Students Return to Campus Wednesday, September 4th

Monday, September 2^nd is a school holiday. Tuesday, September 3rd is a professional development day. That means there will be no classes on Tuesday. The Bellaire faculty and staff will be attending various professional development sessions on Tuesday.

Open House

Our Open House event is Wednesday night, September 4th. It will start at 5:00 p.m. in the auditorium with a general session and information about Title I. We will then attend classes in a format that follows periods 1-7. Attached is an example of the schedule for the evening. You will have an opportunity to meet your child’s teacher and get an overview of his or her classes. Please make sure to have your student's class schedule with room numbers when you arrive on campus.

Parent Library

Bellaire High School purchased new books for Bellaire High School parents: the topics range from understanding the teenage brain to empowering your student-athlete and dealing with your student going off to college. These books are free for any and all Bellaire High School parents to keep and build your own library. All of the titles will be available at the Open House on September 4th in front of our Library. Swing by and pick up some free books while you are in the building! Preview the books that are available here with our Virtual Parent Library Shelf. 

This interactive shelf works by clicking on a book to be redirected to a page about that specific book. To get back to the main shelf, click on the stack of books in the bottom right corner to see all of the options again. Thank you to Ms. Carpenter for compiling the online bookshelf!

School Messenger Contact Numbers

Most parents received our safety callouts last week. However, if you did not receive the calls we advise you to check your phone number with the school to make sure the correct phone number is in HISD Connect. You may email our Student Information Representative, Monica Contreras, at monica.contreras@houstonisd.org  and ask her to confirm your number on file and/or provide her with your correct and updated phone number. She will need to have your correct email on file to verify through an email. You may also visit the school and update phone numbers in person.

Socio-Economic Form

Have You Submitted this Form?

Socioeconomic Form

All of our forms are important, but this one impacts our funding! Please make sure that this form is updated or completed for the 2024- 2025 school year.

It is very important that we receive this form from everyone. Please email Ms. Giesemann if you have questions or need a paper form.

Exchange with an Italian High School

If your child is studying Italian and would like to live the life of an Italian teenager for two weeks in beautiful Cosenza, Italy, come to the informational meeting in room 3721 on Wednesday, September 11 at 4:30. If you cannot come to the meeting in person, email Ms. Borsa by 9/10 for a Teams link: mborsa@houstonisd.org.

PSAT and SAT

The SAT Suite of Assessments is designed to help students determine what they need to work on most so that they are ready for college when they graduate from high school—and it supports educators as they guide the way. Our scholars at Bellaire High School will be taking the Digital PSAT 8/9 and PSAT/NMSQT during the week of October 14th and SAT during the week of October 23rd . More information can be accessed here.

Student IDs

IDs have been printed for all students that have submitted ID pictures. If a student has not submitted a picture or needs to request a new ID, please click here. Students are required to have their school ID out, on and visible from the time the enter campus until they leave. Students that forget or misplace their student ID will be required to get a temporary ID. Temporary IDs are $1. Fees for temporary IDs may be paid online through SchoolPay or in person in the Main Office with Mr. Littlejohn.

Senior Home Lunch Permits

Students' Home Lunch Permits, which have received parental approval, are ready. Seniors will be required to submit their campus ID in exchange for their new Home Lunch ID. During the school year, if a Senior falls out of compliance with the requirements to have a Home Lunch Permit, they will be required to turn their home lunch permit back into Ms. Burgan's office.

Home lunch permits can be picked up outside of the auditorium through the concession stand window this week from 8:00 am - 8:25 am, during Cardinal Hour, and from 4:00 pm - 4:30 pm.

STAAR Tutorials for Students Retesting in December

Students who need to retest on one or more STAAR EOC exams will receive tutorial assignments this week. STAAR tutorials are mandatory and held during the red block of Cardinal Hour.

Mandatory tutorial notices will be sent home with students this week. The notification pages need to be signed and returned to the school. Attendance will be taken at tutorials.

