Students in Denton ISD go back to class on Wednesday and there’s a lot more to celebrate than just the first day of school.
The district is starting the year off with a new superintendent, Dr. Susannah Holbert O’bara, who is the first woman to lead the district in its 142-year history. She spent the first day revisiting the same schools she attended as a child in Denton ISD and connecting with teachers who used to be her students when she was a teacher in the district.
"One of the things that I truly try to instill in our first-year teachers, all the way up to our principals – whether they're male or female – is that concept of, lead from where you are. And I think they have connected with me because they knew when I was their classroom teacher that I was leading them. And I think that's the opportunity they see for themselves, that it's possible,” she said.
The district is also debuting some new campuses as the district tries to keep up with record-breaking growth and other changes.
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Martinez Elementary School, located just east of Denton city limits in Little Elm, is one of those new campuses opening its door for the first time to hundreds of students on Wednesday. The school is named after long-time Denton educator and district leader, Dorothy Martinez. In a unique and rare moment, kids had a chance to meet the namesake of their own school in person on the first day of school.
“I couldn’t have ever in my furthest wish or idea known that this building would have my name on it. It makes me want to cry,” she said tearfully. “I love kids. My first priority has always been to make things good and safe for them first – then I worry about my colleagues and myself.”
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The area around Martinez, which sits off Highway 380 east of Denton, has quickly become the largest attendance zone for Denton ISD. There are so many people moving to this area, that U.S. Census data now shows Denton County as the 6th fastest-growing county in the nation, with 4,000 new students expected in just the next five years.
“We're 186 square miles as a district. We are only about a third of the way built out. So when I think about what I knew in Denton 30 or 40 years ago, and really the next 30 or 40 years to come, we're not even halfway there yet,” said Dr. O’Bara.
None know better than Superintendent Dr. O’Bara, who is all new to her job but not to Denton. From kindergarten to doctorate, all of her schooling has been right in Denton County.
In fact, her interview with NBC 5 was held in the halls of her alma mater, the old Denton High School, which was gutted and remodeled into the new Calhoun Middle School after a new high school was built.
The all-new Calhoun Middle School debuts on Wednesday, along with the newly renovated Newton Rayzor Elementary School next door. Two more new schools, Hills Elementary and Reeves Elementary, are in the pipeline to open next year.
Each campus features enhanced security, technology, and architecture that has never been seen before in Denton ISD.
“The buildings have a lot of collaborative spaces, a lot of open spaces,” said Dr. O’Bara. “As we designed these buildings, we thought about learning on display and how we ensure that everywhere we go in every part of the building, there's an opportunity to see learning, to participate in learning, to collaborate.”
Funding for these projects is covered thanks to bond packages approved by Denton voters in 2018 and 2023.
The challenge now is finding the money to staff these new schools. That’s because the Texas legislature didn’t approve more funding to help public schools deal with inflation, rapid growth, post-pandemic impacts, and a teacher shortage.
Funding and how much money schools get in Texas is based on attendance on the first day of school. But with charter schools, more families opting to homeschool, and families moving to out of the heart of DFW and into places like Denton, many districts have had to consolidate and close schools.
With the population boom in Denton ISD, Denton has used the bond money to build and upgrade more schools to keep up. However, the lack of funding from the state forced the district to come up with a special staffing plan this year and freeze positions. This caused the district to delay the opening of the new Hill Elementary School, which was supposed to open this week but could not due to staffing shortages.
"I believe very much in focusing on what's within my circle of control. We have a lot of influence, and we need to use our influence to be sure we educate and advocate for public education. But what I can do every day is ensure that the children in our district and the teachers in our district have what they need to provide a high-quality education to our graduates, to our students every day.”
That’s why O’Bara’s top priority in her new role is the district budget. She said she plans on creating a community committee this fall to give parents and taxpayers a seat at the table in crafting the next budget and navigating these challenges.
“We're going to call it the 19-25 committee -- because we are developing our 2025 budget based on 2019 funding. That is a priority that we ensure that we are using our taxpayer dollars well and meeting the needs of our community," she said. "I want this to be a place where teachers want to be, where children want to be, where their families want to be so that our community continues to thrive.”
