As the school board representative for this area, one of my chief responsibilities is to deliver this message – young people who attend Dallas schools can learn, achieve, grow and become successful. Anyone who has visited one of our schools recently knows this to be true.
Today, I can reinforce this message. I have been informed of great news about achievement in our district.
The most recent test results indicate that Dallas-area students made substantial gains in all grades this year on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills – outpacing statewide gains in several categories.
This news follows a recent announcement that 10th grade students scored higher than ever on the 1998 TAAS. We saw gains by students of every ethnicity in every subject. This is outstanding news, but it doesn’t end here.
Stonewall Jackson Elementary School is expected to be named “exemplary” under the state’s ranking system. Stonewall always has been an outstanding school and this recognition just confirms what we knew all along – you don’t have to go outside Dallas to find quality education. The schools in your neighborhood are doing just fine.
Credit for these achievements belongs to our teachers, staff, and parents – and, of course, our students.
The 1997-98 school year was a challenging one for those involved in the education of our children. However, the more the news focused on administrative issues, the better our students performed academically. A few more examples come to mind:
Dallas Public Schools seniors received more than $26 million in scholarships this year. Students at Woodrow Wilson High School earned more than $1 million in scholarships.
Woodrow’s valedictorian Dana Dalton will attend Austin College this fall. Salutatorian Sarah Shepherd plans on attending Lehigh University in Pennsylvania.
Other Woodrow students worthy of recognition include Erin Armstrong and Christopher Gaspard, who were named Advanced Placement Scholars by The College Board on the basis of the May 1997 examinations. They are among 97 district students selected for the award, which has increased by more than 50 students over the previous year’s total.
Many J.L. Long Middle School students also made us proud. Among them are Michael Jimenez and Daisy Martinez, who were named United States National Award winners in history and government by the United States Achievement Academy.
School, as well as life, is what you make of it.
There is much work to be done, but in our effort to look for faults and imperfection in our school system, let us not forget to praise the hundreds of students who made education their top priority this year.
Roxan Staff, a neighborhood resident, is an elected member of the Dallas Independent School District. Send comments and ideas to her at 6301 Gaston, Suite 820, Dallas 75214; FAX 214-823-8866; or e-mail to editor@advocatemag.com.
