The Board of Trustees of the Denton Independent School District has named Lantana’s new elementary school after Dorothy Adkins, a retired educator and former Trustee.
Dorothy P. Adkins Elementary School, which opens on Aug. 25, 2014, is being built on 12 acres north of FM 407 and west of Copper Canyon Road next to the Fairlin neighborhood of Lantana.
Adkins is a 58-year-resident of Denton and all five of her children and four of her 11 grandchildren are graduates of Denton schools. She taught in Denton ISD from 1968 to 1984 and served on the school board from 1993 to 1999.
She is known throughout the community as an advocate for all children, according to school officials.
In 2001, she helped co-found Denton ISD’s Grandparents in Public Schools, which now has more than 80 grandparents mentoring and tutoring students in the local schools.
In the 1960s, she co-founded the Women’s Christian Interracial Fellowship organization, which conducted tutoring sessions for students entering desegregated schools. News articles during this time period describe how the group eased the integration in the local schools by arranging social gatherings and worship services to help break down barriers.
Adkins was president of Denton Classroom Teachers Association, now known as DEA, and held several positions at the state and national level for Texas State Teachers Association and National Educators Association.
Adkins also was a founding member of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Denton and is past board president of Denton Christian Preschool. She served on the boards for the Denton City Library and Denton Public School Foundation. Adkins is a member of the League of Women Voters and Delta Kappa Gamma.
“Her outlook throughout her many years of service has always remained positive and optimistic because she’s always focused on what is best for kids. She truly cares about children and the overall well-being of our city,” said Dorothy Martinez in a nomination form.
Adkins received her bachelor’s degree from Texas State University and her master’s from Northern Colorado University. She has done post-graduate work at UNT.
Dorothy Adkins Elementary will feature many “green” designs. The plans incorporate the natural topography of the site and more sustainable features, such as a simplified roof design and utilization of a geothermal HVAC system.
This is the third elementary school to be built for the fast-growing Lantana development, which opened in 2001. Lantana currently has over 2,800 homes with more than 4,000 planned at buildout. There are more than 8,000 residents who live in the development. All Lantana students attend Guyer High School.
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