East Dallas Parents Want To Secede From Dallas ISD
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Tired of the drama and the lack of local control, some parents in East Dallas are looking into secede from Dallas ISD to form a new school district -- White Rock ISD.
Former State Rep. Allen Vaught started a Facebook page this week to gauge support for the idea.
"It's an uphill battle, no doubt about it," he said. "But it's possible and we need to talk about it."
Vaught started the White Rock ISD page after hearing many of his frustrated neighbors talk about moving because they were fed-up with the school district.
He said, "I just want to let people know there are options beyond moving."
Lakewood resident Trey Fields said even though his son is only two-years-old, he's already debating whether he'll put him in a Dallas ISD school or send him to private school.
He said the decision to put him in a public school would be much easier if White Rock ISD becomes reality.
"DISD had had some hard times over the years," he said. "We are struggling whether we want to put him in DISD going forward. Having another option here in the neighborhood would be huge."
With 224 schools in Dallas ISD, many East Dallas parents said the district is too big, making it too difficult to get anything done at the school-level.
However losing this area, one of the more affluent in district, would likely mean less money for Dallas ISD and that won't be a popular idea with school officials.
A spokesperson for the district said school officials haven't even discussed the idea of separation and remain focused on providing to best education for all students in the district.
If more than two-thousand people "like" the White Rock ISD Facebook page, Vaught said he would organize a public meeting where he hopes a leadership council will be selected to develop this idea into a plan.
"At the end of the day if we don't get our own school district, maybe we get a charter school district and we get more local control. That's a win too," he said. "Right now we are just having the conversation and see where it takes us."
