Staff News

Two Dallas ISD schools are among 26 public schools in Texas nominated for the National Blue Ribbon, to be awarded in the fall.

The School for the Talented and Gifted and the School of Science and Engineering, both at Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Center, are nominated for the ribbon, the highest honor a U.S. school can achieve. The National Blue Ribbon Schools program recognizes public and private elementary, middle and high schools that have high student achievement or demonstrate exemplary progress toward closing achievement gaps.

“It’s an honor to be nominated among the 26 high-performing schools in Texas,” said Principal Arnoldo Zuñiga, of the School for the Talented and Gifted. “It wouldn’t be possible without the help and the hard work of the staff, the students and the community. They are the ones who drive the work here, and they are the ones who make it happen.”

Principal Andrew Palacios, of the School of Science and Engineering, said, “We are continuously researching the best way to enrich our student learning experience. We are honored to be nominated as a potential National Blue Ribbon School. The team at the School of Science and Engineering Magnet is a group of people who care and work hard for our students. Our faculty, staff, parents, and community work hard to create experiences where our students win the most.”

The nominated schools must now complete a rigorous process conducted by the U.S. Department of Education. National award winners will be announced in September of 2022. Schools that receive the designation will be recognized at the National Blue Ribbon Schools Awards Ceremony in Washington, D.C.

As part of the district’s Black History Month celebrations, the Racial Equity Office has been hosting virtual career webinars each Wednesday of February, from noon to 12:30 p.m. on Zoom. The last virtual webinar will take place Feb. 23.

The panels have focused on career pathways that are lacking representation from Black professionals, such as healthcare, law, architecture and technology, which will take place Feb. 23. During the final 10 minutes of each webinar, there will be a question-and-answer session with the speakers, and live participants will have the opportunity to win prizes.

Through the webinars, students have been in direct contact with career professionals and practitioners, which encouraged career exploration. By connecting exciting career options to learning, classwork will become more valuable to the students, reinforcing the idea that school is a path to something that can be fun and rewarding.

The webinar is open to all Dallas ISD students and teachers after registering on Zoom https://dallasisd.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ocbYFbsPQ5CjYe_Wdo5eVA.

Are you a teacher, instructional coach, counselor or media specialist looking for a challenging but rewarding assignment? Dallas ISD’s open transfer period provides the opportunity to accept positions at high priority campuses and other schools for the 2022-2023 school year.

Principals in high priority and ACE campuses—including those with Intersession and School Day Redesign calendars—can begin sending recommendations for teachers, instructional coaches, counselors, and media specialists to Human Capital Management starting March 7. The district’s open transfer period for the 2022-2023 school year for schools that are not considered high priority campuses begins March 23. The open transfer period for all schools ends April 15.

The open transfer process allows current Dallas ISD teachers, instructional coaches, counselors and media specialists, who meet the guidelines outlined below, to accept a position at another campus for the following school year. During the open transfer period, current principal approval is not required.

Interested eligible employees must complete an application online by logging into www.dallasisd.org/careers with their EAD credentials and then use the internal openings link. Employees who do not apply will not be eligible to participate.

To be eligible for an open transfer, employees must:

• Hold a valid Texas Teacher Certificate in the requested subject-area vacancy and meet TEA/SBEC Certification Standards for the position
• Not be identified for non-renewal at the end of the current school year due to performance and/or misconduct
• Not be entering their fourth year of an Alternative Certification Program
• For Instructional Coaches only: must receive approval from recommending campus executive director

Next week: Learn about the advantages of working at a high priority campus, including access to additional compensation.

Dallas ISD staff can hear from published authors about their experiences and their work through the Reading Language Arts #DallasWrites! Author Series. The series is designed to inspire and encourage those who want to rediscover their voice and talent as readers, writers and thinkers.

These sessions feature a published author who speaks about his or her inspiration, process, craft, obstacles, background, books, and usually “book talks” one particular title, said Melanie Sangalli, director of Reading Language Arts.

