Almost a month after Dallas school trustees voted to dismantle Spruce High School, the district has named Lucy Hakemack its new principal.

Dr. Hakemack comes to Spruce from the district's Early College High School at Mountain View Community College.

Last month, district trustees voted to disperse Spruce's 10th- and 11th-graders to Lincoln and Madison high schools.

District officials feared that if they didn't undertake a radical reorganization themselves, the state would close the school next year. Earlier this summer, education commissioner Robert Scott ordered the closure of chronically low-performing high schools in Houston and Austin. Spruce has been on the state's "academically unacceptable" list three straight years.

Among Dr. Hakemack's first tasks is to figure out who will be teaching for her. Late last month, the district released the school's faculty, although up to one-quarter of those teachers could be brought back in the fall.

"We're making sure that we retain those teachers who made a measurable impact working long hours to meet certain goals," Dr. Hakemack said in a district news release. "But we also want to give Spruce a face-lift. The students and community deserve a better facility."

The school will hold an orientation for Spruce's remaining students – ninth-graders and some seniors – at 7 p.m. on Aug. 21 at the school.