Campus Staff News

Van Harris, a fifth-grade science teacher at Maria Moreno STEAM Academy, knows how to motivate his students to go above and beyond. For example, he had a student miss just one question on her common assessment test last year. As he was guiding his class through setting goals for their upcoming State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test, this student decided she wanted to aim for a perfect score. 

“I said, ‘OK, we’re going to focus on that goal,’” Harris said. “So I got her packets on the one TEKS she missed, and from that point on we did packets and different activities on that TEKS over and over. Then on the STAAR test, she got them all correct. I’ve never seen that before in my life.”

Harris, who is Maria Moreno’s 2022-2023 campus teacher of the year, said he credits his passion for education and transforming student lives to his family. He comes from a long line of teachers, starting with his great-great-grandfather and continuing onto one of Harris’ own daughters. 

After 24 years of teaching, Harris has countless student success stories. Some of his top classroom strategies include creating clear procedures for his students’ day-to-day operations, modeling behaviors he wants to see from them and taking advantage of resources and partnerships to increase engagement. 

Maria Moreno has a partnership with OutTeach, a nonprofit that trains teachers to use the outdoors to improve math, science and language arts instruction, and Harris said he has loved incorporating outdoor activities into his lesson plans.

During a weathering and erosion activity, he had his students gather rocks and put them in tubes of water. He then played Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off” while his students danced and shook their closed tubes. By the end of the song, he said his students poured out the rocks and were able to see how “smooth and shiny” they were.

“When you make those connections hands on, the students are committed and they never forget,” Harris said. “That’s why I enjoy this particular subject. Students are interested in space and the world, and they’re always asking questions.” 

While teaching can be challenging, Harris said he is thankful for the opportunities he has had to make memorable moments in the classroom and ensure that his students are on their way to being college and career ready. 

“I love teaching science because science is life,” Harris said. “My students have learned a lot, and they are proud of that. I am pretty proud of them, too.”

World Immunization Week is recognized annually during the last week of April to promote the use of vaccines and the protection they provide against vaccine-preventable diseases. Dallas ISD’s Health Services department offers a range of services to meet the mental and physical health needs of students and families in the district, including immunizations. 

According to Jennifer Finley, executive director of Health Services, the district’s partnerships with the Dallas County Health Department and Parkland Health have provided more than 10 mobile immunization clinics throughout the district. 

“We are so fortunate to have medical community partners that provide opportunities for students to receive school-required immunizations,” Finley said. “Staying up to date with routine immunizations protects against diseases such as measles and whooping cough.”

Dallas ISD offers two ways for district students to receive immunizations:

• Families can make an appointment at a Youth and Family Center to receive immunizations for as little as $5.
• Families can receive immunizations at no cost from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Care Van, a mobile immunization clinic that visits schools and serves families at community events throughout the year. Contact your school nurse to find out when the Blue Cross Blue Shield Care Van is scheduled for your child’s campus.

Learn more about the available health services in Dallas ISD by visiting https://www.dallasisd.org/Page/952, and help spread the word about World Immunization Week  to help keep students, team members and families safe. 

Starting in June, the district will be closed on Fridays as central team members begin to work the four-day week summer schedule.

Supervisors may allow employees to work a schedule other than the four-day workweek so long as the change does not negatively affect the functions of the department. In addition, some departments may choose to return to the regular work schedule sooner. Decisions regarding the work schedule are at the discretion of the department supervisor. In addition, departmental leadership may modify the employees’ work schedule to meet campus, departmental, or district needs at any time. Any event such as New Teacher Academy or a back-to-school program may require a change to the work schedule in order to provide support. Principals will make the determination of implementing a four-day workweek based on the needs of their campus and executive director approval.

Monthly and biweekly start dates

Monthly—Employees paid monthly will work the four-day work week from June 5 through July 28. Monthly employees will resume their regular work hours on July 31.

Biweekly—Employees paid biweekly will work a four-day workweek from June 2 through Aug. 3. Biweekly employees will not work on June 2 if they participate in the four-day workweek. Biweekly employees who participate in the four-day workweek will resume their regular hours on Aug. 4.

