Inside Dallas ISD

The sultry sounds of the alto saxophone is what made dozens of ears perk up, while finger snaps (an artful expression of applause) filled the room during a recent performance by the Bryan Adams High School’s Jazz Ensemble on March 28. For nearly two decades, aspiring jazz artists have gathered for the Dallas Music Educators Association Jazz Festival hosted at the Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Center campus. The DMEA Jazz Fest has cultivated many successful musicians, including many of the band directors who have come back to teach within Dallas ISD. This year, 15 jazz bands across Dallas ISD featured…

If a room is filled with 30 children with autism, Theresa Shattuck, Dallas ISD autism program supervisor, is quick to point out that the room is filled with 30 unique individuals who have their own personalities and talents. With April being National Autism Awareness Month, Shattuck said the conversation is moving from understanding the research and basics on autism to increasing appreciation for the skills that people with autism bring to the community. “You can’t just pigeonhole people with autism,” she said. “Each person has so much to offer, no matter the diagnosis.” Dallas ISD has more than 1,000 students…

Gatorade and USA Today High School Sports recently announced that Admon Gilder, a student at James Madison High School, is its 2014–15 Gatorade Texas Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Gilder is the first athlete in his school’s history to be chosen for the award that recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court. “It means a lot to have been named for this honor,” Gilder said. “It’s a big accolade that not many players and athletes get a chance to experience. I’ve been working so…

Student engagement and an innovative entrepreneurship curriculum is what makes W. E. Greiner Middle School teacher Stephen Thomas’ Principles of Business, Marketing and Finance classroom so effective. Thomas is part of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship’s North Texas program, which provides business education to young students while earning high school credit. Out of 17 North Texas educators, Thomas was chosen to represent Texas at the 2015 Global Enterprising Educator of the Year Award sponsored by MasterCard. Ernst and Young sponsored a “send-off” party earlier this month for Thomas, who accepted the award March 25 at the NFTE 2015 Global Showcase in New…