Staff News

Ana Casas Sanmartín, a geometry teacher at Woodrow Wilson High School, was sitting in her classroom recently when a former student, Aaron Castro, came up to her and made her day. The senior told her, “Last year was the first time I understood math. I really was struggling. I never figured it out until your class.” And then he added, “I love angles now.” 

For Casas, that is what teaching is all about: helping students feel successful and proud of what they can achieve. Her passion shines through to her fellow teachers and students alike. 

“Mrs. Casas’ dedication to her students is undeniable, and her intentionality has resulted in a classroom culture where students feel comfortable and engaged,” Woodrow Wilson teacher cluster lead Anne Marie Light said. “Many students feel like math is unachievable for them and they have low confidence in their math skills, but Mrs. Casas breaks it down so they understand. I can confidently say she knows all of her students and what they need personally to be successful.”

Those student connections did not always come easily to Casas. She first started teaching in 2010 in Spain, where she was born and raised. It was not until 2012 that she came to Texas through a program called Visiting Teachers. She said her first year in the United States was “pretty rough” as she worked through cultural differences to get to know her students and to understand how to create a safe, engaging learning environment for them, but she has carried those lessons with her ever since.

“I want them to know that they are the protagonists of this school year,” Casas said. “They are the ones who are going to learn and have those aha moments, and they are going to struggle and learn from their mistakes. It’s tough because they have to really put in some effort, but they also feel that reward when they get it by themselves. It’s so rewarding at the end of the day.” 

Some of the strategies she uses to build a successful classroom environment include creating clear expectations, establishing consistent routines and emphasizing communication so she knows how to help her students. She also incorporates small group activities where students can learn from each other while mastering their independent practice. 

From the beginning of each school year, Casas shows up with a plan. She still remembers the teachers she had growing up who remembered her name and connected with her, so she always challenges herself to learn every student’s name within the first two weeks of the year. She develops those connections by giving her students additional space to share about their lives in the projects they do every nine weeks.

Having a child of her own has only increased Casas’ passion for empowering her students. Her daughter was born in 2021 with spina bifida, and Casas has loved watching her grow and accomplish milestones despite the obstacles in her path.

“It’s something that I see in my students as well,” she said. “Having my baby has made me also think about how important it is to support my students, especially the ones who struggle. I want them to know they have the capacity and they can make it if they put in the effort. That’s one thing we have to tell them: They are so worth it.”

Writing down one’s thoughts can often be cathartic and help resolve inner conflict. That is why journaling is commonly recommended for people who are looking to improve their overall mental health and well-being. But does it really help? 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the practice comes with many health benefits. Not only has it been shown to boost creativity and improve memory, but it can also help with tangible concerns like managing diabetes. This is because stress can trigger increases in blood sugar, so people can work to balance their stress levels through journaling and other positive habits. 

Additional benefits to journaling include: 

• Individual problem solving 
• Celebrating success
• Practicing gratitude
• Decreasing information overload 
• Understanding personal strengths and challenges  
• Pinpointing stressors and other concerns 

While journaling is a beneficial habit, it is not always easy to acquire. Start by setting a few minutes aside each day at a certain time, and make journaling easy by keeping a physical journal nearby or using an app on your phone. There are no rules to journaling, so write whatever makes the most sense or feels the most fulfilling or clarifying to you. 

If you find yourself feeling depressed, anxious, sad or worried on a regular basis, reach out for additional support. Contact your physician or a mental health professional, and take advantage of Dallas ISD’s Employee Assistance Program by LifeWorks. 

The confidential, secure platform has countless resources available online for free, including on-call counselors who are available seven days a week, 24 hours a day. Contact LifeWorks at (972) 925-4000, or visit www.dallasisd.org/benefits and click on Benefits Resources to access online EAP information. 