Summer hours

The summer schedule for the district will be from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Employees are responsible for consulting with their supervisors to determine the start, end, and lunch times of their daily work schedule during the summer. Employees approved to take a working lunch will only be required to stay at the worksite or be available remotely for 10 hours. Employees will be compensated for the “working lunch” time, and it will be considered part of the regular work hours.

Remote work

Remote work schedules will be considered and communicated based on the needs of the department and at the discretion of the supervisor. Eligible employees may work remotely up to one one day per week and onsite three days a week. It is encouraged that executive directors are onsite four days per week during the summer work schedule.

Juneteenth and Summer Break

The district will be closed on June 19 for the Juneteenth holiday. The district will also be closed for summer break July 3-7. Employees will not be permitted to work for pay while the district is closed unless the employee has received prior written approval from their department chief. Central team members will return to work on July 10.

It’s been said that a place without art is a place without an identity. That’s not the case for Moisés E. Molina High School where artwork, images, murals, and 3D sculptures can normally be seen throughout the school.

Visual arts teachers like Melissa James and Miriam Montaño Perez have made these displays possible with the aim of helping students develop a strong sense of identity.

The visual arts program at Molina High School is so successful that students recently took home 18 regional medals at the Texas High School Visual Art Scholastic Event (VASE). This weekend, three of the students’ works will be competing in the state competition in San Marcos, Texas. 

“Every art communicates some kind of message—whether it’s expressing culture or pride, and you’ll see that in the artwork of the students who went to VASE, because they were very personal pieces of art,” said James. 

The students who have advanced to state are: Diego Duran, a sophomore, and Jessica Martinez and Kevin Cecena, freshmen.

“Most of my students that went to the VASE competition were freshmen,” James said. “They were so proud of themselves and were able to experience and look at all the beautiful work at the event.”

“They had to speak to a juror and tell them their artist statement,” she added. “They had to explain what it meant to them personally, and explain the art element and design principles, which was part of their score.”

Beyond the classroom and competitions, Montaño Perez feels that art plays another important role in students’ lives.

“Art has really helped our students find their own identity, and has helped them express their emotions,” she said. “As they’re working through their art work, they visualize what they’re feeling and it helps them better understand themselves. Art plays this role for a lot of students.” 

Both Montaño Perez and James attribute much of the success of the visual arts program to their principal, Jacob Núñez, who has helped them find new spaces for art to exist in the school. 

“We had this empty wall and our principal, Mr. Núñez, suggested that it would be a good place to have a mural, and he helped to fund the materials,” Montaño Perez said. “We had a group of students who painted the mural, and we guided them whenever they needed help.”

The mural was inspired by Vincent Van Gogh’s iconic “Starry Night” painting and represents both Molina and Starry Night. It fuses a sense of pride that says, “That’s my school displayed in my artwork,” she said.

Not only has art in the school inspired the students, but it’s inspired team members as well.

“Art in the school really raises morale,” James said. “I’ve had so many compliments on the 3D sculptures throughout the school, and I’ve received requests from people wanting those word sculptures above their doors. It’s bright and colorful and it gives us a platform to show our students work.” 

Outside of the school, students have also had the opportunity to show their work in community spaces, including the Kiva Gallery at Mountain View College and a Día de Los Muertos exhibition at Arts Mission Oak Cliff.

“It was nice for students to see a part of themselves in their art,” Montaño Perez said. 

Both James and Montaño Perez hope that collaborations for students to showcase their artwork in the community continue, as they both see the impact that organizing exhibitions can have on the students, school, and community. 

“It gives students the opportunity to have their artwork out there for others to see,” Montaño Perez said. “It will really motivate them and encourage them, and they will take what they learned here at Molina and use it beyond high school.” 

Master Principal Brittany Thompson has spent 11 years in education, all at Dallas ISD. Originally from Chattanooga, Tenn., she was placed in Dallas with Teach for America at J.L. Long Middle School, where she quickly stepped into leadership roles. 

Thompson was subsequently promoted to instructional coach at John Quincy Adams Elementary School and then became assistant principal there and at Thomas C. Marsh Preparatory Academy. While at John Quincy Adams, she led the mathematics department, realizing double digit gains before ultimately moving to Lakewood Elementary School as principal. 

Thanks to her commitment to working alongside those she leads in order to make a lasting impact, Thompson was among the top 10 percent of Dallas ISD principals to be awarded the Master Principal designation for the 2022-2023 school year. Learn more about her outlook on leadership below. 

