Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts explained

Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts
Address:790 Austin Street, Houston, TX 77002
Location:Houston, Texas
Country:United States
Coordinates:29.7569°N -95.3602°W
Pushpin Map:USA Texas#USA
Established:1971
Type:Public Arts Magnet High School
District:Houston Independent School District
Grades:9-12
Principal:Dr. R. Rivas Priscilla
Enrollment:753 (2017-18)[1]
Newspaper:hspvapaper

Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (Kinder HSPVA, HSPVA or PVA) is a secondary school located at 790 Austin Street in the downtown district of Houston, Texas. The school is a part of the Houston Independent School District.

The school provides education for grades nine through twelve. The school is divided into six departments: instrumental music, vocal music, dance, theater (including technical theater), visual arts, and creative writing.

HSPVA was placed as the top school in the Greater Houston Area by Children at Risk's 2009 annual ranking of high schools,[2] and it has continued to be ranked as an "A" grade or higher by Children at Risk.[3] Since 2003, HSPVA has had eight students named US Presidential Scholars in the Arts (Presidential Scholars Program) by the US Department of Education as selected by the National YoungArts Foundation (YoungArts).[4]

As a Magnet school, HSPVA does not automatically enroll students from the surrounding neighborhood; the surrounding neighborhood is zoned to Northside High School.[5]

Art areas

There are six art areas: vocal music, instrumental music, dance, theatre, visual art, and creative writing. There are subdivisions within some of these art areas. Instrumental Music breaks down into band, orchestra, jazz, mariachi, and piano. Theatre breaks down into musical theatre, acting, and technical theatre.

History

HSPVA was established in 1971.[6] HISD chose Ruth Denney as the school's founding director.[7] The district asked Denney to choose between three potential sites: W. D. Cleveland Elementary School, Montrose Elementary School, and the former Temple Beth Israel building. After touring them, Denney selected the temple building and in May 1971 the final plans for HSPVA were presented to the school board.[8]

Parents rallied against a planned move to Timbergrove Manor due to its lack of proximity to Downtown Houston, artist landmarks, and the Houston Museum District, even though the district had already paid $500,000 for planning as of 1979.[9] The school moved to 4001 Stanford Street, the site of the former Montrose Elementary School, in 1982.[10] The cost was $1.3 million, and the HISD board had given the green light to the move the previous year. Keith Plocek of the Houston Press wrote that partly due to the 9th grade being reassigned to the high school level in 1981, "The building on Stanford Street was overcrowded from the get-go" as the facility was only intended for grades 10-12.[9] The HSPVA Friends booster club stated an intention to raise funds to recoup the money used for the Timbergrove site planning; according to the group, the district and HSPVA Friends had conflicting interpretations of their accord in the said recouping, and Plocek stated "The Friends never really paid much of the bill".[9]

By the late 1990s parents advocated for another move due to overpopulation, but again rejected the idea of the Timbergrove site due to the lack of proximity.[9] In the 1990s, there was a proposal to move HSPVA to the Bob R. Casey Federal Building in Downtown Houston.[11] HISD later proposed moving the school near the Gregory-Lincoln Education Center in Houston's Freedmen's Town Historical District in the Fourth Ward. HISD officials agreed to pursue a relocation at that time as Friends of HSPVA agreed to raise about 50% of a projected $30 million cost to develop a new site; otherwise HISD officials were reluctant to promote building a new HSPVA when there were schools with campuses in much worse repair.[9]

The Fourth Ward building would have included a 2000+ seat state-of-the-art theater, updated facilities and possibly a recording studio. Construction was temporarily delayed due to the discovery of a possible American Civil War-era cemetery.[9] In June 2007, the project page for the building displayed "CANCELLED."[12] The site that was to have the new HSPVA instead has the new Carnegie Vanguard High School.[13]

Naming discussion

On October 13, 2016, the Houston Independent School District Board of Trustees voted 7 to 2 to accept a naming rights contract from the Kinder Foundation for a $7.5 million for capital improvements to the new facility. The school's name was to become Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts when the school moved to the new downtown location. The Kinder funds provide primarily upgrades to theater equipment and some performance spaces, such as outfitting the mini-theater.[14]

