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Maude Virginia Roark was born on September 10, 1881, in Salem, Tennessee. She came to Arlington in 1931, after beginning teaching in 1901 at the age of 17. During her tenure, she taught mathematics at Arlington HS and Ousley JH. She taught in Arlington for 29 years and was part of the teaching profession for a total of 59 years. She died on March 26, 1969, in Fort Worth, Texas.

Maude V. Roark Elementary was named in honor of a teacher who taught in Arlington for over 30 years. Miss Roark taught Mathematics at Arlington High School. “She was so dedicated to her responsibility and determined that no student would leave her class without a thorough understanding of the subject, that she spent many hours over and above school time working with those students who were slow in learning or having trouble grasping the essentials. She was loved by the pupils and parents of the community. As proof, the City of Arlington, Texas, called one of their new school buildings the Maude V. Roark School.” The previous statement was made by Charles Arthur Roark in the book, ‘The Roark Legacy’ by Patricia Roark, Nancy Lee Deborah Arnold and Sally Cowan.
 
The Roark Elementary Building was originally built in 1961 with additions made in 1993.

Roark employees always say that Roark seems like a family. Like Miss Roark, our entire faculty and staff are known to take extra steps with Roark students to help them do their personal best and to get the best education possible.

Roark celebrated its 50th anniversary the 2011-2012 school year.

Maude V. Roark Elementary was permanently closed in 2021 as part of the 2019 Arlington ISD Bond program. Most students were rezoned to the rebuilt Thornton Elementary. Once the old Roark building is demolished, the site will become a City of Arlington park.

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Contact AISD Communications at pio@aisd.net or 682-867-7342