Inside Dallas ISD

In Fernando Rocha’s dance studio at Sunset High School, lessons begin with his voice counting off a steady rhythm in a large mirror-lined room with an open floor. Here, Rocha teaches students the art of dance, specifically traditional Mexican dances, connecting students to their Hispanic heritage. “I like to say that Sunset chose me,” Rocha said. “I came in with intention. I came here to be present with my students and, so far, I’ve been able to see the impact of that through the success of the dance program and the way my students are now also doing everything with…

When Silvia Fields started working as a custodian at the new Henry W. Longfellow Career Exploration Academy 14 years ago, the work was a lot different than it is now. “It’s a much larger building, of course,” she said of the school that opened this fall. “But all operations now are computerized and work off of touch screens. There has been a lot of training to learn how to operate the school.” Roles of custodians like Fields in schools across the district are expanding and adjusting to new technologies for air conditioning, heating, mechanical rooms, and other essential operations that…

In just four years since reopening as an elementary school, H.S. Thompson STEAM Academy received its first rating from the Texas Education Agency, a hard-earned B that reflects years of dedication from team members, students, and the community.   Jennifer Atkins, the school’s principal, served in South Dallas since the start of her career with Dallas ISD and says the area is now home.  When she took on leadership at Thompson, she brought strategies such as community building and academic retention that had proven successful at other schools in the Lincoln-Madison vertical team. “It is my goal to make sure that…

Yolanda Cantu, a third-grade math teacher at Whitney M. Young Jr. Elementary School, was set to retire several times, only to be pulled back to Dallas ISD. When she came back from retirement the last time, she pledged not to make any more attempts until her school earned an A rating from Texas Education Agency. Cantu now plans to retire after 41 years, keeping her promise to Principal Shabranda Mathis that she would not leave until they reached that A rating, which the school received for the 2024-2025 school year. Cantu, a member of the first graduating class at Skyline…