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Dallas ISD is on the rise! The district continues to show strong gains in academic achievement under the Texas Education Agency’s (TEA) A to F accountability system. With a five-point gain, the district has earned a “B” for the second year in a row, increasing from an 81 to 86. Fifty-seven percent of schools earned an A or B in the district’s more rigorous local accountability system, 28 of which earned an A.  

Without doubt, this growth is a result of the hard work and dedication of our students, lead by district educators and administration, with strong support from parents and partners. Our work as a community is reflected in these academic gains, and I am grateful to everyone for their commitment to Dallas’ children.

I am proud of Harry C. Withers Elementary School, which is among the 28 schools to earn an A as a state rating. I am also happy to share that nine schools from District 1 earned a B. I’d like to thank the staff, parents and community from District 1 for helping us to continue rising. Congratulations to all of you!

Despite the recent academic growth, we recognize there is still much work to be done; the district will be providing intervention plans and additional support to campuses that are in need of an academic boost.  Dallas ISD educators remain committed to their mission of providing a quality education to all students.   

One of the newest and exciting initiatives to continue growing is the creation of the Leader Excellence, Academic and Development (LEAD) Department, which launched last school year. Through this program, the district plans to grow its own principal pipeline to ensure best-fit leaders at every school. I encourage parents to reach out to your campus principal and get to know him/her by attending Coffee with the Principal events and other school activities. Building a relationship, with your child’s teacher and your school principal, will help you identify ways to work together to ensure your child’s succeeds.  

In other topics, is your child getting ready for college? If so, connect your 11th- or 12th-grader with hundreds of representatives from local, state and out-of-state colleges and universities at the annual Districtwide College Fair.  The FREE fair will be held from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at Ellis Davis Field House, 9191 S. Polk St.  See your high school counselor to sign up and arrange for free transportation. A great perk this year is free immunizations for students heading to college.  For more information and to pre-register, visit: https://www.dallasisd.org/collegefair.

Learn more district news by following us on social media @Dallasisd and @dallasisdEspanol.

Trustee Edwin Flores, District 1