12 Jun 2000
The Board of Education of the Dallas Independent School District recently presented the following individuals Resolutions of Recognition at their April and May board meetings.
• Sixty-nine students from Dallas Independent School District received proclamations by the board for being named National Merit Finalists or National Hispanic Recognition Scholars. Approximately, each student recognized scored in the top half of 1 percent in the state on the PSAT in their junior year.
• Cindy Thomas, a volunteer for the North Dallas Chamber of Commerce, developed and implemented the first-ever "Take a Student to Work day" project. Thirty-eight Marsh Middle School eight graders were paired with chamber members for a visit to their places of employment to give the students a sense of the many career opportunities available to them after graduation.
• Gertrude Cavazos Reyna, a district teacher who taught for 42 years before she retired from George W. Truett Elementary, was honored in memoriam by the board. Year after year, when asked when she would quit, she always responded "not until they put me in the grave." Reyna raised two generations of dedicated educators including a daughter who teaches at Mount Auburn Elementary, a granddaughter who is assistant principal at Reinhardt Elementary, and a son who is the former superintendent of Ysleta ISD. Her dedication to education created a lasting change in generations of people, making Reyna a legend in her own time.
• Chris Martin, 10, won a four-year scholarship to the University of Texas at Dallas for winning first place out of 130 participants in the Dallas Area Chess in Schools 2000 Championship. Chris also won first place in the Dallas Math Olympiad and this past year received multiple awards in the State of Texas Math and Science Competition and currently holds over 60 trophies and countless titles. Chris attends Lakewood Elementary in the morning and Long Middle School in the afternoon where he just completed studies in Algebra. He will be eligible to begin trigonometry and calculus before reaching his teens. Future plans include more chess tournaments and a career as a math teacher.
• "Value Kids" of Obadiah Knight Elementary School were recognized for their participation in community projects. The group of eight sixth grade students who follow the motto "Value All Lives, Understanding Everyone" came to the aid of disabled persons by volunteering through the ARC of Dallas and the United Cerebral Palsy pre-school. The group also is spearheading a project to have the Dallas City Council proclaim March as "Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month."
• Rusty Gage, a volunteer at Maple Lawn Elementary School, was recognized for contributing to enhance the partnership between the school and the Cathedral of Hope. His active participation in the school has resulted in clothes drives, school supplies collections, and the coordination of the donation of $2,600 toward Maple Lawn's music program, which also included collecting 103 castanets and recorders. This past year, Gage oversaw the delivery of 265 food baskets at Thanksgiving and shared meals and gifts during Christmas with 371 individuals. Gage also coordinates the placement of volunteers with the American Red Cross, Dallas Lighthouse for the Blind, Our Children's House, North Texas Food Bank and other non-profit organizations.