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Top Stories: New North Texas Schools; Discussing Race During ‘The First Week’

Nicholas McWhirter/AIA Dallas
James Bonham Elementary in East Dallas reopens today as an all-girls, K-8 campus focusing on 'STEAM' education.

The top local stories this morning from KERA News:

Across Texas, public schools are back in session, and a couple of new schools will open their doors today in North Texas.

Among the new campuses:

  • Seagoville P-TECH Early College High SchoolDallas ISD says this is the first “pathways to technology” early college school for the state of Texas. Students can earn up to 60 college credit hours.
  • Solar Preparatory School for Girls – formerly the old Bonham Elementary in East Dallas, Solar will offer girls in kindergarten through 8th grades a STEAM curriculum of science, technology, engineering, arts and math.
  • More classrooms in Fort Worth – the school district will open two new elementary schools, along with 100 new classrooms. Thirty-eight of those are for its expanding universal Pre-K program.
  • Washington Heights Elementarythe formerly underground school will finally see daylight with its new above-ground campus. Washington Heights is one of the last two remaining Fort Worth schools built underground to avoid air traffic noise.

Other stories this morning:

  • KERA launches a year-long American Graduate project about the impact of race and poverty on schools. Between today and Friday, we’ll listen to conversations about race that are happening during the first week of school – after a summer of racial turmoil in America and police shootings in Dallas.

You can listen to North Texas stories weekdays at 8:22 a.m. and 6:20 p.m. on KERA 90.1 FM.

Former KERA staffer Krystina Martinez was an assistant producer. She produced local content for Morning Edition and KERANews.org. She also produced The Friday Conversation, a weekly series of conversations with North Texas newsmakers. Krystina was also the backup newscaster for the Texas Standard.