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Jan 9, 2009 6:38 pm US/Central
DISD Parents Recruiting Private School Students
DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
A group of parents wants private school students to give the Dallas public school system a chance.
About 1,400 students fill the halls and classrooms of Dallas' Woodrow Wilson High School. On the streets surrounding the school, there are signs in yards calling out to students who have Wilson as their neighborhood school, but whose families opted for a private education elsewhere.
Alex Horne transferred to Wilson this year.
"They want a make up of the whole neighborhood," he said. "They want it to be present at Woodrow, and it's not."
The school's Parent Teacher Association initiated a "Choose Woodrow" plan to recruit upper income families.
Over 50-percent of the school's current student body is defined as economically disadvantaged.
"Our goal was to contact people like us, who can afford to send their kids anywhere in the country, but decided to send them to Woodrow, to better the neighborhood," said Bobbi Willhite, PTA recruiter.
The school's stellar academic reputation and strong advanced placement courses is being used as a "Choose Woodrow" tool when pitching to families who may be re-evaluating the costs of private school in this current economic climate.
So far the campaign seems to be working as more students like Horne make the choice to move to Wilson.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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