1 Oct 2007
Reorganization aims at strengthening the district
DALLAS–The Dallas Independent School District Superintendent of Schools Michael Hinojosa has announced changes to his executive leadership team.
The changes became effective with the recent service-oriented reorganization of central staff. Eight individuals now report directly to the superintendent.
"This is a very talented group," said Hinojosa. "Half of them are experienced educators. The other half brings a vast wealth of experience from the corporate and military community. It is a perfect blend of talent and expertise to help transform Dallas ISD into the top-performing urban school district in the country and to implement the Dallas Achieves! initiative."
New to the district is Donna Micheaux, who will serve as chief administrative officer for School Leadership and Administrative Services. A Lead District Fellow of the Institute for Learning at the University of Pittsburgh and a graduate of the Broad Academy, Micheaux earned a Bachelor's degree in education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, a Master's in special education and a doctorate in educational administration and policy studies from the University of Pittsburgh. Micheaux has more than 25 years of experience in urban education. Her administrative experiences include serving as a central office administrator, principal and staff specialist for the New American Schools standards-based reform initiative. She also has taught at the elementary, middle school and college level.
Micheaux recently served as the lead district fellow for the Prince Georges County Public Schools and the Saint Paul Public Schools working directly with the superintendent and central office administrators to design and implement the district's education plan. She also conducted instructional leadership training for principals, central office staff, coaches and lead teachers in several urban school districts. She has served on the state of Pennsylvania's Empowerment Advisory Board and has conducted literacy audits in several school districts.
Also new to the district is Kim Olson, who is serving as chief human development officer in the Human Development Department (formerly Human Resources). Her responsibilities include campus staffing, principals and support staffing, teacher recruiting, substitute teaching, professional development, alternative certification and managing employee benefits, compensation and employee relations.
Olson, a retired colonel with 25 years experience in the United States Air Force, was part of the first generation of female military pilots and was the first female to command an air refueling squadron in Washington, D.C. Colonel Olson served as retired Lt. General Jay Garner's executive officer to assist with the rebuilding of Iraq, shortly after the initial invasion by coalition forces in the spring of 2003. After leaving the Air Force, Olson wrote a book about her experiences titled Iraq and Back: Inside the War to Win the Peace.
She holds a Bachelor of arts in education from Ohio State University, a Master of Business Administration from Webster University, a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College, and a Master of Arts in National Security in Strategy from the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. In addition, she is a graduate of the Seminar XXI Center for International Studies and a graduate of the Broad Urban Superintendents Academy.
Steve Flores, chief administrative officer since 2005, has been named chief of staff. His new duties include overseeing operations in Evaluation and Accountability, Legal Services, Parent Services and School Choice, Communications, Information Technology, District Initiatives and Planning, Emergency Management, Board Services, Athletics and the Dallas Education Foundation.
Flores received a Bachelor's degree from Angelo State University in 1986, a Master's degree in school administration in 1992, and a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Texas at Austin in 2001.
As chief administrative officer, Flores was responsible for providing oversight to the district's 228 campuses. Flores previously held the position of area superintendent in 2002-2004. He also was acting superintendent and assistant superintendent of the Round Rock Independent School District.
Continuing to serve as the district's chief academic officer is Denise Collier. In that capacity, Collier is responsible for providing leadership of the district's education plan and for the development, deployment and delivery of an aligned curriculum to the district's 158,000 students. As a career educator, Collier served Texas children as a teacher in grades 2-8 and in various instructional leadership roles.
Prior to coming to Dallas two years ago, Collier successfully helped lead the design and implementation of Austin ISD's education plan, helping to make Austin the highest performing urban district in Texas. She has supported teaching and learning at the state level through participation and leadership on various committees and councils, and she received her doctorate in education from the University of Texas at Austin in 2001.
Eric E. Anderson will continue in his duties as chief operating officer by overseeing the district's Business Services. Anderson started with the district in January of this year and most recently was chairman, president and CEO of Crescent Machinery Company in Fort Worth. Previously, Anderson was chairman and CEO at Aviall, Inc., a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the world's largest distributor of new aviation parts. Anderson was also president of Inventory Locator Service in Memphis. Prior to these CEO positions, Anderson held various finance, planning, marketing and business development positions at Land O'Lakes, Inc., Z-A Farms,, AAR CORP., and Tiger International, Inc. He has Master of Business Administration in Finance from Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. Mr. Anderson has previously served as a school board member in Iowa.
Arnold Viramontes is continuing as chief transformation officer. Prior to joining Dallas ISD, Viramontes was the chief executive officer of The Viramontes Group, which consulted on business continuity and technology plans for school districts and other entities throughout the state of Texas. From 1996-2000, he served as the initial executive director of the Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund Board (TIF Board), which was responsible for a $1.5 billion fund to deploy telecommunications infrastructure to several entities in the public sector. Texas Monthly Biz named him as one of the 25 Most Powerful Texans in High Tech.
Don Smith, executive director, heads the district's new Office of Professional Responsibility. Smith has 30 years of investigative experience, including being a retired IRS special agent with the Criminal Investigation Division, investigator with Blue Cross Blue Shield's corporate compliance department, Federal contract security clearance investigator, and as the former reserve mobilization commander for the Army's Criminal Investigation Division at Fort Hood.
Leslie Williams, the 2007 Principal of the Year for Dallas ISD, has been named executive director of the Superintendent's Learning Community, which oversees school improvement at the fourteen high need campuses. Williams was the principal at Skyline High School and Career
Development Center for the past three years. He has served the district since 1976, starting his career as a teacher at South Oak Cliff High School, his high school alma mater. He later became principal at Martin Weiss Elementary, Fred Florence Middle School and David W. Carter High School.
"This is a very good team with a variety of experiences that can only help provide leadership and direction to the Dallas Independent School District," said Hinojosa. "To become a top school district requires assembling a team of top flight individuals who can view the district's challenges from a new perspective."