Inside Dallas ISD

After visiting the orphanage she was adopted from as a child, Sanaya, a senior at the Booker T. Washington High School for the Visual and Performing Arts, was inspired to make a positive impact with her life. With her friend who attends Hockaday, Sanaya started Songbirds of Service, which spreads a love of music and singing with younger Dallas ISD students. “When I visited the orphanage, I saw myself in the kids who were still there,” Sanaya said. “I knew I couldn’t just go home from visiting the orphanage and do nothing. Singing has always brought me joy, so I…

Tracie Walker-Reed, library media specialist at H. Grady Spruce High School in Dallas, is a winner of this year’s I Love My Librarian Award. Recognized for her leadership in her school and commitment to transforming lives, she is one of only 10 librarians in the country to receive this national honor. Walker-Reed’s nominators highlighted her 1:1 tutoring and mentoring of at-risk and low-income students and her invaluable support of H. Grady Spruce High School’s learning process through instruction, technology support and access to print and digital library books. Holding a true commitment to supporting all ares of positive learning, Walker-Reed…

For many teachers at Woodrow Wilson High School, a highlight of their day comes with a cup of coffee. Their coffee comes from  the Woodrow Percolators, a coffee cart staffed by students with special needs. From French Vanilla and Caramel flavored coffee to decaf Peach Honey Tea, the students take orders throughout the day and handle all aspects of running the cart. Breanna Nelson, who supervises the cart as part of a functional life skills class, said the coffee cart benefits the students–and overall school–in multiple ways. “It’s a lot more than serving coffee because, historically, people with disabilities are…

Bryan Adams High School freshman Kaveion Morris was walking from his home to the bus stop when he heard a toddler crying near the pool of an apartment complex. When he got a closer look, he saw the crying toddler was pointing to a young girl drowning in the pool. Morris jumped in the pool and rescued the young girl, while his BA classmate called the police for an ambulance. Morris felt an enormous wave of relief when the paramedics arrived and said the girl would be okay. “I never expected something like this to happen,” Morris said. “I’m just…