L. G. Pinkston High School

L.G. Pinkston High School
Address
2815 Bickers Street Dallas , Texas 75212 United States
Coordinates	32°47′16″N96°52′05″W / 32.78773°N 96.86814°W / 32.78773; -96.86814
Information
Type	Public, Secondary
School district	Dallas Independent School District
Principal	Mr. Dwain Simmons [1]
Staff	70.48 (FTE) [2]
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	906 (2017-18) [2]
Student to teacher ratio	12.85 [2]
Color(s)	Black and Gold
Mascot	Viking
Website	www.dallasisd.org/pinkston

L.G. Pinkston High School is a public secondary school in West Dallas, Texas (USA). L.G. Pinkston High School enrolls students in grades 7-12 and is a part of the Dallas Independent School District (DISD).

The school is named in honor of Dr. Lee Gresham Pinkston, an African American doctor who opened what was then Dallas's sole clinic for African-Americans, Pinkston Clinic Hospital, in 1927. He died in 1961. ^[3] The school serves the West Dallas neighborhoods.

In 2015, the school was rated "Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency. ^[4]

History

L.G. Pinkston High School opened in September 1964 as a school for black children. The building cost, with a capacity of 2,000, was $3,067,215. Circa 1965 it had about 900 students. ^[5]

Dwain Simmons became principal in 2014. ^[6]

As of 2015 the school had about 1,000 students. DISD had plans to rebuild the high school. DISD board member Lew Blackburn stated that he believed that the district's price figure of $130 million is too high. ^[5] A plan was proposed to have the George Washington Carver Creative Arts Learning Center building closed so a new Pinkston High School could be built on its site, tentatively opening in 2020. ^[7]

The school began serving middle school levels in 2018, absorbing students from the closed Edison Middle Learning Center, ^[6] which had perennial low scores in Texas state tests. ^[8] This meant Pinkston became DISD's first combined grade 7-12 school. A single wing of the complex was dedicated for the middle school students, with the first floor for 7th graders, the second for eighth graders, and the third for elective classes serving both grades. ^[9]

Academic performance

Pinkston had been ranked "Improvement Required" by the Texas Education Agency for a three year period from circa 2012 to 2014. Circa 2013 the passing rates of English examinations and mathematics examinations were below 50%. ^[6] In 2009, the state classified 10% of Pinkston's graduates as "college ready," or ready to undergo university studies. The State of Texas defined "college readiness" by scores on the ACT and SAT and in the 11th grade Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) tests. Several DISD schools with demographics similar to that of Pinkston, such as Bryan Adams High School, David W. Carter High School, and Madison High School had higher rates of college readiness than Pinkston. Holly K. Hacker of The Dallas Morning News said that the rate was "a dismal figure even when taking into account the school's poverty and other social challenges." ^[10] Liliana Valdez, the school district's director of college and career readiness, said that since the 2009 rankings, the district enacted measures at Pinkston to improve the statistics, including the creation of magnet programs for architecture, automotive technology, criminal justice, and law. ^[10]

After 2014 and by 2018 the rating improved to "Met Standard". ^[6]

Demographics

Students live in older single-family houses, private apartments, and Dallas Housing Authority public housing. ^[6] The following DHA properties are zoned to Pinkston for all levels (grades 7-12): ^{[11] [12]} the Hamptons at Lakewest, ^[13] Kingbridge Crossing, ^[14] Lakeview Townhomes, ^[15] and Villa Creek Apartments. ^[16]

In the 2016-2017 school year, about 75% of the students were Hispanic/Latino and about 25% were black. 92% of the students were classified as economically disadvantaged. The 2010 U.S. Census stated that the median income of the neighborhood around Pinkston was $11,000, and Bill Zeeble of KERA stated that this was "one of the poorest neighborhoods in Dallas." ^[6] The economically disadvantaged percentage was an increase from that of the 2006-2007 school year, when 76% of the students were classified as economically disadvantaged. ^[6]

Athletics

In 1987 John Kincaide, the athletic director of DISD, said that the district is prepared to allow Pinkston to be reclassified by the University Interscholastic League (UIL) from athletic class 5A to athletic class 4A; the UIL had the possibility of demoting the school to athletic class 4A as part of its biannual reclassification. ^[17] For 2014-2016 UIL classification Pinkston will be 4A instead of 3A. ^[18]

