JJ PEARCE HIGH SCHOOL SCHOOL PROFILE
RISD is home to more than 11,000 bilingual students who speak at least 76 different languages and dialects.
Top languages spoken in RISD include English, Spanish, Arabic, Amharic, Vietnamese, Pashto, and Urdu.
NORTH STAR GOAL
Every student, teacher, and leader will meet or exceed their academic growth goals.
Campus Honors and Recognitions
- 80% of graduates in 2023 earned the Distinguished Level of Achievement under the Foundation High School Program
- 436 of the 2023 graduates earned a Distinguished Level of Achievement
- Recognized Academic Decathlon Program
- Met Standard rating from Texas Education Agency with Distinction in Mathematics, Science, English Language Arts and Post-Secondary Readiness for 2018
- One of the top public high schools by the Washington Post
- CREST Award (Excellence in Counseling Program)
- Newsweek Top U.S. High School
- US News and World Report Best High Schools
- College Readiness Center for Educational Achievement—High Performing School
- ACT College Readiness Award
- Texas Business Education Coalition Honor Roll
- RISD Board of Trustees Silver Cup Community Outreach Award
Academic Excellence
The following rigorous courses are available to highly motivated and academically talented students:
Advanced/Honors – Algebra I-Adv, Algebra II-Adv, Anatomy Physiology-H, Art I-Adv, Art Media Comm-Adv, Band-H, Biology-Adv, Ceramics I-Adv, Chemistry I-Adv, Choir-H, Digital Photo & Media-Adv, Drawing I-Adv, English I-Adv, English II-Adv, French II-Adv, French III-Adv, Geometry-Adv, Orchestra-H, Paint I-Adv, Photography I-Adv, Precalculus-Adv, Spanish II-Adv, Spanish III-Adv
Advanced Placement – Biology, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Chemistry, Economics, English Language, English Literature, Environmental Science, French Language and Culture, Human Geography, Music Theory, Physics I, Psychology, Research Capstone, Seminar Capstone, Spanish Language, Statistics, Studio Art 2D, Studio Art 3D, Art History, Studio Art Drawing, U.S. Govt, U.S. History, World History
Dual Credit – English 3 Rhetoric, Precalculus, U.S. Government, Economics, Child Development, Instructional Practices, Practicum in Education & Training, Social Media Marketing, Sports Marketing, Practicum in Marketing I-II, Business Information Management I-II, Principles of Health Science, Health Science Theory & Clinical, Practicum in Health Science I-II
UT OnRamps – Algebra II, Arts Entertainment Technology, Computer Science, Physics, Precalculus, Reading Writing Rhetoric, Statistics, U.S. History
Campus Information
Campus website
1600 N. Coit Road
Richardson, Texas 75080
Main Office: 469-593-5000
Counseling Office: 469-593-5063
Enrollment: 2,465 (as of September 2022)Seniors 528, Juniors 612, Sophomores 641, Freshmen 684
RISD does not rank beyond the top 10% of each graduating class as required by the state of Texas for the purposes of Automatic Admissions.
Accreditation: Texas Education Agency
School Code: 445-839
Schedule: Classes meet 90 minutes per day Monday – Friday; 18 weeks per semester.
Professional Staff
Superintendent: Tabitha Branum
Chief of Staff: Mike Jasso
Principal: Carrie Breedlove
Associate Principal: Pedro Lopez
Assistant Principals: Micah Armstrong, Rodney Beasley, Le’Andre Benton, Sharmeadia Gunter, Ashton Tilly, John Wing
Counselors: Veronica Cabral, Beth DelValle, Marsha Hardin, Courtney Murphree, Willa Myers, Brooke Scoggins, Tangela Spencer
Intervention Counselor: Yoselyn Sanchez
College and Career Coordinator: Kathy Noland
District Information
Founded in 1857, Richardson ISD is located in northern Dallas County and encompasses most of the city of Richardson, as well as portions of the cities of Dallas and Garland. Sixty percent of the district is located in Dallas, thirty-five percent in Richardson, and five percent in Garland.