“We can use this inspiration to build our own reading and writing confidence and skill set to use with students in any content or grade level,” she said. The sessions are also open to central staff who are interested in reading and writing.

Each attendee will receive a copy of the author’s book and some lucky participants will also receive a class set. All sessions are scheduled in the afternoons from 4:15 to 5:30 p.m.

Upcoming Author Events:

Kelly Yang, author of Three Keys.  Wednesday, Feb. 23.  Some lucky attendees in grades third through seventh will win a class set!  Zoom Link 

Alyson Gerber, author of Taking Up Space, Braced, and Focused.  Monday, March 7. Some lucky attendees in grades third through seventh will win a class set!  Zoom Link

Aida Salazar, author of In the Spirit of a Dream and Land of the Cranes. Wednesday, March 23^.  Some lucky attendees in grades kindergarten through second will win a class set!  Zoom Link 

To see past authors and learn more about the project, please visit our Reading Language Arts site.

For more information, please reach out to RLA Director, Melanie Sangalli, at msangalli@dallasisd.org

As adults spend more time in front of their computers working and in meetings, sitting has become the newest threat to heart health. Fortunately, there is a way to counteract the sitting effects: regular physical activity and Dallas ISD is here to help with a series of exercise and meditation videos.

According to a study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, adults who clock in at least 150 minutes, or 2.5 hours, of heart-pumping physical activity are well on their way to maintaining heart health. The study recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes per week of vigorous aerobic activity, or a combination of both during the week.

Currently, only about one in five adults and teens get enough exercise to maintain good health, according to the American Heart Association. Increased activity not only helps the heart, it also improves sleep, mood, and general wellbeing.

Dallas ISD HCM Benefits has worked with a local fitness coach to create a series of quick exercises and meditation sets to help staff embrace heart health throughout the year. To explore these exercise tips, visit the playlist at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpyhyA1qUPMaZuWLIYnto0A5_UO9e5MYL and start showing your heart some love.

Did you celebrate Go Red for Heart Health Week by wearing red? Send us your photos to staffnews@dallasisd.org so we can share them later this month.

Other than sleeping, work is where most adults spend the significant part of their day.  While fulfilling and important—it’s a source of income and important relationships—work can also be a source of issues that affect mental health.

According to a national study conducted by Mental Health America, four in five employees feel emotionally drained from their work and nine in 10 report that workplace stress affects their mental health. Mental health doesn’t stay the same all the time, and it can fluctuate as people move through changes and stages in their lives.

Dallas ISD staff who are feeling overwhelmed or stressed can take advantage of the Employee Assistance Program to get help.

Dallas ISD’s Employee Assistance Program by LifeWorks is a confidential and secure service that offers help with personal and work-related issues. The EAP encourages employees and those close to them to seek help early before a minor problem becomes more serious. The EAP is designed to address short-term issues, identify resources and referrals for emergency and long-term problems. It can provide support, referrals and, resources related to many concerns like depression, conflict at work, anxiety, drug and alcohol abuse, grief and loss and many others.

With EAP, there is no contribution that staff need to provide. Counselors are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Reach out to LifeWorks at (972) 925-4000 or visit www.dallasisd.org/benefits and click on Benefits Resources to access online EAP information.

Are you working to get ahead as a leader in your career? Few skills shout leadership potential like the ability to speak and communicate clearly. In fact, numerous experts list communication skills as the top talent managers need to effectively lead teams.

Dallas ISD Talk It Up! Toastmasters can help you develop those skills. Learn more about it at the group’s virtual open house at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16. Dallas ISD Talk It Up! Toastmasters is inviting district employees to the open house to learn what Toastmasters is all about. While there is a nominal membership fee, there is no charge to attend the first few meetings to learn if Toastmasters can help you reach your personal or professional goals.