Source: CDC 

Families can transform their students’ success by supporting them physically, emotionally and academically, but first they may need some support of their own. When survey results revealed that Dallas ISD parents were searching for help to better assist their children at home—especially following the learning loss caused by the COVID-19 pandemic—the Family and Community Engagement Department created the Academic Partnering Activities to intervene. 

With a three-year allocation of $156,000 from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) fund, the Family and Community Engagement Department launched a series of virtual and in-person events to give families the support they needed. 

Virginia Greene, manager of Family and Community Engagement, said her team is using the ESSER funds to provide technical support, hire teachers to develop and record lessons and purchase activity resources to help support families at home. 

Greene’s team provides Facebook Live webinars with an emphasis on math and reading so parents can easily access the sessions. They also record and post teacher-created lessons on the department’s website, and they have a FROG Bus that provides “family resources on the go” by making stops at various campuses to connect with families. 

“It goes back to what the parents are asking,” Greene said. “We always say parents are the first teachers, but they don’t always have the tools they need for academic lessons. We wanted to guide parents with skills that would give them an opportunity to see how they can help their children be academically successful. That’s our ultimate goal: the success of our students.”

The Academic Partnering Activities kicked off in January 2022, and they have already partnered with approximately 300 families. While the Family and Community Engagement Department has been focused primarily on developing the initiative, they plan to make the lessons more manageable and accessible by using materials that families already have at home in addition to the educational resources that parents can request. This will help weave the academic support into parents’ everyday routines, leading them to confidently engage with their children as they are learning at home. 

“We are helping the students continue to learn what they are learning in the classroom,” Greene said. “The Academic Partnering Activities are meant to practice, develop and enhance those skills.”

Visit https://www.dallasisd.org/Page/80405 or https://www.facebook.com/DallasISDParent/ to find additional resources and check out the webinars, and remember to spread the word to help our Dallas ISD families succeed. 

For those who have never visited Seagoville High School, Principal Janie Carballo describes its layout as similar to a college with several different buildings spaced out across campus. With 230 team members, Carballo knows it can be difficult for her team to get to know each other outside of meetings and training sessions. 

When she first arrived at Seagoville High School during the 2021-2022 school year, she needed time to get to know her large team and create the culture and climate she envisioned. So she got creative to not only bring her team together, but to also give them a space to share their talents, practice social and emotional learning and enjoy the resources Seagoville has to offer. 

That is how the Wow Wednesdays program came to be. Once a month after school, Carballo invites her team to come out for an evening of stress-free fellowship. From fishing in the campus pond to arranging flowers or doing yoga in the gym, teachers can volunteer to lead a Wednesday activity inspired by their hobbies and passions, with Carballo providing any materials they need.

“We have teachers who can dance but are not dance teachers, and teachers who can draw but are not art teachers. The talent is there, so we can really showcase each other and just enjoy each other,” Carballo said. “Sometimes we get so busy focusing on data and tests that we forget that we are humans, and we have other likes besides school.”

Visual arts teacher Robbie Messerschmitt helped co-lead their “Painting with a Twist” week alongside visual arts teacher Marcus Ruffin. Ruffin provided inspiration with four kinds of drawings, and then the attendees got to choose a canvas and paint as Messerschmitt and Ruffin walked around offering support. 

“They actually stayed a lot longer because they were having such a good time,” Messerschmitt said. “And we have some teachers who had budding talents they didn’t know, like Ms. Mendoza, who kept saying she didn’t know how to paint and made an absolutely gorgeous painting. She has it in her office now.” 

Carballo said she has been pleased with the results of the program and is excited to see it continue through the rest of the school year. Teachers have gotten to know peers outside of their departments, and as word has spread about the great activities available, attendance has increased. 

“I really do feel that if you love and enjoy what you do, then the students will find joy,” Carballo said. “As a community, we have to engage and connect, especially when we are dealing with so much. Even beyond the pandemic, we have team members whose family passed away or whose parents are sick. We have to really enjoy each other, realize that we are in this together and show grace, understanding and empathy.”

