Helms Fifth Grade Students Have Supreme Role Model

Twelve fifth-grade students from Helms Elementary were able to attend The Progressive Forum’s sold out evening with Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Tuesday, January 22, at the Wortham Center, Cullen Theater.

Each student received a copy of Justice Sotomayor’s first book, My Beloved World, and had an opportunity to meet the ask questions at a pre-event reception exclusively for students. We are so proud to have this amazing dual language program in our community and love that the kids were interested in this event!

Justice Sotomayor shares a cultural and linguistic background with many students at Helms, and is an exceptional role model for all students.  If you're not familiar with this school

• Helms Elementary is a Title I school in HISD, located in the Heights. 
• At Helms, over 85% of students are Hispanic, 49% of the students are     English Language Learners, and the Dual Language Spanish Immersion Magnet Program serves 75% of students. 
• Magnet students are bilingual and bi-literate by 5th Grade. Helms is also an International Spanish Academy in partnership with the Spanish Ministry of Education.  

In 2009, Sonia Sotomayor became the first Hispanic and third woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. Nominated to fill the seat of retiring Justice David Souter, she is the nation’s 111th justice.  At The Progressive Forum, she discussed her first book, My Beloved World. Her memoir is a candid, personal story of self-discovery and the possibilities of America as seen through her “still-astonished eyes.”

• To visit the Helms Elementary website please follow this link: http://www.houstonisd.org/Helms
• For a complete press release for the evening with Justice Sotomayor please follow this link: Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor at The Progressive Forum January 22, 2013