Ward Brown English Jr.

Ward Brown English, Jr., 71, died Wednesday, October 10, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. He is survived by his sister Mildred English Mayfield of Fort Worth, Texas; niece Marilyn Mayfield and nephew James Mayfield of Fort Worth, Texas; niece Suzanne Mayfield Harrigan and her husband Mickey of Hitchcock, Texas; great-nephew David Mayfield, his wife Amanda, their children Annystin, Devynn, and Micah of Sandy, Utah; great-nephew Ward Mayfield of Taylorsville, Utah; and great niece Danielle Fredine of West Jordan,Utah. Ward was born March 31, 1947. In his own words… I was born in Springhill, Louisiana a million years ago, but my parents moved me to Texas before I was old enough to crawl, so I claim to ALMOST be a native Texan. I grew up in Arp, a little bitty town in East Texas that had one stop light down by the railroad tracks. I early on developed a passion for trains--and would run down to the depot each night when I heard the whistle blowing and "help" the man put outgoing mail on the train and collect incoming bags of mail into his cart to lock up in the depot until morning. I did this countless times, setting my sights on becoming a railroad conductor one day. As I grew into adolescence, that passion gave way to math--I was born into a family of teachers, and was sure that I would become the next great math teacher of the day--until I had a Geometry teacher that I absolutely despised. My next passion was English language and literature. I graduated from Arp High School, and then attended Tyler (TX) Junior College before getting my BA in English from Oklahoma Christian University. I got my MS in Human Relations/Management from Abilene Christian University and my mid-management certification from Texas Woman's University. I taught all levels of high school English, speech, journalism, and a smattering of theatre arts for 22 years. As rewarding as that was, I got antsy for something new. A Goldilocks wig and a passion for storytelling landed me a job as the staff development specialist for secondary English, language arts, and world languages with the Dallas ISD. I went on to become the executive director of staff development for the Dallas ISD before going into local building administration. I served as the Dean of Instruction at Hood Middle School, Hillcrest High School, and Skyline High School, retiring in 2008 as the Associate Principal for Teaching and Learning at Skyline High School, the largest single-campus high school in Texas. I have served as an adjunct instructor at Eastfield College and El Centro College, both with the Dallas County Community College District, and at the University of Dallas. I served for several years as a national trainer for USA Today, teaching teachers across the nation how to use the newspaper as a teaching tool in the classroom. One of my fondest memories is working with some fantastic teachers at Hood Middle School in Dallas to move that campus from Academically Unacceptable to Academically Acceptable in one year, and receiving a banner to fly high in front of our building proclaiming that we were the most improved school in the district. It wasn't easy--but kids are worth it--and I'm thankful to have had that opportunity and to be able to share with others strategies for success in the classroom. Ward enjoyed working Early Voting for Dallas County, and loved “dropping names” of who came by that day to vote. One of the real blessings in his life was teaching Sunday School at Highland Oaks for over 40 years. He loved his 3rd graders. He hated having to miss, and would always try to be back from his travels in time for Sunday school. He delighted in telling stories about his kids and what they were learning in class. Memorials may be made to the Ward English Memorial Skyline High School Scholarship fund or the charity of your choice. Until the scholarship is fully set up send donations to: Candace McAfee, 1010 Signal Ridge Place, Rockwall, TX 75032-5424.

Ward Brown English Jr.

March 31, 1947 - October 10, 2018