The L.G. Pinkston Vikings compete in the following sports: ^[19]

• Baseball
• Basketball
• Cross Country
• Football
• Golf
• Soccer
• Softball
• Tennis
• Track and Field
• Volleyball
• Wrestling

Notable alumni

• Tony Mitchell – former college basketball player for North Texas who was selected 37th overall in the 2013 NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons ^{[20] [21]}
• Regina Taylor – nationally known actor and playwright ^[22]
• Donnie Williams – American football player

See also

• African-Americans in Dallas-Fort Worth

References

1. Nces.ed.gov
2. "L G PINKSTON H S". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
3. "About Lee Gresham Pinkston." L. G. Pinkston High School. Retrieved on January 8, 2019.
4. "2015 Accountability Rating System". Texas Education Agency.
5. Hacker, Holly K. "Would a new Pinkston High really cost $130 million? Hard to say Archived 2015-11-21 at the Wayback Machine " (Archive). The Dallas Morning News . October 29, 2015. Retrieved on November 21, 2015. The attached contemporary article "School Begins 'Great Effort' in Education" describes it as a "Negro High School" (a school legally earmarked for black children) and gives the namesake information, the month of opening, the specific building costs, the 1965 enrollment, and the building capacity, while the main article gives the opening year.
6. Zeeble, Bill (2018-05-14). "Now Up To Standard, Pinkston High Prepares To Absorb Failing Middle School". KERA . Retrieved 2019-01-08.
7. Smith, Corbett (2017-01-31). "Dallas ISD wants to close a struggling school and move a magnet to make way for a new Pinkston". The Dallas Morning News . Retrieved 2019-01-08.
8. Zeeble, Bill (2018-05-07). "Dallas School To Close Even Though District Tried To Save It". KERA . Retrieved 2019-01-08.
9. Zeeble, Bill (2018-09-18). "Their Old Campus Closed. Now, These Dallas Middle Schoolers Attend Pinkston High". KERA . Retrieved 2019-01-08. There's a hall for seventh-graders and another above for eighth-graders. Up on the third floor, Maston says, are classrooms for electives.
10. Hacker, Holly K. "Analysis shows true Texas high school performance, stripping away socioeconomic factors." The Dallas Morning News . September 3, 2011. Retrieved on February 10, 2012.
11. "2018-19 Pinkston 7-8 Attendance Zone Grades 7-8." Dallas Independent School District. Retrieved on January 8, 2019.
12. "2018-19 L. G. Pinkston High Attendance Zone Grades 9-12." Dallas Independent School District. Retrieved on January 8, 2019.
13. "The Hamptons at Lakewest." Dallas Housing Authority. Retrieved on January 8, 2019. "2425 Bickers Street Dallas, TX 75212"
14. "Kingbridge Crossing." Dallas Housing Authority. Retrieved on January 8, 2019. "3130 Kingbridge St Dallas, TX 75212"
15. "Lakeview Townhomes." Dallas Housing Authority. Retrieved on January 8, 2019. "3020 Bickers Street Dallas, TX 75212"
16. "Villa Creek Apartments." Dallas Housing Authority. Retrieved on January 8, 2019. "3019 Bickers Street Dallas, TX 75212"
17. "DISD WILL LET PINKSTON, TJ DROP TO CLASS AAAA." The Dallas Morning News . December 2, 1987. Retrieved on November 26, 2011.
18. Smith, Corbett. "Dallas ISD schools will not opt up; Carter, Pinkston, Lincoln will ‘drop’ to Class 4A Archived 2013-12-11 at the Wayback Machine ." The Dallas Morning News . December 2, 2013. Retrieved on March 30, 2014.
19. The Athletics Department
20. "USA Basketball: Tony Mitchell". USABasketball.com. NBA Media Ventures, LLC. June 2011. Archived from the original on August 15, 2012. Retrieved February 8, 2013.
21. Henry, John (November 27, 2012). "North Texas star Tony Mitchell's journey could lead to NBA". Fort Worth Star-Telegram . The McClatchy Company . Retrieved February 8, 2013.
22. Black History Month: Local legends in music, theater, dance, and more Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine , Guide Live, The Dallas Morning News, February 3, 2006

External links

• Official website