Tuesday, February 12, 2008

DFW-area superintendents talk about state of education

By Alex Bentley

Local education representatives and business leaders gathered Tuesday afternoon at Cityplace Conference Center in Dallas to hear three DFW-area school superintendents discuss the state of education in the region, and among other things, it was an education of just how disparate the different communities and school districts in DFW are.

Dr. Susan Simpson, superintendent of the Grand Prairie ISD, Dr. David Simmons, superintendent of the Richardson ISD, and Horace Williams, superintendent of the Cedar Hill ISD, were the featured speakers. Given the opportunity to talk about the challenges facing their schools and achievements each of them have accomplished, it was striking to note the conflicting levels of optimism from each official.

Williams was the most upbeat of the three, continually praising Cedar Hill area businesses and parents for their involvement with the school district, as well as partnerships the Cedar Hill ISD has forged with surrounding school districts. Whereas Simpson and Simmons cited poverty and making sure people from different cultures were prepared to be educated in English as challenges facing their districts, respectively, Williams said the biggest challenge Cedar Hill is facing is managing growth and expectations, while at the same time trying to keep kids engaged in education in the digital age.

When asked about the accomplishments each of their districts have achieved, Simpson and Simmons both tempered their responses by pointing out that their short tenures (Simpson came on 10 months ago, Simmons a little over a year ago) prevented them from taking credit and/or blame for any long-term solutions the district may or may not have come up with. Williams, who has only been with Cedar Hill for one year, focused not on himself but on the district’s recent accomplishments, including a grant from the state that will allow high school students to work toward both their high school and Associate’s degrees at the same time, meaning students would graduate from high school with 60 college credits.

All three, however, were encouraged about their district’s efforts toward improving early childhood education and making students workplace-ready upon their graduation from high school. Simpson spoke about plans for a magnet school in Grand Prairie that will both look and operate like a business. She hopes that students will embrace that attitude and take not only the knowledge they gain there but also the social skills from that experience and be more prepared for when they embark on their careers. Simmons indicated that Enterprise City, a kind of school-within-a-school program at two of Richardson’s elementary schools, gives students an early start into learning about different types of businesses.

Each also called upon area businesses to get involved with their public schools, to donate not only money, but also their time, and to use their influence on their communities to promote the good things that are happening in the schools.

Related stories

• Week-in-view: World domination edition (Feb. 14, 2008)

See more stories in:

• Cedar Hill ISD
• Grand Prairie ISD
• Richardson ISD

Comments

bobdon000 Anonymous

I didn't attend this meeting but from the reporting I gather that the superintendents ignored the 800-pound gorilla in the room - illegal immigration.

A discussion on how it is crushing our school district budgets and overwhelming our infrastructre and resources would have been welcomed.

5 months, 1 week ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )

Alex Bentley Staff

bobdon000,

Dr. Simmons indirectly referenced immigration as one of the challenges facing his district as he mentioned that there are "93 different dialects" spoken among children in Richardson schools and they therefore have limited English proficiency.

You could make the obvious correlation there that the Richardson ISD is having to spend more time trying to get their students up to speed than some other districts due to many of the students not being able to speak (or read or write) English well.

5 months, 1 week ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )

John McClelland Verified

Unfortunately, I have heard from a parent in a local school district that has let me know that her local ISD has decided to toss every Spanish speaking child, even the ones born in this country to immigrants, into ESL classes. This may not sound too bad, except for the fact the ESL classes are taught entirely in Spanish in the early grades. These children therefore have limited opportunity to learn English until later in life when it becomes more of a challenge.

Why do it this way, you ask? I have also found out that the more students in ESL classes, the more money that is funneled to the schools by No Child Left Behind. It is creating a system of throw-away children, who will have no opportunity to become productive citizens in this country.

To top that off, we have our own state pulling up last once again in education. We have one of the highest drop out rates in the country as well. Our teacher pay is below average. And we rely on a system of taxing property owners and smokers to pay for our public school systems.

We need real change in Texas. The way we tax people needs to be reviewed to create a more fair and effective system that will allow for creation of more revenue, but not at the sole expense of home owners. Teachers deserve higher salaries, and students deserve a decent education. Schools shouldn't have to rely on handouts from parents and local business to achieve that goal.

http://www.johnfortexas.com

5 months, 1 week ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )

bobdon000 Anonymous

And we need to control our borders so illegal immigration doesn't "tax" us with residents we can't afford to educate.

As a side note, the last time I checked the starting salary for a DISD teacher was $43,500 for a 190-day teaching committment. Annualizing that salary results in a pay of about $58,000 per year starting. Not bad for a first year graduate with a BA degree. And that doesn't include the generous benefits that a teacher is given. Teachers are not under paid. That is an urban legend.

5 months, 1 week ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )

Scott Doyle Verified

I'm guessing teachers in DISD get paid better than those in the 'burbs.

Or is it an urban legend that urban teachers are better paid?

5 months, 1 week ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )