Staff News

Dallas ISD is going pink during October to celebrate and recognize survivors of breast cancer and increase awareness about advances in treatments for the disease. As part of the observances for the month, Dallas ISD staff shared inspirational stories of courage, faith and strength.

My name is Cipriana Portillo. I am a breast cancer survivor, and I have been cancer-free for 15 years. My daughter was 1 year old when I was diagnosed with cancer. Adriana is now 16 years old. I thank God for sending my baby, because I feel that she gave me strength to survive.

Cipriana Portillo
Teacher Assistant
Louise Wolff Kahn Elementary School

Power to Fight

On May 29, 2015, Michelle Zada Hall was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer and began an aggressive chemotherapy regimen in addition to having a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction, followed by radiation at the start of the New Year. Over the past five years she has had four additional reconstructive surgeries and feels extremely blessed to have an amazing team of talented and compassionate doctors and surgeons and her incredible faith. She loves and is grateful for the incredible faith and an army of wonderfully supportive friends, family, students, parents and co-workers who help encourage positivity and administer prayer. A talented dancer and dance instructor, she has never missed a beat during her treatment, because she was determined not to allow cancer to define her.

Michelle Zada Hall
Assistant Dance Conservatory Director and Director of the World Dance Ensemble
Booker T. Washington High School for the performing and Visual Arts

I was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer 13 years ago, and now I can say that I am a breast cancer survivor. I thank God every day for his mercy. I pray every day to God for those people who are suffering from this or another disease to give them strength and faith to move forward. For me, faith in God and the support of my entire family and the doctors that God put in my way were the reasons I victorious and blessed for this difficult process.

Adela Sanchez
Cafeteria Supervisor
Raúl Quintanilla Sr. Middle School

Feb. 20, 1997, is a day I shall never forget because that was the day a message was left on my answering machine regarding my surgery, which was scheduled for February 24, 1997. I asked myself, “What surgery is she talking about?” I thought she had dialed the wrong number. After calling the number that was left, I learned that my mammogram showed that I had breast cancer.

I was devastated. There was no history of breast cancer in my family. I had no symptoms. I could not feel a lump in my breast. It was diagnosed by way of my mammogram. After my surgery, I had to go back four days later to find out if any of my lymph nodes had been involved. Had the cancer spread? Waiting for those results, my family members joined in prayer in the doctor’s office. The test came back negative.

I went through chemotherapy and radiation treatment for eight months. I would drive myself to those treatments and go to work afterwards. I felt ashamed and believed that I had, in some way, caused this diagnosis. I did not want anyone to know what I was going through. I secretly prayed and asked God to please, don’t take my hair out. I did not want to go bald because everyone would know what I was going through. I did not want sympathy, either.  Throughout my treatments, I did not get sick and I never felt weak. As a matter of fact, labs showed that my blood numbers were always “normal.” God answered my prayers.

As I went through this, I wanted to help others. I gave a testimony at my church. I have been speaking to other women who may be going through the same thing. I have made it my business to encourage anyone who is frightened by this diagnosis. I tell them of my struggles and my triumphs. I let them know that having breast cancer is not always a death sentence. It has been 23 years and eight months since that diagnosis. Each subsequent mammogram causes me to have some anxiety, but I have learned to place my complete faith in God.

For anyone reading this, if you have gotten this diagnosis, cry if you must. Get angry, if you must. But one thing that you MUST not do, is give up. Don’t give in. If you are in need of encouragement, support, prayers, or resources, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Patricia A. Washington
Social Worker, Special Education

Audra Scott

Audra Scott, opera and gospel performer and teacher, was diagnosis with HER2+, stage 2 breast cancer when she was 38 after she noticed bloody discharge from her areola. She had a double mastectomy, reconstruction surgery and 12 rounds of chemo. She decided to have the double mastectomy because she has the brca2 gene that put her at high risk for cancer reoccurring, which she had seen happen to family members who did not survive. For her, it was a simple decision, “I didn’t even give them a chance to finish the question. I said, ‘Take them both, I don’t need them!’”

She did not let the diagnoses affect her passion for music, teaching, and family. Instead, she leaned heavily on her faith in God and the support of her family, friends, and students to carry her through as a survivor.

Audra Scott, 
Director of Opera & Gospel, Musical Theater Vocal Coach
Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts

Laticia Miles, middle

My mother, Laticia Miles, is a breast cancer survivor. She was diagnosed in July of 2018. It was the most devastating news

my family ever received. At that time, she was living in Bakersfield, Calif., and my sister and I decided that it was best that she move to Dallas so that we could take care of her as well as get her setup with the best possible treatments. In November of 2018, she made the permanent move to Keller where she now resides with my sister. My mother underwent surgery in July of 2019 and had to have her left breast removed. Surgery was a success, and, as of today, she is a walking, breathing, testimony that God is indeed a miracle worker. Through all the tears, pain, sudden loss of hair and frequent doctor visits, she has overcome one of the biggest challenges of her life. My mom is my hero, and I am extremely proud of her. She never gave up hope and continued to fight. She is now living a cancer free life and couldn’t be happier.

