Garland School District GISD Messing with the school zones, so kids will end up going to bad schools! Garland, Texas

  I wish it was that simple to have your children to attend the Magnet Schools in Garland .

I've been trying for 4 yrs with my AA fifth grader son who got invited 4 or 5 times to Manet schools in GISD  based on his IBTS and after he applied  told he was not picked thru the Lotto system..
  He just got invited again to Jackson for the 6th grade and I will try again..

 My 2nd grade daughter was invited to Watson last year and applied and we got same respond.. Was not picked up .. on the waiting list .. This year her overall score on ITBS is 99% .. No invitation yet since it is too early but I will keep my fingers crossed..

 In GISD you will be told if you apply to a magnet school as a first choice and another school (magnet or not) as a second choice and you do not get accepted they cannot even guarantee you to go back to your old school.. They will pick one up for you..

   Now how is this for a choice of school ???????

Garland has built plenty of schools, buildings are not the problem.   In fact, GISD is at or very near "build out".  Garland has kept up fairly well with its increasing population over the last 30 years.  During the 70s through the 90s GISD was opening a new school nearly every 18 months. 

Neighborhoods in Garland, as with almost any district in the state and country have demographics that change over time.  Sometimes it is necessary to change the lines a little in an effort to meet federal guidelines of racial enrollment.  However, GISD has "choice of school" which gives a student other choices besides one that is classified as their "neighborhood school".  Magnet schools in GISD were created to meet the course of study that students were interested in, to meet the demands of a global society and to better prepare students for college and the workforce.  These magnets are often created in older neighborhoods with changing demographics (aka "The hood")  North Garland is a perfect example, it has been the Math and Technology magnet for a very long time.  Drawing some of the smartest and most well behaved students in the district.     Garland HS houses the IB (college level course of study) programs for academics, art and theater. 

Magnet school choice is open to ALL students of GISD if they meet the criteria that includes, a particular course of study that is only available at one campus,  no behavior problems, higher test scores on TAKS, ITBS and report cards.  (some of them only require that the student score in at least the 50%- 60% percentile or higher on ITBS.   Most of the students in GISD will qualify and will receive a letter in January/Feb inviting them to submit an application to one or ALL of the magnet schools.  Usually, if a student fits the criteria for one magnet, he or she will qualify for all giving the student several options.  If the student is accepted into any magnet, the district will provide bus transportation if its needed.

If you receive invitations to any or all of those schools I would suggest that you apply to ALL of them.  Be sure to fill out the forms thoroughly and turn them in BEFORE the deadline.  Visit the schools for a tour.  Hopefully one or all of those schools will have a spot for your student.   Then you can choose the best fit for your child's needs, skills and interests.   Go to the district web site for more information on GISD schools.

Garland and Bussey may be "hood" but they are Recognized schools as per the state of Texas.

http://www.garlandisd.net/departments/pre/school_ratings.asp

The City of Garlands School District Offices refuse to answer my questions. Why do they feel the need to place kids that live in North Garland area into bad schools? Due to their so-called rezoning efforts, my daughter has been placed into one of the worse middle schools in their district. Just because they didn't take the time to build enough good schools for kids to go to, doesn't mean my kid and others should pay for it. Why are these kids being shipped to schools in South Garland? Schools that have the worst reputations when it comes to test scores and student value. Schools like Bussey, Garland, North Garland, and South Garland are what I call hood schools. They want to bus hundreds of kids to these schools, because parents don't want to willingly enroll their kids there? What is the point of filling out a school of choice form if they are going to place them where ever the hell they want to! Someone needs to petition this issue before it continues to get worse. We need to stand up and let them know we will not keep letting them cart our kids off to these awful schools.