What drew you to education? 

The desire to have an impact on students, their lives and futures—and the joy I feel on campuses—inspired me to become an educator! 

What qualities make a great principal? 

Great leaders I admire are decisive, good communicators who value relationships and their people and always put students at the forefront of their work. 

What is your educational philosophy or a motto by which you work? 

My philosophy is students first. When struggling with a difficult situation, we always ask ourselves, “What is in the best interest of the students?” 

What inspires you about your position? 

The people I get to work with inspire me: the teachers in the classrooms who pour their hearts into their classes, the students and their ability to exceed expectations and show such kindness and empathy, and the community members I work with who move mountains for our students. 

Jazmin Mier, instructional coordinator in the World Languages Department, is a citizen of the world. She has visited over 30 countries and uses this knowledge to help teachers in the district. So when she saw that the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth was offering an opportunity for 12 educators to participate in a United Arab Emirates Educator study tour this past spring, she jumped at the chance to go. 

Mier and 11 other educators from around the country visited the cities of Abu Dhabi and Dubai March 11-18 to make connections between classrooms in the Emirates and the United States, and for educators to share what they learned in their classrooms. 

Participants had the opportunity to interact with top UAE government officials, visit internationally renowned museums, participate in cultural activities, and visit schools and universities. 

Mier said she learned a lot about new initiatives that the Emirates has related to education. She was able to see some things in common between classrooms there and in Dallas ISD.

“I saw a lot of independent work,” she said. “It was not a traditional classroom where they have students sitting on their desks and working.” 

“Students were very self motivated, and I can already see that in our schools. I don’t know if it was because of COVID, but I saw a lot of similarities like that and students were eager to learn,” she added. “They really were working on their assignments, as independent learners. That’s one of the things that really reminded me of our schools.”

Mier is using this new knowledge to work on lessons for district teachers to use in their classrooms. The trip was so impactful to Mier that she and Amy Anderton, director of the World Languages Department, are working on bringing Arabic classes to schools, as Arabic is one of the top five languages spoken in the district. 

“We really want our students to be global citizens and for them to be aware that there are different languages out there that they can learn,” she said. “It’s very important to encourage them to be open to other cultures.”

Anderton agrees: “I clearly see how her service helps our teachers. If she can go and serve our teachers by opening new opportunities to them and opening doors and perspectives–even windows to look out of, she’s done her job. All of these world travels have done that.”

During the tour, Mier also had the opportunity to visit different places related to industries like artificial intelligence.

“They are focusing towards the future,” she said. “When we think of the Persian gulf, we think of the natural resources that they have such as petroleum. But their goal is to not be dependent on oil in 20 years.”

From what she saw, the country is building its technology, industry, and education systems to expand into other fields like artificial intelligence, she said. Another one of the takeaways from the trip was the role women play in government.

“They are intentional in having a certain number of representation of women in their government,” she said. “Not only did we meet brilliant women in government roles, we met artists, writers and teachers. It was very eye opening and motivating.”

Mier, who began working for the district in 2001 teaching Spanish at Moises E. Molina High School and then at Trinidad “Trini” Garza Early College High School at Mountain View, has always had a passion to learn about geography, language, and culture. 

“When I was little, I Ioved to look at maps,” she said. “I didn’t study geography because they didn’t have a geography major at my university, Texas Wesleyan University,  but I took all the geography classes. I love learning about maps and about the people.”

As far as next steps, Mier has already begun her work in creating lessons to share with teachers of the district, which is aligned with the mission of the department—to provide instructional support to all world languages teachers through coaching, professional development, and the design of curriculum and assessments.

Part of this mission is for every student to graduate with the ability to communicate in a language that they didn’t originally come to the district with, according to Anderton. 

“She has the heart of a public servant and I really see how her service to the district really helps our teachers and will have a long lasting impact for years to come,” said Anderton. 

The district has opened hotspot requests not only to students but also to all campus and central team members, thanks to a partnership with T-Mobile to support internet access needs at home.

The hotspots will be activated under T-Mobile’s Education plan, which includes free mobile internet with content filtering. All content accessible via these hotspots will pass through a content filter that blocks access to any form of inappropriate content and is compliant with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA).

