All Irving ISD high school students are issued a laptop computer. The IISD Library Media Program received national recognition in 2000 and 1991 when it received the National School Library Media Program of the Year Award by the American Association of School Librarians. In 2010, the final year of TEA academic ratings, the school district was rating academically acceptable. While the school district has a high percentage of free and reduced lunch students, language minority students, all schools have consistently been ranked either exemplary, recognized, or academically acceptable by the Texas Education Agency. In 2010 and 2011, the school district received a 5-star rating from the Texas Comptroller for its fiscal management and academic progress. Irving ISD was one of approximately 43 school districts out of over 1200 in Texas to receive the rating in 2010. During the 2011 school year, Irving was one of only 23 school districts out of over 1200 to repeat the 5-star rating. In 2015, Irving ISD was one of two winners of the national AP District of the Year by College Board. IISD graduates in the Class of 2010 earned approximately $22 million in scholarship offers. Eleven seniors were recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Program, and many others received local, regional, state and national honors in academics, fine arts, and athletics.
Demographics
Irving ISD is made up of 80% low-income families, including 9,500 high school students. It is also a majority-minority district. The student population represents more than fifty-six countries speaking over ninety-five languages.
African American 12.06%
American Indian 0.47%
Asian 3.57%
Hispanic 70.84%
White 11.66%
During the 2011–12 school year, the district had a peak enrollment of 34,851. The district enrollment has risen since 2007 when the it faced a decrease in student population as result of the City of Irving performing a code enforcement crackdown on several low rent apartments, causing many low income families to leave the district. In addition, then Superintendent Jack Singley said that some illegal immigrants may have feared deportation, so they and their families left the district. In 1997, 43.4% of the students were non-Hispanic white. Eric Nicholson of the Dallas Observer stated that white flight was already occurring by then. In 2000 45% of the students were Hispanic or Latino, but this increased to 61% by 2005. By 2016, 9.2% of the students were non-Hispanic white, and Nicholson concluded that "change happened rapidly." In 1997, 49.2% of the students were low income - Nicholson stated that an increase in poor students was already occurring by then-but this increased to 79.6% in 2016.
School uniforms
All Irving ISD elementary and middle school students are required to wear school uniforms, a dress code that has been enforced since the 1999-2000 school year. The uniforms consists of a polo shirt and appropriate school pants. The acceptable shirt colors are light blue, white, forest green, navy blue and attending campus school colors. High schools do not have school uniforms but still enforce district dress code. High school students are trusted to wear appropriate attire. The Texas Education Agency specifies that the parents and/or guardians of students zoned to a school with uniforms may apply for a waiver to opt out of the uniform policy so their children do not have to wear the uniform; parents must specify "bona fide" reasons, such as religious reasons or philosophical objections.
