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63-695: Edgar Allan Poe Elementary School is a primary school located at 5100 Hazard Street in Houston , Texas , United States . A part of the Houston Independent School District (HISD), the school, which was built during the 1920s, is located in the Chevy Chase subdivision of the Boulevard Oaks neighborhood west of Rice University . The school, a National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) historic district contributing property of Boulevard Oaks,

126-482: A Texas limestone exterior, and a light buff stucco, received inspiration from smaller French chateaux and buildings in New Orleans . The original building was in an "H" shape, with the auditorium in the back. The original plan situated that 5 acres (2.0 ha) would be dedicated to a play area with three playgrounds, with one for younger children of both sexes, one for older boys, and one for older girls, as well as

189-571: A $ 1 million ($ 1415146.83 when adjusted for inflation) gift. The plans for the library included a reading area with 16,500 books, a technology center with 32 computers, and a courtyard. Jennifer Radcliffe of the McClatchy - Tribune Business News said "The addition would put the River Oaks library -- which already has one of the largest collections in HISD -- head and shoulders above other campuses." Barry Bishop,

252-408: A basketball court, a baseball diamond for students of both sexes, gymnastic equipment, jumping pits, a track, sand boxes, swings for smaller children, and a volleyball court. The playground for smaller children was to be located in the center of the play area tract, the playground for older boys was to be located on the south side of the play tract, and the playground for older girls was to be located on

315-779: A board of governors, the pressure group, or the owner. The United Kingdom allows elementary education to be delivered in church schools , whereas in France this is illegal as there is strict separation of church and state . This can be through informal assessment by the staff and governors such as in Finland, or by a state run testing regime such as Ofsted in the United Kingdom. River Oaks Elementary School (Houston) It houses one of several gifted and talented programs, referred to as "Vanguard" programs, in Houston ISD. The school's motto

378-661: A child already identified as gifted at that point. In 1997 HISD removed the ethnic guidelines to Vanguard enrollment after a reverse discrimination lawsuit was filed in a federal court. McAdams wrote that in 1995, compared to other Vanguard programs River Oaks test scores were on the "low" side. McAdams stated that eight neighborhood schools in trustee district 5, his district, had higher average test scores than River Oaks. Those schools had minority enrollments from 27% to 52%. All students who are zoned to River Oaks are also zoned to Lanier Middle School , and Lamar High School . One condominium complex zoned to River Oaks Elementary

441-548: A director of library information at the Spring Branch Independent School District , said that the expansion of the River Oaks Elementary library "kind of shakes the equity issue" but because schools with poorer pupils have access to federal funds, foundation funds, and grants inaccessible to schools with wealthier student bodies, "If you actually look at the money spent per student, at least from

504-422: A natural tone, and a multicolored natural slate roof, uses an American Colonial and Georgian theme. It was the prototype of Architect Harry D. Payne's school design for HISD. Poe's sister schools are River Oaks , Briscoe, Field, Henderson, and Wharton elementaries, which all share the same floor plan. Payne gave each of those schools its own unique exterior. The school library, previously consisting solely of

567-524: A portion of Neartown (including sections of Montrose , Castle Court, Dearborn Place, Richwood Place, and a portion of Lancaster Place), portions of the Houston Museum District area, a portion of Riverside Terrace , and a portion of Upper Kirby (areas of the district located west of Edloe and north of Westpark, residential areas located east of Edloe, west of Kirby, and north of U.S. Route 59 , and residential areas east of Kirby). In addition,

630-455: A private school, but after they approved of the philosophy of HISD superintendent Edison Oberholtzer , they supported his efforts. Since HISD distributed most of its funds to junior and high schools, the "Supplementary Aids committee" founded by Hogg and the other women funded a furnished library for River Oaks. Hogg, HISD officials, and a group of mothers selected Eva Margaret Davis as the school's first principal. Estelle Sharp, Hugh Potter, and

