Adam Medrano

How Mary Suhm's Departure Could Help Usher in a New and Improved Dallas

Tons of talk already, of course, about this morning's announcement that City Manager Mary Suhm is stepping down. I tend to go with the end of the spectrum that's viewing it as ushering in the End Times. But I would. Oh, not my End Times. Their End Times! The Citizens Council! I'm talking about the ... More >>

Dallas Really Doesn't Care About City Government and Other Takeaways From Saturday's City Council Election

There was a City Council election on Saturday and, if you're like the vast majority of Dallas, you didn't notice. But whether you were paying attention or not, some important things were decided and some interesting trends emerged. Here's what you need to know: Angela Hunt's legacy: Saturday's mos ... More >>

Trinity East's Fracking Plans Might Be Screwed with the New Dallas City Council

Even with two seats in limbo, the complexion of the new Dallas City Council looks decidedly unfavorable for Trinity East, the would-be fracker from Fort Worth that paid the city millions for the rights to its natural gas. Because the Plan Commission voted against the company's drilling permits, four ... More >>

Dallas ISD Ends Shirt-Tucking Requirement Over Concerns That it Damages Fat Kids

Dallas ISD trustees still haven't decided what to do about the roster of principals whose jobs could be on the chopping block. The matter has now been delayed twice, thus sparing trustees from making an extremely controversial decision until after this weekend's election. At their meeting Thursday, ... More >>

Despite Sharp Divisions, Dallas ISD Trustees Vote to Oppose Effort to Ease Testing Standards

Last night, the Dallas ISD Board of Trustees approved a resolution "opposing legislative efforts to diminish graduation standards and academic rigor." Basically, they don't like HB 5, the Texas House of Representatives-approved bill that would reduce the number of tests students take to graduate, an ... More >>

In Wake of Medrano Family Voter Fraud Case, Herschel Weisfeld Wants Federal Oversight of May City Council Election

It didn't take long for the District 2 City Council race to turn into a mud-slinging match, even if the mud has come from only one side. The first volley came last month from Herschel Weisfeld, who seized on Adam Medrano's refusal to discuss his sexual orientation to question his opponent's openness ... More >>

Adam Medrano, Candidate for Oak Lawn's Council Seat, Won't Say If He's Gay. Should He?

In her time in office, Councilwoman Pauline Medrano has established herself as a staunch ally of the LGBT community. That's more or less a requirement for election in District 2, which includes much of Oak Lawn and has a sizable, and politically active, gay population, and there's no reason to think ... More >>

Mike Rawlings is Drowning in Cash, Bobby Abtahi Laps the Field, and Campaign News

Yesterday was the deadline for state and local candidates to report their fundraising totals for the last six months of 2012, which meant a flurry of last-minute clicks on the City Secretary's website. The reported figures first real glimpse at candidates' fundraising prowess and a suggestion of whi ... More >>

Graffiti-Curating Real Estate Developer Enters Council Race. His Oppenent *Cough* Adam Medrano *Cough* Remains a Mystery.

Herschel Weisfeld is a property developer by trade, but he's also the guy who started CorinthPark, the graffiti-covered artist's collective that is something of a model for the Dallas Police Department. Yesterday, the Dallas Voice broke the news that he also hopes to replace Pauline Medrano as Distr ... More >>

Sadness, Loss as Bonham Elementary School Prepares for Consolidation

Today is the last Friday of the school year for Dallas ISD schools. For 11 schools in the city slated for consolidation after a school board vote, like the 89-year-old James B. Bonham Elementary, this Friday holds even more significance. Next week, after the students leave, the teachers will pack al ... More >>

Dallas ISD Trustees Closed 11 Schools Last Night, and It Got Ugly Before It Got Done

They argued, they reasoned, they pleaded, they threatened, they chanted, they cried. But in the end, it just didn't matter. It never really did. It's over, and it was never in doubt. Under budget pressure, and after a final, five-hour session, the Dallas Independent School District's board of trust ... More >>

