Inside Dallas ISD

As he faced hardships and constantly moved around with his family, Skyline High School senior Damajai Stephens’ love of football kept him grounded. He started playing the sport as a four-year-old and shined for Skyline as an outside linebacker. “My favorite part about playing football is that it makes me feel like I can handle any adversity,” Stephens said. “When I step onto the field, nothing else matters.” Stephens will be the first person in his immediate family to graduate from high school. He will attend East Central University in the fall to study criminal justice with a full-ride football…

Dallas ISD elementary students will be receiving Scholastic book packs containing books and other activities, shipped directly to their homes beginning this week. All Pre-K to 6th grade students at elementary campuses will be receiving the book packs. The district wants to make sure students have access to quality books year-round and can share their reading experiences with their families. “When families read and discuss books together, the joy of reading comes alive for our students. We are so thrilled that our students will be able to continue reading throughout the summer with their families,” said Jennifer Burchfiel, Director of…

“We have to think of what’s ahead of us instead of focusing on what we can’t control,” says Marysol Ortega, a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School, as she reflects on how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the class of 2020 across the country. Ortega, vice president of her school’s senior class, participates in several sports – soccer, volleyball, cross country running and track and field. She is also an only child in her family and the first generation to go to college. Her senior year has been marked by two major unpredictable situations: a tornado demolishing her school in…

As senior students across the nation find themselves not being able to finish the school year through the traditional end-of-high-school activities, parents and staff at a Dallas ISD high school created a heart-warming initiative to bring smiles to seniors. The Adopt a Senior campaign was created by a group of parents and several staff members at Sunset High School. Parent Ramona DeLeon says she was sad about seeing her daughter miss prom in the midst of the COVID-19 restrictions, and all she wanted was to find a way to bring a smile to her daughters’ and classmates’ faces. “I thought…