Mayor John Whitmire announced during the Sept. 10 City Council meeting the appointment of Dr. Theresa Tran as the new director of the Houston Health Department.

“You have some huge shoes to fill, but I think you can take the health department to the next generation,” Whitmire said.

Tran’s appointment comes after the former director, Stephen Williams, announced his retirement after 21 years of service.

Career history: Tran works as a board-certified emergency physician with more than a decade of frontline clinical experience, according to an Aug. 29 news release. She previously served as associate vice president for clinical population health and advocacy at UTHealth Houston, as well as the assistant dean at the UTHealth School of Public Health. She also served as the director of strategic initiatives for Harris Health’s multivisit patient program.

Smash City Burgers, a new halal smash burger and hot dog eatery concept, is now open in the Galleria area.

What they offer: Guests can pick from a variety of halal comfort food items including halal smash burgers, hot dogs, milkshakes and loaded fries.

Quote of note: "Smash City is your late-night spot for burgers, dogs, shakes and sides until the a.m.," restaurant officials posted on social media.

• Opened Sept. 13
• 6377 Westheimer Road, Houston

Education in science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, may become more accessible for Texas public school students this school year.

What happened: Officials from national education nonprofit Learning Undefeated and the Texas Education Agency celebrated the opening of eight new mobile STEM labs at a Sept. 10 ribbon-cutting ceremony in Austin. The TEA-funded labs are expected to visit 270 school districts across the state in the 2025-26 school year.

Notable quote: “In an ever-changing world, access to STEM education remains critical to help prepare our students for career pathways and lifelong success,” said Alejando Delgado, TEA deputy commissioner of operations.

The overview: Learning Undefeated built eight new mobile STEM labs after receiving a $3.5 million grant from the TEA, according to Learning Defeated information. The organization opened its first mobile STEM lab in Texas in 2020.

The nine regionally-based labs will now visit elementary and middle school campuses across the state’s 20 educational service center regions. Kindergarten through eighth grade students may participate in a variety of STEM activities to learn engineering design.
 

Looking for a spine-tingling and spooky activity to get in the Halloween spirit? Check out this guide for haunted houses and ghost tours throughout the Greater Houston area.

Creepy Hollow Haunted House
Multiple themed scary attractions are offered by Creepy Hollow Haunted House. Visit beloved creepy characters as they stalk about the property. General admission includes all three main haunts—”Dark Woods,” “Pitch Black” and “Scare Factory.”

• Sept. 26-Oct. 31 (Fridays and Saturdays), 7:30-11:30 p.m.; Oct. 26, 7:30-10 p.m.
• $40
• 12872 Valley Vista Drive, Rosharon

• Sept. 19-Nov. 2, times vary by date
• $24.99-$29.99 (general admission)
• 16030 I-10, Channelview