Inside Dallas ISD

In just four years since reopening as an elementary school, H.S. Thompson STEAM Academy received its first rating from the Texas Education Agency, a hard-earned B that reflects years of dedication from team members, students, and the community.   Jennifer Atkins, the school’s principal, served in South Dallas since the start of her career with Dallas ISD and says the area is now home.  When she took on leadership at Thompson, she brought strategies such as community building and academic retention that had proven successful at other schools in the Lincoln-Madison vertical team. “It is my goal to make sure that…

Yolanda Cantu, a third-grade math teacher at Whitney M. Young Jr. Elementary School, was set to retire several times, only to be pulled back to Dallas ISD. When she came back from retirement the last time, she pledged not to make any more attempts until her school earned an A rating from Texas Education Agency. Cantu now plans to retire after 41 years, keeping her promise to Principal Shabranda Mathis that she would not leave until they reached that A rating, which the school received for the 2024-2025 school year. Cantu, a member of the first graduating class at Skyline…

In Sunny South Dallas, the seven legacy schools that make up the Lincoln-Madison vertical team are celebrating a milestone that reflects strong leadership, dedicated families, and a community invested in its own future: a B rating for all of its schools. Charles Rice Learning Center, often called a “beacon of hope” in South Dallas, had long been the anchor of success in the area, standing as the only school of the seven, to consistently maintain a B rating over the years. Paul L. Dunbar Learning Center and James Madison High School later joined Rice in maintaining consecutive B ratings.   When…

Lizette Rivera knows how it feels to be lifted by her community. As a student at Sunset High School, dance gave her a stage, her teachers gave her guidance, and her classmates gave her encouragement. Now, as a first-year dance teacher at Robert T. Hill Middle School, she is returning to the district that helped shape her, teaching dance and career prep classes. “My high school dance teachers inspired me to continue doing dance as an educator,” she said. “I hope to be that person for my students. I hope to inspire them to try new things and to see…