East Dallas parents 'Discover' DISD, and like what they find, from dual-language to International Baccalaureate

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The Discover Dallas ISD Fair earlier this month was a great reminder of the diverse academic choices available to families in District 2.

The Fair was a district-wide showcase of school offerings with representatives from all 228 district schools. The first-ever event highlighted academic choices from prekindergarten to collegiate academies, as well as everything in between.

In walking around and talking with the District 2 principals and teachers in attendance, I was reminded of what an incredible group of educators and leaders we have working at our campuses.

I also had the pleasure of talking with parents who had no idea about how many academic options are available in District 2 and throughout Dallas ISD.

For example, I talked with several parents who were thrilled to learn about our Career and Technical Education Program, which helps students explore a career field while becoming workforce ready. The number of career certifications received by Dallas ISD students has increased by more than 3,500 percent over the past six years.

Many parents were interested in our District 2 schools offering the Two-Way Dual Language Program. The program puts Spanish-speaking and English-speaking students in the same classroom, teaches them the same curriculum in both languages, and creates bilingual, bicultural and biliterate students.

There was also noticeable excitement for the North Dallas High School and Hillcrest High School collegiate academies opening next school year. The collegiate academies will let high school students, at no cost to them, earn up to 60 hours of college credit or an associate’s degree.

As an added bonus, Southwest Airlines just announced that it would partner with North Dallas High School’s collegiate academy to provide students with real world experience. As an industry partner to the North Dallas High School collegiate academy, Southwest Airlines will provide mentoring, host site visits, offer internships and job interviews for students.

Meanwhile, parents at the Discover Dallas ISD Fair also learned about the prestigious International Baccalaureate and International Baccalaureate Candidate schools. In District 2, Woodrow Wilson and Hillcrest high schools, Long and Franklin middle school, and Robert E. Lee, Preston Hollow, and William Lipscomb elementary schools are either IB or IB candidate schools. Founded in 1968, the IB program aims to develop a student’s intellectual, personal, emotional and social skills to prepare them for life after school.

This is just a brief snapshot of a few of the many things our District 2 schools have to offer families. The truth is, Dallas ISD has not historically done a great job of marketing what our schools have to offer, so I was very encouraged by the Discover Dallas ISD Fair.

Anyone who gets to see what is happening in our schools knows that Dallas ISD has more academic options than anyone else in the area. Our job now is to spread the word so every family in the Dallas area knows what makes Dallas ISD special.

And for students who want to take advantage of some of the special Dallas ISD programs and schools for 2017–18, the application window just opened to apply for magnet schools, transformation schools, the Two-Way Dual Language Program, and collegiate academies. Go here to learn more and how to apply.