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MEET WALNUT HILL ACADEMY’S NEW PRINCIPAL
Meaker prioritizes safety, enrichment, smooth transition to new site
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Construction continues this fall on new facilities for Walnut Hill International Leadership Academy, but new principal Dr. Philip Meaker anticipates the school moving into them early next year.
(PHOTOS: MARIA LAWSON AND COURTESY DALLAS ISD)
By Maria Lawson
maria.lawson@peoplenewspapers.com
Walnut Hill International Leadership Academy is under new leadership and will move to its new, rebuilt campus Jan. 1.
Dr. Philip Meaker joined the Walnut Hill team July 18 as principal.
Now in a new school year, Meaker plans to lead the campus of 11 age groups and about 400 students by focusing on safety, integrating into the new campus, and encouraging success both inside and out of the classroom, specifically through leadership-specific teaching.
“We try to teach them and encourage them that all students can be leaders, we just lead in different ways, whether that’s vocal, or that’s leading by example, or that’s leading in art [...], so every person has a form of leadership that they do,” he said.
The classes at Walnut Hill are smaller than other campuses so teachers can have a closer connection with teachers, Meaker said. In addition to general education, the campus has enrichment systems such as a gifted and talented curriculum and a dual-language program where students alternate between learning material in English and Spanish.
Meaker comes from Woodrow Wilson High School, where he served as assistant principal for three years. On that campus, the involved parent base is similar to the one at Walnut Hill, Meaker said, equipping him to interact with families in a similar way. He also supported a new wing of Woodrow Wilson’s building that involved helping teachers and students navigate the move to a new space, which will translate when the new Walnut Hill campus opens in January.
Before his time in Dallas ISD, Meaker served as assistant principal, teacher, and coach for schools in Princeton, McKinney, and Weatherford ISDs. He came to Dallas ISD because he wanted to “get involved with more of the inner-city students and help our students who need more role models, need more support, and just need better people to care about them.”
“My passion for education really started as a student,” Meaker said. “I loved extracurriculars. I went to a small school, similar to Walnut Hill.”
His relationships with sponsors made him want to give back while he was a student. So, he became a coach. He spent five years teaching and coaching, then switched to educational leadership at Shirley Hall Middle School as assistant principal in 2018.
“[I] changed to the administrative side because I thought I could make more of a difference at a higher level by also supporting and helping grow other adults in how they teach, so they can be better in the classroom to better support our students,” Meaker said.
Since the October 2019 tornado that demolished the previous campus, Walnut Hill has been housed at the old Tom Field Elementary campus, but the new building will be located next to Thomas Jefferson High School.
“Moving and transitioning back into the neighborhood is going to be very exciting because we’ll be closer to the children’s homes, we’ll be closer to the feeder schools that we connect with, but also getting a new building with new technology, new books, new furniture, and a state-ofthe-art middle school competition gym as well as an elementary gym.”
AT A GLANCE
Walnut Hill International Leadership Academy Grades served: Pre-K through eighth grade Mission statement: To inspire empathetic global leaders who transform our world. For more information: DallasISD.org/WalnutHill
Possibilities Await You at Parish Episcopal School.
Hillcrest Campus (grades PreK 3 - 2nd) Preview: October 23, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. Midway Campus (grades 3th - 12th) Preview: November 5, 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Dallas data strategist authors book, offers students another way forward
By Daniel Lalley
Special Contributor
After President Biden announced an unprecedented plan to reduce student debt, the issue of overwhelming college costs again made its way into the national dialogue.
While many believe the proposed debt relief plan will help students who struggle to make payments, others contend it will contribute to a trend of egregious fiscal oversight within the higher education system.
For years, Dan Hooper, a data strategist from Highland Park, has studied this issue while advocating for students and proposed a “smarter way” to help them achieve their academic goals. Dan Hooper, founder of ScholarShot, and ScholarShot students celebrate graduation with financial freedom in front of the ScholarShot office. (PHOTOS: COURTESY SCHOLARSHOT)
Most of our kids don’t understand that acceptance into college is no guarantee of completion. What it does guarantee is a boatload of student debt, and it’s unnecessary. Dan Hooper
In his new book, FLEECE U: How American Universities are Robbing our Kids and our Future, Hooper tackles what he sees as the inherent greed, oversight, and exploitation infecting higher education.
