Inside Dallas ISD

Dallas ISD’s College and Career Advising Program (CCAP) is setting high school students up for success starting in ninth grade thanks to an $11 million annual investment from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund. Cheryl Nevels, assistant superintendent of college readiness, said typical college advising programs focus on financial aid and college entry application, but with the ESSER investment, Dallas ISD has expanded the program to include career preparation. The program provides students with college and career advisers as soon as they enter high school to effectively support students to and through their postsecondary transition. “It’s about giving…

Christine Hernandez, a fifth-grade math teacher at Solar Preparatory School for Girls at James B. Bonham, defines student success as being rooted “not only in academic success but also in becoming a confident individual, however that may look.” One of her students started the school year with learning gaps that left her feeling like she could not speak up in class, so Hernandez worked with her family and other teachers to help the student honor her strengths and change her mindset to, “How much can we grow this year?” rather than being on grade level. “When we started framing it…

For the Willis family, Dallas ISD is home, as a total of five of their immediate family members work for the district and all share a long history with the district. Carla and Christopher Willis Sr. met in 1977 when they were both students at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. Carla was a freshman and Christopher Sr. was a sophomore. Christopher was a fulltime student, studying music, and Carla was in the dance cluster, while also attending South Oak Cliff High School. They have been married 38 years. Their daughter, ChrisSharrah Yancy, is an…

A passion for communicating with others in different languages set Nourddine Boufekrane, a teacher of French language and culture at Bryan Adams High School Leadership Academy, on a journey that led him to dedicate his life to teaching. Arabic, one of Boufefrane’s native languages, is among the top five languages in the district, with over 300 students who come from homes where the first language is Arabic. Other languages that he speaks include Berber, French, Hebrew, Spanish, English, and Swahili. He can also communicate in Urdu and Hindi, among other languages. Boufekrane believes that months, such as Arab American Heritage…