News Briefs

Sunset High School’s RoboFlash robotics team should be getting used to breaking through barriers now. Composed entirely of special-needs students, RoboFlash now has the distinction of being the first such team to compete in a FIRST Robotics Competition in Texas. The students, along with their teacher Pauline Tatum, participated in the Dallas Regional contest earlier this month in Irving. “I think there’s been a stereotype with these kids that they can’t do it, so I’m saying that they can,” Tatum said. Last year, the team formed with eight members alongside Sunset’s existing RoboBison robotics team. This year, RoboFlash has more…

The Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD) has announced the appointment of Israel Cordero to the position of deputy superintendent. Cordero will follow in the footsteps of Dr. Ivan Duran who has been named superintendent of schools in Bellevue, Washington. Cordero is one of several executives identified to participate in the district’s succession plan as part of Dallas ISD’s commitment to ensuring a continuity of leadership. Cordero, having most recently served as chief of Strategic Initiatives and External Relations and deputy chief of School Leadership, brings 20 years of educational experience to the role. He has served as a classroom teacher, principal…

Spend the next 99 seconds catching up on many of the great things that happened across the district this week! Watch the above video, or read below, to learn more. AVID National Demonstration School A. Maceo Smith New Tech High School became the first Dallas ISD high school to be named an AVID National Demonstration School. The AVID program helps make students college and career ready. (Learn more) Spring Break Meal Program Twenty-five of our schools will serve a free morning snack and lunch over Spring Break, Monday–Thursday. Anyone who is 18 and under can show up to any of these…

Trustees were briefed on a demographic report that shows the challenges—and opportunities—of projected student enrollment over the next 10 years. Dallas ISD hires an external demographer about every five years to get a detailed forecast on future student enrollment. The report presented at Thursday’s board meeting states the district could see an enrollment decline of 5,000 students over the next 10 years, though the high-growth estimate states the district could grow by 1 percent over that same time period. The growth of charter schools and housing availability and affordability are among the factors that could cause a future student enrollment…