Brandee Dean
Teacher Assistant, Specialized Unit
Thomas C. Marsh Middle School

I am a 13- year breast cancer survivor, free from cancer since my chemo treatment. In the summer of 2007, after I told my deaf friend that I felt a lump in my chest, she suggested that I see my family doctor again because she had a friend who passed away from breast cancer. The lump never caused me any pain, but it developed quickly right after my yearly check-up with my doctor. I was diagnosed with almost stage 3 breast cancer in August 2007.

Linda Fenske
Teacher Assistant Deaf Education
Mockingbird Elementary School 

I was hired by Dallas ISD in January 2020, and 20 days later, I was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 27. My tumor was 6cm long and stage 3. I started 16 rounds of chemotherapy in March. Soon after finishing chemotherapy, on July 28, I had a bilateral mastectomy. I am now doing radiation and am on the 15th of 33 sessions. It has been an emotional rollercoaster for me and my husband, but we have remained positive and very proactive throughout the treatments. In the middle of a pandemic and a cancer diagnosis, my husband and I have found so much joy in the little things and love feeling all the support and prayers from everyone around us. My hope for everyone is to be proactive about their health and take very seriously their annual checkups. I am that woman who works out every day, eats healthy and has no family history of cancer in her family, and still I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Know your body, and truly, feel it on the first.

First-grade teacher

An employee who has a suspected or confirmed infectious disease, such as COVID-19, should report the disease to the district. In response to a report of an infectious disease, the district will initiate the public health contact tracing process to maintain a safe work environment and prevent the spread of the infection.

An employee who has received a suspected or confirmed infectious disease diagnosis should notify Health Services within 24 hours by submitting the reporting form. If the employee notifies his or her supervisor, the supervisor must notify Health Services within three hours of receiving the notification from the employee.

The employee’s report of a suspected or confirmed infectious disease diagnosis to the district initiates the contract tracing process, which continues with the Health Services Department contacting the Benefits and the Environmental Services departments.

Contact tracing steps

1. Health Services contacts the reporting employee within 24 hours of receiving notification from the employee to initiate the contact tracing process.
2. Health Services will contact a potentially exposed employee within 24 hours. Health Services may direct the employee who may have been in close contact to quarantine/isolate.  (Reports received after hours, weekends and holidays will be reviewed and executed within 48 hours.)
3. The Benefits Department will contact the employee to review leave of absence and Americans with Disability Act (ADA) accommodation options or place the employee on a quarantine/isolation status.
4. Operation Services will provide an intensive cleaning with an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) industrialized germ spray to exposed areas. Employees may be asked to discontinue use of the exposed workspace and common areas until a clean notice is posted.

Contact tracing is a private process. An employee’s personal information may not be released to the public or shared with individuals who may have come in close contact with an infected employee. Employees are prohibited from disclosing confidential information about employees or students.

Campus and department staff are reminded to abide by the district’s E-rate policy regarding acceptance of donations of technology. Policy also requires staff to report to Partnership and Volunteer Services all funds and items received on behalf of the district, and to acknowledge and thank donors.

Board Policy CDC (LOCAL) (REGULATION) and (EXHIBIT) require that donations are appropriately approved and recorded in the district’s online database maintained by Partnership and Volunteer Services and that donors receive an acknowledgment of donations and a thank-you letter.

E-Rate procedures require approval in advance for:

• donations of technology
• funds for technology
• any kind of gift from a technology vendor (volunteers, in-kind/materials or funding)

Information regarding all proposed gifts or donations of technology or any gift from a technology vendor should be submitted to the Partnership and Volunteer Services Department and forwarded to the E–Rate Compliance Officer for review before acceptance and should not be accepted or utilized until approved. Partnership Services is available to help campuses and departments execute Form CDC (Local) (Exhibit A) to seek approval from the E–Rate Compliance Officer.

For approved and accepted gifts, policy requires designated staff in schools and departments to report all gifts, donations or contributions of funds, in-kind services or materials to Partnership Services staff. Gifts must be recorded within five working days of receipt of the gift in the Partnership Services online database at www.dallasisd.org/contributions.

Campus or department staff who accept gifts on behalf of their schools or district departments must offer an appropriate message of thanks to the donors who provided these gifts.

Dallas ISD schools will celebrate National School Lunch Week—“Now Playing: School Lunch!”—through from Oct. 16 with special treats and a video contest to spotlight the importance of a healthy school lunch.