“In 2009, I started looking at the state’s data, and it was shocking,” Hooper said, recalling his time with data consulting firm ISI. “I learned that only 23% of college freshmen who earned the Texas Grant came back as sophomores. I called the state and asked if this was right. I asked if they had any plans of doing anything about it, and they said, ‘No. They’re just collecting the data and waiting for someone like me to do something with it.’”
Dan decided to start ScholarShot, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to helping at-risk students exit poverty by completing career-ready vocational, associate, or bachelor’s degrees.
With data on its side and Hooper at the helm, ScholarShot approaches higher learning from a practical standpoint, emphasizing skills, knowledge, and performance over the prestige of attending a pricy university.
“The fact of the matter is that over half of the kids in universities drop out,” he said. “In Texas, nine out of 10 kids from first-generation, low-income households drop out, and they’re the kids that need at least some post-secondary education the most, but we’re failing them at a horrific rate. That’s where the focus needs to be.”
More than 98% of the ScholarShot students are first-generation Americans. The program has helped 182 students earn a degree with an average debt per degree less than $1,500. In a state where the average debt for a university degree is over $45,000, this is an incredible accomplishment, Hooper said.
“Most of our kids don’t understand that acceptance into college is no guarantee of completion,” he said. “What it does guarantee is a boatload of student debt, and it’s unnecessary. If they just followed the system, nine out of 10 of those kids would get booted out, but if they fight against the system and realize they could go to an affordable two-year college and transfer with credits, they’re in much better shape.”
Hooper said that in today’s skill-forward job market, the prestige of the Ivy League is waning.
The myth that you must spend a ton of money to be successful is eroding, and passing that pressure onto future generations is a huge failure on the part of high schools, he said.
With ScholarShot, Hooper hopes to change the standards.
LEARN MORE
For more resources or to learn how you can become a mentor or student at ScholarShot, visit scholarshot.org.
You are invited
Explore Ursuline this fall by visiting www.ursulinedallas.org/admissions Won’t you join us?
URSULINE ACADEMY OF DALLAS
All-Girl, Catholic, College Prep, Grades 9-12 4900 Walnut Hill Lane | Dallas, Texas 75229 www.ursulinedallas.org
Salma and Sofia Salvaggio researched project during pandemic lockdowns
By Josh Hickman
Special Contributor
Salma and Sofia Salvaggio of Preston Hollow suffered along with other children during the COVID-19 pandemic with the mental and emotional costs of school closures and social isolation.
But unlike most children suffering with the ensuing anxiety, they put their heads together and took on an extra writing project.
“Salma has always loved to read,” the girls’ mother, Martha, said. “She wrote and illustrated a little book when she was 6, and another at 7.”
With COVID came plenty of stress and anxiety for the family, especially since dad is in the medical field and was working on the front lines.
“So, we did a lot of gardening, a lot of art, and online schooling,” Martha recalled. “There was a one-year waitlist for friends who were trying to get a therapist for their kids.”
Salma, who did a lot of reading, noticed her friends having trouble with anxiety, so she and her sister discussed how they could help people with the stresses of the lockdowns.
They made a game of it, taking notes. The girls read about a dozen books for research and comparison, typing away on their iPads all through 2020. Time passed, and Martha thought the girls had abandoned their project. But in 2021, Salma came to her asking for help. She organized their self-help workbook ideas on paper with a few drawings, thinking her job was done. But the girls kept pushing. “Not good
There is no enough, not pretty enough,” rainbow without they insisted as a storm. the notes increased. “And Salma Salvaggio then we had a book,” the proud mother said. “It’s a book by kids for kids.” Beat Anxiety: Help for Kids of All Ages by Salma and Sofia Salvaggio (now 9 and 10, respectively) was finished in early 2022 and is filled with information, ideas, and activities to help children overcome anxiety and worry. “We did research on yoga, breathing, meditation, hobbies, and other techniques to help with anxiety,” Salma said. She also illustrated the book and designed its cover.
The Salvaggio family did plenty of gardening during COVID-19 pandemic
lockdowns. FROM LEFT: Salma and Sophia. (PHOTOS: COURTESY MARTHA SALVAGGO)
“I love to paint and draw,” Salma said.
“They were so proud when they were finished with it,” Martha said. “The best therapy is to help somebody else.”
