Inside Dallas ISD

The School for the Talented and Gifted in Pleasant Grove breaks new ground in many ways, the most prominent that it’s the first such school in Pleasant Grove and the district’s first Dual-Language TAG campus. On Nov. 2, the new school celebrated its official dedication. Just like the school’s curriculum, speakers gave remarks in both English and Spanish. Principal Ruby Ramirez said the school develops a strong pride for bilingual education that goes further than programs in traditional school settings. “The energy behind our program is what pushes us to not only challenge the status quo, but create buy-in from…

When Paul L. Dunbar Learning Center Principal Alpher Garrett-Jones started setting up for the school year’s first Parent Teacher Association meeting, she fielded questions on why they should set up so many chairs. After all, only three people signed in for the PTA meeting the previous school year. But Garrett-Jones, who previously served as the longtime principal at Charles Rice Elementary School—which many consider one of the best schools in Dallas—made parental involvement a top priority after taking over the campus this year. And by the time the PTA meeting kicked off with giveaways, student performances and a special talk…

Students at J.N. Ervin Elementary School got a closeup look at Dallas Police cars, a DART bus and one special vehicle few get to see in person – one of the 10 Lexus LC500 cars used in the movie Black Panther – complete with simulated scratches and bullet holes. During the “Career Day on Wheels,” students talked to police officers and DART representatives, as well as Toyota employees who, along with the special Lexus coupe, brought a more standard version and a giant Toyota Tundra pickup. Toyota has a special partnership with Ervin Elementary that includes pairing students with company…

Third-graders at Martin Weiss Elementary School filed into the gym recently not knowing they would be “trapped” in an escape room until finishing several academic tasks. In small groups, they would complete reading, science, math and art challenges to decode a message that would tell them that each student would be receiving an Amazon Kindle Fire tablet to use for schoolwork. Teachers also receive Kindles and training on how to maximize their use. The Kindles are issued to each student, and the devices stay at school. The creative “reveal” was one of several methods that Dallas ISD schools used to…