693-470: A solid foundation for learning. This is ISCED Level 1 : Primary education or first stage of basic education. Within the English speaking world, there are three widely used systems to describe the age of the child. The first is the "equivalent ages"; then countries that base their education systems on the "English model" use one of two methods to identify the year group; while countries that base their systems on

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756-448: A synonym, "elementary school" has specific meanings in different locations. School building design does not happen in isolation. The building (or school campus) needs to accommodate: Each country will have a different education system and priorities. Schools need to accommodate students, staff, storage, mechanical and electrical systems, support staff, ancillary staff and administration. The number of rooms required can be determined from

819-584: Is "Where discovery is elementary". Its mascot is the roadrunner . River Oaks Elementary School has an accelerated multidisciplinary curriculum. It became one of the first three elementary schools in Texas to get authorization for the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (the primary school division of the IB program) during the 2002 - 2003 school year, and the curriculum

882-479: The Houston Chronicle staff argued that "Until there is another vote, HISD should continue its work to improve all of HISD's neighborhood schools to lessen concerns that a child must qualify for some kind of magnet program and be bussed across town to be assured a quality education," and that the voting was done out of decentralization and not racial reasons, and so the perception that it was racial "helps to give

945-509: The Houston Chronicle , during her tenure Poe "earned its reputation for high TAAS scores and academic standards." She served in that capacity until 2001, when Debbie Verdon became principal on July 23. Verdon previously worked in the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District as a principal. When the 2005-2006 school year concluded, Will Rogers Elementary School closed. Poe Elementary School gained

1008-649: The 2727 Kirby condominium complex, and the Greenway Condominiums (14 Greenway and 15 Greenway), are zoned to Poe Elementary. A Houston Housing Authority (HHA) public housing complex, the Ewing Apartments, is zoned to Poe. Most residents of the Poe attendance boundary are zoned to Bob Lanier Middle School (formerly Sidney Lanier Middle) in Neartown , while a few are zoned to Cullen Middle School. All residents of

1071-558: The "American K–12 model" refer to their year groups as "grades". Canada also follows the American model, although its names for year groups are put as a number after the grade: For instance, "Grade 1" in Canada, rather than "First Grade" in the United States. This terminology extends into the research literature. In Canada, education is a provincial, not a federal responsibility. For example,

1134-409: The "most popular" elementary-level Vanguard program in HISD. River Oaks Elementary celebrated its 75th anniversary in the 2003–2004 school year. Jeff Bezos, a River Oaks alumnus, spoke at a luncheon during this event. A new addition, which replaced temporary buildings, began construction during winter 2005 and was completed in summer 2007. The lead architect was Joiner Partnership, Incorporated, and

1197-478: The Hoggs created a telephone campaign which had River Oaks mothers make telephone calls to persuade Edison E. Oberholtzer , the HISD superintendent, into modeling the school's education program after John Dewey 's ideals. River Oaks opened in 1929. As the school grew, more classrooms were added. First permanent additions were built. Later temporary buildings were set up on the school grounds. In 1974 most of River Oaks

1260-490: The Philippines) is a school for primary education of children who are 4 to 10 years of age (and in many cases, 11 years of age). Primary schooling follows preschool and precedes secondary schooling . The International Standard Classification of Education considers primary education as a single phase where programmes are typically designed to provide fundamental skills in reading, writing, and mathematics and to establish

1323-655: The Poe Cooperative Nursery School (Poe-Co), a privately-operated pre-school , was located on the Poe school grounds; it was established in 1974 in order to revive enrollment at Poe Elementary. It earned National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accreditation in 1991, making it the first parent cooperative preschool to do so. Poe-Co moved from the Poe Elementary grounds after HISD removed private preschools from public school properties. Poe

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1386-677: The Poe attendance boundary are zoned to Mirabeau B. Lamar High School in Upper Kirby . Poe Elementary serves as a polling location during elections. The Houston Press ranked it as the best polling center in Houston in 2003. Primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore ), elementary school , or grade school (in North America and

