Marsalis Elementary One of 20 Schools to Get $50K Innovation Grant

On Friday, 20 Dallas ISD schools — including Marsalis Elementary — got extremely exciting news: They had been chosen for a $50,000 innovation grant that would allow them to start new programs and utilize new education models.

We first told readers about the  Innovation Engine Grant Program last month, when the district announced it was accepting applications from schools. The grant, which was specifically for neighborhood schools, allowed the Office of Transformation and Innovation to choose 20 schools to receive the seed money for their programs.

Marsalis Elementary, which will explore STEAM instruction programs, also just recently added a debate team for its fifth-graders after becoming one of 16 schools selected to pilot the new elementary debate program.

Programs the seed money will fund range from improving and creating space for social and emotional learning to training teachers on new teaching strategies and more, all with an eye toward supporting innovation on their campuses.

“The grant program aims to deepen and expand innovation in neighborhood schools across Dallas ISD, with the ultimate goal of preparing campuses to become official Dallas ISD ‘Innovation Schools,'” the district said. “This grant program provides critical planning year funding to help school teams explore and find the best-fit model for their school community.”

“We are committed to accelerating innovation in Dallas ISD by bringing more educational choices and innovative programs into our families’ backyards,” said Angie Gaylord, Dallas ISD Deputy Chief of Transformation and Innovation.

The additional schools selected include:

• Lincoln High School (Virtual Learning)
• North Dallas High School (Design Thinking)
• Young Women’s STEAM Academy at Balch Springs Middle School (G.I.F.T.)
• Woodrow Wilson High School (Wildcat Way)
• Terry Elementary School (STEAM)
• Lee A. McShan Elementary School (STEAM)
• John Ireland Elementary School (Expeditionary Learning)
• Gilbert Cuellar, Sr. Elementary School (Leadership STREAM)
• Maria Moreno Elementary School (STEAM)
• Arcadia Park Elementary School (Leadership)
• John Neely Bryan Elementary School (STEM/STEAM)
• George Peabody Elementary School (SEL)
• James Bowie Elementary School (Global Service Learning)
• Anne Frank Elementary School (Personalized Learning)
• Harry C. Withers Elementary School (STEM)
• Bayles Elementary School (Leadership)
• K.B. Polk Elementary School (Personalized Learning)
• Oran M. Roberts Elementary School (Blended Learning)
• Urban Park Elementary School (STEM)

We found a home with plenty of room for kiddos, and a great fenced backyard, and at an fairly affordable pricepoint, too.

This relatively newer home was built in 2004, and has four bedrooms and two baths. Located at 746 Grambling Drive, the open floor plan common areas provide the perfect layout for prepping dinner while overseeing homework.

It’s also got easy-to-care-for, family-friendly laminate flooring in the common areas, and new carpet in the bedrooms.  There might be some updates a new buyer would want to do in the kitchen, but when the home is priced for less than $200,000, you can easily tweak the kitchen, or even hold off for a bit and save up.

The home is priced at $178,000, and is listed by Liat Turkia with Fathom Realty.

For more about Marsalis Elementary, click here. For more about innovation grant, click here. To see more of this week’s featured listing, click here. To see more School+House features, click here.