- The Chinquapin School
-
The Chinquapin School 
Latin: Quid pro Quo
(Something for Something)Location 2615 E Wallisville Rd
Highlands, Texas, 77562
United StatesInformation Type Nonprofit private college-preparatory school Established 1969 Founder Robert and Maxine Moore Director Dr. Ray Griffin Faculty 21 Key people Bill and Kathy Heinzerling Grades 6-12 Enrollment 164[1] Campus type Rural Color(s) Black and white Athletics Baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, volleyball Athletics conference Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools Mascot Burr Accreditation(s) Texas Alliance of Accredited Private Schools Newspaper The Burr Website www.chinquapin.org The Chinquapin School is a nonprofit private college-preparatory school, grades six through twelve, which serves low-income youth, particularly minorities, from the Greater Houston area. The school, accredited by the Texas Alliance of Accredited Private Schools, is located in Highlands in unincorporated Harris County, Texas, USA.
Chinquapin, along with Cristo Rey Jesuit College Preparatory of Houston and Yellowstone Academy, is one of the few Greater Houston private schools that caters to low income students.[2]
Contents
History
The Chinquapin School was founded by Robert P. Moore — formerly head of the English Department at St. John's School in Houston — and his wife Maxine. Incorporated in March 1969 as a school for boys, it was funded with an initial five-year grant of $250,000 from The Brown Foundation of Houston.
The Moores had planned to locate the school on their property near Palestine, Texas — where a branch of Chinquapin Creek and several Chinquapin trees can be found — but were convinced they needed to be closer to Houston. Inner-city students — the school's target prospects — were located there, as was the donor base who were more plentiful in Houston and who would want to see the impact they were making in their city.
Chinquapin was originally located in the city of Baytown on Tri City Beach Road. Board members soon discovered nearby the current Highlands location (a former egg farm); doors opened there in August 1973. The school became coeducational in 1978, letting in its first female student on a trial basis.
The school's name comes from the Algonquian word meaning "large". The school motto is Quid pro Quo (Latin: Something for Something). It's been the school's motto since its founding, and its simple message pervades almost every aspect of the school.
Student life
All students who attend Chinquapin are on scholarship and pay a fraction of the $10,500 per student operating cost — $8,500–$10,000+ a month, based on family income. To fulfill the school's motto of Quid pro Quo, students give back by performing daily chores and helping in the community.
Girls and sixth grade boys are bussed to the school daily. Boys in seventh through twelfth grades stay Monday through Friday on campus dormitories.
Academics
In 2010, Chinquapin added the Urban Teaching Fellows Program, an initiative that allows recent college graduates to gain exposure to all aspects of life at a boarding school including teaching, coaching and residential life.
Athletics
Chinquapin is grouped in TAPPS Division 2A and competes in baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.
Chinquapin holds one state championship, that of the 1982 basketball team coached by Bill Heinzerling.
Chinquapin's soccer team has been in the TAPPS State Final Four four of the past five years. For the 2004-05 season the Burrs lost to Carrollton Prince of Peace 2-0, placing second in state. In the semifinals of the 2005-06 season they lost to Austin Concordia 3-0, placing third in state. In the 2006-07 season they lost to Dallas Fairhill 1-0, placing fourth in state. In 2008-09 they lost to Universal City First Baptist 3-0, placing fourth in state.
Chinquapin's 2006-07 junior varsity soccer team ended with a 14–0 record in their district.
Notable alumni
- Jarvis Johnson, member of the Houston City Council
- Nhial "Simon" Malia, a Lost Boy of Sudan[3]
Notes
- ^ "The Facts". The Chinquapin School. http://www.chinquapin.org/site/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=69&Itemid=163. Retrieved 2011-06-14.
- ^ Radcliffe, Jennifer. "Third Ward school for poorest of poor still thriving." Houston Chronicle. Monday October 11, 2010. Retrieved on October 21, 2011.
- ^ Cannon, Len (January 20, 2010). "'Lost Boy of Sudan' finds brighter future thanks to Houston school". Houston, Texas: KHOU. http://www.khou.com/news/Sudan-refugee-finds-new-future-in-Houston-school--82218237.html. Retrieved 2011-06-14.
References
- KHOU-TV staff (1973). Chinquapin: Pebble in the Water (News Special). Houston, Texas: KHOU-TV. http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/houpub/00022/hpub-00022p14.html.
- David, Medina (October 1998). "Very Special Ed". Texas Monthly 26 (10): 70. 0148-7736. http://www.texasmonthly.com/preview/1998-10-01/firstperson/.
- Mathieu, Jennifer (May 20, 1999). "Mr. Moore's Opus". Houston Press. http://www.houstonpress.com/Issues/1999-05-20/news/news2.html. Retrieved 2006-03-31.
- Garza, Cynthia Leonor (June 14, 2006). "'A really different kind of school'". Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/3967375.html. Retrieved 2006-06-14.
External links
Categories:- Educational institutions established in 1969
- High schools in Harris County, Texas
- Middle schools in Texas
- Preparatory schools in Texas
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