Homecoming Tailgate

Calling all Cardinals! The BHS Homecoming Game is Thursday, September 26th. Pre-game tailgating at Butler Stadium will kick-off the festivities at 5pm. The game against Sam Houston will start at 7pm. The tailgate is free for all to attend. Bellaire clubs and organizations who wish to have a reserved space should fill out this form. Now is the time for clubs and organizations to begin to plan.

The Homecoming Dance will be held on Saturday, September 28th. Information will be posted soon regarding tickets etc.

South Korea and Greece Trips

Bellaire High School students and parents are invited to join us on our upcoming Cardinals Take Flight Spring Break trips!

In 2026, we will travel to Greece to see the real Mount Olympus, visit the floating monasteries of Meteora, ask questions at the Oracle of Delphi, experience the site of the Spartan battle at Thermopylae, sample local olives, feta, and honey, and cruise through the Saronic Islands.

And in 2025, we will experience both the past and the future on a tour of South Korea to travel by bullet train, visit temples, taste delicious treats at street markets, participate in tae kwon do and cooking classes, spend some time on the beach, and learn about the history and culture of the country.

Join us at our virtual meeting on Tuesday, September 24 at 7:00 PM to learn more. Both high school and college credit are available!  RSVP to the meeting here!

We are Serious About Cell Phones, Headphones and Earbuds

All cell phones, headphones, and earbuds need to be in backpacks when entering the building. These devices may only be out of backpacks and used during Cardinal Hour. If a device is out, it will be bagged and tagged. When a device is spotted, a student must drop the device into the bag and present their student ID. The device will be bagged and tagged or simply collected on the spot. There is a $15 fine that must be paid to recover the device in the Main Office at the end of the day.

We do not want to bag and tag any device. Please keep them in your backpack and use them only during Cardinal Hour.

From the Bellaire Counseling Office:

Course change requests must be processed by the 15th day of the school year, which was Friday, August 30th.

Level Changes

The level change window is Sept. 3-27.  (For example, a student wants to drop PreAP World Geography and add Academic World Geography.) Level change forms can be downloaded here or picked up in the counselor's office. The student, parent, and teacher must sign the Level Change Request form.

No level changes will occur in the first three weeks of school, with the following exceptions. Once the level change window is open, changes can occur until the end of the first six weeks. Also, there will be no level changes on the days teachers verify grades for the first six weeks. Students can still turn in the level change form during that time, and it will be applied to the second six weeks once grades are published.

 Exceptions:

1. The incorrect level was placed on your schedule. (You did not request the level.)

2. You are a new student to BHS (any grade level) in the 2024-2025 school year.

3. Parent approval is required if a student is recommended to move up a level.

We appreciate your patience during this extremely busy time. The BHS Counselors will continue working hard to process the changes received.

Transportation Information!

Bus riders, please be aware that the HISD Transportation Department is still in the process of managing routing and scheduling, so it is possible that your bus might not be ready to pick you up for the first week of school. Bus route stops have changed from previous years. Click here to view bus route stops from HISD transportation. Please be patient and have a backup plan in case your bus does not show up for you during week one.

• If you made your transportation request last school year (including new magnet students who clicked yes for transportation on the School Choice account), you should have received communication from the district regarding pick-up/drop-off location and time. If you did not receive any information by Wednesday, Aug. 7th, please contact Ms. Yin at yyin@houstonisd.org and include the student’s name and ID#.
• If you have made the request recently, please know that the HISD Transportation Department takes 10 business days to process any requests. Students can visit office 1124 to inquire about bus information once school started.
• If you want to make a request for bus transportation, please click here to see if you qualify for transportation and to submit a request. Please do not call and request for bus transportation as it is difficult to get all the information needed through a voicemail. Requests will not be processed by voicemail.

We highly recommend having a backup commute plan for the first two weeks of school as HISD is still working on routing the students. 

