Contact: Liz Scruggs
972-860-5448;
MScruggs@DallasCollege.edu
For immediate release — Nov. 17, 2020
(DALLAS) — The Meadows Foundation has awarded Dallas College’s School of Education $300,000 to support training the next generation of teachers. The funds will build an educational pathway and develop the instructional support required for a new bachelor’s degree in education. The degree will be offered by the Dallas College School of Education, one of seven schools established earlier this year, when the seven colleges that constituted the Dallas County Community College District were merged into a single institution.
More than 3,000 students have engaged in associate degree-level education courses at Dallas College. By Fall 2024, at the current rate of growth and through the continuing support of community partners like The Meadows Foundation, the college will be able to prepare more than 500 teachers a year for Dallas County, according to Dr. Rob DeHaas, vice provost of the School of Education. Dr. DeHaas was informed of the award last month.
“We’re incredibly grateful to The Meadows Foundation for recognizing the importance of educator preparation to the future of Texas, and specifically for the foundation’s early recognition of the vital role Dallas College will play in preparing the region’s teachers of tomorrow,” he said. “The Meadows funding helps support the North Texas pipeline of qualified education professionals who will be the instructional and classroom leaders our students deserve.”
With the Meadows Foundation support of the school’s instructional needs, Dallas College will eventually have the opportunity to serve more than 5,000 students in the School of Education.
“The biggest driver of student achievement in school is the classroom instructor,” said Peter M. Miller, president and CEO of The Meadows Foundation. “The new Dallas College School of Education is unprecedented in its scale and quality, as well as its potential to provide a perse, well-qualified teacher pipeline for our highest-need schools.
“We commend Dallas College leadership for their bold, innovative and transformational approach,” Miller added. “The Meadows Foundation is honored to support these efforts, and we look forward to the impact they will have on schools, classrooms and, ultimately, students in Dallas.”
As part of the grant, the Dallas College School of Education agreed to partner with two school districts to establish 32 paid residencies for teacher candidates by Fall 2021 and place 125 teacher candidates in paid residency positions by Fall 2022.
“I am proud of the leadership that Dr. DeHaas is providing for our School of Education, and it means a great deal to have the support and partnership of The Meadows Foundation,” Dr. Joe May, chancellor of Dallas College, said of the award. “This early and substantial gift from The Meadows Foundation will have a multiplier effect down the road in terms of increasing the number of well-trained educators entering the pipeline and attracting further investment from the philanthropic community.”
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About the Meadows Foundation
Since its establishment, The Meadows Foundation has given more than $1.25 billion to 3,600 charitable organizations. Grants have been awarded in large urban areas, small rural communities and every Texas county. The foundation looks for programs and services that use imaginative, innovative ways to solve community problems and promotes projects and capital plans that lead to organizational self-sufficiency and sustainable growth. Over the past 42 years, the foundation has funded in the areas of arts and culture, civic and public affairs, education, health and human services. For additional information, visit
mfi.org.