The Blazer Beat
April 17, 2026
North Lake Family,
We have completed STAAR testing for US History and Biology this week, with 100% of our students so far completing all exams and being here to test! I wanted to thank you for supporting our students during this busy time of year and ensuring they are on time to complete this graduation requirement. Our final STAAR exam for the 2026 school year will be Algebra I and will be held on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. This will successfully close out STAAR testing for the school year, and then the focus will be on Dallas College finals and AP Exams in the beginning weeks of May.
This past Saturday, April 11, 2026. North Lake ECHS held its annual prom, and it was an amazing event! It was the highest attended prom in our school history, and the students were excited to participate in one of their final school events. The students enjoyed the venue and danced to their favorite songs throughout the night. Huge thank you to our Senior Sponsor, Ms. Ferguson, for her work during the event. Also, to our parent volunteers and staff who chaperoned the event to ensure our students were safe and had a great time.
Have an amazing weekend and please use the time to reconnect with your family and friends. Thank you for your support of North Lake ECHS, and let's make it a great week!
Sincerely,
Adrian Hernandez
Principal
North Lake Early College High School
Twitter @AdHernandez2648
Familias de North Lake,
Esta semana hemos concluido las pruebas STAAR de Historia de los EE. UU. y Biología; ¡hasta el momento, el 100 % de nuestros estudiantes ha completado todos los exámenes y ha asistido puntualmente para realizarlos! Quería agradecerles por apoyar a nuestros estudiantes durante esta época del año tan ajetreada y por asegurar que lleguen a tiempo para cumplir con este requisito de graduación. Nuestro último examen STAAR del año escolar 2026 será el de Álgebra I y se llevará a cabo el miércoles 22 de abril de 2026. Con esto daremos por finalizado con éxito el ciclo de pruebas STAAR del año escolar; posteriormente, durante las primeras semanas de mayo, centraremos nuestra atención en los exámenes finales de Dallas College y en los exámenes AP.
El pasado sábado 11 de abril de 2026, North Lake ECHS celebró su baile de graduación anual, ¡y fue un evento extraordinario! Ha sido el baile de graduación con mayor asistencia en la historia de nuestra escuela, y los estudiantes se mostraron entusiasmados por participar en uno de sus últimos eventos escolares. Los estudiantes disfrutaron del recinto y bailaron al ritmo de sus canciones favoritas durante toda la noche. Un enorme agradecimiento a nuestra asesora de la clase de último año, la Sra. Ferguson, por su labor durante el evento. Asimismo, agradecemos a nuestros padres voluntarios y al personal que supervisaron el evento para garantizar la seguridad de nuestros estudiantes y asegurar que pasaran un rato estupendo.
Les deseo un fin de semana maravilloso; por favor, aprovechen este tiempo para reconectar con sus familiares y amigos. Gracias por su apoyo a North Lake ECHS. ¡Hagamos que esta sea una semana fantástica!
Atentamente,
Adrián Hernández
Director
North Lake Early College High School
Twitter @AdHernández2648
Dr. Baker 10th/11th Grade
Dr. Hart 9th/12th Grade
North Lake ECHS Families!
It was such a blast celebrating our amazing seniors with you all at prom! Our incredible seniors have accomplished so much, and they continue to raise the bar higher and higher. This week we have students attending college fly-ins to Davidson College, the University of Rochester, Augustana College, and Albion College! We also have numerous students applying for scholarships and working with me on financial aid appeals with some of their top college options.
Our ASP updates for this week are as follows:
Applications: I am so excited to announce that 100% of our students have applied to at least 3 colleges and universities, and all students have been accepted to an affordable college/university!
FAFSA: 97.4% of our students have completed their FAFSA/TASFA!
Scholarships: Our seniors continue to soar past their scholarship goal of 20 million! As of this morning our seniors have earned $20,719,678 in scholarships and grants!
I just received some good news I would like to share with you all. Alondra has been selected as a Terry Scholar for UT Arlington! Alondra completed her interview on Friday, and was just notified that she will be receiving the scholarship! Alondra is the FIRST student to be awarded the scholarship at UTA, and she will have the direct cost of attendance, including tuition, fees, housing, and food, covered by the scholarship. Alondra has been working tirelessly with me preparing for the interview, and all of her hard work and determination has paid off.
Upcoming Events for Juniors:
- ASP X Davidson Info Meeting: On Saturday, April 18th from 10:00-12:00 ASP will be hosting our annual ASP X Davidson Scholars informational meeting! Representatives from Davidson College, including our very own North Lake Alum Vanelly Lopez, will be at the event talking about the scholarship and meeting interested students, I have reached out to invite students individually, invited students at SAT Prep, and spoke to the Junior class about the event today during the huddle. So far North Lake has had a student in each cohort since the scholarship was started last school year, and I am excitedly looking for students who may be strong candidates for the program!
Have a great week!
Beginning on the first day of school (August 12, 2025), all students will be expected to adhere to the the North Lake Early College dress code and uniform policy.
Wednesday will be "Uniform Day" On Uniform Wednesdays, students are required to wear their ECHS uniform shirt, black slacks, khaki slacks or a skirt (no shorter than “finger-tip length” with arms in normal position, i.e., arms hanging naturally, as student is standing straight and upright).
Senior Only Uniform of grey slacks or Grey/Blue plaid skirt with the North Lake ECHS uniform shirt or Senior Shirt!
North Lake ECHS Uniform can be purchased at Levine's two locations or via their website https://levinesstores.com/collections/north-lake-early-college-high-school.
Students will be required to follow the North Lake Dress Code on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Please see the image below which outlines the do's and don'ts.
All students will be required to have clear or mesh backpacks for the 25/26 school year, small personal non clear bags are allowed. Dallas ISD will provide all students with one free clear back from the school year. I would recommend the mesh bag as they are more durable for the year. If you require a backpack, you can pick up at open house or first day of school
Mesh/Clear Backpack examples - https://www.amazon.com/s?k=mesh+backpack&crid=21Z8OKVNB5ZZY&sprefix=Mesh+Bac%2Caps%2C144&ref=nb_sb_ss_pltr-data-refreshed_1_8
Seniors Only, click on the photo for product info at Levine's
John Johnson - Assistant Principal
Monique Gossett - Campus Coordinator
Kara Hoover - English I Cluster Lead Teacher
Kane Cortez - MAPS and Algebra I
Ana Martinez - Biology and AP Environmental Science
Hector Osegueda - AP Human Geography and AP African American Studies
Aaronia Ferguson - English II, Senior Sponsor and Cluster Lead Teacher
Bethany Tam - Dual Credit German
Jeff Heiple - Geometry and Cluster Lead Teacher
Samah Al-Hamadi - Dual Credit Biology
Alexandra Locker - Algebra II
Swati Chakarvarty - Honors Chemistry
Aubry Born - Dual Credit English
Dr. John Davis II - Special Education
Elida Rueda - Parent Support Specialist
Dr. August Darbonne - Dual Credit US History and Mexican American Studies
Dhara Katbamna - Dual Credit Math and AP AB Calculus
Kelly Green - Dual Credit Government and AP Economics
Steven Nguyen - Dual Credit Health/PE and Cluster Lead Teacher
Michelle Smith - Dual Credit English
Danny Whitsell - Business and Financial Literacy
Nurse Archie - School Nurse
Natasha Sublet - Office Manager
Sandra Fisher - Financial Clerk and Parent Liaison
Cledy Olivares - Campus Safety Monitor
Tierra King - Teacher's Assistant and TSIA2 Math Tutor
Tonya Caston - Data Clerk/Registrar
