North East ISD Superintendent Sean Maika said students who leave the district’s Institute of Cybersecurity and Innovation Magnet School Program, or ICSI, are more prepared for a career in cybersecurity than 40% of San Antonio’s current workforce.

The big picture: ICSI serves all seven NEISD high schools during three school periods. The program has courses for all four grade levels and focuses on different skill sets and certifications each year. Students remain enrolled at their main campuses but take buses to the ICSI campus for one of three 80-90 minute class blocks each day.

Zooming in: Each year at ICSI has a particular focus, with seniors moving onto highly individualized pathways that include internships with local companies.

The outlook: Seniors Harris Goolsby and Josiah Ortega said the ICSI has given them each a pathway toward a high-paying career that they are passionate about. Both have internships with local law firms, which have allowed them to learn how information technology and back-end development works.  

This local French-inspired coffee shop chain has opened its fifth location in San Antonio, this time on the city’s north side.

Current situation: CommonWealth Coffeehouse & Bistro officially opened its first Stone Oak location on Dec. 5, shop staff told Community Impact.

The coffee shop is one of five across the metro, with other locations downtown, on the West Side and in Alamo Heights, according to their website.

At a glance: On the menu is a full espresso bar with traditional hot and iced coffees along with house-made syrups.

Food ranges from classic San Antonio breakfast tacos to French-inspired fare.

Dishes include croque madame with French bread and ham and a croissant béchamel topped with black forest ham and fontina cheese, according to the menu.

• 20079 Stone Oak Parkway, Ste. 3100, San Antonio

The Texas power grid is expected to hold up this winter, officials with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas said Dec. 9. This is due in part to “tremendous supply growth on the ERCOT grid,” ERCOT CEO Pablo Vegas said, amid an influx of data centers coming to the state.

The overview: Since last winter, over 11,000 megawatts of generating capacity have been added to the ERCOT grid, Vegas said. That growth, which largely comes from battery storage and solar facilities, could be used to power about 2.8 million homes during periods of peak electric demand.

Zooming in: Under most weather conditions, there is a less than 2% chance of a grid emergency through February, ERCOT found.

However, Texas could be in trouble in the unlikely event that a repeat of Winter Storm Uri hits large parts of the state this winter, although ERCOT noted that the probability of such a severe storm happening again was "well under one percent." The February 2021 freeze devastated an unprepared power grid, resulting in nearly 250 deaths.