The NCAA, Women’s Final Four and Dallas Local Organizing Committee have teamed up to provide a reading program aimed at creating a lifelong love and interest in reading for third graders in Dallas. 

The Read to the Final Four literacy challenge is an eight-week competition that tips off on Jan. 23, 2023, and concludes on March 19, 2023. During that time, schools, teachers and students can win prizes and compete for a grand prize of books worth $5,000 for their school library.

To get started, register your school and third grade classrooms to participate at https://www.helperhelper.com/read-dallas/. Students can then read both physical and online books and record their minutes in a Read to the Final Four Reading Log. The top four schools with the most minutes read on average will be awarded a field trip to crown the winning school in a special award ceremony during the week of the Women’s Final Four.

To learn more and register for the Read to the Final Four literacy challenge, visit https://www.helperhelper.com/read-dallas/. 

Ashley Toole, the principal at E.D. Walker Middle School and Prestonwood Montessori at E.D. Walker, understands the power of mentorship. She started out as a special education teacher in Dallas ISD in 2011, where her first mentor—Executive Director Danielle Petters—changed her life and empowered her to start her journey toward school leadership. So when Toole had the opportunity to become a principal mentor as part of Dallas ISD’s Principal Residency Program, she dove right in. 

“I was thrilled when I first got the call,” Toole said. “This experience has been totally invaluable, and now while I’m excited for [my mentee] to get a principal position, I’ll also miss her when she leaves.”

Toole was paired with Principal Resident Maria Hernandez, who first entered education as a bilingual teacher in 2002. Hernandez went on to spend 13 years as a counselor before she became an assistant principal at Harry Stone Montessori Academy and applied for the Future Principals Institute through the district’s Leader Excellence, Advancement and Development (LEAD) department. She was later nominated as a principal resident in the Principal Residency Program. 

The Principal Residency Program is a yearlong professional development program that was designed to advance leaders. The ideal candidates are current, high-performing assistant principals who are ready to step into the principalship. The 2022-2023 cohort of nine participants has the unique opportunity to shadow principals across Dallas ISD and learn to guide school culture and prioritize instructional leadership, while receiving coaching and developing principal readiness competencies to be fully prepared for taking on a principal role. 

Hernandez and Toole had never spoken before they were introduced through the Principal Residency Program, but Hernandez said they quickly realized how well their experiences aligned and developed the “team chemistry” that made their partnership such an extraordinary experience.

They started each morning reviewing their schedule. Whether they were managing staff, reviewing the budget, walking through various classes, attending principal meetings or planning for future projects, Hernandez had the opportunity to ask Toole questions and deepen her understanding of key strategies she could use at her own future campus. 

“It has been an eye-opening experience,” Hernandez said. “As an assistant principal, I understood the big picture and my ‘whys,’ but it was different. I had to run out the door and go do it. In this program, I have been able to get a bird’s eye view, reflect and see how the puzzle comes together.” 

Hernandez and the other principal residents could be called in to interview for a principal position at any time during their residency, and Hernandez recently became an interim elementary school principal. She said she is “grateful for the opportunity” to have continued learning and developing her leadership skills, while Toole is thankful to have had Hernandez on the E.D. Walker team. 

“I am so glad that the district is investing in programs like this,” Toole said. “The result is that leaders feel more prepared, so the job itself becomes more sustainable and more people will stay for longer amounts of time. We all benefit from that—most importantly, our students.” 

Words can have a lasting effect on people, something that Wilmer Hutchins Elementary School physical education teacher Earnest Sims learned in 1983 as he was preparing to graduate from his high school in Arkansas. 

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” Sims said. “I went into the counselor’s office, and the counselor told me, ‘You’re not smart enough to be successful in college.’ That stayed with me. So many things in life I refused to do because I was afraid I was going to fail, just because of what one person said.” 

