Pasadena Independent School District is molding today’s learners into tomorrow’s leaders. The district has championed innovative educational learning initiatives supported by advanced programs and technology driven resources that foster student success. Through positive community and business support, the district provides a menu of post secondary, technical and specialized opportunities that prepare students for higher education and adaptable workplace environments. Completing the cycle many Pasadena ISD alumni make Pasadena their home after graduation, working and raising their families in the community.

While Pasadena Independent School District began as a one-room school house in 1898, today it is a large urban district employing 7,650 employees and serving approximately 55,000 students in 65 schools including the Dr. Kirk Lewis Career and Technical High School. The district is home to the annual McDonald’s Texas Invitational Basketball Tournament, one of the largest high school tournaments in the country. This year’s tournament brought in over $1 million in proceeds benefiting the Pasadena ISD Education Foundation’s Mini Grant Program, providing innovative educational experiences for students.

Students at Pasadena ISD meet challenges head on and engage in rigorous curriculum. The number of students involved in dual credit and Advanced Placement classes continues to grow as part of Pasadena ISD’s commitment to College and Career Readiness. In recent years, the district has seen a 400-fold increase in Advanced Placement participation while dual credit courses provide students the opportunity to graduate from high school with a diploma and an associate’s degree. Pasadena graduates have attended some of the top universities and colleges in the country like Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, Brown and Yale. The district also  offers an array of opportunities to earn an associate’s degree, graduate with a diploma, earn college credits, and gain professional certification or a license in high-demand areas like engineering, nursing and welding.

Pasadena ISD students excel in the classroom as well as outside of it. They participate in an exceptional fine arts program earning the district the distinction of being named one of the best communities for music education. Students compete and excel in elementary music, band, choir, orchestra, visual arts, theatre arts and dance. In fact, Pasadena ISD students outperform their competition in a variety of extra-curricular activities. District students have claimed national Decathlon and state softball championships.

In Pasadena ISD, the future of education is now. With strong community and business support, the district has spent just over $1 billion in the past 24 years to provide new facilities and renovations designed to promote smaller learning communities and flexible teaching environments.  The exceptional teachers and innovative programs have created an endless cycle of student achievement preparing the students of today to be the leaders of tomorrow.

 
WE BELIEVE THAT...  
Everyone has purpose, worth, and dignity.  
Individual potential is unknown and immeasurable.  
Family dynamics profoundly influence the decisions individuals make and the people they become.
Connecting with others and building positive, meaningful relationships are essential.
Learning is instinctive, lifelong, and unique to the individual.
Communication is pervasive, essential, ever-present, and multidimensional.   Feeling safe enhances the ability to learn.  
Diversity adds value to all areas of life.
Change is natural and continuous.
Each person is responsible and accountable in all aspects of life for the choices he or she makes.

ACHIEVEMENTS

• Pasadena ISD employs 7,219 individuals. 
• Since 2003, the McDonald's Texas Invitational Basketball Tournament has donated more than $1 million to the Pasadena ISD Education Foundation. 
• Pasadena ISD high school students earned top places in national and international Career and Technology competitions.   
• More than 350 Promethean boards are being utilized in classrooms district wide-taking students on educational journeys across the world. 
• Pasadena ISD is home of the largest HOSTS program in the state with more than 2,500 annual volunteers helping students develop better reading skills. Students from all five Pasadena ISD high schools were named as All-State students in band, orchestra and choir. 
• Pasadena ISD was named a leader in music education for five consecutive years by a national survey sponsored by the NAMM Foundation and its AMC division. 
• In 2011-2012, three district high schools -- Dobie, Pasadena and Memorial -- qualified for state competition in Academic Decathlon. 
• In 2011-2012, every district sixth-grader visited a college campus after completing the Kids2College curriculum.