Teacher who attended Farmers Branch Elementary urges support for new campus

A teacher who said she attended Farmers Branch Elementary from first through fifth grade said she is saddened that the building will be demolished but welcomed plans for a new campus that she said would offer more teaching spaces and shared areas to support student learning.

The speaker said the elementary school gave her a foundation and inspired her to become a teacher. "When I walk through these halls, it feels like home," she said, adding that seeing herself in current students reminded her of her own experience at the school.

She described the news of the planned demolition as emotional: "knowing that it's going to be demolished, it kind of like, you know, it pulls up my heartstrings." She framed a move to another campus, FA North, as a return to the central campus where she worked for four years and said it represents a "full circle" moment in her career.

Arguing for the benefits of a new facility, the speaker said additional spaces such as common areas and a library would expand learning beyond the classroom and help students remain engaged. "I believe the library is going to be really, really nice," she said, and added that more varied learning spaces would let students "learn around the school."

The speaker said she looks forward to the opportunities a new campus could offer students and teachers while expressing affection for the original Farmers Branch Elementary building.