“I told my husband we need to help them publish this,” she said. “We’re self-publishing right now because all of this is new territory for us.”
“We just started a foundation, named after the girls’ slogan, called the Always Be Kind Foundation,” Martha said. “So, we’re going to donate funds from book sales to
WANT TO READ IT?
Beat Anxiety: Help for Kids of All Ages
By Salma and Sofia Salvaggio
$14.99 smartandsassysisters.com
help kids’ education.”
“It’s never really finished,” little perfectionist Salma added of the book.
The girls are back in classes in person at a North Dallas private school their parents prefer not to identify.
“It’s good,” Salma said, grinning with a nod. “Much better. The kids need to be together.”
The intrepid author is already working on a new book and waxes philosophical about her COVID-19 lockdown tribulations and the therapeutic effect of writing Beating Anxiety, “There is no rainbow without a storm.”
FAITH, LEARNING AND COMMUNITY
AT PARK CITIES BAPTIST CHURCH
Accepting Applications for Infants through Transitional Kindergarten
To learn more please visit our website PCBCDAYSCHOOL.ORG
• Faith Based & Enrichment Classes • Degreed, Experienced Teachers • Newly Designed Classrooms
214.860.1520 3933 Northwest Pkwy. Dallas, TX 75225
Inspiring students to lead authentic, purposeful lives.
Join us for an Admission Preview:
Preschool & Lower School (Prekindergarten - 4th grade) Thursday, October 13, 2022 | 6:00 pm
Middle & Upper School (5th - 12th grade) Sunday, October 30, 2022 | 2:00 pm
Awards go to Thomas Jefferson, G.B. Dealey, Jill Stone educators
The Rotary Club of Dallas celebrated three Dallas ISD educators, including two teachers in Preston Hollow.
During its Teacher of the Year ceremony on Aug. 10, the club presented $2,500 checks and commemorative plaques to David Newhouse, Jill Emery, and Natalie Hebert.
“For the past 30 years, the Rotary Club of Dallas has recognized outstanding teachers who practice the Rotary motto of Service Above Self in working with their students,” club president Rachael Jones explained.
Here’s what the club touted about these educators:
David Newhouse, a ninth-grade P-Tech social studies teacher and chess coach at Thomas Jefferson High School, monitors students’ daily progress with apps and creates competitive videogames to teach historical facts. He is committed to twice-yearly home visits and uses translator apps to keep parents aware of students’ progress. Through FROM LEFT: David Newhouse, Jill Emery, and Natalie Hebert. (PHOTO: COURTESY ROTARY CLUB OF DALLAS)
a study conducted with parental consent, he determined that some students were coping with adverse childhood experiences. That information helped teachers adapt their styles to meet those needs better.
Jill Emery, a Texas Education Agency Exemplary Honors Algebra Teacher at G.B. Dealey Montessori and International Academy, made videos for KERA and Dallas ISD that helped students maintain and improve their math skills during the COVID shutdown. She also created Algebra Olympics, a competitive program to help students review skills and prepare for the STAAR test. While serving as faculty sponsor for the National Junior Honor Society, Emery has helped recognize the volunteer service of faculty, staff, and students with the Presidential Volunteer Service Awards, which she has also received. She also developed a mentoring program where eighth-grade students become “Math Buddies” to help struggling sixth graders improve their math skills.
Natalie Hebert, an art teacher at Jill Stone Elementary at Vickery Meadows, uses art projects to teach problem-solving skills to pre-K through fifth-grade students.
“There is no wrong way to produce art as each student’s vision is different,” she explained. “This gives them confidence in other academic areas.”
As a volunteer, she raised funds for and coordinated art projects for the hundreds of immigrant teenage boys housed for several months at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in 2021. This year, she created an art show for her students – with an invitation in eight languages – to bring parents into the school to see their students’ work, many visiting for the first time. She also created art programs that drew students into the neighborhood public library, which resulted in many immigrant families getting library cards.
Jones said, “It is heartwarming and reassuring to see the care and concern exhibited by these teachers as they strive to support and encourage their students in their academic achievements as well as demonstrating their concern for others.”
– Staff report
WONDER
We believe a RIGOROUS EDUCATION goes hand in hand with a childlike sense of WONDER. Our campus gardens, media center, barn, and farm animals help educate our students through EXPLORATION, PLAY, COLLABORATION, and COMPASSION.
