Inside Dallas ISD

Seven Dallas ISD teachers were recognized on Dec. 9 with Texas Instruments Innovations in STEM Teaching Awards. The Texas Instruments (TI) Foundation gave the $70,000 grant to the Dallas Education Foundation, which then provided the award to the teachers. The awards program honors local secondary math and science teachers from Dallas, Garland, Lancaster, Mesquite, Plano and Richardson ISDs who consistently demonstrate quality instruction and build student achievement in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) subjects. The Dallas ISD teachers recognized are: Ernest Barlow ~ Dallas Environmental Science Academy (DESA) ~  Technology Applications Kamilah Crouch ~ Skyline High School  ~…

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…