• Category 1

    Selected in 2024

  • Grades: 9 - 12
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 2
    Student Enrollment: 402
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 23%
    White/Caucasian: 4%
    Hispanic: 55%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 18%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 0%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:20
    % Reduced Lunch: 83.6%
    % ELL Learners: 64%
    Founded: 2009
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Matthew Skiles
  • CONTACT:
    2811 A Hayes Rd
    Houston, TX 77082
    281-988-3010
    matthew.skiles@aliefisd.net
Alief Early College High School
Houston, TX
"Culture drives everything we do. It's the foundation of our success!"
1. Tell us about your school’s success.
Alief Early College High School is a unique high school. We are a designated Early College High School under the College and Career Readiness School Model umbrella with TEA. Through a partnership with Houston Community College, our students participate in a rigorous Dual Credit Program with the goal of attaining both their High School and Associate's Degree upon graduation.

Alief ISD is located in one of the lowest income areas in Houston. There are over 60 languages spoken in our district. Our school specifically targets At Risk students in order to give them a unique experience and opportunity that they may not get anywhere else. We believe that our students' Zipcode should not determine the educational experience they receive.

Our school is built around key programs that promote college and career readiness -- AVID and the Citgo Innovation Academy. These programs give students real world learning opportunities not found elsewhere.

AECHS is the best high school in Texas!

2. Talk about the greatest contributing factor(s) that promoted positive change in your school.
The biggest factor for our success is the culture we have built here. Meaningful Relationships is the motto of our district. We are a small magnet school. We only have 20 teachers and 400 students. Because we are small, we are able to instill common values amongst our staff and our students. Every teacher develops a relationship with every single student. Students don't get lost or slip through the cracks here.

Also, our students have to apply to enroll here. They are ultimately chosen by a lottery system. However, students are making a choice to be at this campus. They are bought in to what we are doing every day, and are driven to do their very best.

The strength of our culture motivates our staff to stay here. We have the lowest turnover in our district. Having experienced teachers in our classrooms translates to having a high level of instruction and engagement every single day.

Culture drives everything we do. It's the foundation of our success!
3. How has ESEA funding supported the school's success?
We could not do what we do without our Federal Funding.

Technology is used daily to enhance instruction. We are a 1:1 campus. Without Title funding, we would not be able to purchase the instructional technology needed to have a 21st Century classroom.

We also use Title Funding for many of our interventions and professional development. We pay for a part time interventionist who focuses on getting our students their CCMR credit and does work tracking their progress towards getting their Associate's Degree. We also pay for teachers to do after school tutorials and homework assistance. We pay for one of our staff members to be a TSI testing coordinator which is vital to making our students enrollable. Additonally, we want to make sure our teachers are always being innovative with their teaching practices. This requires them to attend PD's both inside and outside of our district which we pay the cost of.

We simply could not maintain our current level of success without this funding.
4. What professional development activities were used to improve teaching and learning?
We participate in many PD's both inside and outside our district.

Our district has a big focus on PLC and Data Driven Instruction. Many of our teachers participate in annual PD's related to this. Our district also trains many teachers on classroom management and relationship building strategies.

For our campus specifically, we have spent a lot of time coaching our teachers on establishing a growth mindset, project based learning, and STEM based trainings. We are always looking for ways to make our AP and advanced curriculums innovative. This year we are partnering with UT-Tyler on fostering growth mindset along with the use of makerspace tools such as, 3D Printing, Graphic Design, Apple Lab, and industrial technology.

We're successful, but we cannot rest on our laurels. We must constantly strive to hone and strengthen our craft.
5. Talk about the cultural shift leading up to your school's success.
Again, it's all about the culture we have established here. We have created an environment that students want to learn every day. Walking in our building, it does not feel like a high school. It feels like college. They are given the opportunity to have student ownership in our school. This creates buy in.

Our extra curricular programs are robust and make this school not just a place with great academics, but a place filled with social emotional learning opportunities. Our students walk away with skills that allow them to become leaders after high school because they have already taken the lead in campus based organizations and community service projects.
6. How has community involvement strengthened your success?
The biggest community partner we have right now is Citgo. Citgo funds our Innovation Academy. It's through these funds that we are able to purchase classroom resources in our STEM classes and fund special projects like FTC Robotics, Canstruction, and many field trip opportunities. Citgo gives our students the opportunity to get our of our neighborhood and go see different industries in action or have authentic Science based trips like visiting Galveston Bay.

We have also participated in many community service projects around the Alief area. All of our students are required to get community service hours to graduate. This has led to us beautifying our neighborhoods and volunteering at community events. The City of Houston has recognized these efforts on multiple occasions with proclamations and certificates of achievement. It's through these efforts that many students have earned scholarship opportunities through their service.
Stats
  • Category 1

    Selected in 2024

  • Grades: 9 - 12
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 2
    Student Enrollment: 402
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 23%
    White/Caucasian: 4%
    Hispanic: 55%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 18%
    Native American: 0%
    Other: 0%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:20
    % Reduced Lunch: 83.6%
    % ELL Learners: 64%
    Founded: 2009
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Matthew Skiles
  • CONTACT:
    2811 A Hayes Rd
    Houston, TX 77082
    281-988-3010
    matthew.skiles@aliefisd.net