1449-424: The Poe school building were converted into preschool classrooms. The preschool earned National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accreditation in 1991, making it the first parent cooperative preschool to do so. Each parent of an enrolled student must work at the preschool for two days out of every month. PoeCo holds an annual garage sale to support its operations. PoeCo parents also assist in

1512-517: The River Oaks neighborhood to have a neighborhood school at the board table. Parents from River Oaks pressured the school into adding back a neighborhood program. Some Vanguard parents felt concern with the proposal, because they liked the Vanguard program and feared that introducing neighborhood children would adulterate the Vanguard program, believing that River Oaks parents would use political influence and money to have underqualified children admitted to

1575-494: The State of Texas. The school also holds an annual auction fundraiser. Poe students (since fall 1998, as of 2006) have to wear school uniforms . At first, students had a choice of white, red, yellow, or navy blue T-shirts and polo shirts and school T-shirts. Later the school banned all non-Poe logo shirts. As of 2006, all shirts must have the Poe logo. Students must wear khaki bottoms. The Texas Education Agency specified that

1638-509: The US, although both this term and elementary school may refer to the first eight grades, in other words both primary education and lower secondary education . The term primary school is derived from the French école primaire , which was first used in an English text in 1802. In the United Kingdom, "elementary education" was taught in "elementary schools" until 1944, when free elementary education

1701-542: The Vanguard program. Some parents believed that the River Oaks neighborhood program would reduce racial diversity at the school. In 1995 the school had about 500 students, with 40% White, 30% Black, 28% Hispanic, and 1% Asian. Large numbers of parents who were White, Black, and Hispanic protested against the proposal. Donald R. McAdams, a former HISD trustee and the author of Fighting to Save Our Urban Schools-- and Winning!: Lessons from Houston , stated that Vanguard parents were afraid of having to give up complete control over

1764-416: The area of three classrooms, received an over $ 80,000 renovation and expansion in 2002. Parents and other area residents contributed $ 50,000 while the parent-teacher organization (PTO) held fundraisers and other events to generate $ 40,000. As of 2002 the school library had six IBM compatible computers and four iMacs . Poe Elementary has a fireplace and chimney given to the school by Ima Hogg . As of 2010

1827-521: The attack: Kolter Elementary School in Meyerland and Montgomery Elementary School in Southwest Houston. Poe was desegregated by 1970. In 1985 a new classroom wing opened. From 1986 to 1996, Poe Elementary served a section of River Oaks as the neighborhood program of River Oaks Elementary School had been removed. Ann McClellan served as principal of Poe beginning circa 1990, and according to

1890-425: The attic. As of 2010 there were efforts to restore the fireplace, with donations being the source of funding. Azalea flowers, used in the landscaping of various Houston landmarks, have been present in the landscaping of this school. In November 2008 the alumni of River Oaks Elementary started a campaign to raise $ 3.4 million ($ 4811499.23 when adjusted for inflation) to build a new library. They had already received

1953-411: The board voted in favor of Bricker's program 5–2, with 2 abstaining. Many neighborhood parents accepted the plan. Some Vanguard parents had objected. McAdams said that this vote ended the River Oaks controversy. In the 1996–1997 school year, River Oaks Elementary introduced the neighborhood program, with for grades kindergarten through 2 admitted immediately. Grades 3 through 5 were grandfathered into

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2016-460: The demographics made the school attractive to River Oaks parents who wanted to send their children there. Donald R. McAdams wrote that in 1995 River Oaks was "not really full of gifted children". He cited the fact that, at the time, HISD put ethnic balances on the gifted and talented roster, with no more than 35% White and Asian and at least 65% Black and Hispanic overall, leading many White and Asian children to be excluded. In addition McAdams cited

