More than $6 million in renovations at two Dallas ISD campuses are scheduled to begin this year, with the first project planned at Lakewood Elementary School expected to start in weeks.
According to a state filing, a secure vestibule will be built and accessibility improvements will be made to the school auditorium. Also, a corridor will be converted into flex room space, and special ed classroom upgrades will be completed. The project is scheduled to begin in April and has an estimated construction cost of $979,873. It is expected to be delivered in September.
Renovations at Julius Dorsey Elementary School include the reconfiguration of administrative space; new finishes and lighting; upgrades to the fire alarm system, HVAC units, and plumbing; roof work; landscaping; and exterior lighting upgrades. It is scheduled to begin in November. The project has a scheduled delivery date of January 2026 and an estimated construction cost of $5.3 million.
In 2020, voters approved a nearly $3.5 billion bond package to provide funding for new construction, renovations, and safety upgrades at more than 200 of the district’s 230 campuses. The average age of those properties at that time was almost 52 years.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation, during the same year as the bond election, reported a significant drop in student enrollment — from 157,111 in 2009-2010 to 155,119 in 2018-2019. Dallas’ population over the same period, however, increased from about 5,041,000 to 6,201,000.
The district’s loss of students to charters, homeschooling, and other alternatives may partly be attributed to underwhelming student achievement. Forty-one percent of Dallas ISD, for example, scored at grade level on the STAAR exam in 2021-2022. The statewide average was 48%, according to the Texas Education Agency.
And while nearly 20% of its graduating class in 2022 did not receive a diploma in four years, only 10% failed to do so across the state.