“A healthy lunch is a great way to ensure students get the best education they can,” said Michael Rosenberger, Executive Director of Dallas ISD’s Food & Child Nutrition Services. “National School Lunch Week helps us educate parents and students about all the healthy, great tasting, and appealing lunch choices we offer.” Planned activities for the week include: 

School lunch week video Contest: The video contest engages students K-12 in learning about the importance of eating a healthy and delicious school lunch. The contest challenges students to use their imagination to illustrate their own “School Lunch video” which coincides with this year’s NSLW theme of “Now Playing: School Lunch”. The winning video will be featured on FCNS social media platforms.  All student(s) must participate with an educator.  We will select a winner per each school level.  Amongst the prizes are movie tickets, Barnes and Nobles Gift cards, electronic tablets and more.  Details about the video contest will be forwarded to all principals, school art and media teachers.

Fruit crisp treat – Oct. 16: Students will enjoy a special and delicious warm fruit crisp treat.

Coloring activity sheets will be available on the www.dallasisd.org/fcns page for teachers and students. Student artwork will be shared on the department’s social media page after it’s emailed to lemeza@dallasisd.org.

For more information on National School Lunch Week, visit www.dallasisd.org/fcns

October is National Principal Appreciation Month, and Dallas ISD celebrates the 225 dedicated principals who continue to lead their schools through challenging times to ensure that all students are educated for success. Thank you, principals!

Marlon Brooks’ almost 29-year career as an educator is full of accomplishments, including being one of the longest-serving principals in the district.

But in the eyes of the L.G. Pinkston High School principal, it’s not accolades or promotions that stand as the most remarkable milestones of his long tenure in Dallas ISD.

“Being a principal is one of the most outstanding career opportunities one can have because you can meet people, students, from all walks of life and lead them to develop and grow into adulthood,” he said.

Brooks began his career as an educator with Dallas ISD in 1992 and has been a teacher, an assistant principal and a principal at a variety of schools with diverse student bodies throughout the district. Notably, the Louisiana native has been principal at Skyline High School—Dallas ISD’s largest secondary campus—and at schools where students need a different approach to guide them to academic success—Barbara M. Manns, Maya Angelou and John Leslie Patton.

“Mr. Brooks is an outstanding Principal that consistently works to serve his students, community, and all stakeholders in order  to ensure their success,” said Salem Hussain, executive director for secondary schools in the W.H. Adamson, L.G. Pinkston, Sunset and Moisés E. Molina high school feeder patterns.

In 2011, Brooks was tasked with sunsetting A. Maceo Smith High School and transitioning most of its students to the new Wilmer Hutchins High School. In his second year as principal of Pinkston, he is once again in charge of a major transition as plans are under way to build a state-of-the-art campus for West Dallas in partnership with Toyota and Southern Methodist University.

“Challenges are all a matter of perspective,” Brooks says. “Never, has any day at any of the schools I have been not been enjoyable for me. It’s all about following a system—a mission, vision, goals and expectations—that will help students and their communities grow.”

Brooks attributes his success as principal to the talented teachers and staff he has worked with and to the support of the administration. Gaining the trust of the community he serves and their collaboration also has been a factor.

“The school is often the heart of a community, a place of greatness for the community, and it’s our job as educators to serve that community and to make sure that what we offer is the best for that community,” he said.

He feels privileged to be part of West Dallas as Pinkston principal because he believes that despite the image that some may have of the area, he knows it to be a place of unbridled potential, and Pinkston as the source of those who will lead the way. The campus housing seventh through 12th grades is an asset in his eyes—students get used to the cultural platform and high expectations earlier.

“It is our job to make sure that we are the premier educational institution that [West Dallas] deserves,” Brooks said. “West Dallas is an opportunity goldmine. As economic investment grows in the area, we need to provide educational opportunities that match or exceed that growth and prepare our students to compete in the global market by tapping the cultural diversity we find in West Dallas.”

Through the years, Brooks has amassed a wealth of experience, and his advice to principals who are starting their careers usually includes:

• Be servant minded
• Be people oriented
• Recognize the importance of your role in helping students grow not just academically, but also socially
• Always seek to learn from everyone and to grow
• Recognize it’s about the best idea not whose idea it is
• Be a part of your community

In the initial meeting Brooks had two years ago with the panel of teachers, community members, and parents formed to help choose a new principal for Pinkston, “I told them what I bring to the table, but I asked them to tell me what they needed from me,” he said. “I wanted to engage in a sense of teamwork so we could together reframe the vision for Pinkston and West Dallas to be successful. I’ve had nothing but support.”

Effective Nov. 1, Payroll Services will offer electronic versions of the Payroll Correction Forms for attendance corrections and the Supplemental Pay Correction Form through Laserfiche. The new electronic form will replace the paper versions, and all payroll correction forms must be completed and approved using the Laserfiche submission process.

