April 3, 2023

AHISD Families, Staff, and Neighbors-

April is the month that signals the beginning of the closure to our school year.  With eight weeks left this year, our staff is working diligently to ensure that our students make expected progress with their academic goals and we are also planning so many culminating events to celebrate the many successes of the year.   

One of these special annual AHISD events is the District Strings Festival.  On April 13th, we will celebrate 50 years of the Strings Program in our district with this annual festival to be held for the first time in our Muledome. Over 700 musicians from Cambridge, Woodridge, the Junior School, and AHHS will come together for a joint concert there to showcase their progress over the course of this school year.  Mark your calendar for the start time of 7pm. - you will not want to miss this special event.

Bond 2023 

We are hosting informational meetings for our community to learn more about the bond proposal that goes before voters on May 6th. Our next in-person meeting is Monday, April 10 at 5:30 p.m. in the Oaks cafeteria at AHHS. The next virtual meeting is Tuesday, April 18, at 5:30 p.m. The Zoom link to join is available on our Bond 2023 website.

Early Voting begins at the end of this month, on April 24, and the AHISD Administration Building (7101 Broadway) and Lion’s Field (2909 Broadway) are the closest voting locations for our community. Dates, times, and the full list of locations can be found on our Bond 2023 website. 

There are many Bond 2023 resources posted on our bond website. If you have questions about the Bond 2023 proposal, please email us at [email protected]. 

Feedback February

We value the partnership of our parents as we work to improve our communication, academic program and overall experience and outcomes for our students. Information from our annual surveys is used to measure satisfaction across multiple domains and to gauge which areas our AHISD community finds important to target improvements. Later this spring and summer, campus and district administrators use this survey information as a part of our Community Based Accountability System (CBAS)  to embed specific actions and goals into our annual improvement plans.

This year, we had our highest response rate for this year’s community surveys. 2,525 parents, 491 staff members, and 2,917 students in grades 3-12 completed our feedback surveys. Below are some highlights from this year’s results. You can read more about the results HERE. 

• Student perceptions of rigorous expectations remains a strength at both the elementary and secondary levels. 
• Student sense of belonging is improving over the last two years, but remains an area of focus. 
• Student safety is increasingly an area of focus for our parents. 
• School climate is showing a positive trend across all stakeholders and campuses.
• 96% of AHISD staff are satisfied with their job at AHISD.
• 96% of AHISD parents would recommend AHISD to a friend or colleague. 
• 88% of secondary students are involved in one or more school activities.

“I value that it feels like a small town.  I trust that staff and faculty really care about my child.  I also love that elective teachers pay attention to a potential "super star" in their class.  Both of my children flourished through electives.” 

“The strong sense of community in AHISD is truly special. The collaboration between administration, teachers, students, and families is something I do not think you see in other larger districts. I appreciate that we all have a voice and that we all work together to promote growth in each student in all areas. “

“An area of improvement is increasing focus on recruiting and retaining the highest qualified staff by providing the most highly competitive salaries in Bexar County.” 

There truly is no place like AHISD. We are proud of our programs and the overall high quality of education offered to all students. Thank you for your time providing thoughtful and honest feedback so that we can continue to grow and improve our tradition of AHISD excellence. 

Mules up!

Dr. Dana Bashara

Twitter: @BasharaDana

Photo of the Month:

Visit our AHISD Facebook page for an album of pictures from the 2023 Festival of Learning and Culture Night. 

Reminders:

-Kindergarten Registration: Kindergarten registration for the 2023-24 school year opened on January 17, 2023. To introduce parents and children to the school, Howard Early Childhood Center is hosting Kinder Preview events these next few months. Visit our website for the schedule and to register to attend a Kinder Preview. Please share with your family, friends, and neighbors who will have five-year-olds next year. 
-Check out the April WellNews: A wellness newsletter for district parents. Additional issues can be found on the AHISD Wellness website at: https://www.smore.com/m7yhq. 

-Opt-In for School Text Messages: AHISD utilizes the School Messenger system to communicate important information to families through email, text, and/or phone calls. If any contact information has changed over the summer, like phone numbers or email addresses, families should contact their campus office to update our student information system. In order to receive text messages, which the district sends only in emergencies, families must opt-in to this service. Here's how to sign up for text messages. Those who have previously opted in do not have to complete it again.

-If you see something, say something! We ask all AHISD families to commit to having ongoing conversations with students about safety and security and to encourage the reporting of any concerns to a trusted adult on campus.  Families can also report safety concerns on our website by clicking Students / Parents and then Safety Concerns.

-Please stay connected with all things AHISD by visiting Heights Happenings and also following us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Also, I invite you to follow @WeGoPublic to support this organization that promotes the amazing benefits of our Bexar County Public Schools!
April One-Month Glance:  

Below are upcoming events, throughout the district, during the month of April. 

Athletic Events

Visit Rank One for all sporting events.

Master Calendar Events 

• Friday, April 7, School Holiday
• Monday, April 10, Bond 2023 Community Meeting - 5:30-6:30 PM - AHHS Oaks
• Wednesday, April 12, G&P/Committee Meetings - 7-9 AM - Board Room
• Wednesday, April 12, Cambridge PTO Meeting - 8:30-9:30 AM - Cambridge Elementary
• Thursday, April 13, District Strings Festival - 7-8:30 PM - High School - Muledome 
• Tuesday, April 18, Bond 2023 Community Meeting - 5:30-6:30 PM - Zoom Link or Zoom ID 986 0941 1466 / Passcode: BOND23
• Wednesday, April 19, JS-Spring Performances "The Wizard of OZ"- 7 PM - Junior School Little Theatre
• Thursday, April 20, Regular Board Meeting - 6-9 PM - Board Room
• Thursday, April 20, JS-Spring Performances "Alice in Wonderland"- 7 PM - Junior School Little Theatre
• Friday, April 28, School Holiday