Ms. Mekeva McNeil

HSPVA Students,

Many of you have received a note from Mr. Davis or have heard the news from others in our community that our theatre faculty member, Ms. Mekeva McNeil, passed away this morning after a battle with cancer. Ms. McNeil fought this battle quietly and not many knew of her illness.  When her mother called to share the news with me, it was quite unexpected.  The world is less bright this morning with her passing.

Our theatre chair, Mr. Davis writes that, “Ms. McNeil’s gentle demeanor and encouraging spirit significantly impacted HSPVA. From Fela! and The Color Purple to Tartuffe, Ms. McNeil’s work was always polished, focused, and awe-inspiring. She was an incredible teacher, director, collaborator, and friend. Her passion for theatre and dedication to teaching will continue to be part of who we are. I feel so honored to have had the opportunity to work beside her, and I am sure you will always cherish the memories and time you had with her.”

Because of Ms. McNeil’s strong relationships with students and her involvement in the Black History productions at school, I know that many students outside the Theatre Department are also impacted by this loss.

We all process grief in various ways, but it is important to lean on those who can support us in times of loss and hurt. I encourage you to reach out to faculty, friends, and your family for support.

If you would like to leave a card for Ms. McNeil and/or her family, write a note, or just be still and reflect, you may do so on Wednesday, June 16^th in the Chandra Wilson Black Box Theatre on the second floor of our campus from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Once they are finalized, Ms. McNeil’s family will let us know about possible arrangements and we will pass those along to our community.  

Please keep Ms. McNeil’s family and friends in your thoughts.

Sincerely,

Dr. Allen

R. Scott Allen, Principal

Greetings!

As principal, it is my great pleasure to welcome you to our website for Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (HSPVA). We begin the 2020-2021 school year remotely, and a little later than usual, for at least the first six weeks due to the continue COVID-19 situation.

We are in our 49th year of excellence in the arts and academics at HSPVA! We continue to celebrate what makes us one of the nation's most prestigious high schools: our proud heritage, dedicated staff, successful alumni, supportive parents, and, most importantly, our gifted and talented students. We are thrilled with our new state of the art five-story building in downtown Houston, only blocks from the prestigious Theatre District! The design and construction journeys from 2016-2019 were amazing as we worked with architects from Gensler and our contractors from McCarthy Building Companies.  Watching our student settle in and raise the level of art and performance in the new spaces has been inspiring and we cannot wait to have them back on campus once it is safe to return to face to face instruction.  Dr. Allen's message continues.