The contract was approved by the school board after the Kinder Foundation said it would withdraw the funds if the board did not vote,[15] six days after the public announcement of the deal.[16]

One HISD board member, Jolanda Jones, spoke against the deal, arguing that it was selling out the rights to name a school and that HISD was not giving attention to the non-specialty schools in the district. Jones and Diana Davila were the only board members to vote against the deal. Most speakers at the board meeting, including community members and HSPVA students and parents, supported the deal (17 speakers in favor, 11 against).[17] [18] In April 2017, in response to a petition asking the Kinders to give the name back, Richard Kinder wrote to the superintendent of Houston Independent School District. Citing negative controversy, he offered to release the naming rights, but did not suggest or request the school's name be restored.[19] By contract, the name change became effective when the new downtown campus was occupied.[20]

New campus

In January 2019, HSPVA moved from its Montrose campus to the downtown site at 790 Austin Street.[21] The former campus now houses the Arabic Immersion Magnet School.[22]

Demographics

The demographics for the 2017 - 2018 school year are listed below.[23]

Race/Ethnicity 2016-2017
African American 18%
American Indian <1 %
Asian/Pac. Islander 9%
Hispanic 26%
White 45%
Two or More 3%

Anglo white students made up less than 50% of the student body, and the three ZIP codes with the highest numbers of students in HSPVA included Meyerland, Montrose, and the West University areas. The HSPVA student body had a higher percentage of Anglo white students than that of HISD as a whole. That year 15% of the students were low income. HSPVA historically had higher rates of minority enrollment as it had affirmative action policies, but these policies were withdrawn after 1997.[24]

Campus

A block in Downtown Houston is the new location for HSPVA. It formerly housed Sam Houston High School; at a later point the building housed the HISD headquarters.[25] The building is five stories and 168000square feet in size,[26] at a cost of $88.4 million.[27] [28] Gensler Architects designed the building.[29] Groundbreaking occurred on December 14, 2014.[30]

The previous campus was on Blocks 12 and 13 of the Lockard Connor and Barziza Addition,[31] in Montrose., many students practiced their creative arts in the school hallway due to the small size of the campus. Many Montrose-area residents attended performances even though they do not have children enrolled in the school. Students sometimes traveled to area cafes and restaurants after the official end of the school day but before additional rehearsals.[32]

Admissions patterns

HSPVA has no actual feeder patterns. Since it is a magnet school it takes students from all over HISD,[33] and from districts outside of HISD.

HSPVA takes students from many HISD middle schools. In addition, some students who are enrolled in private schools in the 8th grade, such as St. Mark's Episcopal School, Presbyterian School, River Oaks Baptist School, John Paul II School,[34] and Annunciation Orthodox School,[35] choose to go to HSPVA for high school.[36] [37] [38] [39]

