The big three
Three new assistant principals, Greg Graham, LaToya Easter and Jay Gorner were welcomed to the school after three APs moved on. Brandon Evans is now the assistant director for LISD’s Student Services, Chris Coy became the principal at Hyde Park High School and Tonya Edwards moved to California. To see a Q&A with the new APs, click here.
 
Bursting at the seams
For the first time ever, the student population has surpassed 2,300 students, with 2,365 Raiders walking in the first day. The increase meant the school added new teaching positions, with the staff blooming to 220 members. With several teachers and staff moving on, a total of 58 new people joined the Raider staff.
 

Popping portables
With the population overload, four new portables were added to accommodate the increase in students. Each portable houses two classrooms, creating eight new rooms for teachers. They are located next to the automotive shop behind the school and hold all the ACC classes as well as the Professional Communication classes.
 
Cast of computers
Because of the switch to Lenovo laptops, classrooms no longer have the standard four computers in them. Even teacher’s computers are gone, instead replaced by Lenovos that hook up to a docking stations connecting it to the projectors. In addition, the freshman class will receive Lenovos to use at home and school, starting in January.
 
Gown swap
The school is using different graduation gowns than from last year, switching companies from Balfour to Herff Jones. The gowns now have the circular Rouse logo on the front and are a deeper shade of maroon.
 
No more short shorts

Dress code is being more heavily enforced this year. Things like short Nike shorts are out of dress code, despite students thinking they’re acceptable because of past year’s exceptions. Shorts and skirts must be at finger-tip or mid-thigh length. And while there’s always rumors of a three-finger rule for tank top strap width, that is not actually listed in the LISD dress code. Strapless and spaghetti-strap tops are off limits, but there is no mention of width of tank tops. Click here to see the entire dress code guidelines.

This is why
The Rouse Union is a new undertaking this year to celebrate achievements, volunteering and other positive endeavors connected to the school. It’s a collaborative effort that includes parents, community members, district and campus leaders. The group will hold monthly forums the first Friday of every month at 7:30 a.m. in the lecture hall and regularly share stories about the school community with a newsletter and Twitter updates, including the hashtag #thisiswhyRHS.