January 19, 2025

The safety of our students and staff is our top priority. Based on the most up-to-date weather information available to the District at this time and to provide families with adequate time to plan ahead, all Houston ISD campuses will be closed on Tuesday, January 21, and Wednesday, January 22, 2025. No campus activities, including before or after school events and Athletics, will occur. Campus Principals and Assistant Principals will work from home to support campus needs.

The City of Houston has provided the following resources to support families and staff through the upcoming winter storm:

• Winter Weather Preparation: Preparation reminders can be found here.
• Carbon Monoxide Safety: Please keep yourself safe from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning. Safety tips can be found here.
• Warming Centers: The City of Houston will operate 10 warming centers for families beginning Sunday, January 19th at 6 p.m. Locations for Warming Centers can be found here.

The District will continue to monitor weather conditions in collaboration with local officials and will share an update to all Houston ISD families regarding District Operations for Thursday, January 23rd at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, January 22nd.

The District will continue to monitor weather conditions in collaboration with local officials and will share an update to all staff regarding reporting expectations on Thursday, January 23rd, 2025 at 12 p.m. Wednesday, January 22nd.

Stay safe and warm over these next few days.

Parents, students, and staff, I am thrilled to share the incredible growth and achievements our campus has demonstrated on the NWEA Middle of Year (MOY) Assessments! Your hard work, dedication, and commitment to excellence are truly paying off, and I couldn’t be prouder of our Parker community.

A special shout-out goes to:
🎉 Ms. Batarse's 2nd Grade Bilingual Class, which achieved the 81st Percentile for Overall Growth, moving from the 59th Percentile Achievement at BOY to an impressive 70th Percentile Achievement at MOY!

🎉 Ms. Bascom's 3rd Grade Bilingual Class, soaring with an 88th Percentile in Growth and making an incredible leap from 38th Percentile Achievement at BOY to 65th Percentile at MOY!

🎉 Our 5th Grade Science Team, whose outstanding growth ranks in the 85th Percentile—a testament to their hard work and focus!

While we celebrate these achievements, we also recognize that success is a journey. High growth at MOY means we must work together to maintain and excel even further in the weeks to come. This is a team effort, and it wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of our parents, the resilience of our students, and the tireless efforts of our staff.

Let’s keep striving for excellence, Parker family—we are #ParkerProud! 💪🎶

See all of the detailed results below!!

In an effort to better prepare parents, students and staff for upcoming events and activities please see below the Magnet Performance Schedule for the remainder of the school year.

Thank you to the officers of the Hispanic Honor Society at DeBakey High School for Health Professions (HSHP), who recently donated a beautiful Little Library to Parker Elementary. This thoughtful gift is filled with Spanish-language books for our bilingual students, fostering a love for reading and celebrating Hispanic heritage.

The Hispanic Honor Society is committed to service and giving back to the community. In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, they collected books at their school and donated them to our bilingual classrooms to provide students with a wider selection of books that inspire exploration and discovery. Their goal is to ensure Spanish-speaking children have access to a variety of books that not only nurture literacy but also open up new worlds of knowledge.

A special thanks goes to Ms. Hokanson, our amazing librarian, for working closing with the Society students and supporting this wonderful project. Her dedication and collaboration made this vision a reality. We are also incredibly grateful to Ms. Lopez and Ms. Mejia, who welcomed the high school students into their classrooms, where they shared stories and joy with our kindergarten and pre-k students. The high school students’ enthusiasm and the sweet, personalized notes in each book truly touched our hearts.

This Little Library is more than just a collection of books; it is a lasting gift that will be cherished by our bilingual students and families for years to come. We deeply appreciate the Hispanic Honor Society’s generosity and dedication, and we look forward to future collaborations that continue to enrich our school community.

Thank you to everyone who attended STAAR Night on Wednesday evening. It was wonderful to see so many parents come out to support their children. The kids also had a great time!

If you attended, could you please fill out the feedback survey below? I'd like to see what aspects of the night went well, and what we can refine to make the event better.

Thank you again and have a good long weekend!!

Feedback survey- https://forms.gle/A6b7YqmXbdKGVdWt5

- Heather Grosso, Title I Coordinator

Join us for an informative session with Angelica Medrano from EDU PrepSpace!

Angelica will provide valuable insights on how to interpret your child’s academic data, ensuring you feel confident and informed during your parent-teacher conference. She will guide you on the most effective questions to ask, helping you engage in meaningful conversations that benefit your child’s education.

Most importantly, Angelica will focus on ways to strengthen the partnership between parents and teachers, offering strategies for collaboration that support your child’s growth and success.

This workshop is designed to equip you with the tools you need to make the most of your parent-teacher conference experience. We look forward to seeing you there!

Dates have changed from the January calendar- 1/30 at 6pm (before it was 1/28) and 1/31 at 8am.

Mark your calendars! On Tuesday, January 28th, we will celebrate the 100th Day of School at Parker.

Students and staff are invited to join in the fun by dressing up as if they are 100 years old or wear your class 100th t-shirt (see your teacher for details). Let’s make it a day filled with creativity and laughter as we honor this milestone in our school year!

We can’t wait to see everyone’s imaginative outfits and celebrate this special day together. More details to come as we get closer to January 28th.

Roll the Dice and enjoy a night of glitz and glam at the Annual Parker Elementary PTO Gala: Viva Las Vegas! Get your early bird tickets NOW! The Annual Auction Gala is our major fundraising event, benefiting Parker's students and staff. All funds raised will help ensure that every child is supported as they learn and grow.

The gala will be held on Friday, February 21st, from 6:30 to 10:30 PM at the Cohen House at Rice University. It will include dinner, a drink ticket, dancing, table games, and silent and live auctions. Childcare at Westbury Baptist is included in the ticket price. This year's theme is Viva Las Vegas. So don’t forget your dancing shoes, and get ready to bid on some great items to raise money for our favorite elementary school!

See how you can help & purchase tickets by visiting the PTO website

🔗 https://parkerpto.membershiptoolkit.com/auctiongala

Upcoming PTO Events:

1/23: January PTO Meeting: Be sure to RSVP 🔗 https://parkerpto.membershiptoolkit.com/form/m/315512

1/24: Last Day to purchase Auction Gala tickets for early bird pricing

1/28: Spring Clubs go on sale 🔗 https://parkerpto.membershiptoolkit.com/afterschoolprograms

1/29: Spirit Night with Cafe Piquet (*new date)

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Jeanette Mueller

President, Parker Elementary PTO

www.parkerpto.org

832-987-2052 (PTO)

And that’s a wrap on Piano Workshop! After a week of dedicated work with clinicians and a final session on Saturday morning, our piano students delivered a fantastic concert on Saturday afternoon.

We were especially thrilled to welcome former piano students back as mentors, working with current Parker Piano students and fostering a sense of community and inspiration.

Get ready—Suzuki Workshop is right around the corner!

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Julie Doyle-Madrid (She/Her/Hers)

Executive Director

Parker Friends

julie@parkerfriends.org

www.parkerfriends.org

832-724-4599

January 19th

**Birthday Alert** - Ms. Saloj (4th Grade Math Teacher)

January 20th

NO SCHOOL - MLK HOLIDAY

January 21st

**Birthday Alert** - Ms. Batarse (2nd Grade Bilingual Teacher)

January 21st - January 22nd

NO SCHOOL - WEATHER CLOSURE

January 21st - January 24th

IRT #2 Window (updates pending due weather closures)

January 23rd

PTO General Meeting (6:00-7:00pm)

All City Band Rehearsal (4:30-6:30pm)

January 24th

Last Day to purchase Auction Gala tickets for early bird pricing

January 25th

All City Concert @ MPVA (2:00-3:00pm)

January 27th

**Birthday Alert** - Mr. Harrison (Technology Teacher)

January 27th - 31st

Math Spirit Week

January 28th

100th Day of School

Chat & Chew w/ Principal Carter (8am & 5pm)

January 29th

**Birthday Alert** - Ms. Alfaro-Lopez (Bilingual Kindergarten Teacher)

PTO: Spirit Night with Cafe Piquet