Offering a learn-by-doing curriculum, global leadership, and communications training organization Toastmasters International has equipped millions to lead and communicate effectively. Toastmasters offers its program in a club format where people who are interested in becoming more effective communicators and leaders meet regularly to practice and receive feedback.

Among the Dallas ISD leaders who have benefited from their experience with Toastmasters are Cecilia Oakeley, assistant superintendent of Evaluation and Assessment; assistant principal Roderick Goudy; and recently retired Communications executive director Lawana Porter.

If this sounds like something you’d like to try, mark your calendar for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16, to join via Zoom. (meeting ID 488 896 308, passcode 391641). You are also welcome to direct questions to member Lawana Porter at (214) 384-2792.

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented many challenges to schools and districts as they try to provide instruction to hundreds of thousands of students, and one of the hardest to overcome has been the number of teacher absences due to illness or quarantine. Dallas ISD has been able to keep instruction going thanks, in part, to central staff pitching in as substitute teachers in schools across the district.

More than 90 staff in the Teaching and Learning division, 65 School Leadership instructional lead coaches, and almost two dozen staff members in Human Capital Management put aside their daily tasks to go back into the classroom either a day or two or five per week when the number of absences were at their highest.

For Kaitlyn Reneson, an ESL curriculum instructional specialist, going back to the classroom reignited her passion for helping students learn because the experience reminded her of why she got into education.

“Teachers were using their planning periods to sub for other teachers, doing everything to make sure students were learning,” Reneson said. “There’s something about being in it together. You say you understand but subbing for a day really makes you see that we need to be in this together. If a campus needs you, you go.”

Reneson has spent five days substituting at an elementary school—outside of her usual classroom experience in high school. Her colleague, Fernel Gonzalez, a dual language campus support coordinator, also saw first-hand the level of stress teachers and campus administrators have been under to work tirelessly to bring students up to speed under trying circumstances.

And he agreed: “We need to have each other’s backs because we need to work together to help the students.”

The instructional coaches from School Leadership have been substituting within the clusters they serve daily. Where they had more than one campus, the team divided and conquered, said Felicia Gray, director of Instructional Lead Coaches. And in schools that needed additional support due to double-digit absences, several coaches were assigned.

“While maintaining instructional support for students was paramount, they not only covered classrooms,” Gray said. “They also worked as front office staff, parking lot greeters, lunch duty monitors and any other roles needed for the campus.”

For all the central staff who worked as substitutes, their regular responsibilities and deadlines did not go away. But none minded putting in extra hours to catch up because they knew that what they were doing was crucial for students, said Mayra Rangel, a dual language campus support instructional specialist, who has also spent time substituting.

“It is worth it,” Rangel said. “We stayed open when other districts had to close down. This proves that we are a united front.”

Due to scheduling conflicts, Dallas ISD is rescheduling its February retirement webinar to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16, and cancelling its March webinar. If you are planning on retiring in the next few years and want to learn how to prepare, you can register for the rescheduled webinar.

For staff who plan to retire this year, you can get cash for your unused local days through the district’s Retirement Service Award. The more days remaining, the higher the payout.

To participate in the Retirement Service Award, employees should notify Human Capital Management no later than April 15 of the date they intend to retire. Notification should be made by entering the intended retirement date in Oracle Self-Service.

The Retirement Service Awards pays employees a flat daily rate of pay for any unused local days accrued by July 31. The exact rate to be paid will be determined upon calculation of the total of all participants’ remaining local days (calculated by July 31). There is no cap to the number of local days paid. There is no time in service requirement.

If employees complete the separation process in Oracle by April 15 and work the remainder of the year, they will continue to have pay and benefits through Aug. 31. Those who do not enter their separation date in Oracle Self-Service by the April 15 deadline will not be eligible for the award.

For additional questions, employees may contact the HCM Benefits Department at 972-925-4300 or email Retirement@dallasisd.org.