Demographic Information
English Language Learners 28 percent
Special Education 12.2 percent
Economically Disadvantaged 57 percent
Gifted and Talented 9.9 percent
Student Ethnicity
Hispanic 38.8 percent
White 28.9 percent
African American 22.1 percent
Asian 6.9 percent
Other 3.5 percent
2022-23 RISD graduates are attending the following highly selective colleges and universities:
Carnegie Mellon University
Georgetown University
Harvard University
Rice University
Tulane University of Louisiana
University of California – Los Angeles
University of Pennsylvania
Foundation High School Program
The following credits are needed for a student to graduate from RISD without an endorsement:
English – 4 credits
Mathematics – 3 credits
Science – 3 credits
Social Studies – 4 credits
PE – 1 credit
Fine Arts – 1 credit
Languages Other Than English – 2 credits
Health – .5 credit
Electives – 3.5 credits
Total – 22 credits
The following credits are needed for a student to graduate from RISD with an endorsement
English – 4 credits
Mathematics – 4 credits
Science – 4 credits
Social Studies – 4 credits
PE – 1 credit
Fine Arts – 1 credit
Languages Other Than English – 2 credits
Health – .5 credit
Electives – 5.5 credits
Total – 26 credits
Grade Scale
90-100 ………………… 4.0
80-89 ………….………. 3.0
70-79 …………………… 2.0
Below 70 ……………… 0.0
Grading scale used for college admission, scholarship or NCAA only
Quality Points— RISD students earn five quality points upon successful completion of Adv/Honors courses and ten quality points upon successful completion of AP, Dual Credit and OnRamps courses.
Full Year Course Credit— In order for a student to earn credit for a course that is a full year in length, the average of the two semester grades must equal a minimum of 70 (business rules of rounding apply).
Top 12 Attending Colleges Classes of 2021 and 2022
Class of 2021
El Centro College, Texas A&M University, Texas Tech University, University of Arkansas, Collin County Community College, University of Oklahoma-Norman, Oklahoma State University, The University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas at Dallas, University of North Texas, Richland College
Class of 2022
University of Arkansas, University of North Texas, University of Oklahoma-Norman, The University of Texas at Austin, El Centro College, Texas Tech University, Texas A&M University, Oklahoma State University, Richland College, Collin County Community College, The University of Texas at Dallas
Top 24 Attending Colleges Class of 2023
Dallas College, Texas A&M University, University of North Texas, University of Arkansas, The University of Texas at Dallas, University of Oklahoma-Norman, Oklahoma State University, The University of Texas at Arlington, Baylor University, Stephen F. Austin State University, The University of Texas at Tyler, Texas A&M University-Commerce, Texas State University, Trinity University, University of Colorado Boulder, Oklahoma City University, Purdue University, Abilene Christian University, Austin College, Creighton University, Michigan State University, San Diego State University
Testing Profile 3 Year Overview
2020-2021
SAT Mean Scores: Math – 579; Reading & Writing – 583; Total Seniors Taking Exam – 116
ACT Mean Scores: Composite – 21.4; Total Students Taking Exam – 415
Advanced Placement: Total Students in AP Classes – 604; Total Exams Taken – 1135
National Merit Scholarship: Commended – 11; Semifinalist – 2; Finalist – 2
2021-2022
SAT Mean Scores: Math – 559; Reading & Writing – 568; Total Seniors Taking Exam – 215
ACT Mean Scores: Composite – 20.2; Total Students Taking Exam – 471
Advanced Placement: Total Students in AP Classes – 692; Total Exams Taken – 1175
National Merit Scholarship: Commended – 7; Semifinalist – 1; Finalist – 1
2022-2023
SAT Mean Scores: Math – 576; Reading & Writing – 594; Total Seniors Taking Exam – 169
ACT Mean Scores: Composite – 19.8; Total Students Taking Exam – 503
Advanced Placement: Total Students in AP Classes – 775; Total Exams Taken – 1355
National Merit Scholarship: Commended – 7; Semifinalist – 4; Finalist – 4
Students in RISD will develop competencies in the areas of:
Financial Literacy, Critical Thinking/Problem Solving, Real World Connections, Effective Communication, and Emotional Intelligence
