You’re about to discover how some of the highest performing teachers and administrators cracked the code for accelerating student growth in Dallas-Fort. Worth. Want to join this group of teacher change-makers? Build a Roadmap to determine your fit for the profession.

⏱ 4 min read

About four years ago, Dallas ISD ventured into a new turnaround initiative, Accelerating Campus Excellence (ACE), for seven high-needs schools designated as “Improvement Required” by the state of Texas.

Did You Know? Turnaround initiatives refer to programs developed for low-performing schools with the goal to improve student learning.

These schools had been on the Improvement Required list for multiple years; in more than one of the campuses, only four percent of black students met the third grade standard in Texas’s math assessment.

Something significant had to change in these schools to ensure that our students were able to thrive.

School systems all over the country have been working on school turnaround for as long as there have been schools to improve, with varying levels of success. With student success being vital, we based the ACE model on something we know from experience and research:

Talented and well-supported teachers and school leaders are the most important school-based factors that determine student success.

The pilot of ACE included a few key factors:

• High-performing teachers in Dallas ISD were invited to apply to be a part of one of the campus’s turnaround efforts, including those teachers who were already invested in those campuses and communities.

• A new school leader for each campus got to choose their “dream team” of teachers and administrators who would build new systems, structures and cultures to ensure students flourished.

• In recognition of the amount of work and expertise required to do this thing right, teachers and school administrators were all given significant stipends, ranging from $8,000 to $15,000 per year, for three consecutive years. (This is on top of already-competitive salaries in DFW.)

• The ACE campus offered robust student benefits, including extended school hours, after-school tutoring and enrichment, as well as three meals per day.

Significant professional development was provided to teachers and school leaders on instruction, social-emotional learning and restorative discipline practices.

Did You Know? Restorative discipline is a whole school approach to improving school climate and addressing student behavior that fosters belonging, social engagement over control, and meaningful accountability over punishment and fear. Evaluations of existing programs show improved relationships on campus, increased student accountability, and dramatic reductions in disciplinary rates.

Their work led to unprecedented growth in student outcomes and lives changed. ​​​​​​

After just the first year of ACE (the 2015-2016 academic year), the percent of students meeting standards on all the state assessments DOUBLED.

But results didn’t stop there:

• Six of the seven original campuses came off of the state’s Improvement Required (IR) list after having been on the list for multiple years.

• Over the past two academic years, on certain assessments, we have seen up to 40 percent point gains in the number of students meeting standards on these campuses.

• These previous IR schools earned nine TEA (Texas Education Agency) distinctions for academic performance the first year, and a total of 13 in the second year.

• Students in kindergarten through second grade showed tremendous growth in reading, as indicated by 30 percentage point gains in proficiency from the year before them.

This is remarkable progress. This is what can happen when we have the right supports—and amazing teams of educators—in front of our kids who need them most.

If you want to join this team of educators yourself, assess your fit for the career with TeachDFW’s Roadmap.