Highland Park Independent School District

This article is about the district, which serves the cities of Highland Park and University Park and part of North Dallas. For the east Amarillo area, see Highland Park Independent School District (Potter County, Texas).
Highland Park Independent School District
Location
7015 Westchester Dr. Dallas, TX 75205-1061
Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, Texas
United States
Coordinates 32°51′02″N 96°48′24″W / 32.8506°N 96.8068°W / 32.8506; -96.8068 (District office)Coordinates: 32°51′02″N 96°48′24″W / 32.8506°N 96.8068°W / 32.8506; -96.8068 (District office)
District information
"Enter to learn. Go forth to serve."
Grades PreK–12
Established  ()
Superintendent Dr. Dawson Orr
Schools 7
District ID 4823250[1]
Students and staff
Students 6689 [2]
Teachers 427 [2]
Student-teacher ratio 15.66 [2]
Other information
Website www.hpisd.org

Highland Park Independent School District (HPISD) is a public school district based in University Park, Texas, United States.[3]

HPISD serves most of the town of Highland Park, all of the city of University Park, and portions of Dallas. HPISD administers seven schools. It is consistently ranked among the top school districts in Texas.

History

The Highland Park Independent School District first opened its doors in October 1914 with John S. Armstrong School, a four-room building on Cornell Avenue. Since then, the district has grown to comprise seven campuses: four elementary schools, one intermediate school, one middle school and one high school. The district has an enrollment of approximately 7,000 students and employs 750 people, including more than 430 teachers. University Park Elementary School was designed by famed Dallas architects, Lang & Witchell who designed the Magnolia Building and the Kirby Building downtown.

From 1914–2014, HPISD has been led by seven superintendents. Dawson Orr became the seventh and current superintendent for Highland Park Independent School District on December 1, 2009. He replaced Cathy Bryce, who retired after eight years with the district. Orr was previously superintendent in Wichita Falls, Texas and Pampa, Texas. He also was president of the Texas Association of School Administrators. Orr received the Superintendent of the Year award in 2008 from Communities in Schools and the Key Communicator of the Year award in 2005 from the Texas School Public Relations Association.

In 2009, the school district was rated "exemplary" by the Texas Education Agency.[4]

HPISD and Highland Park High School received national attention in September 2014 for the banning of seven books previously used in high school English studies, after a group of parents protested the contents of these books.[5] The seven books were: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein; The Working Poor: Invisible in America by David K. Shipler; Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse; The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie; An Abundance of Katherines by John Green; The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls; and Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison.

Orr reversed the decision to suspend the books, stating in an email to parents, "I made the decision in an attempt to de-escalate the conflict, and I readily admit that it had the opposite effect. I take full responsibility for the decision, and I apologize for the disruption it has caused."[6]

Academic programs

As of 2014 the district plans to establish an elementary school Spanish learning program.[7]

Schools

McCulloch Middle School and Highland Park Middle School
Armstrong Elementary School
Bradfield Elementary School

Secondary schools

High school (grades 9-12)

Middle school (grades 7-8)

Intermediate school (grades 5-6)

Elementary schools

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Highland Park Independent School District". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 "Highland Park Isd". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
  3. ↑ "HPISD Boundary Map." Highland Park Independent School District. Accessed October 12, 2008.
  4. ↑ "2009 Accountability Rating System". Texas Education Agency.
  5. ↑ Repko, Melissa. "Highland Park ISD Suspends Seven Books After Parents Protest Their Content". www.dallasnews.com. Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 29 September 2014.
  6. ↑ Melissa, Repko. "Highland Park ISD reverses book suspensions at high school". www.dallasnews.com. Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 29 September 2014.
  7. ↑ Mathis, Emily. "Highland Park May Be Just a Little Jealous of DISD's Bilingual Students" (Archive). Dallas Observer. Monday September 15, 2014. Retrieved on September 22, 2014.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Blue Ribbon Schools Program, Schools Recognized 1982-1983 Through 1999-2002 (PDF)
  9. 1 2 3 Microsoft Word - list-2003.doc

External links

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