Across the nation police departments and school districts are warning about school shooting threats happening after a Tik Tok challenge has gone viral. Dallas Independent School District is noticably quiet despite numerous recent issues with violance in the area and district.
Local School Shooting Threats And Situations
Within Dallas ISD proper a firearm was recently found on an elemetary student en route to Marshall Prep Academy. That situation became known when a letter went home to Chapel Hill parents.
Also, within Dallas, there have been ongoing protests at Dealey Montessori which started in September in response to mask mandates. Prior to an October protest organized by the Chief Culture Officer at The Gents Place a blog post went up on a male hair salon’s website asking which is better: the AK47 or M16.
Issues at Dealey have continued to escalate while staff at Dealey have normalizedthe protestors behavior and Dallas Police Department officers have gone out of their way to protect white protestors in ways they did not during the George Floyd protests.
White protestors at Dealey Montessori are being protected by Dallas Police Officers despite blocking walking paths of parents picking up their children and repeatedly wandering onto school property. Dallas Police are also not responding to calls for assault against children at Dealey.
Dealey had been COVID19 free until the mask mandate lifted and then it shot to seven cases once the protesting students were allowed to attend class unmasked. They have since been withdrawn.
Dealey Montessori has now had four protests this semester starting in September and again in October due to districtwide mask mandates. Prior to the second event, The Gents Place corporate blog asked which is more appropriate the AK47 or M16 in a blog post that seemed to threaten students and staff. The parent leading the protests at the time was the Chief Culture Officer for The Gents Place.
At the time, Adam McGough was the only member of Dallas City Council to request Dallas Police assistance. Requests to Gay Donnel Willis and Jaynie Schultz went unanswered.
More concerning now is the lack of response from Dallas ISD to parent concerns. Four separate families report Dealey Montessori staff and principal Beth Wing do not respond to calls, emails, and do not communicate in a timely manner about these events.
These familes say in addition to no answers from Beth Wing or Ryan Zysk, there is no communication at all and the district is shutting down conversation with the very people who support the school.
“Dallas ISD Board Services will not even allow speakers against the management of the school,” said another parent who continued, “they want emails, but then they do not respond.”
One parent noted she had found what appeared to be a recent threat on her son’s social media accounts about a shooting and their was no response from school staff.
“What is the use in a see something, say something policy if the people you say it to ignore you?,” the parent asked.
Wing also disappointed school families for her late cancellation of a school play that had run for years.
City Officials With Two Responses
The furstration is mounting though for parents.
Today’s protest included Lynn Strawn Daenport – a local education gadfly – who is known to be a QAnon afficionado. QAnon has been growing in local political power among Republicans. Earlier this year Gen. Mike Flynn suggested a coup at the Dallas Convention Center.
Davenport’s husband works for Dallas based Top Golf and a small group of parents are considering a counter protest at both The Gents Place and Top Golf to respond to what they describe as ongoing harassment.
“If they continue to harrass and threaten our children, we will hit them in the pocketbook,” said one parent.
While Dallas Police do not have time to deal with threats against children, local city officials are harrassing local homeowners over other First Amendment issues.
White Protestors At Dealey Montessori v Black Protestors at Dealey Plaza
In a statement by Public Information Officer Melinda Gutierrez “the Dallas Police Department will not interfere with a lawful and peaceful assembly of any individuals or groups expressing their first amendment rights.”
She would not respond to follow up questions about why white COVID19 protestors are being handled so differently from black protestors during the George Floyd protest.
The SOC Bears headed to State Championship after the biggest victory in the program’s career in decades.
South Oak Cliff led Lubbock-Cooper in the 5A-II state semifinal on Friday all night.
At halftime they had a four touchdown lead that was called inspiration by Superintendent Michael Hinojosa.
“It’s just very inspiring,” Dallas ISD superintendent Michael Hinojosa said, as he watched a celebration continue on in front of him at Abilene’s Shotwell Stadium on Friday night.
SOC Bears Headed To State For First Time In Decades
Trustee Maxie Johnson said,”this is what happens when you get equity,” but Johnson’s involvement in the team may lead to future issues as he has been previously accused of trying to recruit players from outside the district into South Oak Cliff High School.
Dallas ISD has had a history of recruiting scandals mostly involving basketball, but has had some issues with baseball also.
A similar program for students 12 and older had a November 15 deadline.
School Vaccine Incentive Update
The new program move follows an earlier program that paid students age 12 – 17 for proof of vaccination status.
Per a Dallas schools website, high demand for the $50 incentive, paid through gift cards, along with shipping delays during the holiday season have created an unforeseen delay in the distribution of the vaccine incentive gift cards.
Those students who submitted documentation by the November 15 deadline will still get their incentive.
The current event is not the first at Harry Stone Montessori. Approximately ten years ago another victim came forward to District and school administration with a report of sexual assault in the school’s bathrooms.
Other Side Dallas will be following and updating this story as details emerge.
An unsealed letter went home to parents a Chapel Hill Preparatory School was found in possession of a student at their bus stop. The student had a gun At Marshall Prep, but there was “no danger” to students at Chapel Hill Prep. The letter came from Dallas Independent School District’s principal, Zenaida Martinez.
The letter above was circulated on social media and was verified by multiple parents who expressed concern that it was in a “tend home” folder, usually reserved for PTA fundraising literature or class assignment notices.
One parent called it a “casual letter. Normalizing it.” Other Side Dallas has been unable to locate a similar letter to Marsh Preparatory Academy parents and Dallas schools staff does not respond to requests for comment.
