For the last 19 years, the supermarket chain based in San Antonio has honored outstanding professionals from Texas public schools. At a special May 5 ceremony of the Excellence in Education Awards program held on Zoom, H-E-B Food/Drug Stores President Scott McClelland credited the incredible progress Dallas ISD has made over the past five years.
“DISD has done so many things well, you have really become the blueprint for what big urban school districts can achieve,” McClelland said.
In accepting the award, Superintendent Michael Hinojosa credited the board of trustees, students, staff and community for working together to achieve great things.
“This is so rewarding for our community and it’s going to really lift our spirits,” Hinojosa said.
To determine overall statewide winners, a panel of judges visited each finalist district, early childhood facility and school board. In Dallas ISD, they personally toured Emmett J. Conrad High School and Billy Earl Dade Middle School.
The judges heard about the transformational work underway across Dallas ISD, including:
- Almost every high school offers a Pathways to Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) program or Early College High School program where students can gain, tuition free, up to 60 hours of college credit–or an associate degree–and real-world experience;
- Four new career institutes where students can develop and grow in-demand skills they need to secure a good-wage job in the near future;
- Significant growth in offering high-quality free and tuition-based pre-K to give students the building blocks they need for lifelong success;
- A rapid expansion of school choice options to ensure every family has access to a best-fit school or program;
- The success of the district’s Teacher Excellence Initiative
- The transformative work Dallas ISD is doing to address racial equity
Dallas ISD will receive a $100,000 grant for winning the award.