Even so, Sims worked hard and graduated from Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Ark., thrived in the U.S. Army and the National Guard and eventually joined Dallas ISD as a teacher through the alternative certification program. Now, after 26 years of striving for excellence first as a special education teacher and then as a PE teacher, Sims has earned the distinction of being one of Dallas ISD’s 23 master teachers. 

He achieved this goal by focusing not just on academic success but also on caring for his students every day. Sims keeps in touch with students years after they have left his class, whether he is attending their middle school basketball games or their graduation ceremonies. He even invited one former student to be in his wedding when he married Wanda Sims, whom he calls “my best friend and the love of my life,” in 2019. 

Sims understands that supporting students goes beyond emotional connections and academic support to physical needs. Growing up in a single parent household, Sims said he did not realize how impoverished his family was until he got older thanks to his mother and siblings’ love. Yet, they did not have a bathroom, running water or heat at home, and he started working in cotton fields over the summers as early as 13 to afford clothes for school. 

As a result, Sims has made it his mission to ensure none of his students go without food or proper clothing. He runs his own “shoe store” on campus and helps students without hesitation when they come to school with torn shoes. 

His students clearly see and appreciate Sims’ efforts—he has received a 97 percent positive response on the student survey—which has contributed to his designation as a master teacher. Sims has been working toward being a master teacher for years, so when he heard the news, he said his world stopped.

“Everything came together,” Sims said. “Those negative thoughts that I had all my life when people were telling me that I wouldn’t be successful, it was like everything stopped at that moment. It was one of the most important days of my life.” 

Moving forward, Sims said he hopes to continue sharing his story to inspire his students and help them overcome whatever obstacles they may be facing. 

“I want everyone to know that where you are doesn’t matter—it’s where you want to go,” Sims said. “Do not allow words to hold you down as words held me down for so many years. As long as you put in the hard work, you’re going to be successful.” 

The deadline for Dallas ISD educators who would like to request seasonal items from the Living Materials Center is Feb. 24. Popular items such as silkworm eggs, ladybugs and butterfly larvae are among the items available. The LMC provides live specimens of plants and animals as well as expertise at no cost to educators in the district. Through these experiences, teachers are able to provide students with hands-on opportunities in the classroom.

To request materials, click here to see what’s available. Next, download and fill out the LMC Request Form. Email the saved form to lmc@dallasisd.org at least two weeks prior to your requested delivery date. You should receive a confirmation email within 48 hours of emailing your form, but if a confirmation email is not received within that time frame, please contact the LMC at lmc@dallasisd.org.

It’s important to keep in mind that the LMC only provides the organisms, but does not provide items such as cages, bottles, food, animal bedding, aquariums, filters, gravel, equipment, etc. If you have any questions, contact the LMC at 972-749-6919 or send an email to lmc@dallasisd.org.

As the new spring semester was getting underway, Dallas ISD’s Mental Health Services department held two suicide prevention workshops—at South Oak Cliff High School and Bryan Adams High School—to better equip school teams with the tools to recognize at-risk students and provide the necessary supports. 

The trainings were facilitated by Martha Thomas and Chris Thomas of The Defensive Line, an organization whose mission is to end the epidemic of youth suicide, especially for people of color, by changing the way people communicate and connect about mental health.

“The Defensive Line provides suicide prevention workshops to coaches in middle and high schools, particularly focusing on schools with a majority of students of color in an attempt to bring nuanced conversations of race and mental health to coaches who have the greatest opportunities to expand their curiosity and create supportive environments for all of their players,” said Martha Thomas, the chief education officer for the organization. 

The Defensive Line was founded by Martha, Chris and Solomon Thomas following the loss of their daughter/sister, Ella, to suicide in 2018. The two two-hour long trainings discussed an action plan for intervention when there are concerns that a student may be in crisis. They also shared a strategy called D-LINES and addressed topics such as racial bias and microaggressions. Dallas ISD team members were able to ask questions and provided feedback during the presentation. 

