Of individuals in the city of Denton, 7.8% of individuals are recognized as those in poverty. There are 33,566 single parent households in the community, or 56% (Economic Development Department, n.d.). In the community, 4.6% of the population are unemployed. About 91.5% of households have a high school graduate degree or higher and 40% have a bachelor’s degree or higher. There are two universities in Denton, Texas Woman’s University (TWU) and University of North Texas (UNT), along with a community college, North Central Texas College (NCTC). UNT has a demographic of 5,761 of males and 5,201 females. TWU has a demographic of 292 males and 1,034 females (Economic Development Department, n.d.).

            The teachers in the Denton ISD school district have demographics of 8.5% Black or African American, 1% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 0.3% American Indian, 14.6% Hispanic or Latino, and 73.9% White. There are also about 50 full-time school counselors in the Denton school district(U.S. News & World Report, 2024).

Denton County Magazine. (2024). About Us. https://www.dentoncountymagazine.com/site/about.html

Denton County MHMR Center. (n.d.). About. https://www.dentonmhmr.org/about/

Denton Record-Chronicle. (2024). Denton Record-Chronicle. https://dentonrc.com/

Denton Together Coalition. (2024). Community Partners/Stakeholders. https://www.dentontogethercoalition.com/community-partners-stakeholders

Economic Development Department. (n.d.). Statistical trends and news of Denton. City of Denton. https://www.cityofdenton.com/DocumentCenter/View/8592/Qtr-4-FY-22-23-STaND

KUZU. (n.d.) About KUZU. https://www.kuzu.fm/about-1

Our Daily Bread. (n.d.). Our New Facility. https://www.ourdailybreaddenton.org/our-story

Serve Denton. (n.d.). A One-Stop-Shop for Resources. https://www.servedenton.org/

Shiloh Garden. (n.d.). We are all about feeding hungry people. https://www.shilohfield.com/

United States Census Bureau. (n.d.). QuickFacts. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/dentoncitytexas/PST045223

U.S. News & World Report. (2024). Denton Independent School District. https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/texas/districts/denton-isd-112266#:~:text=Denton%20Independent%20School%20District%20contains,of%20students%20are%20economically%20disadvantaged.

City of Denton. (n.d.). Affordable Housing. https://www.cityofdenton.com/996/Affordable-Housing

City of Denton. (n.d.). Homeless Solutions. https://www.cityofdenton.com/428/Homelessness-Solutions

Denton Independent School District. (2024). Social Work. https://www.dentonisd.org/page/1190

United Way. (2024). Denton County Works. https://www.unitedwaydenton.org/dentoncountyworks

The teacher-principal residency was providing insight to the residency program from the UNT and TWU student teachers attempting to receive their hours through the Denton ISD school district while they are in school. Some challenges faced through the budget and funding for programs and needs in the school district was the current deficit of their budget. Denton ISD currently has 20 million fund balance and it is estimated to drop to around 19 or 17 million the following school year. The superintendent reported a budget plan "1925 plan" to accommodate and build funding for the district in a protective measure of the legislature not providing assistance. The superintendent reported the school are provided funding assistance through attendance and not enrollment, which has caused difficulty with receiving funding. Other challenges in the meeting were the difficulty of raising taxes to assist with the school district funding due to residents of Denton County receiving a break through the legislature after many reported concerns of losing housing. The main issue was the funding/budget due to keeping up with inflation in the economy.

The superintendent informed me of the opening of a new school in Little Elm, however reported difficulties with the opening of the school due to budget concerns. The superintendent provided insight to assistance to starting the Ninth-Grade Jump Start Program that provides students in the ninth-grade assistance when they are experiencing difficulty with the content in school. It provides extra individual assistance to prevent students from repeating a grade. Needs that are needed in the community, as indicated by the superintendent, are increased funding due to difficulty in the budget to hire new teachers and staff for the school. The superintendent reported that there have been program closures in the school and stated concern for budget cuts to the arts programs such as band or theatre.

Due to opening a new school, there have been concerns about the success of the school for the students due to the budget. The Superintendent reported programs, such as working with Pedi Place, a pediatric facility to provide physicals to students, have been important in the past. Insight to working with the community to provide volunteering opportunities and allow for increased residency programs are a large factor to assist in the budgeting concern. The superintendent reported the funding has decreased since 2019 due to inflation and there has been a lack of support through the legislature. The superintendent reported Denton ISD is one of the fastest growing school districts and it has increased class sizes to over 30 students per classroom. The superintendent reported that larger classroom sizes are not beneficial for the students due to lack of individual care or individuals needs met for students that may experience difficulty in school.

I spoke to the superintendent about possible solutions for the concerns and asked about events where the community, students, and teachers can become involved to learn about the concerns in the school. The superintendent stated that events in the community or through the school are an option, however it can cost money to bring events together which may not be in the budget. The superintendent reported that speaking to media and bringing the information through platforms that can spread to the public in a way it can show up on their phone is another solution to bring awareness to the concerns. The superintendent reported reaching out to local businesses can also provide awareness and support for the students and faculty.

The interview with the superintendent provided insight to the difficulties and process in reaching out to the community and bringing awareness to problems within the community and school district. Through speaking to the superintendent, it was insightful to learn that there are small organizations or different businesses that assist the schools with programs for the students. The budget and concerns with schools operating due to the funding and inflation were concerning. It was brought to my attention that bringing awareness through media (such as news stations, articles, and social media) can provide effective awareness to assist district/school concerns.