News Briefs

The Happy World Foundation, a nonprofit founded by top Dallas ISD Spanish teacher Akash Patel from Ignite Middle School, annually recognizes important citizens that have made a “Happy” difference in the world by promoting Global Citizenship Education, Citizen-to-Citizen Diplomacy, and Cross-Cultural Understanding in schools and communities worldwide. Patel and his twin brother, Anand “Happy” Patel, previously founded a nonprofit several years ago in Oklahoma before coming to Texas. The organization worked around the world with people who were supporting schools and communities. Once in Texas, Patel approached Amy Anderton, Dallas ISD’s Director of World Languages, with the idea of co-founding…

Every week during Hispanic Heritage Month we are spotlighting a notable namesake of a Dallas ISD school. Irma Rangel, in 1976, was the first Mexican American woman elected to the Texas House of Representatives. After graduating from college in 1952, she became a teacher in Venezuela. In 1964, she returned to the U.S. to teach in California, where she wrote a book, How To Teach Spanish in the Elementary Grades. She eventually decided to become a lawyer and attended St. Mary’s Law School in San Antonio. After law school, she accepted a job as assistant district attorney in Corpus Christi,…

In celebration of Customer Service Week, Dallas ISD this week spotlighted outstanding district employees who personify Core 4, which is the district’s customer service initiative. The Dallas ISD Core 4 page showcased the outstanding employees throughout the week. Meanwhile, Dallas ISD is launching the “Core 4 Corner” on the Hub, which is the district’s online newsroom, to showcase stories related to outstanding customer service. Customer Service Week is Oct. 7–11, and this year’s theme is “The Meaning of Service.”

The Two-Way Dual Language programs teach students to speak, read, write, listen, and comprehend in two languages, English and Spanish. Two-Way Dual Language instruction is currently offered at 64 Dallas ISD elementary schools, five middle schools, and three high school. Over the course of a day in a two-way dual language classroom, instruction is provided in Spanish and English. Certain subjects (such as Science) are taught in Spanish and other subjects (such as Math) are taught in English. Students who first language is English and students that are learning English work together in Bilingual Pairs in order to learn from…