Dallas ISD Advocate

Welcome back to school, everyone! The first week is a wrap, and it sure seemed like a long month! 😂 I am excited to continue supporting you as I continue my fourth year in this role. For all the new principals, welcome to the most exciting seat in the house. I look forward to visiting your campus or suporting you throughout. Please reach out to me directly for questions and collaboration. I have teams ready to provide you with resources for our families.

This newsletter serves as a platform for sharing ideas, updates, and community events on a frequent basis. Please feel free to share with our team any fliers or resources about the community events. If you'd like to participate or volunteer in any FCE event, just let me know.

Don't forget to follow me on Facebook and X (@ED_Rivera_DISD).

Lastly, congratulations to all of you for pushing through and earning a B rating for the district. You poured in countless hours, late nights, and a lot patience. I applaud your hard work! Let's go, Dallas ISD!

Israel Rivera
irivera@dallasisd.org

Office: 972-925-3089

Cell: 214-789-7903

Do you know that our office supports 2,400 calls, emails, and visits every school year? Our team listens to parent and community concerns and helps to resolve issues for our Dallas ISD schools. We serve as advocates for our families and will work with school administrators to de-escalate issues and provide recommendations. We know that every issue/concern has two sides to every story. We practice due diligence to hear all sides and provide support as needed, including involving executive directors, appropriate district teams, and Legal Services. Our main goal is to resolve the issue at the lowest level – the campus.

Here are the common trends in parent concerns and questions.

McKinney-Vento

• Immediate enrollment – parents have 30 days to provide documentation. CRCs and registrars should work with families to provide a welcoming environment and check on families to gather the information. Some homeless families will not be able to provide much documentation depending on the living situation.
• Newcomers using “same address” – in some cases, multi-families are living at one address. This has been a common theme with newly-arriving immigrants receiving sanctuary support by churches and groups. Schools should work with families to support their living situation and provide contact info to HEP for resources.
• Homeless status change for families – Schools should work with families to support their living situation and provide contact info to HEP for resources.
• Homeless youth over 17-years of age – We currently partner with After 8 to Educate and Jonathan’s Place to house our youth (ages 0-17).

Enrollment/Withdrawal

• Parent advocacy will work with Data Services to reinforce withdrawal policies with the campus CRCs/Registrars to reduce the withdrawal of students.
• Students returning from DAEP should not be denied re-entry to home (previous) campuses. Parent Advocacy will work with EDs and School Leadership to find the best solution for students/families when there is a crisis/safety issue upon returning from DAEP.
• Students who may need Special Services are to be enrolled, including Pre-K students. Parents should be encouraged to enroll to begin the evaluation process. If a student is in need of Child Find, schools should assist the parent, who typically is not be familiar with the process. Parent Advocacy will work with Special Services on specific cases to support the campus and parents.
• Verification of living status due attendance issues, behavior, etc. Any transfer revocation requires documentation and completion of form – Revocation of Student Transfer. In addition, the transfer is effective at the start of the following school year. In some circumstances, revocation can occur with approval by ED and SL (i.e. safety, extreme behavior, assaults, etc.)

DAEP

• Discipline hearings – Students should not be unenrolled before the discipline hearing takes place or way before the intake date at DAEP. Parents should receive DAEP referral documentation (including page 3 which allows for appeals). Parents should also receive information on the orientation process. All DAEP disagreements should be referred to Parent Advocacy for reiteration of the hearing and appeal process and protocols.
• Students should be enrolled at their previously enrolled campus after completing DAEP days. Parent Advocacy will work with the campus enrollment team and Student Engagement Team, and provide Student Code of Conduct policies (https://www.dallasisd.org/parents-students/student-requirements/student-code-of-conduct).

Supporting Our Communities

In our efforts to support our campuses and communities, resources and guidance documents are available for administrators.

Welcoming All Page: https://dallasisd.org/welcomingall

Guide: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15ATzCQcjoByz6N0FnU294yYAcTNnOOmnPjST2kh5Pkk/edit?tab=t.0

Parent Presentation: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1AAXn1D3x59qJqusP1ETg9Ofllx6qSvIIOAY-KJMPCT0/edit?slide=id.p9#slide=id.p9

FAQ (Eng): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Xto0Wn45qE5VlQ0DJg_KMZdeVhfnz3JX70SMI7tNrEM/edit?tab=t.0

FAQ (Span): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lHFm-u4rIF6Qxm7In2byz1TNzztd3-u5/edit

Family Preparedness Plan: (download the form below or from the Welcoming All Page)

One-Pager: (download the form below or from the Welcoming All Page)

About the Parent Suport Specialist (PSS)

• The Parent Support Specialist will serve as one of the main resources for families in the school community providing information about educational opportunities, engagement activities and linking parents and families to needed community resources. The person serving in this role will have in-depth knowledge about the opportunities offered through the school to include after-school programs and student activity opportunities so that they can inform parents and families of enhancement and extension opportunities. Coordination of parent education programs is also critical to build understanding of school and community current topics but to also provide parents with academic information and activities to do at home. The Parent Support Specialist will work to increase the parent and family engagement at the campus as well as serve as the liaison to enhance the academic success of students.

• PSS main duties are to provide information to parents, support home visits, refer families to community resources, serve as the communication link, coordinate parent activities and programs, assist with coordination of volunteers engagement, and help develop plans for engagement. They will also work directly with the FCE coach to ensure the Essentials are adhered to.
• PSS are funded by Title I and we must maintain their duties for direct parent support. Some PSS are directed to do clerical, address discipline, review camera footage, cover lunch duty and cover classes. Although we encourage PSS to support campuses, principals should refrain from assigning these tasks on a daily basis. We want to avoid any Title I audits that may result in the loss of funding. A PSS may support 15% of their time with other duties as assigned.

