Uplifting underserved students in Preston Hollow

Preston Hollow is getting a new school come Aug. 6 in what used to be a warehouse. The kindergarten through second-grade school, Uplift Triumph Preparatory, is nonprofit organization Uplift Education’s 27th charter school in the Metroplex. Located in a building that is being redesigned with the help of HKS Architects, the school on 9411 Hargrove Drive will give preference to students who live in the 75220, 75209 and 75235 zip codes. The school will also add a grade level each year until it reaches the fifth grade. The goal is to provide college preparatory education for low-income and “educationally underserved” children. Anyone is welcome to apply for enrollment on a lottery basis, but students from the aforementioned areas go to the top of the list. Director (principal) Christine Denison was formerly dean (vice principal) at Uplift Peak Preparatory in Lakewood for three and a half years. Denison started her education career in the Teach For America program as a bilingual science teacher in the border town of Mercedes, Texas. That experience, she says, is “beneficial because this school will be 98 percent Hispanic.” Denison went to Uruguay on a fellowship after she completed her two years with Teach For America. It was there that she realized she missed teaching. What Denison is most excited about is working with children who don’t come from families that went to college. Though Uplift Triumph Preparatory is at the elementary level, “we start talking about college with them from day one,” she says. Denison says Uplift schools traditionally have posters and artifacts from colleges throughout, and teachers work with scholars (students) to develop their ability to communicate effectively off the bat. So no one- to- two word responses will be tolerated. “The cognitive load will be on the scholar, not the teacher. We are minimizing teacher talk and maximizing scholar interactivity,” she says. Another one of Denison’s priorities is providing a “joyful campus.” She says she is working hard to launch a community garden where parents can be involved on all levels of their child’s edu- cation. Denison says the school will have a bilingual office staff that will have monthly meetings with parents. The 42,000-squarefoot school should be completed by the second week of July so it can start new teacher training. Uplift Education currently serves 7,500 scholars, and they expect that number to increase to 9,000 after Uplift Triumph is complete. —Monica S. Nagy

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Join us for wine, hors d’oeuvres, live music and a look at our Rehabilitation Services. Tuesday, May 14 at 4:30 - 7:00 p.m.

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Do some spring cleaning … and donate high-end clothing, furniture, household items, books and accessories to the Family Place Resale Shop. Donations allow victims of family violence to shop for clothes for free, and help Family Place set up apartments for clients moving out of the shelter and supportive living program. Take your donations to the Family Place Resale Shop at 11722 Marsh.

Teach English in the mornings … to non-English speaking adults by signing up to teach one four-day week 9 a.m.–11 a.m. Monday through Thursday. The teaching is a part of VMLC Changing Lives through Literacy, an organization that serves 1,000 adults and 200 young children annually by teaching English literacy skills at no charge. Orientation and training dates are available May and early June. Teacher training and materials are provided and no second language experience is necessary. To volunteer contact Liz Harling at 214.265.5057 ext. 102 or volunteer@vmlc.org.

Donate to Team Romeo … and help Romeo Hernandez, a 15-year old Hillcrest sophomore, in his recovery from Ewing Sarcoma bone cancer. Hernandez missed several months of school this year, and friends, teachers and family started a “Team Romeo” website to help raise $10,000 for hospital bills. Visit teamromeo. webs.com to help with moral and financial support.

Know of ways that neighbors can spend time, attend an event, or purchase or donate something to benefit a neighborhood nonprofit? Email your suggestion to launch@advocatemag.com.