Hamilton Park School opened in 1954, to serve the students of the neighborhood, a fledgling enclave established by the City of Dallas for black, first time homeowners. In the wake of the civil rights movement and Brown v. Board of Education, the federal Department of Education began a long-running dialogue with RISD, who presented various proposals toward racial integration of the District. During this period, Hamilton Park began to be affected by neighborhood aging as each succeeding year more neighborhood students graduated than new ones enrolled. As enrollments dropped, the community feared that the District would close Hamilton Park. Therefore, they petitioned the Court to save its school, this vibrant, unifying facility central to the neighborhood. The community stepped forward with a pacesetting solution: to offer an unparalleled academic program that would attract students from outside the attendance boundary. Hamilton Park Pacesetter Magnet opened in 1975, with Bobcats setting the pace as successful academic and social role models; the school made national news and was toured, studied and emulated by other districts in the nation. With this proud history, tradition of excellence, innovation and leadership, we serve students gr. K-6 and their families from across the District – still setting the pace for LIFE, still a model for other magnet schools to follow.