Remind Groups

We encourage all students and parents to join their class Remind group. Throughout the year we utilize a variety of channels to communicate with our community. Remind allows us to push timely messages and reminders to you throughout the year. We are committed to not filling up your text stream. You can text to join or their are links at the bottom of the E-News that you can use to join your class group.

BHS Spirit Store is open online!

We are accepting online orders throughout the summer. All online orders will be available for pick up during Cardinal Hour on Friday on Main Street near the big screen. Click here to check it out!

Please email emilycgannaway@yahoo.com with any questions. Thank you for your continued support.

Be a PTO Volunteer!

The PTO at Bellaire HS is a huge support system to the entire school. Please consider getting involved in a way that works for you and your schedule!

Volunteer

Contribute

Stay Informed

What should I do if a student is absent?

Students who have been absent or tardy must present a written excuse from their parents or guardians when they return to school. Parents may email to attendance at: MFLORESD@houstonisd.org

Excuses for absences and tardies are:

• personal illness
• sickness or death in the family
• quarantine
• weather or road conditions making travel dangerous
• participation in school activities with permission of the principal
• juvenile court proceeding documented by a probation officer
• approved college visitation
• emergencies
• religious holidays

In the case of ANY absence, excuse notes must be turned in to the attendance office within three days of returning to school. All notes must contain the following:

• student's full legal name and school ID number
• date(s) of absence and the
• date the note was written
• parent name, signature, and contact phone number

Please note,per the Texas Education Code 25.092 and HISD FEC ( Local) a minimum attendance requirement of 90% of class meetings must be met before credit can be awarded for the course. At HISD, missing more than 10 percent of school a year can lead to a student not receiving a grade (NG) or being retained, but more importantly, it represents lost time in the classroom and a lost opportunity to learn. For complete details on HISD’s attendance policy, please see HISD Attendance Policy.

Additional information can be found on our website.

Early Dismissal from School

All students must check out with Ms. Espadas in the Attendance Office located in the Main Office before leaving school during the school day. Parents must also come in to check their students out, and they must present a valid ID that matches information in PowerSchool/HISD Connect. The main office will then request the student from class.

3:00 PM is the cut-off time to pick a student up early for the day. Parents arriving after 3:00 PM cannot have their student called down to the attendance office. If a student needs to be picked up early, they must be picked up before 3:00 PM.

When absent, students should turn in an excuse note (doctor’s, parent, etc…) to Ms. Espadas for filing. As a reminder, a minimum attendance requirement of 90% in each class is required to award course credit. 

Club Schedule - Get Involved!

Join a Club - Get Involved

Club Meeting Schedule

The club meeting schedule for Weeks 4--6 of Cycle 1 is out! 

We have 175 club meetings scheduled, for an average of 13 opportunities every day for students to find connection and community.. Click here to see a full list of clubs.

Please see Ms. Chapman in room 2712 or email her at echapman@houstonisd.org with any questions about getting involved with clubs!

SDMC Nominations

The Shared Decision-Making Committee (SDMC) has been established on our campus to assist the principal. The committee meets for the purposes of implementing planning processes and site-based decision-making in accordance with Board policy and administrative procedure.  

Bellaire High School is seeking nominations for community and business representatives to serve on the SDMC for the 2024-2025 school year.  We encourage you to submit your information if you are interested in serving next year!  Click here to access the SDMC Form.  

Senior Dues

Pay early and save! One payment covers a senior's cap and gown, senior t-shirt, senior luncheon, prom, and after-prom! Payments can be made online through Schoolpay beginning August 12th.

Class of 2025 Yard Signs Now Available!

Yard signs celebrating our seniors are now available for purchase! You can purchase through this link or the QR code. Signs will also be available for sale at Coffee with the Principal on Aug. 29th and Open House on Sept. 4th.

