The school, named in honor of the Dallas school superintendent who served from 1946 to 1968, is located in
North Dallas about a mile southwest of the
Interstate 635 (LBJ Freeway) and Dallas North Tollway intersection. Parts of North Dallas are zoned to W. T. White, as well as sections of
Addison,
Carrollton, and
Farmers Branch.
The school was established in 1964 and named for the superintendent then in office, Dr. Warren Travis White. The current principal is Beth Wing.
Campus
The original school building was designed for 1,600 students. By 2015 W.T. White had over 2,300 students, which meant that the school was at 160% of its capacity. The campus had
portable buildings installed to handle excess students. In 2015 the DISD board approved a $21 million renovation and expansion of the campus as part of a school improvement program worth almost $130 million; the renovation will add 39,045 square feet (3,627.4 m2) of space.[4] WRA Architects is in charge of the project and a graduate of W.T. White is the head architect. The project is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2017.[5][needs update]
Vocational academies
The school has some career-oriented academies, such as the Academy of Engineering.[citation needed]
Demographics
In 2009, the state classified almost half of White'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."[6]
In 2019 80.00% of the student body consisted of diversity students.[7]
Service area
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citations.(November 2020)
^Gretel C. Kovach. "Q&A with Vice Adm. John G. Cotton - 'My friends were murdered. So I'm doing it for them.' - Former American Airlines pilot sets out to make the Navy 'one team'," The Dallas Morning News, September 26, 2004, Sunday Reader section, page 6H.
^Ken Stephens. "Baseball's lack of blacks: faster sports, inner-city troubles steer them away from game," The Dallas Morning News, May 28, 1989, Sports Day section, page 1B: "Calvin Murray has every skill a major league scout could want in a baseball player -- able to hit, hit with power, run, throw and field. At the very least, Murray, a senior at Dallas' W.T. White High School, will attend the University of Texas next fall on a baseball scholarship. But Murray, ranked the nation's No. 7 prospect by Baseball America, likely will be a high pick in the major league draft June 5 and might opt to sign a professional contract."
This list is incomplete. Italicized public schools are not in the "full purpose" Dallas city limits but have portions of Dallas in their attendance boundaries.