News Briefs

Central Elementary teachers and students are seeing things a lot clearer now, thanks to Community Trust Bank’s donation of $4,500, which was used to purchase state-of-the-art document cameras and projectors for the classroom. Community Trust Bank’s Regional Executive Vice President Riley Couch and Vice President of Business Development Holly Reed stopped by the school to see the new equipment in action and get a firsthand look at how it enhances the classroom experience for students and teachers. “We are excited to be able to do this,” Couch said. “This is very much part of our core values at Community Trust.…

Dallas Morning News reported over the weekend that when school started this year, officials saw “a 10-point gain that meant now 51 percent of all kindergartners are on grade level.” Alan Cohen, who oversees early childhood education for the district, said while Dallas ISD still has work to do, the “meteoric lift” is evidence that pre-K is working, according to the article. The article also reports that more than 10,000 children are now enrolled in pre-K with the district. Click here to read the full DMN story.

A new educational tool developed in partnership with nonprofit Big Thought is taking the midway, livestock, food and Big Tex to classrooms this fall. The curriculum uses aspects of the State Fair of Texas to teach students in grades 4-8 lessons in math, science, language arts, art and social studies. Shelia Lyons, a sixth-grade math teacher at Dallas ISD’s John B. Hood Middle school, is among teachers using the curriculum in her classes. Check out the story from CBS DFW here.

When Dallas ISD learned this time last year that five students had been exposed to the Ebola virus, school nurses were among the individuals who stepped up to help guide the district through the crisis. From explaining the difference between Ebola and influenza to erasing the myths around the Ebola virus, Dallas ISD nurses went the extra mile in providing quality information to the community. “The school nurses at those five campuses were invaluable in preventing a panic,” said Leigh Pelletier, a Dallas ISD nurse supervisor. “They became Ebola experts overnight and quelled fears of families and staff members. I really…