The new electronic forms can be found on the Payroll Services website located at www.dallasisd.org/payroll under the Forms option. You will need to sign in using your EAD username and password.

In preparation for the upcoming change, please click here to view the training videos on how to complete an electronic payroll absence or supplemental pay correction form and how to approve the Payroll Correction Form and the Payroll Supplemental Pay Correction Form in Laserfiche.

If you need assistance with completing or approving the correction forms in Laserfiche, please send an email to NotifyPayroll@dallasisd.org. You can find the step-by-step documentation for this process on the Payroll Services website located under Resource in the How to Guides section.

Dallas ISD is looking for ambassadors and champions to participate in two districtwide campaigns: the relaunch of the Core 4 and the annual employee giving campaign for United Way.

Core 4 Culture Tenets Ambassadors

Dallas ISD is committed to providing exemplary customer service in every corner of the district. We’ve committed to the tenets of Core 4— Focused, Fast, Flexible, and Friendly—which ensure we are delivering professional, high-quality service. To ensure this commitment continues to be part of everyday life in the district, we have redesigned Core 4 to include Cultural Tenets rooted in our principles of racial equity and cultural responsiveness, comprehensive accountability, responsible use of resources, and collaboration. These changes will benefit our staff and improve communications with our students, parents, and the community.

Departments/campuses are asked to assign at least one employee to serve as its team’s Cultural Tenets Ambassador. This individual will be responsible for training his or her colleagues in the upcoming months on the Core 4 tenets. The goal is to have every Dallas ISD employee trained by the end of the 2020-2021 school year. Campuses consisting of 100 or more employees are encouraged to select two employees to serve as their ambassadors. When selecting this individual(s), please consider selecting a member of your team who demonstrates leadership skills and is able to execute a training at a high-level.

Please submit the name(s) of your department/campus ambassador using the following link:https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1b6LYT1PZnbHx8NpPxhoDslhRUH4YLdII6Zzonl29IDw/edit?usp=sharing. Those who have been designated as ambassadors should attend training.

1. 1. Click on this link https://www.dallasisd.org/Page/69841#calendar119054/20200918/month.The link will take them to the calendar where events are listed.
   2. The sessions are listed as Core 4 Ambassador Training. Select a training date and time.
   3. Session registration page for selected date/time. Type the Org # for your department and click register. (If you do not see register icon you are most likely not logged in. If that’s the case scroll to the top of the page and in the navy blue ribbon you will see Account in white letters. Click there and   in with your EAD credentials.)
   4. Once the registration is submitted an automatic confirmation email will be sent.

United Way Employee Giving Campaign Champions:

Principals and department heads are asked to select and share the name and contact information of their campaign champion by clicking here so they can attend training. Virtual training session will take place the week of Oct. 12. Exact dates/times and registration can be found on the Districtwide Datebook.

The Language, Literacy and Social Studies department is inviting staff to its annual conference, which this year will take place virtually on Saturday, Oct. 24.

As in past years, the conference— “Excellence through Equity: Fostering Positive Learning Experiences”—will offer district teachers support by hosting a fall conference for professional development. Several district departments will come together in the virtual conference to explore how to bring excellence through equity for all students.

In addition to information provided by district staff, participants will also hear from a variety of renowned speakers, such as Dr. Eric Jensen and Dr. Anthony Muhammad, throughout the day. For more information and to register to participate, click here.

The Office of Transformation and Innovation has extended the application deadline for Innovation Engine to Friday, Oct. 16.

The Innovation Engine is a program designed to provide funding and support to neighborhood schools interested in implementing innovative programs or initiatives. The program will select up to 20 neighborhood schools to receive $50,000 each to implement their proposed model during the 2020-2021 school year. Principals are invited to submit applications with their executive directors’ approval by 4:59 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 16.

Visit the Innovation Engine web page to view the application materials and learn more. For questions, contact Shakeatha Butler, OTI director, at shakbutler@dallasisd.org.

Dallas ISD is holding an Oct.19 webinar to share with district staff, students and parents actions the district is taking to transform Dallas ISD into an anti-racist school community. The webinar will feature a brief presentation defining terms such as racism and cultural intelligence and how those tools can help create an anti-racist organization. The district’s executive leaders will also share what their departments are doing to reform programs and operations.

This first in a series of gatherings will be held as a virtual meeting at 5 p.m., Monday, Oct. 19. It will be headed by Dr. Sandra Upton, a national expert on diversity, equity and inclusion and will be conducted in English and Spanish on Zoom and streamed live on Facebook. While this webinar will be primarily a listen and learn event, future sessions will be designed to engage the community, collect input and ideas and answer questions.

Register in advance for this webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.