Inside Dallas ISD

Fourteen outstanding Dallas ISD teachers were recognized May 17 with Texas Instruments’ Innovations in STEM Teaching Awards. The Texas Instruments (TI) Foundation gave the $140,000 grant to the Dallas Education Foundation (DEF), which then provided the award to the teachers. Each honoree receives $10,000, of which $5,000 is directly awarded to the teacher. The other $5,000 is to be used at his or her discretion for professional development or instructional technology. “We know how difficult teaching is, and teaching at the level these professionals do is even more difficult,” said Dallas ISD STEM Executive Director Michael Ruiz.  “Putting a spotlight…

The email caused David W. Carter High School’s Kennedi Grant to scream so loud she momentarily disrupted a baseball game. Kennedi had been praying and constantly refreshing her inbox just for this: The email said she would receive a full scholarship valued at nearly $250,000 to Texas Christian University through the Community Scholars Program. “This is just a huge weight lifted off my shoulders,” Kennedi said. “We’ve been trying to figure out how to pay for student loans. Being able to go four years with a free education at a school that I love is just an incredible feeling.” Kennedi…

The joy of teaching and an appreciation for Dallas ISD’s diversity turned a temporary teaching assignment in the U.S. into a 28-year tenure in the district for Zoe Nelle.  She currently serves as an ESL instructional specialist within the district’s Dual Language ESL department, where she has the honor of coaching and empowering teachers and staff to make an impact in the lives and academic pursuits of Emergent Bilingual students.   Nelle is an immigrant from the Bicol Region of the southern islands of the Philippines, where she was born and raised. In the early ’90s, at the age of 28,…

There was much to celebrate at College Signing Day at the Judge Barefoot Sanders Law Magnet at Townview on Friday, May 13. The school jumped 11 spots in the most recent US News and World Report high school rankings, making the Law Magnet the 48th best public high school in the nation with a rank of sixth in the State.  Principal Garet Feimster referenced the honor during his remarks and told his seniors and their families, “This is your accomplishment. You did this.” What the students of the Class of 2022 have also done is garner admission to prestigious universities…