The community gathered June 4 to celebrate Gooch Elementary's academic gains.

The community gathered June 4 to celebrate Gooch Elementary’s academic gains.

Big things are happening at Gooch Elementary.

First off, the campus, which feeds into W.T. White High School, made major strides on the 2013-14 STAAR test compared to last year, improving scores by 19 percent in overall reading, 17 percent in math, 15 percent in science and 51 percent in writing.

Edwin Flores, former DISD trustee for the area and a Gooch neighbor, summarized the accomplishments in a press release over the weekend, noting that some of the credit goes to the reform efforts of Gooch’s new principal, Martha Bujanda.

As part of Superintendent Mike Miles’ new batch of principals, Bujanda came on board with leadership training from The Teaching Trust, an organization that partners with SMU and the Bush Center. She helped establish a new focus on a “college-going culture”at the elementary level, implementing higher standards for students.

Also of note, PTA President Danae Gutierrez helped revitalize the PTA at Gooch, which now boasts 50 members.

The next big thing at Gooch will be The Gooch Rome Program, which allows fifth-graders to travel and study at The
University of Dallas Rome campus. Yes, that’s in Rome, Italy. It will begin at the end of next year, along with courses in Latin, the art and architecture of Rome and the history of Rome.

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