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Address 812 W 28th St, Houston, TX 77008, USA Similar Carver High School, Harvard Elementary School, The High School For The Perfo, Travis Elementary School Profiles | ||
Arabic immersion magnet school
Arabic Immersion Magnet School (AIMS) is a magnet school in the Houston Heights area of Houston, Texas. A part of the Houston Independent School District, it currently covers elementary school grades. Its campus previously housed Holden Elementary School and the Energy Institute High School. It uses a grant from the Qatar Foundation, and it is one of the first Arabic language immersion schools in the United States. It is a part of HISD's efforts to increase the number of bilingual students. As of 2015 Kate D. Adams is the principal.
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Arabic immersion magnet school grand opening
History
On Thursday November 14, 2014 the HISD Board of Education approved the establishment of the school. The board approval was unanimous, and at the time there were no protesters. In May 2015 around 12 people complained about the future school to the HISD board.
The district planned to upgrade the heating and cooling systems, restrooms, lighting, and technology of the former Holden building.
490 applications for 132 slots for students were submitted. The school opened on Monday August 24, 2015 with 130 students, all in preschool and kindergarten. The school has plans to create one new grade level each year. The school ultimately plans to have the fifth grade as the highest level.
On the opening day a group of about 30 protesters gathered around the school, accusing it of being anti-American and hindering assimilation.
Curriculum
Each student spends half of his or her day learning in English and the other half learning in Arabic. The school focuses on Modern Standard Arabic after an HISD cross-functional team deemed that it should do so.