Greetings, Bronco Family!

As I familiarize myself with the inner workings of Denton High, I cannot help but notice the deep passion for the purple and gold.  These two colors have serious ties back to the Elizabethan Era.  In fact, the Sumptuary laws dictated who could wear these colors. 

The color purple was created by a dye from Tyre, in Lebanon, called Tyrian purple.  This dye was extremely expensive, as a result of the Phoenicians having a monopoly on it, which gave it the status that is associated with wealth and power.  The time involved in crushing sea shells to produce the dye was extensive with little reward, thus driving up the price of the dye.  In the Elizabethan era, royalty were the only people allowed to wear this color.

The color gold had the symbolic meaning of majesty and wealth.  Gold was also associated with Royalty and Nobles.  In the book The Power of Gold:  The History of An Obsession, Peter Bernstein writes that Gold is so rare that the world has poured more steel in an hour than it has poured gold since the beginning of recorded history.  Once again, as seen in the color purple, Sumptuary laws dictated that the color gold were worn by Duchesses, Marquises, Countesses, Dukes, and Earls. 

After studying the purple and gold, I now understand why there are so many deep seeded beliefs..........our most precious assets walk these halls daily.  It is my belief that every student who enters our school can achieve at high levels.  Robert Marzano talks about the relationship between the school, the teacher, and the student when describing student achievement.  This relationship requires combined efforts of all stakeholders. 

I encourage you to join DHS as we Don the purple and gold with great pride and work to graduate the BEST students who are academically prepared to meet the challenges of the 21^st century.

Proud to be a BRONCO!

Dan Ford

Principal, DHS