Education in Dallas, Texas

This article is about education in Dallas, Texas (USA).

Colleges and universities

Dallas is a major center of education for much of the South Central United States. The city itself contains several universities, colleges, trade schools, and educational institutes. Several major Universities also lie in enclaves, satellite cities, and suburbs of the city, including the University of Texas at Dallas in Richardson, the University of Dallas in Irving, Dallas Christian College in Farmers Branch, Devry University Dallas in Irving, the University of North Texas in Denton, the University of Texas at Arlington in Arlington and the Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie.

Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a private, coeducational university located in University Park, an enclave of Dallas. It was founded in 1911 by the Southern Methodist Church [ [http://www.smu.edu SMU.edu] - [http://www.smu.edu/facts/history.asp Facts About SMU History] . Retrieved 9 May 2006.] and now enrolls 6,500 undergraduates, 1,200 professional students in the law and theology departments, and 3,500 postgraduates [ [http://www.smu.edu SMU.edu] - [http://www.smu.edu/facts/demographic.asp Facts About Demographics] . Retrieved 9 May 2006.] .

Dallas Baptist University (DBU) is a private, coeducational university located in the Mountain Creek area of southwestern Dallas. Originally located in Decatur, it moved to Dallas in 1965. [ [http://www.dbu.edu/ Dallas Baptist University] - [http://www.dbu.edu/about/history.asp History] . Retrieved 18 October 2006.] The school currently enrolls over 5,100 students. [ [http://www.dbu.edu/ Dallas Baptist University] - [http://www.dbu.edu/about/quick_facts.asp Facts and Statistics] .]

The University of North Texas at Dallas, currently located at a temporary site south of Oak Cliff along Interstate 20, [http://www.unt.edu/unt-dallas/ University of North Texas Dallas Campus] - [http://www.unt.edu/unt-dallas/location.htm Location] . Retrieved 4 October 2006.] is being built in south Dallas along Houston School Road. [http://www.unt.edu/unt-dallas/ University of North Texas Dallas Campus] . [http://www.unt.edu/unt-dallas/newcampus/index.htm New Campus] . Retrieved 4 October 2006.] It will be the first public university within Dallas city limits.

Paul Quinn College is a private, historically Black college located in southeast Dallas. Originally located in Waco, Texas, it moved to Dallas in 1993 and is housed on the campus of the former Bishop College, another private, historically Black college. Dallas billionaire and entrepreneur Comer Cottrell, founder of ProLine Corporation, bought the campus of Bishop College and it to Paul Quinn College in 1993. The school enrolls 3,000 undergraduate students.

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School is a prestigious medical school located in the Stemmons Corridor of Dallas. It is part of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, again one of the largest facilities of its kind in the world. The school is highly selective, admitting around 200 students a year. The facility enrolls 3255 postgraduates.

Schools

The Dallas Independent School District, which covers most of the city, is one of the largest school districts in the United States. It operates independently of the city and enrolls over 161,000 students [ [http://www.dallasisd.org DallasISD.org] - [http://www.dallasisd.org/ DISD] . Retrieved 1 May 2006.] . One of the district's magnet schools, the School for the Talented & Gifted, was named the #1 school in the United States (in a list of both public and private schools) by "Newsweek" [ [http://www.msnbc.com MSNBC.com] - [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12532678/sit Newsweek America's Best High Schools] . Retrieved 1 May 2006.] in 2006 and 2007. The Science and Engineering Magnet, another of the local magnet schools, was ranked eighth in 2006 and second in 2007 in the same survey.

Dallas also extends into several other school districts including Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Duncanville, Garland, Highland Park, Mesquite, Plano, and Richardson. The Wilmer-Hutchins Independent School District once served portions of southern Dallas but it was shut down for the 2005-2006 year. WHISD students started attending other Dallas ISD schools during that time. Following the close, the Texas Education Agency consolidated WHISD into Dallas ISD, which will work to rebuild the schools in the former WHISD area.

A governmental agency called Dallas County Schools provides transportations services and other services to the school districts in Dallas County.

Libraries

The city is served by the Dallas Public Library system. The system was originally created by the Dallas Federation of Women's Clubs with efforts spearheaded by then-president Mrs. Henry (May Dickson) Exall — Her work raising money led to a grant from philanthropist and steel baron Andrew Carnegie, which enabled the construction of the first branch in 1901 [ [http://www.dallaslibrary.org/ DallasLibrary.org] - [http://www.dallaslibrary.org/100/historySynopsis.htm History] . Retrieved 1 May 2006.] . Today the library operates 22 branch locations throughout the city [ [http://dallaslibrary.org/ DallasLibrary.org] . Retrieved 13 March 2006.] including the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library, the 8-story main branch in the Government District of downtown.

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in the Stemmons Corridor operates a library across two branches on its north and south campuses. The library holds 256,000 volumes in all formats, including 83,000 books and 30,000 full-text electronic journals [ [http://www4.utsouthwestern.edu/library/about/facts.cfm UT Southwestern Library Facts and Statistics] . Retrieved 11 May 2006.] .

References