If You Want to Run For Dallas ISD Board, And Want a PAC's Backing, Fill Out This Essay Test

​On May 12 of next year three Dallas Independent School District trustee spots will come up for grabs -- those presently held by Bernadette Nutall, Bruce Parrott and Edwin Flores. (And, depending on which rumors you choose to believe about possible doings on the Dallas County Commissioners Court ... More >>

DISD Is Pulling Its Zoning Request For Joe May, But Flores Still Hopes School Opens In 2013

​3700 Ross remains closed for another week, but I did just talk to Dallas Independent School District trustee Edwin Flores about something I mentioned last week: DISD's decision to yank from the City Plan Commission's docket a zoning request for the proposed Jose "Joe" May Elementary School on Web ... More >>

"If You Don't Respect the Public, Why Are You in Public Service?" One in Carla Ranger's Series.

Billboard designed by Thomas Wilson​Though there are a few exceptions to the rule, for the most part any one Dallas City Council member may pull an item from the council's agenda and have it deferred till the next voting agenda meeting. Not so with the Dallas Independent School District, not ... More >>

DISD Will Buy Out "Excess" Teachers & Other Highlights from Testy, Tear-Stained Meeting

Dalton Sherman, seen here in '08, showed up to defend embattled former Ebby Halliday principal Kamalia Cotton.​Thursday evening, Dallas Independent School District trustees approved resignation incentives for the 209 "unassigned" employees who are under contract but lack permanent positions af ... More >>

"Force Place" or a Cut of $3 Million: Dallas ISD Teachers, the Choice, Apparently, Is Yours

​We told you yesterday that the Dallas Independent School District is considering offering "excess" Chapter 21 employees -- teachers, principals, librarians, counselors -- a pile of cash worth $3 million to retire. After last night's called board meeting, it became clear that while that's probably ... More >>

Back to School ... Redistricting, That Is

Click to embiggen one of the DISD maps on the table, or just go here to see all of them.​And speaking of redistricting ...The Dallas Independent School District will begin holding hearings tonight during which the public will finally get a long, hard look at the draft maps on the table, courtesy S ... More >>

Six Months After Becoming Dallas ISD's CFO, Alan King's Named the Interim Superintendent

Photos by Leslie MinoraAlan King, with trustees Bruce Parrott and Adam Medrano, accepts his new position as interim superintendent.​Following their acceptance of superintendent Michael Hinojosa's resignation, the Dallas Independent School District board unanimously selected current district CFO Al ... More >>

Dallas ISD Trustee Jack Lowe to Step Aside Early, Allowing Mike Morath His Shot at Budget

Mike Morath​Looks like Mike Morath's going to become a Dallas Independent School District trustee earlier than he'd expected. He was already running unopposed for Jack Lowe's North Dallas-Near East Dallas District 2 seat, which is one of the reasons why the district canceled the May 14 elections. ... More >>

Students, Parents and Friends Rally at the Wyly to Save Booker T. Washington's Teachers

Photos by Patrick Michels Korey Elizabeth Parker tells a packed Wyly Theater crowd why she's going to fight to protect her teachers' jobs at Booker T. Washington.​Fired up over the very real chance that nearly half the teachers at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts ... More >>

In DISD and Across Local Charter Schools, Teach for America's Growing Next Year

​While they were busy voting not to extend their term lengths last Thursday, the Dallas Independent School District board of trustees also made the call to extend the district's partnership with Teach for America, on the heels of the glowing review they heard of TFA's first year-and-a-half here so ... More >>

While DISD Takes A Time-Out Over O.M. Roberts Rebuilding Plans, Jubilee Park Residents Keep Their Protest Alive

Photos by Patrick MichelsNeighbors from Jubilee Park were protesting outside DISD headquarters again last night, while parents supporting expansion plans for O.M. Roberts Elementary held their own meeting at the school.The Dallas Independent School District's designs on land around O.M. Roberts Ele ... More >>

