Dallas ISD is deeply saddened by the situation that occurred today at Woodrow Wilson High School. This afternoon, responding medical authorities determined that a human fetus had been found in a girls restroom at the school. The Dallas Police Department, assisted by Dallas ISD Police, is handling the investigation. Dallas ISD immediately dispatched staff from the district’s Psychological Services Department to the school to provide professional support for students and staff members. Additional counseling support will continue to be available next week. The district encourages any member of the Woodrow Wilson community to utilize these services. Dallas ISD is in…

Dallas ISD’s new evaluation system requires principals and assistant principals to be certified before officially evaluating teachers. In the month prior to the start of school, the District provided training to 648 principals and assistant principals on how to evaluate teachers under the new evaluation system known as the Teacher Excellence Initiative (TEI). The rigorous TEI evaluator training includes three parts – system knowledge, rater accuracy and field experience. Of the 648 evaluators trained this summer, 99 percent mastered part one that assesses the administrator’s knowledge of TEI. Perhaps the most difficult part of the certification exam is the rater…

More than 30,000 students were safely transported to Dallas ISD schools the first day of school, roughly the size of the entire population of the city of Waxahachie. The students were transported by bus or multi-passenger vehicle on one of 664 routes crossing the city. “Transporting more than 30,000 students on the first day of school is a real challenge,” said Dallas ISD Chief of Operations Wanda Paul. “While there will always be some transportation issues on the first day, we made much improvement over last year. There was a lot more planning and communication this year. Parents were provided…

Beginning this fall, the newly-christened Eduardo Mata Montessori Elementary School will welcome its inaugural class of more than 300 students to the district’s newest choice school program. The school will attract east Dallas families seeking an alternative to the popular Lakewood Elementary School. “The Montessori program here is allowing for more diversity in our student body,” said Principal Claudia Vega. “What’s exciting is our school is becoming a neighborhood school that mirrors the east Dallas community.” The introduction of the Montessori program at Mata Montessori is the result of a plan approved by the Dallas ISD Board of Trustees designed…