“I observed the teachers learning a new skill, which is directly asking someone if they are considering suicide,” said Ashley Gilmore, a mental health clinician for the district. “Most people have never asked that question so directly and had to adjust. That experience is very likely to stay with them and be useful if they are ever in the situation to have to ask for it for real.”

Gilmore talked with some of the teachers who attended, who were all very passionate about the health of their students. Some teachers shared ideas on ways they could receive support. 

“They truly understand their role as the safe person for a student and want any and all tools they can have to be effective,” Gilmore said. “An idea that came up during that conversation is that teachers and staff need reminders on what to do if a student is in crisis and what the district offers to assist with treatment, like an email with the information or a guide to put in a lanyard for easy reference.”

For more information about suicide prevention trainings offered through Dallas ISD, contact Jennifer Davis, mental health director for the district at jenndavis@dallasisd.org. 

Breaking stereotypes and negative cycles in seeking mental health assistance is always a challenge, especially when it comes to communities of color. Monica Zumaya, a mental health clinician at Samuell High School, is on a mission to change that. 

“Things such as generational trauma, the cycles, and how we can heal from them are some of the things we discuss,” Zumaya said. Because she is passionate about the subject, she is not afraid to talk about the issues that have had a profound impact on students.

Zumaya, who has worked for the district for 16 years, believes that change comes from educating the students. 

“Sometimes students grow up feeling like they need to hide their emotions, that crying is weak,” she said. “Some of these stigmas are embedded in culture. I teach them that it’s okay to be vulnerable, to have emotions or cry. Teaching students and parents communication skills is part of the process.” 

One of the things that she has noticed is the trauma that can come from being a newcomer to the country. 

“I’ve had students that have endured traumas such as losing a parent on the way to the United States and homelessness—things that have dramatically changed their lives,” she said.  

She has witnessed firsthand the different challenges that students and families may face, through the different roles she has served in the district. The trajectory of Zumaya’s career spans from having worked in different schools as a clerk, an office manager, a community liaison, a social worker, and her current position as a mental health clinician with Mental Health Services.

When Zumaya first began working at Samuell as a community liaison, she hit the ground running. She worked with a group of parents to successfully grow the Parent Teacher Organization and became a senior class sponsor, instilling in the students the value of volunteering and giving back to others. 

One common thread has always remained true in these diverse roles Zumaya has played, and it’s her love for helping others. 

“When I went into social work, I went in with the goal of doing more community outreach and advocacy, but then I started getting into mental health, and I loved the counseling aspect of it,” she said. “When I was a social worker here at Samuell, I conducted group and individual counseling sessions which I loved.”

According to her colleagues, the impact that Zumaya has had on the students and community runs far and wide.  

“Monica is deeply committed to her role as a mental health clinician. She is understanding, empathetic, and supportive,” said Jennifer Jones Jackson, lead counselor at Samuell. “She has helped students, families, and staff through some of the most challenging situations.  She never hesitates to lend a helping hand or a listening ear to those in need,” 

Jones Jackson added that although Zumaya’s role is at the district level, she does not let that define how she contributes to the Samuell community. 

“Through the work she is doing with students, we are able to see positive changes in student grades, attendance, and overall connectedness to school,” added Jones Jackson. 

One can often catch Zumaya greeting students and checking backpacks in the morning, a task that is not part of her job duties, but one that she performs happily because having that connection to students and families at the school is a priority to her. She lets them know that she’s there to help. 

Zumaya also recognizes the importance of mental health services districtwide. 

“The department has grown tremendously over the last few years,” she said. “Dallas ISD has the largest mental health department than any other school district in the state with supportive leaders. I love that because it shows that Dallas ISD is putting an emphasis on mental health. They’ve hired more clinicians and see the need on campus, especially after covid.”

As far as plans for the future, Zumaya wants to continue working together with the students at Samuell. 

“I plan to stay here and be the consistency that the kids need,” she added.