Students with high educational abilities need access to talented and gifted academic programs to remain challenged and and thrive in school. Luckily, Dallas ISD has many talented and gifted magnet schools across the metroplex, including one of the best Middle Schools in the State of Texas: Sudie L. Williams Talented and Gifted Academy! Sudie is one of 7 Talented and Gifted Magnet Schools in DISD, and is routinely sought after as the "First Choice" magnet school on student applications.
To get accepted into Sudie, you have to apply through the Dallas ISD application process from November 1st through January 31st. The application window for 2026-2027 will be here before you know it, so now is the time to set up a tour at the school. To set up a tour, click this link! The application criteria is very similar to other Dallas ISD magnet schools. Every student who applies will get scored by 100 points. Half of those points come from the student's report cards and standardized testing scores from their current school. The other half of the points comes from a test that Travis administers on site. This test (The Naglieri General Ability Test, Third Edition or the NNAT3) consists of a timed test portion and an essay, which has to be typed. Admissions are based on the 30/70 rule, which is designed to ensure that magnet school seats are distributed geographically across the district while still maintaining high academic standards. 30% of the admissions are awarded to top-scoring applications districtwide, no matter the feeder pattern. The other 70% of admissions are allocated to the top-scoring students from each comprehensive high school feed patterns across the district. This formula aims to balance merit-based access with geographical diversity.
Sudie is located in North Dallas and opened as a traditional neighborhood elementary school in 1952, before transforming into a talented and gifted magnet school serving grades 4-8. They have around 90 kids per grade and a classroom size of approx. 20-22 kids. Their student population was around 450 at the end of last school year. Every teacher on campus is GT certified and Sudie is one of the last campuses to be departmentalized. A departmentalized school setup means that teachers focus on teaching on specific subject to multiple groups of students throughout the day, instead of teaching every subject to just one class. Sudie also offers a ton of after-school activities, including Dungeons & Dragons, Cheerleading, Mahjong, Creative Writing, Spanish, Chess, TMSCA Science, TMSCA Math, Robotics, Destination Imagination, Aerial Drone, Debate, Yearbook, Tech Time, E-Sports, Garden Club, Coding Club, Mad Science and Theatre Production.
One thing that sets Sudie apart from other schools is their "House System". The House System creates a culture of belonging where students and teachers can connect through shared values, meaningful relationships and opportunities for leadership. Students get assigned a House on Acceptance Night in April and remain in that House throughout their time at Sudie. House counsels are like student governments, with 4 Senators per house per grade and 8th graders are President. The four Houses are Duma, Logra, Sankofa and Esempio. Think of it like Harry Potter, but with no sorting hat - it's a huge deal at the school!!
Overall, I really loved the vibe and overall atmosphere of Sudie Williams. I want to thank Ms. Carballos, for taking the time to show me around campus and tell me more about Sudie. One thing she hears from parents all of the time is that the culture at Sudie is really important and that's why a ton of parents are involved as volunteers. For more information on the school, the application process and my insights, feel free to reach out to me anytime!
Updated 2025-2026 Texas Education Agency (TEA) Accountability Rating - A Rating / 98 Score
Updated 2024-2025 Texas Education Agency (TEA) Accountability Rating - A Rating / 99 Score