2079-402: The education has to fulfill the needs of: The students, the teachers, the non-teaching support staff, the administrators and the community. It has to meet general government building guidelines, health requirements, minimal functional requirements for classrooms, toilets and showers, electricity and services, preparation and storage of textbooks and basic teaching aids. An optimum school will meet

2142-493: The elementary school-aged students living in the River Oaks Elementary attendance boundary attended River Oaks Elementary, according to HISD estimates. Donald R. McAdams wrote that in 1995, at the time of the political turf battle involving River Oaks Elementary and neighborhood students, River Oaks was a "middle class school." The student mix was 40% White, 30% Black, 28% Hispanic, and 1% Asian. 9% of students qualified for free and reduced lunch. According to HISD standards, all of

2205-533: The fireplace is located in the art classroom. The building is a contributing property of the Boulevard Oaks Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places . The school has dance, music, Suzuki violin , and visual art classes as part of its magnet program. As of 1985 about 200 Poe students lived north of U.S. Highway 59 and used a bridge on Woodhead Drive to travel to

2268-400: The floor area should be 350 m + 4.1 m /pupil place. The external finishes were to be downgraded to meet a build cost of £1113/m . There are several main ways of funding a school: by the state through general taxation, by a pressure group such as a mosque or church, by a charity, by contributions from parents, or by a combination of these methods. Day-to-day oversight of the school can through

2331-414: The grounds of Poe Elementary. The preschool opened on February 4, 1974, with two classes of students. The enrollments of these two classes were filled shortly after PoeCo opened. Poe Elementary received an increase in enrollment after PoeCo opened. The preschool was originally held in temporary locations, with some located in the Poe property and some outside of Poe. In 1985 two classrooms in the north wing of

2394-407: The houses in River Oaks had changed ownership. By 1995 River Oaks Elementary had a waiting list, and it became one of the most prestigious public elementary schools in Houston. By that year several new families had established themselves in River Oaks and many of them were interested in sending their children to public school. On March 2, 1995, HISD board trustee Ron Franklin introduced a request by

2457-499: The issue a racial tinge it does not deserve, which only serves to aggravate an already tense situation." Laurie Bricker, a white HISD board member, introduced a new plan that allowed parents of Vanguard students to include their non-Vanguard children in the neighborhood classes along with River Oaks neighborhood students. Bricker had the neighborhood program as a phase-in to appease Vanguard parents but some minority HISD trustees did not like that aspect of her program. On March 21, 1996,

2520-499: The lead project manager was Heery International . The campus is located at Kirby Drive and San Felipe Road, in proximity to the River Oaks Country Club . As of November 2008 the school building has 7,570 square feet (703 m ) of space, and its site is 15-acre (6.1 ha). The school, which has a color like that of sand, has a Colonial Revival / French colonial architectural style. The design, using natural slate,

2583-615: The library perspective, it kind of balances out." A neighborhood activist from Sunnyside , Alice Pradia, argued that HISD did not do enough to bolster libraries of school campuses. River Oaks Elementary has a "nature center", which opened in 1990, which has various plants as well as several insects and smaller animals in it. As of the 2011–2012 school year, River Oaks Elementary had 717 students. 50% were White, 20% were Asian or Pacific Islander, 16% were Hispanic, 7% were black, and less than 1% were Native American. 8% of students qualified for free and reduced lunch. As of 2014 about 56% of

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2646-407: The mechanisms for gifted testing at the time. As of 1995, under Texas state law a gifted child was defined as one in the 95th percentile. Testing for gifted and talented status took place at Kindergarten. McAdams wrote that many children identified as gifted under this formula were simply well-educated by their parents and that this became apparent in the third grade. However a school would not dismiss

2709-492: The minimum conditions and will have: Government accountants having read the advice then publish minimum guidelines on schools. These enable environmental modelling and establishing building costs. Future design plans are audited to ensure that these standards are met but not exceeded. Government ministries continue to press for the 'minimum' space and cost standards to be reduced. The UK government published this downwardly revised space formula for primary schools in 2014. It said

