Greetings, District 2!
I hope your 2024 is off to a great start! In this new year, here is what’s happening in Dallas ISD:
Dallas ISD District 2 Monthly Updates:
Dallas ISD Schools Continue Strong Performance in New Rankings: The statewide nonprofit organization, Children At Risk, published its rankings of schools across the state and Dallas ISD schools dominated the headlines, with many of the top ranked schools in North Texas. Congratulations to all the employees, students and families who continue to make this the case, year in and year out!
Congratulations to Dallas ISD parents Dad – an inspiration to his daughter, a recent Hillcrest graduate for their achievements.
D2 Bond Construction Updates:
Campus infrastructure upgrades, funded by the 2020 Bond, continue across the district. For up-to-date information, please see Dallas ISD’s dedicated 2020 Bond website.
January Board Meeting Debrief: Below, I’ve chosen to highlight the most important items from Dallas ISD’s regular board briefing and meeting.:
- Superintendent Evaluation and Incentive Plan: Since hiring our superintendent, Stephanie S. Elizalde, to lead Dallas ISD in early 2022, she has exceeded expectations. Her relentless focus on student outcomes, her authentic drive to partner with our Dallas community, and her willingness to make difficult decisions for the benefit of students sets her apart. And this bears out in the numbers, with every student outcome goal we set this year showing growth. Therefore, I was proud to support giving her a three-year contract extension, keeping her steady leadership in our district until at least 2028. This amendment was passed 7– 0.
- Dallas ISD Proposed Budget Workshop: Every year, the Dallas ISD school board adopts our subsequent year’s annual budget in June. Kicking off this process, the board held a budget planning workshop this month. As part of this effort, the district is reviewing programs, including an effort to fund additional career and college counselors.
- Fund Balance Policy: In our work on the Superintendent Evaluation Committee this year, Trustee Ben Mackey, Trustee Joe Carreon and I found an outdated policy that contradicted financial best practices. Our old policy called for Dallas ISD to retain only two months of operating expenses in fund balance when financial wisdom points to holding three months in reserve. Therefore, the three of us brought an amendment to this policy, which passed unanimously bringing us into alignment with industry recognized best practices.
Upcoming Dates:
- Monday, March 4, @ 6 p.m. – Community Budget Workshop (Justin F. Kimball High School)
- Tuesday, March 19, @ 6 p.m. – Community Budget Workshop (Skyline High School)
- Wednesday, March 20, @ 6 p.m. – Community Budget Workshop (L.G. Pinkston High School)
- Monday, March 25, @ 6 p.m. – Community Budget Workshop (Hillcrest High School)
As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have thoughts, ideas, questions, concerns, or simply want to say hello.
Best,
Sarah Weinberg
Sarah Weinberg.
Photo courtesy of Sarah Weinberg.