Gun At Marshall Prep
The latest incident is one of a growing number. Earlier in the year, multiple reports stated there were individuals on campus at Dealey Montessori with firearms during a COVID9 mask mandate protest.
Prior to that protest the organizer’s business had tweeted out the question which is better the AK47 or M16 in a blog post which seemed unrelated to the men’s salon business and fully related to the school protest.
Students, staff, and community members gathered on campus for the announcement despite a Dallas ISD prohibition in most schools on visitors.
The new campus is expected to be completed in 2024.
Social Justice In South Dallas Academy Named After John Lewis
“I’m happy to announce that O.W. Holmes will now be the John Lewis Social Justice Academy at O.W. Holmes,” Dallas ISD Trustee Maxie Johnson told those assembled. Johnson is also pastor at New Morning Star Baptist Church.
The school is currently named for Oliver Wendell Holmes, the Supreme Court Justice, who has been the third-most cited American legal scholar of the 20th century.
It is unclear Trustee Johnson’s commitment to social justice though. In the summer, Johnson accused white and Latino parents at Harry Stone of being racist after they raised concerns about school funds being misappropriated. The meeting revealed that staff has been assaulted by a family member of another school employee.
Early in the school year, Johnson also returned to calling parents racist after they expressed concern over hidden COVID19 numbers at Harry Stone that have now risen to fifty total cases out of a student population of approximately three hundred.
There were no protests arranged at Harry Stone Montessori over these numbers, unlike Dealey Montessori in North Dallas – which is predominantly white. Trustee Johnson has yet to return email requests for comment on his actions on any of these topics.
Dallas ISD Transportation is continuing its Thanksgiving holiday with reports of multiple riders missing rides to school this morning, particularly to the Townview Magnet Complex. Riders at the Hillcrest High School location numbered multiple dozen and waited for at least an hour.
It is not clear how many total schools are being affected, but Other Side Dallas has been on hold for forty-five minutes as of this writing.
Dallas Independent School District has generally been credited with a strong turnaround of the transportation system this year after decades of corruption with the Dallas County Schools scandal. Last December, attorney Richard Reynolds was sentenced for his role in that corruption.
Dallas ISD Transportation Contacts
The student transportation call center is staffed from 6:00AM to 6:00PM Monday thru Friday, excluding school holidays. Parents can call either (972) 925-4BUS or (972) 925-4287.
Per Dealey Principal Beth Wing inappropriate casting caused a school play cancellation. The issue was not a surprise to Wing who waited to act.
The cancellation comes hours before showtime. Parents seem outraged the Dallas Independent School District‘s premier campuses continues in disarray.
The underlying issue is the casting of an African American student as a slave in a school play. The same play has run between fifteen and seventeen previous years without problem.
One parent posted on social media “Do wish that there was a better explanation besides alluding a parent wasn’t happy with the roles their child was given.” Communication has been a frequent criticism for Wing throughout her tenure at Dealey.
Other parents asked if the issue was school leadership and what happened to “the show must go on.”
Dallas ISD would not comment to Other Side Dallas about the issue beyond Wing’s email. The email did not go to all parents, but only those involved with the production.
It is unclear if students will have the opportunity to perform in a different show later.
It is also unclear the staff perspective on the issue either. Both parents and staff confirmed this production has run without problem for years.
More Beth Wing Inappropriate Casting
One parent said Ms. Wing received notification on the issue six weeks ago. The parent said Wing would not consider a conversation on the topic.
Wing has been criticized for her response to professional protestors on campus over the district mask mandate. Since she has allowed unmasked children on campus, several new cases have occurred.
She has also muzzled parent activism in support of the mask mandate. In at least one case she threatened parents over participation in a counter protest.
Generally, confusion has led parents to feeling frustrated. A few parents said Dallas ISD is guilty of inappropriate casting of Beth Wing as a principal and leader.
Data released by Dallas Independent School Districttells the story. Dealey 7 new cases of COVID19 since dropping the mask mandate. The mandate dropped for two students out of several hundred.
The impact is being felt as several full classrooms are being required to quarantine. This comes after the reckless nature of one parent.
The parent is being enabled by both principal, Beth Wing and PTA President Alishia Salmon.
The DISD coronavirus dashboard shows five cases at Dealey. It does not reflect the seven cases listed in an email to parents.
Dallas County COVID19 numbers are falling. They are rising on the Dealey campus where mask mandates are now ignored.
Dealey 7
Officials expect the Dealey 7 numbers to rise after they surrendered on masks. The mandate has had almost 100% compliance.
Adults using bullhorns hurled accusations at kindergarten students over unfounded abuse claims. Officials did say protestors must stay on sidewalks, but did not maintain that zone. During the October protest parents reported protestors with firearms at school.
Dallas ISD Police and Dallas Police stated there were no arrests during protests.
Protest ring leader, Lauren Davis has not responded to many emails for comment. She is Chief Culture Officer for The Gents Place.
Despite protests, Davis’ children wear masks in other locations around Dallas. There is no record of her complaint anywhere other than Dallas ISD leading up to these events.
The Gents Place did post an ominous question earlier asking which was the better weapon: the AK47 or M16. Some have called it charged with an implicit threat to the school.
Dallas school officials have also declined to respond to emails. These emails from both parents and Other Side Dallas show the district in bunker mode.
Parents say the Dealey PTA leadership, particularly Alishia Salmon, enables the Davis complaint. She talks about “community” without taking any action to stop Ms. Davis for her role in protests.