Notable alumni

References

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: PERFOR & VIS ARTS H S. National Center for Education Statistics. December 1, 2018.
  2. Mellon, Ericka. "3 HISD schools sweep top spots." Houston Chronicle. April 12, 2009. Retrieved on May 5, 2009.
  3. Web site: 2018 School Rankings Texas School Guide. en. 2019-01-25.
  4. Web site: Awards - U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. August 31, 2016. ed.gov. December 31, 2016.
  5. Web site: Northside Attendance Boundary Map.
  6. Web site: School Information / History. www.houstonisd.org. en. 2019-01-25.
  7. Gore, p. 9.
  8. Gore, p. 10. Book: Gore, Elaine Clift. Talent Knows No Color: The History of an Arts Magnet High School. January 1, 2007. IAP. 9781593117627. December 31, 2016. Google Books.
  9. Web site: Plocek, Keith. On Shaky Grounds. Houston Press. 2004-12-30. 2019-08-27.
  10. Web site: New HSPVA school building in downtown Houston is part of proposed HISD bond package. CultureMap Houston. June 22, 2012 . en. 2019-02-11.
  11. Sarnoff, Nancy. "Officials ponder downtown move for HSPVA." Houston Chronicle. October 14, 2009.
  12. Web site: High School for Performing and Visual Arts Replacement School. https://web.archive.org/web/20070930210610/http://www.houstonisd.org/portal/site/Bond/menuitem.c46eefd63c468b3df4819bd9e041f76a/?vgnextoid=be2a0c9b494ef010VgnVCM10000028147fa6RCRD&vgnextchannel=874a57ebf04ef010VgnVCM10000028147fa6RCRD. dead. 2007-09-30. Houston Independent School District. 2019-09-01.
  13. Downing, Margaret. "Carnegie Vanguard May Finally (And Happily) Move To A New Home." Houston Press. December 10, 2009.
  14. Web site: HSPVA to be renamed after Kinder Foundation donates $7.5M. October 14, 2016. KPRC-TV click2houston.com. December 31, 2016.
  15. News: Fate of arts high school renaming proposal uncertain. Houston Chronicle. 2018-02-02.
  16. Pulsinelli. Olivia. 2016-10-14. HISD approves Kinder gift, name change. Houston Business Journal.
  17. News: Trustees Vote to Rename HSPVA and Jones Says HISD "Is Like a Pimp". Downing, Margaret. 2016-10-14. Houston Press. 2017-01-11.
  18. Web site: October 13, 2016 Board Meetings - Houston Independent School District. houstonisdtx.swagit.com. en. 2018-02-19.
  19. News: "The HSPVA Fight Continues Even After Rich Kinder Offers to Take Back His Name". Downing. Margaret. 2017-04-27. The Houston Press. 2018-02-01.
  20. Web site: Kinder-HSPVA-HISD Executed Agreement 10-13-16. Scribd. en. 2018-02-02.
  21. Web site: Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts / Homepage. www.houstonisd.org. en. 2019-01-25.
  22. Web site: Arabic Immersion Magnet School relocating to former Kinder HSPVA campus. Houston Independent School District. 2019-05-09. 2019-05-17. – Spanish version
  23. http://www.houstonisd.org/cms/lib2/TX01001591/Centricity/domain/21231/school_profiles/HSPVA_HS.pdf
  24. Web site: Isensee, Laura. Once Tool to Desegregate, HSPVA Doesn't Reflect Diversity in Houston School District. Houston Public Media. 2017-07-13. 2019-02-23. - Audio file
  25. Gonzales, J.R. "Sam Houston High School (old)." Houston Chronicle. March 30, 2010. .
  26. Mellon, Ericka. "HSPVA to get $80 million makeover with roof terrace, outdoor dining." Houston Chronicle. October 15, 2014. .
  27. Web site: Building Programs / High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. www.houstonisd.org. en. 2018-02-02.
  28. News: New Kinder HSPVA on track to welcome students in January 2019. News Blog. Houston Independent School District. 2018-02-02. en-us.
  29. "HSPVA breaks ground for new school in downtown theater district." Houston Independent School District. December 15, 2014. .
  30. "HISD breaks ground on four new campuses, celebrates first project to ‘go vertical’." Houston Independent School District. December 18, 2014. .
  31. Lockard Connor and Barziza Addition, Blocks 12 and 13. Harris County Assessor's Block Book. Volume 23, Page 68 (PDF and JPG) and 69 (PDF and JPG). They indicate the Montrose School, which HSPVA was built upon.
  32. Web site: Ambrose, Amber. A Sense of Place: Appreciating HSPVA's Montrose Campus Before the big Jump to Downtown. Montrose Management District. 2014-08-25. 2017-07-01.
  33. Web site: The High School for the Performing and Visual Arts / Homepage. October 21, 2009. https://web.archive.org/web/20100213000822/http://hspva.org/admissions/. February 13, 2010. dead.
  34. Web site: St. John Paul II Catholic School. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20070522213831/http://www.jp2.org/. May 22, 2007. mdy-all.
