Inside Dallas ISD

Lunchtime on Feb. 12 could prove to be a much more pleasant experience than usual for hundreds of Dallas ISD’s middle schoolers. With the help of counselors, students at the district’s 37 middle schools are pledging to make their schools kinder, more caring places to learn by inviting everyone to the lunch table on No One Eats Alone Day. A national, peer-led initiative sponsored by the nonprofit organization Beyond Differences, No One Eats Alone Day is aimed at ending social isolation in middle schools and creating a culture in which all kids feel included, valued and accepted by their peers.…

As local hip hop artist Tru Def freestyled over a looped cello riff and an impromptu beat made by a middle-school student, one thing was clear: this Career Day at Alex W. Spence Talented and Gifted Academy was something special. Following the performance, Jordan Cleaver—a Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts grad and classically trained cellist—Tru Def, and members of Tru Def’s entourage, which included a publicist, event organizer, and videographer, talked with students about their careers. They answered students’ questions about how they got to where they are today and shared advice. “There is…

Students and staff at James Bowie Elementary unveiled a new fitness center this week that was funded with winnings from the national TV game show “Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?” The Bowie Bobcat Fitness Center features treadmills, bicycles, a ping-pong table, and more, and it’s open to students, staff, and the greater surrounding community. Bowie was able to open the in-school fitness center after the school’s fourth- and fifth-graders appeared on the TV game show in June. “This fitness center will help us continue to promote a culture of health here at Bowie Elementary,” Principal Caroline Wilson said.…

Students and staff have come together at Dallas ISD’s Thomas Jefferson High School to boost school pride and school spirit. Principal Sandi Massey can pinpoint the catalyst. “One of the things that makes Thomas Jefferson High School really unique is the fact that we have student leadership really promoted on our campus,” Massey said. In the Master Leadership Class, students earn the right to attend the program by having great attendance, good behavior and maintaining passing grades in their classes. The Ambassador program requires students to mentor freshmen, and gives them the chance to meet with company and community leaders.…