The best evaluation of the Spanish Interpreter Hotline in the Dallas Independent School District came from an assistant principal at J. L. Long Middle School. “You have equipped me to better serve the students and their parents,” read the note from Wilma King to the district’s Translation Services Department. Introduced in 2013, the Spanish Interpreter, or “Sí,” Hotline offers school staff members a more personal and faster way to communicate with non-English speaking parents via a 3-way call. The hotline recently surpassed 4,000 calls for the 2014-2015 school year during the week of Jan. 12. By comparison, calls to the hotline…

The Dallas Independent School District is stepping up its support for Advanced Placement courses and now more students than ever are enrolled in them. This year, more than 21,000 students are enrolled in AP courses, which is believed to be an all-time high. For the first time, $1 million has been allocated in the school district budget to pay for student AP exam fees and prep sessions. “It is clear that Dallas ISD students are benefitting from taking AP courses and exams so it makes sense to provide even more support for this program,” said Superintendent of Schools Mike Miles.…

St. Luke “Community” United Methodist Church and the Zan Holmes Jr. “Community” Outreach Center will spend the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday weekend encouraging parishioners and visitors to serve in the Dallas Independent School District as mentors and tutors in schools in Fair Park and South Dallas area. Beginning Sunday, Jan. 18,, both communities will train potential volunteers while emboldening interested parties during worship services. Those individuals that complete the training will begin volunteering next week. Last week almost 70 volunteers were trained to begin service with Dallas ISD. The effort is the result of a conversation between Pastor Michael…

As Teacher Excellence Initiative experts and principal focus groups continue to refine how the district will evaluate teacher effectiveness, another team – the students – are about to have their say. According to at least one study, students, perhaps the ultimate classroom observers, may be better suited to identify effective teaching than administrators who traditionally measure performance based on scheduled observations of teachers’ instruction and classroom management skills. Plans call for students to complete surveys, to be made available in English and Spanish, on paper the week of April 6. In future, the district will administer the survey online. Teachers…