Library Update from Ms. Carpenter

This week has been busy, and Ms. Carpenter has taught a few classes every week since the first week of school! We have seen a rise in student visits, specifically the freshman class, as they learned how and when to use the library! The library also hosted the first "Coffee with the Principal" of the year, where the school could give away books to parents whom the library selected! These books will also be available during Open House on September 4th! 

Some highlights include: 

• Ms. Charles' English I classes had an in-class library visit to do some prereading and inferencing activities through a "Lamb to the Slaughter" Investigative lesson. We read a mentor text to get a better idea of the job of a Forensic scientist and what they would need to look for in the fictional police reports based on Roald Dahl's short story, "Lamb to the Slaughter." The students made inferences, gathered evidence, and wrote predictions based on the procedural and informational texts.  
• Reminder- all Bellaire HS students had Summer Reading assignments this summer, their teacher should have gone over those expectations throughout this week, but if your student is new or needs something to read- the library is always here to help! 

Transportation Information!

Bus riders, please be aware that the HISD Transportation Department is still in the process of managing routing and scheduling, so it is possible that your bus might not be ready to pick you up for the first week of school. Bus route stops have changed from previous years. Click here to view bus route stops from HISD transportation. Please be patient and have a backup plan in case your bus does not show up for you during week one.

• If you made your transportation request last school year (including new magnet students who clicked yes for transportation on the School Choice account), you should have received communication from the district regarding pick-up/drop-off location and time. If you did not receive any information by Wednesday, Aug. 7th, please contact Ms. Yin at yyin@houstonisd.org and include the student’s name and ID#.
• If you have made the request recently, please know that the HISD Transportation Department takes 10 business days to process any requests. Students can visit office 1124 to inquire about bus information once school started.
• If you want to make a request for bus transportation, please click here to see if you qualify for transportation and to submit a request. Please do not call and request for bus transportation as it is difficult to get all the information needed through a voicemail. Requests will not be processed by voicemail.

We highly recommend having a backup commute plan for the first two weeks of school as HISD is still working on routing the students. 

Parents On Patrol - Join POP

POP - Parents on Patrol

Sign up to be a part of Parents on Patrol! Volunteers that help keep our campus safe. The hours are flexible. Click here to sign up and/or receive more information about how you can help.

To be a POP, you must first be VIPS-certified. Use this link to become VIPS-certified: How to Volunteer 

Mr. Niggli's assistant, Angelina Solis, is your contact for VIPS in case you have any questions. Her email is angelina.solis@houstonisd.org

Once you are VIPS certified you will be able to sign up for a training session.

First PTO General Meeting

September 17th @ 7pm

*immediately following the Freshman Parent Meeting

Location: BHS 

PTO Booster Clubs Open Forum Meeting

Tuesday, September 24 @ 6:30PM

5203 Locust Street

• Homecoming Tailgate - September 26
• Homecoming Dance - September 28

2024-2025 Student Handbook

Click here to access the 2024-2025 Student Handbook. We encourage every student and parent to read through the handbook to become familiar with they systems and procedures that are in place at Bellaire HS.

Dress Code for the 2024-2025 School Year

Please take a moment and read through our dress code.

Click here to access the dress cod

It Takes A Village...

Please help us collect important information and bring student and staff accomplishments to our school community. Please share with us Bellaire HS activities and student achievements. You can upload your pictures or event notices. Together, we can accomplish a lot. You can submit information anytime on the homepage on the right side of the page or bookmark this link.

Thank you to the Bellaire PTO Corporate Sponsors for 2024-2025

Remind Messaging App

All parents and students are encouraged to join their BHS Class Remind Group. Remind is a communication tool that will deliver important communications through text message or email. You can download Remind for IOS here and Android here. Once you download the app, simply text the class code you belong to above to the number 81010.

Remind can also be accessed by clicking on the links below to join a group.

Class of 2025

Class of 2026

Class of 2027

Class of 2028

In addition to the class codes above, students will have the opportunity to receive communication and correspond with their teachers through the Remind App.