June 11, 2010
HISD hires official to oversee under-performing schools
Houston ISD announced today that Jeremy Beard, the principal of a top-rated charter school in the small border town of Donna, will oversee the under-performing middle and high schools targeted by Superintendent Terry Grier's "Apollo 20" reform plan. Beard is one of HISD's 22 new school improvement officers, which are Grier's version of executive principals. According to HISD's news release, Beard will be responsible for "coaching and mentoring" the principals at four high schools (Lee, Kashmere, Sharpstown and Jones) and five middle schools (Fondren, Key, Ryan, Attucks and Dowling middle schools). Nearly all these schools will have new principals. The Apollo 20 plan calls for ousting those principals who had been at their low-rated schools for more than two years.
Beard has been the principal of IDEA College Preparatory since 2005. The school, rated "exemplary" last year, offers the International Baccalaureate program and serves mostly low-income, Hispanic children. Its philosophy and approach sound similar to the popular Houston-based charter schools KIPP and YES Prep. IDEA has a longer school day and year