Staff News

While enrolled in medical school and doing night rounds at a hospital, Michael Gayles came to a life-changing decision: he would follow his dream of becoming an educator.

After graduating from medical school, Gayles went on to serve as a teacher at North Dallas High School and, several years later, as an assistant principal at T.W. Browne Middle School. Today, Gayles is helping open and serving as principal at IGNITE Middle School, the new Dallas ISD Personalized Learning transformation campus opening in August.

For Gayles, his goal for IGNITE Middle School is simple: help students envision their best possible life, and set them on the path toward making that life a reality.

“Growing up I didn’t have anyone who helped me think about what I was passionate about or possible career paths I could pursue,” Gayles said. “What I’m most excited about is how Ignite Middle School will help students discover their passions at an early age.”

IGNITE Middle School is seeing tremendous interest: more than 700 incoming sixth-graders applied for what was originally 150 seats. Due to the high interest, the campus increased its inaugural class to 230 students.

IGNITE Middle School is a Personalized Learning campus that will provide individualized instruction, not only based on each student’s academic needs, but also on their interests and goals. The students will take field trips to high schools, colleges and workplaces to help them better envision their future.

“The most important resource in a child’s educational life is their own potential. If we can ignite that potential, they will be unstoppable,” Gayles said. “Ignite is dedicated to helping students discover their super powers.”

IGNITE Middle School is opening thanks to the Office of Transformation and Innovation’ Public School Choice Competitive Proposal Process. The process gives educators the chance to create high-quality, best-fit options for Dallas ISD students to realize their full academic potential.

The Public School Choice Competitive Proposal Process, Version 5.0, is currently underway for any educator interested in rebranding their campus or designing a new choice school.

Kelli Yonker will happily tell anyone who listens that she has one of the best jobs in the world.

As the library media specialist at Stonewall Jackson Elementary School—and the Dallas ISD 2018–2019 Librarian of the Year—she inspires a love of reading and researching in students. And while she appreciates the Librarian of the Year honor, nothing for her can top helping students succeed.

“Watching the lightbulb go off in students’ heads when they realize they know how to research and learn something new—or seeing their eyes light up when they pick out a book and get excited about reading—is the best feeling in the world,” Yonker said.

As the former technology teacher at Stonewall Jackson Elementary, which will be renamed Mockingbird Elementary School in July, Yonker infuses technology learning into the library. Students create “book trailers” on iPads and use the latest technology to research.

“The role of the librarian has dramatically changed over the past 10 years. You have to adapt to the latest technology so the students are equipped with the skills needed to succeed today,” Yonker said. “My daily goal is to make the library a warm and welcoming place where students enjoy reading and researching. This is truly a dream job.”

A party at Stonewall Jackson Elementary School celebrated four retiring teachers who combined together have worked 118 years at the campus.

Art teacher Cheri Flynn and deaf education teachers Melissa Alloway, Heather Wood, and Cyndy Jaremko are also the last group of teachers to technically retire from Stonewall Jackson Elementary School, as the school will change its name to Mockingbird Elementary School in August.

“This is a culmination of our history. These teachers are a legacy, having worked here for so many years,” Principal Melanie Mans said. “We are so proud of them and we want them to know today how thankful we are for everything they have done for our students and schools over the years.”

Each student at Anson Jones Elementary School has a dream, and now people across the world know it, too.

The campus participated for the second time in two years in the Dreamline Project that saw the school’s 620 students each write down their dreams on individual flags. Whether the student dreamed of being a doctor, President of the United States, or running their own business, art teacher Candice Lindsay said the students greatly benefited from thinking about their future goals.

Four staff members from Jones Elementary traveled to Philadelphia on May 5 to show off the students’ creations, as well as dream flags from Arcadia Park Elementary School.

“Some of these students had never really thought about the future before this project,” Lindsay said. “The fact that these students sat down and thought about their dreams and were then able to visualize them, that could change the world.”

“Seeing students express their aspirations through poetry and art was very powerful and reinforced the impact we as educators have on our students,” added Anson Jones Elementary Principal Alberto Herrera. “We can easily extinguish or ignite these dreams by our actions and words. It is also a testament to the teamwork exhibited by Anson Jones staff as they kindled our student’s imaginations to voice their ambitions in a relevant, heartfelt manner.”

Jeff Harlan, founder of the Dreamline Project, called Anson Jones Elementary a model to all 120,000 students across 35 countries and 42 states who have declared and shared their dream on a flag.

“The presence of Anson Jones flags and leaders in Philadelphia made our event so much more powerful and potent. Everyone was touched by it,” Harlan said. “We look forward to more collaboration with Anson Jones and to supporting a surge of dreaming and doing across Dallas in the months ahead.”

Any Dallas ISD campus that wants to participate in the Dreamline Project can contact Mrs. Candice Lindsay at CBLOUNT@dallasisd.org or call Anson Jones Elementary School at 972-794-4700.

Mia Witt didn’t know why she got summoned to the principal’s office earlier this month, but some of her students thought it was funny.

Witt, a special education inclusion teacher at Onesimo Hernandez Elementary School, is the first recipient of a quarterly $250 recognition provided by Carter Financial Management. The effort will spotlight and thank dedicated teachers by providing funds for them to spend in their classrooms. The award is coordinated by the district’s Partnership Services and Special Education departments.

Parents, community and staff were encouraged to identify nominees that demonstrate qualities of a distinguished special education teacher, setting high standards and demonstrating commitment for improving outcomes for students who receive special education services in Dallas ISD.

Witt graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School and studied Elementary Education at UNT.

“Ms. Witt goes above and beyond what is expected of a teacher,” said teacher Danielle Wegman. “She seeks out challenging students and goes the extra mile to engage them in their learning and help them conquer challenges outside of school as well. She sought out the challenge of joining an ACE school because of her love for transforming the lives of disadvantaged students. During her time at Hernandez ACE she has worked well outside the prescribed hours of tutoring to even ride the bus with her students to prevent fights.”

Teacher Dora Griffin said Witt helps her students from the minute they walk into Hernandez until the minute they leave to go home.

“She knows every student on campus by name, even the gen ed students,” Griffin said. “She helps motivates and encourage every student to be and do his or her best.”