NEWS RELEASES
Contact News and Information
(972) 925-3900

As the nation's eleventh largest school district, Dallas Independent School District serves more than 160,000 students who come from homes where 58 different languages are spoken.  Operating with a $1 billion dollar budget, DISD employs 18,613 employees including 10,000 teachers in 220 schools

CLASSES IN THE DISD START AUG. 14; TAKE NOTE OF WHAT'S NEW FOR SCHOOL YEAR 2000

2 Aug 2000

The Dallas Independent School District school year begins Monday, August 14. Approximately 163,000 students are expected to enroll in the district’s 220 schools.

Listed are new developments for the upcoming school year:

Administration

• Robert Payton was named interim general superintendent of the Dallas schools on July 5. He has served the school district in various capacities for 35 years, including teacher, principal and associate superintendent.

Specialized Academic Programs Open at Two District Schools

• Two new programs will be offered in district schools. E.D. Walker Mathematics, Science and Technology will open this fall to expand the district’s enhanced academic programs, as well as ease overcrowding at six other North Dallas elementary campuses. Ivonne Durant has been named principal of the school located at 12532 Nuestra Dr.

Also opening in August is the William B. Travis Vanguard/Academy. The fourth- through eighth-grade program will expand the existing TAG programs at Polk and Spence by 400 students. Mari Terry has been named principal. The school is located at 3001 McKinney Ave.

Edison Schools—A New Educational Initiative

• The first day of classes for Edison Schools operating on six district campuses is

August 10. Students will be dismissed early (at 1:30 p.m.) on August 10 and 11.

Edison Schools have longer school days than traditional public schools and longer school years. Academically, Edison uses a variety of approaches, including instruction in world languages for all students beginning in kindergarten, bilingual education for ESL students and specialized instruction in dance, music, art, drama and physical education. Quarterly learning plans are individually developed for each child and computer technology education, including the installation of free computers in the homes of students in grades three and higher, also are part of the Edison approach.

The principals who will oversee the administration of Edison Schools are:

Hortense Harrison, Edison Blair Academy; Marcos Perez, Edison Henderson Academy; Deborah Hodridge, Edison Hernandez Academy; Juanita Nix, Edison Maple Lawn Academy; Ricardo Weir, Edison Medrano Academy; Marco Hinojosa, Edison Runyon Academy; and Constance Person, Edison Titche Academy.

Health Requirements—Chickenpox Vaccination Now Required

Effective August 1, 2000, children and students attending school will be required to be vaccinated against varicella (chickenpox) as follows: Children born on or after September 2, 1994 who are 1-year-old or older will be required to have received 1 dose of varicella vaccine or to present documentation of previous varicella illness. Children born between

September 2, 1988 and September 1, 1994 (inclusive) must show proof by 30 days after their

12th birthday or either having received 1 dose of varicella vaccine or of having previously had varicella illness.

A delay in school enrollment may be necessary if the student has not started or has not continued to receive vaccine doses as they become due. All immunization records must be validated by physician's signature or health clinic stamp. The month, day, and year must be indicated on the record for each new immunization.

Meal Prices

• The cost of "Type A" lunches, which consists of meat, fruit and/or vegetables, bread and a half-pint of milk, is $1. For students who wish to prepay their meals, the cost of lunches will be 90 cents for elementary students and 95 cents for secondary school students. Breakfast choices, at 50 cents, consists of meat/meat alternate, bread/cereal, fruit/juice/vegetable, and milk.
• Some students may qualify for free or reduced-priced meals. Meal application forms will be distributed to all students on the opening day of school. Household size or income criteria will be issued to determine eligibility for free and reduced-price benefits.

Safety & Security

Increased security efforts for the new school year are highlighted by the assignment of additional school safety officers at each School Youth Action Center.

Other initiatives include:

• Ongoing planning and training of all district personnel in crisis response and emergency procedures.
• DISD security personnel are assigned to actively participate with Dallas Police Department officers in gang prevention and intervention efforts and truancy enforcement.

Facilities Improvement

• The following projects will be completed in the summer of 2000:

E. D. Walker Vanguard School Renovation:

The 142,000 square foot building has been renovated to accommodate the E. D. Walker Science, Math and Technology Vanguard School for 800 Pre-Kindergarten through sixth grade students. The existing Special Education School also will remain in the building. The former "Open Plan" building has been divided to create thirty-eight new classrooms. New lighting, paint, vinyl tile and carpet have given the building an updated look inside.

William B. Travis TAG Vanguard School Renovation:

The 49,400 square foot building has been renovated to accommodate the William B. Travis TAG Vanguard School for 400 fourth through eighth grade TAGS students. This program will be an expansion of the existing TAG Program at K. B. Polk Center and Alex W. Spence Academy. Four new science laboratories and a computer laboratory have been added to this building. The ceilings, lights and paint have improved the appearance of the building’s interior.

Longfellow Career Technology Lab:

A 3,072 square-foot Quad Portable and a 768 square-foot connection to create a 4,128 square foot facility to house the Longfellow Career Technology Education High Tech Laboratory. There are 25 workstations which feature the necessary equipment and tools to facilitate the study of various career choices. The workstations incorporate state of the art computer capability with practical hands on demonstrations.

Portables:

Approximately 30 portable buildings have been built and are being installed at various schools. Construction of 57 additional portables has begun and will be completed in the next few months.

Employee Benefits Programs

• The Dallas ISD, working with local chambers of commerce, is reaching out to both small and large businesses to establish a discount program that would be a win - win relationship for the business community and the staff.

Employees will enjoy discounts from ten to twenty-five percent off in services and merchandise. So far, 22 firms have committed to this endeavor, with more signing up each day. Participating stores include Men’s Warehouse, several Chevrolet and Dodge dealers, Half Price Books, Mapsco, Bally’s Total Fitness, and other health and home improvement businesses.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

• Parent/teacher conferences for schools which follow the traditional calendar will be held from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on three different days, two times a year. Conferences have been scheduled as follows: October 2 for high schools; October 3 for elementary schools; and October 5 for middle schools. Spring semester conferences will be held February 26 for high schools, February 27 for elementary schools and March 1 for middle schools.

Texas State Fair Days

As it is tradition in the Dallas schools, students will enjoy Texas State Fair Day in the fall. Fair day for elementary school students is October 6; for secondary school students’ is October 13.

Teacher Recruitment and Salary Information:

This year, the DISD scheduled five teacher recruitment fairs throughout the city. Teacher response was so positive, administrators believe classes will start in August with least amount of vacancies in recent years.

Salary Information:

Beginning teacher salary—$33,000

Career teacher potential—$54,821

Average teacher salary—$41,500

Other facts:

Number of teachers in the district—10,168

Number of new hires who will receive bonuses—985 have received bonuses as

of July 27, 2000

Bilingual teachers in district—838