Families of Alex Sanger Elementary in East Dallas met up to support Sanger earlier this week after an article that ran on the front page of the Sunday paper of the Dallas Morning News upset them.
The DMN article tells the perspective of two Alex Sanger moms who pulled their kids out of Sanger and are now homeschooling because of frustrations with the school.
“It kinda stung a little bit,” explains principal Hector Martinez, “but we can’t focus on that. We know who we are. We’re a very strong faculty, and more importantly a very strong community, and it shows with the parents rallying behind Sanger. I really appreciate that.”
Sanger parents have stood up for the school in the comment section of the DMN article, saying the story is unfair, misleading and at times untrue. Others have emailed us at the Advocate or emailed their support to principal Martinez. D Magazine ran a piece that was by all counts slamming the paper for running the unbalanced story, particularly on the front page of the Sunday paper, and the DMN ran a Letter to the Editor from a Dallas ISD parent, urging the news to write something about the parents who stay in the district.
Martinez says he is humbled and pleased by the wash of positive support the school has received in the last week, and he’s now looking at the whole thing as a chance for Sanger to talk about some of the positive changes the school has seen recently, including impressive School Effectiveness Index (SEI) scores. Martinez started as the principal of Sanger in June of 2012 after Larry Allen, who headed up the school for almost 20 years, retired.
The DMN article says Sanger cut recess and sports programs in order to focus on improving test scores. Martinez says the article is likely referring to a time when his predecessor, Allen, cut recess in order to focus on test scores, until parents spoke out and Allen put recess back into the program. Martinez says there was recess when he started at the school and he’s never cut it.
He doesn’t even know where the comment about not having sports for the students is coming from, he says. The school offers various athletics, such as soccer, basketball, cheerleading, track (in which two students qualified for state last year) and a brand new baseball program. Aside from athletics, Sanger also offers a slew of other extra curricular activities, like Girl Scouts, journalism club, art club, Destination Imagination, choir, Little Kids Rock, spelling bee, and participation in a community garden/outdoor classroom.
One of the biggest points in the DMN article was concern about the dual-language program, which was in pretty bad shape a year ago, Martinez says. “We had to work very hard to get that implemented effectively,” Martinez says. “This year we are not where we were last year. We got some good reviews, and we had some other schools from the feeder pattern come to observe our program because we got good reviews. That was the focus last year. We sent our teachers to training and all of our staff — everybody — received an overview of the dual-language program and what it’s about because it doesn’t just exist in the classroom, it exists outside the classroom, and that’s an understanding our staff now has.”
Martinez emailed us some comments and responses from Sanger parents showing their support for Sanger:
- “My husband and I made the decision to try public school for our youngest daughter after eleven years of homeschooling our older two children. We chose to move to east Dallas, so she could attend Alex Sanger elementary, specifically. What a superb decision this has been. We love our new community and school. Beginning with the principal, Mr. Martinez who is a consistent presence, showing sincere interest in each child and parent. Our daughter feels safe ( both physically and emotionally ), loved, and is very happy here. The extracurricular activities ( for her art club, choir ) along with the dual-language program are just the icing on the cake. We are so pleased to be here and look forward to many more good years in this darling red-brick school house.”
- “I was sad to read Rudolph Bush’s article on Sanger Elementary School, because the Sanger of that article is not the Sanger I know and love. The parents are positive and involved. As an active volunteer for the past two years, I have had the repeated opportunity to see talented, dedicated Sanger teachers use engaging, multi-faceted approaches to instruction – not just teach to the test. This year my 2nd grader is thriving in the much improved dual-language program, but his favorite class is gym, where he learned the cha-cha yesterday. My older son has seizures and other disabilities, and receives Special Education at Sanger. The principal, nurse, and Special Education staff are extremely supportive and go out of their way to respond to his needs. Sure, there is always room for growth, and that’s exactly what I’ve seen this school do in so many ways over the last year and a half.”
- Sarah Rose, a teacher and parent at Sanger, wrote us to say: “I have been teaching long enough that I have many different schools to compare Sanger to. This is one of the most vibrant and encouraging places I have ever worked. I enjoy coming here each day and so does my daughter. My daughter could have gone to our neighborhood school. Instead I chose to bring my daughter to Sanger. After touring Alex Sanger at the end of last year, I knew we had found our new home. I couldn’t be happier with my decision.” You can read the rest of her Letter to the Editor.
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