• If you have questions, please reach out to your regional FCE coach, Manager Alrich Smith or ED Rivera for support.

I encourage all principals to participate in the Beginning-of-Year, Middle-of-Year, and End-of-Year FCE coaching meetings to support the role of the PSS. We also hope that the PSS may attend the scheduled Professional Development offered with their coach. Thank you!

The safety and well-being of students and staff is the district’s top priority, and Dallas ISD has taken a number of steps to ensure safer schools including placing protocols in place for our visitors. All visitors without a district badge must be cleared through the Raptor system. We also provide background checks through the district’s VOLY system. To clarify any misconceptions about when to use these two systems, please adhere to the following:

RAPTOR

Any visitor to the campus that needs to attend an office meeting, parent/grandparent lunch dates, a conference, a campus event (such as an awards assembly/presentation or classroom celebration), an ARD, or visit with a teacher must check in with the staff member that conducts the ID checks. If an alert is produced, the parent may still attend the meeting or event with an escort. If your raptor is down, you should still document the visits.

VOLY

A parent that participates as a chaperone or volunteer in a campus event such as a field trip, a carnival or field day, a book fair, a staff appreciation luncheon, or a concert/play event must be approved and cleared through the VOLY system.

Parent involvement is important for campuses and we remind you to support us in increasing the involvement of parents with their child(ren). Parents should have every opportunity to be welcomed into a school.

Dallas ISD takes pride in providing excellent customer service to our families from adhering to our Core Four to adding your own spin to how we greet guests. These graphics will serve as a guide to support the front office team in ensuring families have a great first experience and each time there after. Studies have shown that families stay were they feel welcomed and appreciated. Let's keep up the great work!

If you need some guidance, our FCE team can provide the Welcoming Environment session for your front office team. Let us know how we can support!

Download the files below (jpg and pdf format) for your staff.

Our department builds partnerships with families and community organizations to engage and train parents in helping to foster academics outside of school. At the campus level, we help to:

• Market, promote and support events, fairs, and district initiatives (i.e. FROG, Fam Jam)
• Educate campus PSS on ways they can develop partnerships with families
• Enhance Parent/Community organization involvement
• Develop competency on Academics

Reach out to the FCE department manager, Alrich Smith, for a menu of services. With a great team of coordinators and trainers, we are ready to serve!

Manager: Alrich Smith
Email: alrsmith@dallasisd.org

Office: 972-925-3953.

Each year, Dallas ISD’s Uniform Assistance Program, administered by the Family and Community Engagement department, provides one free uniform to students per year in Pre-Kindergarten through eighth grade and limited uniforms available for high school students whose families meet the district’s economically disadvantaged guidelines, according to board policy.

Parents will now be able to request a uniform through PowerSchool for eligible students.

The free uniform consists of Top (white, navy blue, or red) & Bottom (khaki, navy blue, black)

Note: Uniforms are purchased with Title funding, therefore we must document all uniforms provided to Dallas ISD students. We do not donate to non-Dallas ISD students.

For questions about the Uniform Assistance Program, contact your student's school Uniform Coordinator. LET'S GET STARTED: PowerSchool

Download the instructions here: ENGLISH or SPANISH

Please check with your coaches or download the snapshot below to share digitally.

You may also download the pdf file below. The file includes hyperlinks.

A huge part of student success is having parents involved and engaged in their child's academics, attendance, behavior and social-emotional health. Provide those opportunities for parents to share a little bit more about their child. Home visits are an awesome way to bridge the school to home gap. Here are some tips you can share with your staff. (Note: Always practice safety first when conducting home visits.)

Did you know we have over 4,300 self-identified students/family as homeless as of May 2025? Our department helps to identify, educate and provide resources to campuses.

• Educate campus staff on the growing numbers and how they can identify and advocate for students
• Build resilience in students in this situation
• Empathy, compassion and trauma-informed

Training via Cornerstone is coming to all principals, counselors, and campus liaisons to help foster a fair, safe and secure environment for our homeless students and their families in Dallas ISD. Don't worry, we will keep the session short and interactive.

Dallas ISD is also dedicated to serving students in need. The Fannie C. Harris Youth Center is the first of its kind in the country homeless shelter for children and drop-in center located on district property. It is designed to offer support services to Dallas ISD's unhoused youth (ages 0-17) by providing a drop-in center and residential services at one location. The center serves our unhoused youth with immediate support services. These services include access to showers, laundry facilities, meals, and clothing. The Drop-In Center offers social services reconnecting youth to education and providing housing stabilization support, employment resources, and access to healthcare. The facility is located at 4212 E. Grand Avenue – Dallas 75223, just east of the State Fair of Texas grounds. We invite campus liaisons, counselors, and principals to tour the facility.

If you have a youth in need, please reach out to our HEP Manager: Ashley Marshall at email: asmarshall@dallasisd.org and office: (972) 749-5750.

First up is the Fam Jam happening at Conrad High School, highligting Region V! This resource fair is open to ALL district families. We're excited to have you join us for a fun filled day. The event for families will begin at 9am and end at 12pm. Families will make their way around the campus to visit exhibitors and gain information from each of you between the hours of 9am -12pm.

Don’t forget to bring your tablecloths, giveaways (if you have any and would like to share), and any handouts for families to gather. An email with parking and check-in instructions will be sent out as we get closer to the event. The media kit will be sent to the campus PSS.

📅 Date: 9/20/2025
🕒 Check-in Time: 7:30am-8:30am
📍 Location: Conrad HS 7502 Fair Oaks Ave., Dallas, TX 75231