Weeks After West Dallas School Reform Announcement, DISD Board's Ready for Details

DISD Superintendent Michael Hinojosa​Superintendent Michael Hinojosa drew a roomful of huzzahs two weeks ago when he announced that DISD was getting involved in a new effort for school reform in West Dallas. A handful of DISD trustees were among the cheering crowd, including Lew Blackburn and boar ... More >>

Preservationists Insist "Some Good" Has Come Out of Mediation With DISD Concerning the Fate of Oak Cliff Christian Church

Spike JohnsonDISD was all ready to raze Oak Cliff Christian a few weeks ago. So, now what?​It's been exactly two months since Unfair Park broke the news that the Dallas Independent School District had purchased the old Oak Cliff Christian Church on 10th Street with the intention of razing Charles ... More >>

In Oak Cliff Neighborhood, the Complex Negotiations Behind New Adamson High

The Concord Apartments in Oak Cliff, yet another piece of property scheduled for demolition to make room for Adamson​In recent weeks, whenever we've attempted to get information out of the Dallas Independent School District concerning its plans for the Adamson High School expansion, we've been met ... More >>

A Sort of Tour of the Interior of the Oak Cliff Christian Church, Which DISD Plans to Raze

​Right before Christmas, Dallas Independent School District board president Adam Medrano told Unfair Park he is "not sure what can be done at this point" to save the Oak Cliff Christian Church, which DISD purchased in the fall to make way for some piece of the new Adamson High School campus. (Tent ... More >>

DISD Board President Medrano "Not Sure What Can be Done" to Save Oak Cliff Church

​Early this morning, a Friend of Unfair Park forwarded along an update from the Old Oak Cliff Conservation League: "A Glimmer of Hope for Oak Cliff Christian Church." That, of course, is a reference to the 1905 building recently acquired by the Dallas Independent School District for the Adamson Hi ... More >>

Civility is the Last Thing the DISD Board Needs

Dallas ISD Board To Spend Time Debating How Much Time Public Gets to Speak to Board

Patrick Michels​A couple of weeks back, we mentioned that the Dallas Independent School District's board of trustees is considering putting a cap on how long speakers get to, ya know, speak at board meetings. Turns out -- surprise, surprise -- there's some dissent amongst the board regarding the p ... More >>

In Gutting Learning Centers, the Dallas ISD Clearly Has Learned Nothing in 39 Years

Sam Tasby, who sued the DISD in 1970, when his son Phillip was denied admission to two all-white schools near the Tasby residenceWell, we have now officially turned our back on school desegregation. I'm sure some of you will be thrilled. Personally, I'm sitting here at my computer in the back corne ... More >>

DISD: Hitting Bottom, Then Reaching for a Shovel to Dig Deeper

Explanations be damned. There is only one justifiable response to the worst fiscal disaster in DISD history.

At 3700 Ross Avenue Last Night, It Got Nasty. Then, It Got Even Worse.

Jack Lowe, DISD school board president Blacks were hissing rudely at Hispanics. Hispanics were yelling at other Hispanics. And just about everyone was taunting distraught school board trustees, themselves appearing to teeter on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Ladies and gentleman, this is you ... More >>

DISD's Confederacy of Jerks

Extremely pushy parents—Latino, black and Anglo—must rise up to save DISD from itself

DISD In the Hole

Teachers get axed and parents fret as Dallas' school leaders scramble to cover a budget hole

Yet Again, Live From 3700 Ross

DISD Doesn't Deserve to Win Its Bond Election Because of Its Fiscal Incompetence

Old School

DISD trustee Ron Price does everything you expect from a politician. These days that's a problem.

School Board, Never Boring

Taking School Board Candidates to School

Dallas Achieves! What, We Have No Idea.

Undressing Room