2772-415: The north side of the play tract. The plan called for trees to be planted parallel to sidewalks along Avalon Road, Kirby Drive, and San Felipe Road. The auditorium was built square-shaped. Its kindergarten area once housed a fireplace , which, along with its chimney, was given to the school by Ima Hogg . In 2005 the fireplace was moved to the teacher's lounge during renovations, and it was later placed in

2835-411: The parents and/or guardians of students zoned to a school with uniforms may apply for a waiver to opt out of the uniform policy so their children do not have to wear the uniform; parents must specify " bona fide " reasons, such as religious reasons or philosophical objections. There is a formerly affiliated private preschool, Poe Cooperative Nursery School (Poe-Co), which historically shared a campus with

2898-509: The portion of the Will Rogers zoning boundary that was east of Weslayan. Jeff Amerson became principal in 2011; he formerly taught at Pershing Middle School and The Rice School , and prior to becoming Poe's principal he was the principal of Garden Oaks Elementary School. Poe became an International Baccalaureate Primary Years school on February 22, 2016. Poe Elementary, which has a light pink, velour brick exterior, copper sheet metal in

2961-466: The predicted roll of the school and the area needed. According to standards used in the United Kingdom, a general classroom for 30 reception class or infant (Keystage 1) students needs to be 62 m , or 55 m for juniors (Keystage 2). Examples are given on how this can be configured for a 210 place primary with attached 26 place nursery and two-storey 420 place (two form entry) primary school with attached 26 place nursery. The building providing

3024-407: The province of Ontario also had a " Grade 13 ", designed to help students enter the workforce or post-secondary education, but this was phased out in the year 2003. In most parts of the world, primary education is the first stage of compulsory education , and is normally available without charge, but may also be offered by fee-paying independent schools . The term grade school is sometimes used in

3087-422: The public Poe elementary school. It was established after a decline in enrollment at Poe Elementary in the 1970s that occurred due to racial integration. While the parents themselves administered the school and served as assistants in the classrooms, HISD provided the building space and the supporting utility and maintenance services. Then-HISD superintendent Billy Reagan suggested that a private preschool open on

3150-454: The request of Shadwick, offered $ 50,000 in board election campaign contributions if they would change their votes, and threatened to rally a group of parents to campaign for their opponents if they did not change their votes. Jose Salazar, the intermediary who contacted Campos, said that no such offer had ever been made. McAdams stated that the controversy caused public attention to focus on the HISD board and its racial makeup. In an editorial,

3213-568: The school and share power with neighborhood parents. During that year, the HISD school board voted on a proposal to open the school to neighborhood parents. The four White board members voted in favor, while the five non-White board members voted against it. Lana Shadwick, an assistant attorney of the Harris County government, campaigned for the HISD board to allow neighborhood enrollment at River Oaks. Two board members, Esther Campos and Robert Jefferson, said that an entity, through intermediaries at

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3276-422: The school was far below capacity. River Oaks became exclusively a public magnet school in 1986; during the previous school year a total of 60 students were residents of the River Oaks neighborhood. At the time River Oaks had mainly older families. At the time the remaining families who did have children had the money to send their children to private school and preferred to do so. From 1986 to 1995, up to 50% of

3339-511: The school, south of the freeway; at least twenty students regularly traveled as pedestrians while about 66% of those north of U.S. 59 were driven in private cars. School bus service was not available since the students lived too close to the school. Every year Poe Elementary holds a carnival patronized by members of the Boulevard Oaks community, parents, and future parents. The carnival raises funds to cover budget gaps not supported by HISD or by

3402-560: The students were gifted and talented. McAdams wrote that most of the minority children classified as gifted and talented by HISD came from middle class households. In 1995, the largest group of River Oaks Elementary School parents resided in the City of West University Place and nearby neighborhoods. McAdams wrote that in 1995 White parents liked the demographics because there was a "high-cost, first class education in an almost perfect ethnic mix, and all this with ethnic harmony." McAdams wrote that

