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Fort Bend ISD was buzzing as students began their 2023 education journey.

Campuses across Fort Bend ISD were buzzing with excitement this morning as students made their way back to school for the 2023-24 academic year.

I spent the morning at Ridgemont Elementary near S. Post Oak and Beltway 8, watching parents and guardians walk in hand-in-hand with their kids, many bouncing with joy, some tearful, nervously clutching backpack straps.

Each child received a school supply kit with a spiral notebook, organizer folders, a pencil case and other stationery. Fort Bend ISD's Collaborative Communities, Title I and the Textbooks Warehouse departments had worked together to acquire the kits.

The kits were given to more than 16,000 students across FBISD's 27 Title 1 campuses, of which Ridgemont Elementary is one.

This year also marks the opening of three brand new Fort Bend ISD schools, all of which welcomed their first students this morning. They include Sonal Bhuchar Elementary School and Alyssa Ferguson Elementary School in Missouri City, and the Almeta Crawford High School in Rosharon.

FBISD's official enrollment number as of Tuesday, Aug. 8 is 80,730. The district has hired 672 new teachers and 61 new police officers for the 2023-24 school year.

I hope you had a great first day, and wish you a school year filled with growth and achievement.

Have a story idea? Write and let us know.

Juhi Varma, Fort Bend reporter

juhi.varma@houstonchronicle.com

Need to know

Rice used in South Asian households is seeing greater demand in Houston as a result of India's ban on rice exports.

In Houston, Indian supermarkets are selling out of non-basmati rice and imposing limits on it as the nation scrambles to get ahold of the South Asian food staple. Although the ban includes only non-basmati, shoppers are also stocking up on basmati rice. Read more from Sonia Garcia.

Shout Out

Fort Bend County Animal Services has been chosen as the Houston Astros' featured shelter for this year's Dog Day on Aug. 20. Shelter pets will also be featured with players in the 2024 calendar at the event.

One last thing ...

The Texas State Fair is coming up, and judges have just named the top fair foods for this year. Deep fried pho has a bit of Houston flair, doesn't it?