It has been a very interesting week, one that many people might assume has been difficult because of a student video that went viral. But that assumption is far from reality. Hundreds of people around the world have seen an articulate Duncanville High School student express his opinion about wanting to be engaged in his [...]
The framework of the new 2013 and Beyond Accountability System Development is posted on the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website by our Commissioner of Education. Over the past few weeks TEA has sought public comment on the new state accountability system proposals, and on January 15 they announced that on the 18th that comment period [...]
The community of Newtown, Connecticut and Sandy Hook Elementary has been in our hearts and minds since the news of the school shooting on Friday. All those affected remain in our thoughts and prayers, especially families who have lost loved ones. We recognize that some of our parents may have questions about safety procedures at [...]
Voter participation at the local level is probably the most influential input we have as citizens. I hope that you and every eligible member of your family and friends took time to vote in the 2012 general election. Many of our classrooms across the district spent time learning about election processes, how our government functions, [...]
As I am sure many of you have heard by now, Duncanville ISD is one of 23 schools districts in Texas selected as part of the Texas High Performance Schools Consortium. This group will be spending the next 18 months or so working to develop an accountability system for Texas – hopefully one that will [...]
Duncanville ISD Superintendent Dr. Alfred Ray was the featured speaker at the October Duncanville Chamber of Commerce Luncheon, presenting the annual State of the Schools address. Discussing the importance of schools and communities working together, Dr. Ray focused his keynote on outlining the district’s progress in implementing programs and curricula that will meet the charges [...]
There’s been a lot of banter in the news recently about public education. First, a publication from Atlanta, Georgia tried to tell Texas school districts that their test score results were “suspect.” (Watch Superintendent Message).Based on what that publication posted on their website, a district should not expect student scores to increase or decrease significantly from [...]
District Survey Helps Guide Improvements his past summer, we launched Duncanville Independent School District’s first major District Climate Survey. The purpose of the survey was to hear how our parents, staff, and community members feel about issues ranging from the accessibility of our district leaders, to citizen involvement in local schools, to awareness of the [...]
The administrative staff has jokingly chided me about my propensity for sayings that they term “ARay-isms.” You may have heard a few, such as “The current Texas accountability system is about adults and not kids”; “As my grandpa once said, If I don’t want my neighbor to borrow my wheelbarrow, any excuse will do”; and [...]