Fonville Middle School hired learning coaches to help students falling behind in the classroom. It bought new state-of-the-art technology, such as webcams and smart boards. The school days are longer.
All that aggressive change earned the north Houston school its first ever A rating, a coveted stamp of approval from the state. It has been a dramatic climb since the state seized control of the district three years ago, when students were so behind in math and reading that the campus received the scarlet F.
“Here’s my bar,” Mike Miles, the Houston ISD superintendent and architect of the academic transformation, said to Principal Yvonne Hernandez at an August visit to the campus, raising his hand up to his ear. “Where’s yours?”
