Inside Dallas ISD

A handful of students at Dallas ISD’s John W. Carpenter Elementary School got a firsthand look of the school’s rejuvenated library on Thursday, Dec. 15, thanks to Behr and the Heart of America Foundation. The paint company and nonprofit organization teamed up to conduct six projects across the country to support literacy in 2016. The library now features brightly colored walls, inspirational signs and famous quotes and also new beanbags to help boost a love of reading, along with newly donated books. The school’s computer lab also got some sprucing up. A ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrated the project.

Every student at Lida Hooe Elementary got two free books to take home for good thanks to Mike Thrasher of Books Are the Beginning. Books Are the Beginning will this year will give a total of six books to students at Hooe, Stevens Park, and James Hogg elementary schools to take home as their own. The goal is to help the students start growing their own home library, Thrasher said. “Children need books at home to enhance their reading skills,” Thrasher said. Learn more in the above video.

Terry Stotts’ students at Dallas ISD’s Multiple Careers Magnet Center leave his class with much more than woodworking skills. “It’s more than subject matter,” Stotts said. “It’s how to have fun. You can’t learn if you’re not having fun.” With more than 30 years of teaching experience – the last 12 at Multiple Careers – it’s obvious he practices what he teaches in his Construction Technology classes. On Tuesday, Dec. 13, Stotts and his students delivered colorful wooden rocking horses they built to the Ronald McDonald House in Dallas, something they have done the past five years before Christmas. Amy…

On Dec. 10, nearly 100 volunteers from Appreciation Financial and National Life Group acted as “Santa’s elves” to revitalize Ben Milam Elementary School. Appreciation Financial worked closely with Dallas ISD, who suggested the in-need school. The school is housed in a building that’s more than 100 years old and contains a high concentration of economically disadvantaged students, which is why it was chosen as the beautification site. The school’s principal was also presented with a surprise $2,000 scholarship donation and an additional $500 donation to help a staff member in need. Two large, colorful indoor murals were added to the school’s front…