Fifty years of valuable service and support were celebrated at the Dallas ISD Volunteer and Partner 2018–2019 Awards Program.
District officials, dedicated volunteers and valuable partners celebrated the 50-year milestone at the April 30 ceremony held at the Turney W. Leonard Governance and Training Center. In a message to attendees, Superintendent Michael Hinojosa thanked the volunteers and partners for investing in the lives of students over the past five decades.
“It’s impossible to quantify the impact of your involvement in the lives of our students. Whether you tutored or mentored, donated books and uniforms, or sponsored field trips, you have made a lasting difference,” Hinojosa noted. “Your generous acts of kindness let students know you believe in them and are cheering them on to greater success.”
The Dallas ISD volunteer program started in 1968, when 22 members of the National Council of Jewish Women helped out at Fredrick Douglass Elementary School. As of this school year, Dallas ISD has 1,053 partnerships and sponsors and 23,000 volunteers who have put in 240,000 hours as of April 2019.
The April 30 ceremony also named the volunteer and partners of the year:
- Volunteer of the Year Student Support: Diana Hodges
- Volunteer of the Year for Classroom Support: Veronica Valles
- Volunteer of the Year for School Support: Nell Maston
- Outstanding Business Partner: Contran Corporation
- Outstanding Non-Profit: San Jacinto Elementary PTO
- Outstanding Faith-Based Partner: Cornerstone Baptist Church
- Outstanding P-TECH Industry Partner: Hyatt Regency Hotel
- Succeeding Together P-TECH Industry Partner Award: STEMuli
- Jeanne Fagadau Leading the Charge Award: State Fair of Texas
- Emmett J. Conrad Extra Mile Award: Credit Union of Texas
- Superintendent’s Award: Central Market/H-E-B