LEARN MORE. JOIN US FOR A TOUR.
2. 3.
1. Trinity Christian Academy students take a field trip to the Meadows Museum. (PHOTO: JENNIFER CRENSHAW) 2. Benjamin A. Tabak’s research could help determine whether listening to music can be added to therapeutic techniques used in social skills training for individuals with autism spectrum disorders or schizophrenia. (PHOTO: COURTESY SMU) 3. New SMU students move into SMU residential commons on Aug. 17 and 18. (PHOTO: COURTESY SMU) 4. The Turtle Creek Chorale will perform a ‘70s-themed sing-along concert in October at McFarlin
Auditorium. (PHOTO: COURTESY TURTLE CREEK CHORALE)
A $25,000 one-year grant from the Fichtenbaum Charitable Trust will cover all Meadows Museum admission fees for North Texas students 18 years and younger including chaperones for K-12 school groups.
Previously, admission was free to youth under the age of 12.
“With school budgets under stress, this gift provides children an opportunity to engage in the arts, facilitating experiences that can spark a lifetime of creativity and intellectual curiosity,” museum director of education Anne Kindseth said.
The grant supplements an existing fund which provides $200 transit scholarships to qualified K-12 schools making the costs of visits little to nothing. Schools can take part in this grant initiative through Aug. 31, 2023, with tours offered in English and Spanish and accommodations available to visitors with special needs.
2. Music and emotions
Is it true that music can help convey emotions when often simple words cannot?
A team of international researchers is seeking to prove just that.
A new study explores the benefits and impact of socially engaged active music listening on social cognition.
“Empathy is most often thought of in the context of social interactions, but there are many other forms of social communication, including music,” said Benjamin A Tabak, assistant professor of psychology and director of SMU’s Social and Clinical Neuroscience Lab.
“Music can convey meaning and emotion and also elicit emotional responses, but the mechanisms responsible for its emotional power are poorly understood,” he said.
Tabak and Zachary Wallmark, assistant professor of musicology affiliated faculty at the Center for Translational Neuroscience at the University of Oregon, led the study.
Their findings supported their hypothesis: that empathy and music are connected.
“Empathy is most often thought of in the context of social interactions, but there are many other forms of social communication, including music,” Tabak said
Results suggested that the skill of empathic accuracy exceeds interpersonal interactions can be achieved in music. Tabak and Wallmark’s end goal is this research will serve as the basis for potential music-based interventions.
3. Fall 2022 begins
Approximately 1,200 first year and transfer students became the newest Mustangs during their August move-in day at SMU Commons. Classes began on Aug. 22.
The newest students represent 44 countries as well as 48 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, with the largest percentage coming from Texas (38%), followed by California, Florida, New York, and Illinois.
More than 30% of the new students identified as part of the traditionally underrepresented ethnic and racial groups. Of those, 200 are the first in their families to enter college.
Finally, 18 students have served in the U.S. Armed Services.
4. Boogie Wonderland
Get groovy with the all-male Turtle Creek Chorale, which will present its That ´70s Show - A Sing-Along Sensation concert at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 8 and 2:30 p.m. Oct. 9 at McFarlin Auditorium.
Don´t know the words? Don´t despair. Lyrics will be provided so audience members can sing along to music from Olivia Newton John, Motown, and other prominent artists.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets range from $45 to $85. Visit turtlecreekchorale. com, break out your bellbottoms, and Get Down Tonight.” – Compiled by Sabrina Gomez
JOYFUL LEARNING
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PARISH EPISCOPAL SCHOOL
Parish Episcopal School: Whole Child, Whole Family
Setting its sights on its next half century, Parish remains steadfast in helping students find balance and joy in their educational journey, discover their authentic self, and have a great sense of belonging and engagement across all disciplines, PreK 3 – 12th grade. From signature programs exploring leadership, STEM, global studies and more, to social/emotional programs ensuring students’ needs are met, to premier facilities in STEM, athletics and arts, including the recently opened 55,000sq.ft. Noble Family Performing Arts Center, the possibilities are infinite at Parish. And it doesn’t stop at the student - Parish’s inclusive Episcopal community embraces the whole family! Parish.org
