Editorial: New Oak Cliff high school

Oak Cliff needs a high school for the 21st century


12:00 AM CDT on Saturday, March 15, 2008

BRIDGING DALLAS'

NORTH-SOUTH GAP When the architects were designing the old Oak Cliff High School in the early 1900s, there was no way they could predict today's technologies. How could they imagine laptops when Charles Lindbergh hadn't even flown over the Atlantic?

That's how long it has been since Adamson High, as it is now known, was built in north Oak Cliff. And while the neglected school recently got some improvements, the current campus can't keep pace with demands students face. Not if we believe children in the southern half of Dallas deserve the same shot at quality schools as students north of the Trinity do, including the fabulous schools of suburbs such as Allen, Frisco and Plano.

There's no doubt Adamson's showing academic progress. Last year, the largely Latino school graduated its largest number of seniors in a decade or so.

Here are two critical ways that a new building, which the designers of the 2008 Dallas school bond package have proposed constructing around Adamson's historic facade, would help:

More square feet for classes. The school does not meet the current standards for classroom size. And the extra space would allow students to learn in smaller, interactive groups, instead of sitting in the traditional rows that compact classrooms require. Research shows that cooperative study is one way to help students learn better.

Wiring for today's technology. The district can't keep nickel-and-diming the building into the 21st century. In fact, it would cost more over time to keep adding to Adamson's infrastructure than to build a new school.

The Dallas school district is going in an exciting new direction when it comes to its high schools. Each campus soon will compete to attract students from across the city. As Adamson gears up to become a "destination high school," it deserves a modern building to attract students.

Adamson and its surrounding neighborhoods deserve as much of a shot at that as any part of the city, which is one reason we hope Dallas voters pass the bond plan in May. READ previous editorials and commentary on Dallas' north-south gap at dallasnews.com/opinion/ northsouth.