Central employees who need internet access at home can request one by submitting a service request for a hotspot device through Support Hub. Download this guide of the process for additional help. 

Campus team members can take advantage of this resource by completing this form with recipients’ information and return to Thross@dallasisd.org by May 12. 

All devices can be kept through the tenure of Dallas ISD employment or enrollment. 

Once the request is submitted, additional information will be shared. For additional information, questions, or concerns, contact thross@dallasisd.org. 

Alternative Certification interns could be eligible for reimbursement of their program fees if currently enrolled in an Educator Preparation Program.

The Alternative Certification reimbursement incentive was designed to support teachers during the 2022-2023 school year. Those who are eligible could be reimbursed up to $4,000 contingent on Human Capital Management approval and the availability of funds. This does not apply to Dallas ISD Alternative Certification program interns, whose tuition and fees have been waived. 

To be eligible for the reimbursement:

• You must be a teacher during the 2022-2023 school year.
• Your intern or probationary certificate must be posted on the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website no earlier than January 2022.
• You must submit an official statement from your Alternative Certification program reflecting fees incurred and paid during the 2022-2023 school year.

Please click here for instructions on how to submit your official statement. 

Please click here to sign-up for an Alternative Certification Reimbursement information session.

Contact the certification department for any additional questions or concerns at (972) 925-4260 or certification@dallasisd.org. 

Dallas ISD is launching a new portal that will make it easier to access district resources and will eventually create a single place to access all applications and reset user passwords.

While some team members will be able to claim their new portal access in May as part of the system’s pilot, the full portal will be available in late summer in preparation for the start of the 2023-2024 school year. The first phase of implementation will include the most popular applications in the district, and the Information Technology team will continue to add new ones during the school year.

All staff are encouraged to “claim” their account before the start of next school year. Information on how team members can claim accounts will be shared in the upcoming weeks before the end of the school year.

“We are excited about how this new portal will simplify how we access all the resources we need to do our work in the district,” said Jonathan Hurley, assistant superintendent of technology. “The ultimate goal is to simplify the digital learning experience, which will support student success.”

The Dallas ISD Portal will make users’ school network login the only one they need without sacrificing security, Hurley said. In fact, the new portal will strengthen the protections of sensitive information and access to digital systems while enhancing ease of use.

The Dallas ISD Portal will provide multiple types of user authentication methods—password, QR code, pictograph, etc.

If you want to check out the new Dallas ISD Portal, visit https://portal.dallasisd.org. The portal will be operational in May. 

District and community leaders, parents, and other stakeholders have come together for interactive and informative budget meetings—focused on the 2023-2024 budget planning and assumptions—being held in different locations throughout the district. 

Chief Financial Officer Tamika Alford-Stephens has been leading these community meetings with activities to help attendees better understand the budget planning process. Two meetings remain:

• Tuesday, April 25, at Hillcrest High School
• Thursday, April 27, at Seagoville High School 

Both sessions begin at 6 p.m.and interpretation services are provided. 

“We are currently having community meetings throughout the month of April and are carefully monitoring the legislative session,”  Alford-Stephens said. “In May we will begin making adjustments to our assumptions and will still continue to monitor the legislative session.” The board is expected to adopt the budget before June 30. 

The budget planning process consists of:

• determining projected enrollment to calculate campus staffing
• hosting principal meetings to identify individual campus needs
• calculating projected revenue
• determining and communicating budget assumptions
• developing a proposed budget
• hosting community budget meetings
• incorporating legislative updates as applicable

Those who have attended the meetings have had the opportunity to do a hands-on activity in a small group called “show me the money,” which gives them a visual of a dollar bill representing a $1.8 billion dollar budget. The dollar bill has different labels such as salaries, contracted services, debt services, etc., and attendees are instructed to put the dollar together like a puzzle. They then align the percentage pieces with the dollar bill. 

“Salaries are a big chunk of the dollar, more than three quarters,” said one of the attendees at the meeting that took place at W.H. Adamson High School earlier in the month.

Part of the assumptions in the budget that is currently in development includes raising the minimum teacher salary to $61,000. For more information on the district’s budget meetings, visit  https://www.dallasisd.org/budgetmeetings.