A former Dallas middle school is scheduled to reopen as a junior high campus late next year after officials complete a renovation project.
What was formerly known as Edison Middle School will reopen as West Dallas Junior High School within Dallas ISD. According to a Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation filing, the estimated construction cost to taxpayers is $13 million for the campus’ new 196,404-square-foot design. Work is scheduled to begin in May, and the project has an anticipated completion date of December 31, 2025.
Dallas ISD voters approved a pair of propositions in 2020 to fund $3.4 billion for improvements and repairs at more than 200 campuses, including at the former Edison Middle School, and for technology upgrades. According to the district’s website, renovations at 2940 Singleton Blvd. are still in the design phase.
Initially, the old Edison was to become a STEM center for pre-K-8 students before district officials changed course, The Dallas Weekly reported. When the campus reopens as West Dallas Junior High School, it will only house seventh- and eighth-grade students.
The $3.7 billion bond election in 2020 — the largest in Texas history, according to The Dallas Morning News — included five propositions, but voters rejected those that would have funded the construction of a performing arts center and stadium and natatorium improvements. At the time of the election, the average age of Dallas ISD campuses was almost 52 years old — more than seven years higher than the national average.
Other campuses in the design stage include Dallas Environmental Science Academy, Edwin J. Kiest Elementary School, William Lipscomb Elementary School, Victor H. Hexter Elementary School, Lincoln High School, Justin F. Kimball High School, and Harry C. Withers Elementary School. Fourteen campuses are under construction, and four have been completed.
For West Dallas Junior High School, Houston-based PBK Architects is the design firm listed on the state filing.
Yet throughout this and other building projects, the West Dallas community has questioned whether district officials have been listening to the issues they’ve raised — joining in other criticisms of Dallas ISD, such as an alleged lack of transparency and financial mismanagement, as previously covered by The Dallas Express.
For instance, one resident named Debbie Solis noted at a community meeting held in December that Edison Middle School’s practice fields were paved over for staff parking, and their restoration was not included in the project plans.
“But we still need sports, and we need to pull that cement out of there,” Solis said, according to the Dallas Weekly. “We’ve been screwed the whole time, and even if we’re not going to grow, we deserve better. Our kids deserve better.”
Dallas ISD has seen student enrollment drop, which was flagged by the Texas Public Policy Foundation in 2020. Although many North Texas public school systems are losing students to charter schools and other education alternatives, the downward trend seen at Dallas ISD has likely to do in part with it logging underwhelming student achievement scores for years.
Just 41% of Dallas ISD scored at grade level on the STAAR exam in 2021-2022, whereas the statewide average was 48%, according to the Texas Education Agency. Additionally, nearly 20% of its graduating Class of 2022 did not earn a diploma in four years.
