The state of girls’ athletics at Carter High School

Rather than taking shots at the shooting machine or lifting weights, they were given a free period. Instead of changing into their gym clothes in the locker room, they sat there waiting for the next class.

This was Nia Caroll-Walker’s experience during her final years at David W. Carter High School, the very school where Tokyo Olympic qualifying athlete Sha’Carri Richardson graduated just six years before her. Nia attended Carter all four of her high school years, graduating in spring 2024. She grew up playing basketball and volleyball, alongw with some time spent on the track her freshman and sophomore years.

But during her third high school season, she started to notice a discrepancy when it came to Carter girls’ athletics.

“It started around junior year where girls’ athletics, it wasn’t a thing no more, so we just had a free period,” she says. “And they didn’t even want us in the gym or anything. There was nowhere for us to go. There had been times where, like some of the folks, they’d still allow us to sit in the locker room because they knew we didn’t have nowhere to go. My problems with Tyson, it started with his staff.”

Troy Tyson is the former principal of Carter. He left the campus last year and moved into a new role within Dallas ISD following the publication of demands from a group known as The Dallas Carter High Coalition (DCHC) Project.

The group recently gained traction following years of concerns brought up regarding Tyson on the campus. In a letter sent to Dallas ISD Superintendent of Schools Stephanie Elizalde on Oct. 7, 2025, The DCHC Project called for immediate action citing a “hostile, abusive work environment,” “unprofessional, abusive conduct” and Title IX violations.

The group’s letter was sent just one day after a parent submitted an official request to the Texas Education Agency for a formal investigation at Carter regarding the denial of equitable opportunities for female student-athletes that are law under Title IX.

With no action from the district, the group sent another letter on Oct. 30, 2025, to Elizalde following the immediate action taken at Woodrow Wilson High School. The group highlighted the difference in demographics between the two campuses (with African American students making up more than half the student body at Carter and less than 10% at Woodrow) and how former Woodrow principal Chandra Hooper-Barnett was removed within just two working days pending a review of allegations. Hooper-Barnett was accused of holding a meeting exclusively of Woodrow’s Black students, who were allegedly criticized for their impact on the school.

“That’s not happening in the southern sector … we’ve been doing this for two years,” alumni and Parent Teacher Association member Stephen Poole says. “This isn’t something that’s new. But when you had an issue with Woodrow, where you have (7.3%) African American, you immediately jumped on it. But when we as a community have been saying to you, we’ve been presenting information, regardless if the people who feel like they’re afraid, they presented information, you didn’t remove him.”

Miata Caroll-Walker, Nia’s mother, first noticed issues with campus leadership because of the communication problems she was experiencing.

“That freshman year, for the most part, everything was OK. From sophomore year, you’d start seeing changes. ‘Oh, now school starts at this time.’ I said, ‘She’s a returning student. I’m not receiving any communication,’” Miata Caroll-Walker says. “Even their website was not up to date; I think they finally made their website somewhat up to date around the spring of her junior year, just some things, but there’s still a lot of things that still weren’t up to date, including dress code policies.”

Staff members at Carter were getting on to Nia and her teammates consistently, specifically about wearing slides. She would bring the shoes in a separate bag to keep in the locker room and use after practice, rather than throughout the school day.

“I don’t carry the shoes with me around school nowhere; they’re still getting on to me about that, and the other girls as well,” Nia Caroll-Walker says. “And they’d let the boys slide, but with the girls, it was always hard on us.”

Miata Caroll-Walker would go to look for the policy to better understand the issues her daughter was facing, but the school’s website was lacking the details. After several incidents involving her daughter getting in trouble for other items such as wearing crocs or a purse, Miata Caroll-Walker would be directed to social media, which made her frustrated as the school website still lacked the official policy of Tyson’s campus.

“(Tyson) acts as if he’s a warden at a correctional facility; he treats the children as if they’re inmates. There are so many things that are completely depleted out of Carter, away from Carter, under his administration,” Miata Caroll-Walker says.

One example she pointed out was the lack of connection to the PTA. Tyson would not allow the group to meet on campus, which she says was due to the organization trying to hold him accountable and led to depleted funding for student programs, like the girls’ basketball team.

At another point during Nia’s high school career, Miata Caroll-Walker met with leadership in Dallas ISD, Tyson and two other parents where they discussed the athletics decisions, resources the campus lacked and dress code. Still, following that meeting, changes were not made.

Miata and Nia Caroll-Walkers’ experiences are just one of several stories like those documented by The DCHC Project over the last couple of years. It wasn’t until fall 2025 that the campus began to make changes with Tyson now off campus and interim Principal Vickie Mitchell stepping in.

“She’s been visible, more visible as just a principal in the hallways and just doing her regular duties, but visible and supportive at the actual games. At the actual events, supportive of the coaching staff, particularly, the female athletic coaching staff,” former Carter teacher and member of The DCHC Project ReJohnna Lindzie says.

Lindzie confirmed that the girls’ athletic period has been appropriately assigned, with girls’ basketball coaches able to work with the athletes during the same athletic period. Additionally, girls’ athletics is also able to access resources that they lacked previously, such as the weight room and shooting machine.

According to a study published by the British Journal of Sports Medicine, strength training programs are effectively used to prevent acute and overuse sports injuries.

Jason Whiteside, a parent of a current student-athlete on the girls’ basketball team, had been advocating for his daughter to gain access to that equipment on more than 20 separate occasions. Now that the access is granted, he still hasn’t seen a big jump when it comes to changes in the team over the recent season.

“I’ve seen improvements on the court; they’re up at the school a lot, so I would figure they would be in the weight room and doing what they need to do,” he says.

Lindzie says it’s important to note that this change was a very slow act to receive what should have already been in place.

“There’s an improvement on the courts, but in terms of seeing a big shift, I guess the bottom line is, a lot of the damage has been done, especially for the girls that are seniors,” she says. “You don’t build an athletic body in a month. That’s something that’s conditioning, that’s ongoing and they’re just now getting access … they were finally given what they were due, the minimum which could have obviously been in place.”

In an email to the Oak Cliff Advocate, a spokesperson for Dallas ISD wrote “the athletics department is not aware of any current TEA notice of violation or investigation for the Carter HS Girls’ Athletic program.”  Additionally, the spokesperson wrote that “the search is ongoing” for the Carter HS principal, “and the selection process will continue until that role is filled.” As of writing this story, the position is not listed on the Dallas ISD Job Search page.