Films on historic events provide a visual glimpse into important periods in time. Approximately 10,000 Dallas Independent School District students will receive the opportunity to view the civil rights movement through that lens when they attend a free screening of the movie “Selma” on Jan. 17-19.    A group of local business and community leaders that includes Ron and Matrice Kirk, Ron McCray, Brenda Jackson, Levy and Diane Curry, and Paget and Deborah Alves are donating the free tickets to Dallas ISD students in grades 7-9.  The timing of the viewing, during the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday weekend, provides even…

Check out The Hub Friday, Jan. 16 to watch fourth- and fifth-grade students deliver their inspirational essays live at the 23rd Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Oratory Competition. The event will be streamed on The Hub beginning at 11 a.m. Eight finalists will present essays to a host of judges on what they believe Dr. King would say in his acceptance speech if he were alive today and won the Nobel Prize. The finalists are: Kywin Brown, fourth grade, Wilmer-Hutchins Elementary Serenity Dugan, fourth grade, Thomas L. Marsalis Elementary Jalien Hedgeman, fifth grade, Clara Oliver Elementary Walker Homan, fifth grade,…

Homeowners will often refinance their mortgages to obtain a lower interest rate. The Dallas Independent School District took the concept to a new level, netting $29 million in savings by refinancing two sets of bonds. On Jan. 8, the district refinanced bonds issued in 2006 and 2008 worth more than $234 million that were issued at a higher interest rate. Due to Dallas ISD’s district’s strong credit rating and increasing financial strength, the refinancing resulted in a lower interest cost that resulted in gross savings of $41 million and net present value savings of $29 million, or 12.1 percent in…