratulations to the 2023 Campus Teachers of the Year! Be on the lookout for the District Elementary Teacher of the Year and Secondary Teacher of the Year. They will be announced in March. Thank you to every single teacher for everything you do for our students each and every day.

Have a great rest of the week!

With Aldine Pride,
Dr. LaTonya M. Goffney
Superintendent of Schools

UPCOMING & ONGOING EVENTS FOR THE COMMUNITY

January 21: Aldine SHINE #4 for teachers will cover differentiation, classroom management 2.0, mindfulness, creativity, and more. Click here to register.
Jan. 24-28: The Donna Summer Musical at Carver HS. Come and enjoy the story about a girl from Boston with a voice from heaven who shot through the stars from gospel choir to dance floor diva. Her songs broke every record. Her story broke every barrier. The musical shines a light on how Donna Summer risked it all, becoming the icon of an era and the inspiration for every music diva who followed. For tickets, email [email protected] or call (281) 878-1521.
Jan. 24 & Jan. 25: The student matinee starts at 10 a.m. Tickets are $5.
- Jan. 26 and Jan. 27: The evening show begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15.
- Jan. 28: The late afternoon show starts at 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $15.
- Jan. 25-27: 64th Annual Aldine ISD FFA Livestock Show (details)
Winter Edition of VYPE: Be on the lookout for the latest edition of the Aldine ISD HS Sports VYPE Magazine.
Now-Apr. 22: AISD’s Health Services Department is holding monthly CPR classes. (click here)
Feb. 11: Virtual #LiteracyMatters Conference — Click here to register.
Feb. 13-April 21: Free GED and ESL classes for Aldine parents who have a student enrolled in the bilingual or ESL program in AISD. Click here for details.
Ongoing: Read to the Final Four® Competition has elementary students reading in a March Madness tournament. Follow us on Twitter to see which school is leading the district competition! Click here to read more.
Ongoing: Family and Community University’s 2022-2023 Class — Click here to register.
Ongoing: iEducate is hiring college students, especially Aldine ISD grads, as tutors to work with Aldine ISD students. iEducate accepts applications on a rolling basis, and interested students are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

SOCIAL MEDIA HIGHLIGHT
Astros Visit Aldine

RECENT NEWS & ALDINE ISD PODCAST

All The Things: The Aldine ISD Podcast — January is School Board Appreciation, and what better than to hear from School Board Trustee Rose Avalos! Long-time educator and campus leader turned Board member shares stories from moving to Aldine as a child in 1950 to being a school board member today. She is also a famous prankster on the Board. The Spanish version begins about 25 minutes into the podcast. Click here to listen.
Students Attend Houston Grand Opera’s ‘El Milagro del recuerdo’
Teacher Inducted Into EBONY Power 100 Class of Honorees

MONTHLY OBSERVATIONS
January
January School Board Appreciation Month

Jan. 25: ENVI2ION School Day (ADSY Calendar)

February
CTE Month
Financial Aid Awareness Month
Magnet School Month
Black History Month

Feb. 1: National Signing Day (student-athletes); ENVI2ION School Day (ADSY Calendar); Families (all campuses) can access Progress Reports via their Home Access Center (HAC) accounts.
Feb. 6-10: National School Counseling Week
Feb. 8: ENVI2ION School Day (ADSY Calendar)
Feb. 15: ENVI2ION School Day (ADSY Calendar)
Feb. 17: Student Holiday/Staff Development (Traditional Calendar)
Feb. 20: Presidents Day (Student Holiday in All Schools)
Feb. 22: ENVI2ION School Day (ADSY Calendar)
Feb. 24: Go Texas Day!

Click here to view the 2022-2023 school year calendars — traditional and Additional Days School Year (ADSY).

REMINDERS FOR STUDENTS AND FAMILIES

Outside food and beverages are prohibited on the premises of secondary schools (middle school, ninth-grade schools, and high schools). Click here for details.
The state requires high school seniors to apply for financial aid to graduate. — FAFSA Application link or TASFA Application links
The state requires all entering college students to take the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) Assessment. (Details).
Aldine ISD’s top priorities are student safety and academic success. The district posts information related to protocols along with any updates at www.aldineisd.org/healthalerts.