25 Apr 2002
DISD Seniors To Receive Scholarship To Become Teachers
DALLAS— About 30 seniors graduating from Oak Cliff and West Dallas high schools will be recognized as future teachers at a banquets starting at 6 p.m. Friday, April 26, at the Bronco Bowl, 2600 Fort Worth Ave.
Most of these students will attend Mountain View College in the fall as part of the Tomorrow's Teachers program from Area 6 schools of the Dallas Independent School District.
This is the second year the banquet is held to recognize all Area 6 students participating in the program through future teacher clubs, as well as to recognize those students who have completed two years at Mountain View College and will continue their degree at The University of North Texas or Texas Woman's University in Denton.
About 10 students graduating this spring from UNT and TWU will be given special teachers' kits at the banquet and will be encouraged to become teachers in the district. At least six already have committed to teach in Area 6 schools this fall.
Nearly 350 students, teachers, school and college administrators are expected to attend the banquet Friday.
Last year, the first 24 students to participate in the Tomorrow's Teachers program graduated from UNT and TWU. Five of them are teaching at schools in Area 6, which encompasses part of Oak Cliff and West Dallas.
The Tomorrow's Teachers program, started five years ago by Area 6 Superintendent Oscar Rodriguez, encourages children as early as elementary school to choose teaching as a career. The students participate in future teacher clubs in their schools, and when they graduate from high school are offered scholarships to attend college to become certified teachers.
"The goal is to train our own students and hire them back into Area 6," said Lori Griffin, program coordinator for Area 6 schools. "There is a teacher shortage, so we want to nurture our own students to come back and teach in their schools."
The program also helps students with their college education by providing them with a contact at Mountain View College and then at the universities. The coordinators in these schools help the Tomorrow's Teachers students obtain financial aid, register for class, get tutoring and deal with other obstacles that could keep them from completing their degrees, Griffin said. This extra help increases the rate of retention of these students.
While students are not required to return and teach in Area 6 schools once they graduate, they are encouraged to do so because having come from that community, they are more aware of the needs and issues that affect students attending those schools, she said.