Browsing: Headlines
STAAR Testing Cancelled
0As a result of ongoing reporting issues with the state’s testing vendor, Commissioner of Education Mike Morath announced Friday that the state will be removing student consequences attached to State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) for fifth and eighth-grade students for the 2015-2016 school year. He also cancelled the June 21-22 fifth and eighth-grade retest administration. Commissioner Morath’s decision means the SSI Accelerated Instruction summer school program being offered to help prepare students for the next STAAR test is no longer required. However, schools will continue this program through Thursday, June 16, and we encourage students to complete…
District teachers brush up on summer teaching at Big Thought (video)
0Dallas ISD teachers have been visiting the Big Thought offices at South Side on Lamar to undergo training on social emotional enrichment teaching techniques, a key focus of the district’s upcoming Summer Achievers Academy, a full-day, tuition-free summer camp experience open to Dallas ISD students. Big Thought is a key partner in Dallas ISD’s Summer Learning initiative. Summer Achievers is the result of the district’s partnership with Big Thought, a Dallas-area non-profit, as part of the organization’s Dallas City of Learning, a city leadership endorsed national effort to extend learning throughout the summer in cities across the country.
Bryan Adams High School Selected to Receive $130,000 Grant from Department of Education
0Bryan Adams High School Leadership Academy has been selected to become part of the next cohort of the federal Investing in Innovation (i3) Validation Grant for scaling the Building Assets Reducing Risks (BARR) program. The mission of BARR is to improve educator effectiveness and the performance of all students in secondary schools by creating positive relationships among students and staff and using real-time, student-level performance data to guide instruction. For the next two years, Bryan Adams will receive $130,000 to strengthen its schoolwide approach to social and emotional learning (SEL) through implementation of the BARR program. Yearlong training and resources…
New girls school set to open in fall, awarded $350,000 launch grant
0Solar Preparatory School for Girls announced it is the recipient of a $350,000 grant awarded by NewSchools Invent, a philanthropic support arm of NewSchools Venture Fund. A total of 11 organizations won planning grants to develop innovative school models, and four organizations, including Solar Prep, received contributions to open new schools. Solar Prep’s model will focus on three priorities: research-based instruction in a socioeconomically diverse model; hands-on, performance-based STEAM learning; and social/emotional learning to build self-awareness, empathy, positive mindsets and emotional intelligence for increased academic achievement. Last year, Solar Prep received a $100,000 planning grant from NewSchools Venture Fund that…