Energy E-News - November 17, 2014

Monday:
Student Council room 111 during lunch.
Wednesday:
TESLA Club room 104 during lunch.
Urban Agriculture room 127 at the beginning of lunch.
Friday:
Recycling Club in room 118 during the 2nd half of lunch

Mark Your Calendars

Thursday, November 20th:

Digital Tools Parent Workshop at 6:30pm.

Saturday, November 22nd:

Algebra 1 STAAR Tutorials from 9am-1pm. Lunch will be provided.

University of Houston Case Competition for the New Building Design at the Energy Institute campus at 9am.

Wednesday, November 26th - Friday, November 28th:

Thanksgiving Break - No School

Monday, December 1st:

English STAAR Retake

Tuesday, December 2nd:

Algebra 1 STAAR Exam

Wednesday, December 3rd:

Guest Speaker 9th Grade

Wednesday, December 10th:

Guest Speaker 10th Grade

Energy Summit Field Trip

Visitor and Parent Parking

Parking for parents and visitors to our campus is parallel parking on Sampson Street. The only entrance for visitors and parents is our main entrance on Sampson Street. In order to meet safety and security needs all other doors will be locked.

Late Start Wednesday

Class begins promptly at 9:15 on late start Wednesdays. Students are considered tardy if they are not in class by 9:15.

Official ADA Time

Energy's official ADA time this year is

10:00 AM.

Please schedule your child's appointments so that he or she is back to school by 10:00 AM or leaves after 10:00 AM. We receive our funding based on attendance at this time. Funding allows us to provide more for your child!

Special Thanks

Energy would like to thank IPAA/PESA for all of their support! For those parents who don't know, IPAA/PESA is one of our major supporters. They work very hard to secure of funding, plan guest speakers, and plan our field trips. So a huge thank you to IPAA/PESA for their unending support!

Seven of our 9th and 10th grade female students participated in the Women With Energy conference last Wednesday at the Hilton, Galleria. As the only high school students in attendance, they participated in networking workshops and a coaching seminar in which they were able to meet as a small group with mid-career managers in the energy industry. It was an amazing opportunity for our ladies to hear first hand what it takes to make it in the industry, learn about possible career options, and make connections with influential leaders. The conference was an inspiring event and we were thrilled to be the only HISD school invited to attend! Big thanks to Ms. Estrella for helping to coordinate the event for our students!

DIGITAL TOOLS PARENT WORKSHOP

It's time for our first parent workshop! Please join us this Thursday, November 20 at 6:30pm for our Digital Tools parent meeting. Our goal is to help parents get better acquainted with the HUB, Naviance, and Gradespeed. All of these are tools available to help parents and students stay up to date with assignments, prepare for college, and track their progress in class. Please bring your student's laptop and their log in information for the HUB and we will help guide you through all the resources that are available. We recommend you arrive early to sign in and collect paperwork. See you this Thursday!

EXEMPLARY ENERGY STUDENT

This week Energy would like to recognize a very hardworking and dedicated student, Juan Ramirez. Juan moved to the United States at the end of 5th grade with his mom and dad to escape violence in Mexico. Not speaking English prior to starting school in Houston, Juan quickly recognized the value of education and became the first in his family to speak fluent English. Juan knew picking his high school would be very important. He did a lot of research on his own to become familiar with the best schools in Houston. He chose to come to Energy over his neighborhood KIPP school because he believed it would best prepare him for his dream job as an engineer. "I knew Energy was the right school for me. It is very challenging, but I know that learning how to work together and how to present my ideas is going to help me reach my dreams." The transition to high school and Project Based Learning has been difficult for Juan, but what has impressed his teachers most is his commitment and dedication to his education. Juan's family moved to Houston to have a better life and this has not been lost on Juan. He knows that being successful at Energy will help him to be successful in the future. Juan embodies what it takes to be a successful student at Energy. Keep up the good work Juan!

TEACHER SPOTLIGHT

Meet Mr. Dennery Menelas! Mr. Menelas teaches French at Energy. Originally from Haiti, he attended University of Massachusetts and the University of Paris Diderot, where he studied Economics and Political Science. After college, he returned to Haiti and founded, Tiajoupa Foundation, a foundation dedicated to ameliorating school access for displaced kids and technical education for rural youth. While in Haiti he served as the first Chief of Staff, to the Delegated Minister, to the Prime Minister of the Promotion of Peasantry. Mr. Menelas moved back to the United States in 2012 and joined the Energy family shortly after. He came to Energy because he felt that his students would benefit from the real world application of French, which they will need to speak in order to communicate with Western African countries as they are major energy producers. Mr. Menelas not only brings a unique background to Energy, but very interesting hobbies! "I blog on Haitian politics, I'm a city boy but I love to farm, and I own a lot of beehives but am very afraid of bees! Mr. Menelas also sponsors the soccer club for Energy. We are so glad to have Mr. Menelas at the Energy Institute!

THE WOODS PROJECT

The Camping Club braved the cold this past weekend and went on an overnight camping trip at Sam Houston National Forest. Eight students attended and participated in a service project, cutting down invasive species of plants from the habitat of an endangered woodpecker. Students also went on a four-mile hike through the pine forest. A big thank you to Mr. Tate for attending the trip with our students!

The Camping Club will have two more camping trips in the Spring semester, and five lucky students will get the chance to go on a summer hiking trip for two weeks in the mountains. Interested? Come find out more! Ask Mr. Tate, Ms. Estrella or Ms. Lockhart for details!

UH ENERGY CASE COMPETITION

Join us this Saturday, November 22nd at 9am at The Energy Institute for the University of Houston Case Competition. Six teams of university students have designed creative innovations to be added to the new building to help achieve Platinum LEED Certification. They will be presenting their final concepts to a panel of judges and the

Energy community. We are so excited to see what they have designed to help make the new school the most innovative and energy efficient school in the country!

UPDATES

ENERGY Boosters:

Our Energy Booster Fundraiser is in full swing! Sell the most and win a $100 American Express Gift Card! Funds raised will help support all school clubs.

PTSA:

Save the Date and join PTSA for a Winter Dance Friday, December 12th. More details to come!

Student ID Cards:

All students have been issued ID cards and will be required to wear them throughout the day. If you have not received your student ID card please see Mr. Cavasos during your lunch ASAP.

Student Council Elections:

9th and 10th grade Presidential and Vice Presidential elections will be held next Monday.

Algebra 1 STAAR Tutorials:

We will be holding Algebra STAAR tutorials Saturday, November 22nd 9am to 1pm. Lunch will be provided and students who attend will have their name entered in the drawing for a TI calculator courtesy of Ms. Finch!

Weekly Algebra are available with Ms. Finch during lunch Wednesdays and Mr. McCommis on Thursdays.

Students also have access to the Apex STAAR tutorials course through gradespeed. Log in each day to prepare for your STAAR test coming up in December.

Energy Summit Field Trip:

In order to attend the December 10th Energy Summit you must sign up with Ms. Ratliff by Wednesday.

We value your feedback!

Please direct comments or questions to Jenna Moon at jmoon2@houstonisd.org.

Visit us on the web at www.energyhigh.org.

Energy High | 713-802-4620 | 1808 Sampson Street, Houston, TX 77003

It is the policy of the Houston Independent School District not to discriminate on the basis of age, color, handicap or disability, ancestry, national origin, marital status, race, religion, sex, veteran status, or political affiliation in its educational or employment programs and activities.