In the spring of 2006, Aldine ISD was named the winner of the Texas Award of Performance Excellence, becoming only the second school district in the history of the state of Texas to earn the award. TAPE is an annual recognition of Texas organizations that excel in performance and the application of quality and customer satisfaction principles. The TAPE award is heralded as the state’s highest honor for quality and organizational performance.

Located approximately 15 miles north of downtown Houston, the Aldine Independent School District covers 111 square miles in North Harris County, with approximately 8,000 employees (4,000 of whom are teachers) who serve approximately 70,000 students. One of the 11 largest school districts in Texas, Aldine ISD is a multiethnic district that reflects the diversity of the Houston area. The district includes a variety of communities, from rural, to suburban, to commercial and industrial. Aldine ISD is home to 67 campuses: one Even Start center, three Head Start Centers, four Early Childhood/Pre-Kindergarten Centers, 32 elementary schools (grades K-4), nine intermediate schools (grades 5-6), nine middle schools (grades 7-8), four Ninth Grade Schools, four traditional high schools (grades 10-12), one Magnet high school, one night high school, one early college high school, one adaptive behavior center and one alternative education center.

For seven consecutive years, beginning with the 1996-97 school year, Aldine earned seven “Recognized Ratings” from the Texas Education Agency, and for two of those seven years, Aldine ISD was the largest recognized school district in the state of Texas. According to findings of a study conducted by The Learning First Alliance of Washington, D.C., Aldine ISD is driven primarily by the goal of increasing student achievement and providing better educational opportunities for all students. Aldine enjoys the distinction of being the only Texas school district included in this study.

Among other findings, the report indicated that Aldine ISD leaders are focused on how their decisions and work impact student learning. Other key findings revealed that the Aldine school district sets high standards for all students, using data to drive decisions and to set clear goals. In order to improve learning, Aldine’s faculty continuously seeks ways to improve teaching, and they are always open to new ideas for increasing student achievement. In the springs of 2004 and 2005, the Broad Foundation of Los Angeles named Aldine ISD one of five national finalists for the 2004 and 2005 Broad Prize for Urban Education. The prize is awarded to urban school districts that make the greatest overall improvement in student achievement while reducing the achievement gap across ethnic and income groups.

Aldine’s curriculum provides a framework for all instruction that takes place within its classrooms. The district believes that it is important for all administrators, teachers, and parents to have an understanding of what each student is expected to learn at specific intervals during their academic career and, to that end, has collaborated to produce the Aldine Benchmark Targets. For more information about the Aldine Independent School District, visit their website at www.aldine.k12.tx.us.