3465-477: The system. Prior to the rezoning, parts of the River Oaks neighborhood were zoned to Wilson Elementary School (now Baker Montessori School ) in Neartown , while other parts were zoned to Will Rogers Elementary School (which closed after the 2005–2006 school year), and other parts were zoned to Poe Elementary School in Boulevard Oaks . In 2001 Lisa Gray of the Houston Press described River Oaks as having

3528-567: The wider Poe Elementary carnival by manning booths and/or babysitting for parents who work in the carnival. In 2020 HISD announced that it will expel private preschools from HISD campuses. HISD was trying to build its own public preschools, and HISD receives funding from the state for public preschool students but not private preschool students. It moved to St. Matthew Lutheran Church effective June 2021. The school serves multiple neighborhoods and areas: Boulevard Oaks (including Broadacres ), Ranch Estates, Southampton , Shadyside , Rice Village ,

3591-617: Was assigned to River Oaks Elementary School. River Oaks Elementary was originally an all-White school ; it was desegregated in 1970. The "ESG" (Elementary School for the Gifted) program was established shortly afterwards. It was not the first magnet program in Houston, as High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (HSPVA) was the first. Prior to desegregation, River Oaks Elementary had around 800 children. After desegregation, many parents removed their children from River Oaks Elementary, and

3654-433: Was changed accordingly during the same school year. River Oaks Elementary was designed by architect Harry D. Payne, who, in 1926, arrived in Houston after being hired by the Houston Independent School District to design the school. Payne gave the same floor plan to River Oaks, Briscoe, Field, Henderson, Poe , and Wharton elementaries. He insisted on giving each school a unique exterior. Payne said that River Oaks' design

3717-460: Was established in 1928. It was originally an elementary school reserved for white people and others who were not black . It was previously called "Chevy Chase Elementary School". The Poe Elementary School bombing occurred on September 15, 1959, when a man named Paul Orgeron detonated a bomb during recess at Poe Elementary School, killing himself, a teacher (Jennie Katharine Kolter), a custodian (James Arlie Montgomery, for which Montgomery Elementary

3780-520: Was named after Edgar Allan Poe . Poe Elementary, as of 2001, had about 700 students. It has bilingual programs for all grade levels and a fine arts magnet program . The 1980 Houston/Harris County Metropolitan Area Southwest-Westpark Corridor Transitway Alternatives: Environmental Impact Statement of the Urban Mass Transportation Administration described Poe as "a thriving, well-integrated magnet school ". From 1974 to 2021

3843-413: Was named), and three 7-year-old boys (Billy Hawes, Jr., John Fitch, Jr., and Dusty Paul, Orgeron's son). Ruth Doty, the principal, was partially deafened in one ear by the blast. Unlike school attacks in the early 21st century, there was no constant national and international media coverage of the Poe attack. No memorial was constructed at Poe Elementary. HISD named two new elementary schools after victims of

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3906-413: Was one of his favorite designs. Landscaping architect William M. Anderson created the landscaping plans. The River Oaks Corporation provided the land that the school was built on, which was worth $ 50,000; the corporation wanted the school to be built as soon as possible, so it sold the land at half price to HISD. Ima Hogg , Mrs. Agnese Carter Nelms, and Mrs. Pat Houstoun originally considered founding

3969-568: Was proposed for students over 11: there were to be primary elementary schools and secondary elementary schools; these became known as primary schools and secondary schools. In some parts of the United States, "primary school" refers to a school covering kindergarten through to second grade or third grade (K through 2 or 3); the "elementary school" includes grade three through five or grades four to six. In Canada, "elementary school" almost everywhere refers to Grades 1 through 6; with Kindergarten being referred to as "preschool." Though often used as

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