  35. Web site: Link Lookup . 2012-11-09 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120208023757/http://www.aoshouston.org/admissions/graduatingfromaos.shtm . February 8, 2012 . mdy-all .
  36. Web site: About Us . 2006-05-01 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20030807152922/http://www.stmes.org/aboutus.html . August 7, 2003 . mdy-all .
  37. Web site: Presbyterian School - Class of 2004 . 2012-11-09 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20060118103723/http://www.pshouston.org/fw/main/Class_of_2004-183.html . January 18, 2006 . mdy-all .
  38. http://www.robs.org/podium/default.aspx?t=1996
  39. Web site: John Paul II - Our Programs - Middle School Overview . 2007-05-23 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070927080440/http://www.jp2.org/OurPrograms/middleschool-overview.htm . September 27, 2007 . mdy-all .
  40. "Distinguished HISD Alumni ." Houston Independent School District.
  41. Web site: Theatre alum @KevinCahoon will direct Hedwig @zachtheatre in January. We hope you're able to stop by and see our new campus!https://twitter.com/KevinCahoon/status/1025482143571443712 …. HSPVA. Kinder. 2018-08-03. @HSPVA. en. 2019-02-11.
  42. Web site: Ashley Tamar Davis Returns Home to Star in the Hit "Motown The Musical". August 10, 2016.
  43. Web site: Communications . HISD . 2013-09-11 . Sixty HISD Students Named National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists . 2024-05-03 . News Blog . en-US.
  44. "Outstanding Alumni ." High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.
  45. Web site: Lapacazo Sandoval . Soul Singer MAJOR drops new album "EVEN MORE" . Los Angeles Sentinel . 7 September 2018 . 30 August 2018.
  46. Panken . Ted . November 2018 . Empathy & Authenticity . DownBeat . 85 . 11 . 26 .
  47. News: Golodryga. Bianna. Bianna's Inspiration: My High School Teacher. June 4, 2017. ABC News. July 8, 2010.
  48. Web site: The High School for the Performing and Visual Arts / Homepage. August 13, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080723201518/http://www.hspva.org/alumni/. July 23, 2008. dead.
  49. News: Sewing . Joy . August 16, 2022 . Houston native Solange becomes the first Black woman to compose music score for New York City Ballet . April 30, 2024 . Houston Chronicle.
  50. News: Guerra . Joey . August 24, 2009 . 'Shy girl' Letoya Luckett steps up when the spotlight shines . April 30, 2024 . Mysa.
  51. https://abc13.com/archive/7663883/ Soap star talks about struggles, surviving Ike
  52. Web site: MARGARET DOWNING . Flashdance, the Musical Brings Its Dance Dreams Back to Life in Houston . Houston Press . 7 September 2018 . 27 May 2013.
  53. Web site: Jo-Carolyn Goode . DeQuina Moore Stars in Flashdance – The Musical . Houston Style Magazine . 7 September 2018.
  54. Web site: Carli Mosier.
  55. Web site: Matusow, Cathy. "The Blog Age." Houston Press. October 28, 2004. Retrieved May 18, 2009. . May 30, 2008 . April 10, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150410151942/http://houstonpress.com/2004-10-28/news/the-blog-age/ . dead .
  56. Web site: Videos Featuring Distinguished Alumni . Houston Independent School District . November 8, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150503222901/http://www.houstonisd.org//site/Default.aspx?PageID=32184 . May 3, 2015 . live . Matt Mullenweg - The founder of Wordpress is a Houston ISD graduate. In this video, HISD alumnus Matt Mullenweg describes his experiences at HISD schools, including Parker Elementary and HSPVA, and explains how he created Wordpress. . mdy-all.
  57. Web site: Press Picks. Edith. Sorenson. May 30, 1996.
  58. Web site: Get Happy. October 21, 2008. IMDb.
  59. "Ronen Segev." Ten O'Clock Classics. Retrieved on May 18, 2009.
  60. Web site: Yvonne Villarreal . 'Dear White People': Creator Justin Simien goes back to class in Season 2 . Los Angeles Times . 7 September 2018 . 5 May 2018.
  61. Web site: Terry Gross . 'Dear White People' Is A Satire Addressed To Everyone . NPR . 7 September 2018 . 16 October 2014.
  62. Web site: writer . LESLIE CARDÉ Contributing . Role in 'Clarice' turns out to be a big break at the right time for New Orleanian Devyn Tyler . 2022-05-28 . NOLA.com . April 2, 2021 . en.
  63. "Reagan HS grad becomes Houston’s first poet laureate." Houston Independent School District. May 9, 2013. Retrieved on August 19, 2017. While she graduated from Reagan, she also attended HSPVA as noted on the page

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