News-Register | By Cecilia Lenzen, staff writer
Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) and DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit) have partnered to offer DCCCD students cheaper options to get to class and around town. When you bring your DCCCD ID, you will be admitted to ticketed exhibitions for free. You can enjoy discounted tickets to “Arts & Letters Live,” a series of literature and performing arts that showcases award-winning authors and performers.
You can attend DMA’s “Late Nights,” which are held on the third Friday of every month. While the DMA usually closes at 5 p.m., it stays open until midnight on these nights to offer a variety of fun events, such as concerts, readings, film screenings, and tours.
With your DCCCD ID, you will also be able to attend free “Thursdays with a Twist:” entertainment “with a twist” on the second Thursday of every month. Although cost is certainly a stressful issue plaguing many students, there are ways to lighten the financial load if you know where to look and how to use them.
Last year, the college district unveiled the Student GoPass, a free pass to ride DART for the duration of the school year. To receive the student pass, the requirements are simple: you must be enrolled in at least six college credit hours for the spring or fall semesters—or three or more credit hours for the summer semester. For continuing education students, you must be enrolled in 96 or more contact hours for the fall or spring semesters and at least 48 contact hours for the summer semester.
To sign up and register for the pass, go to eConnect and under “My Personal Information,” fill out the “My DART GoPass Application.” Then, have your photo taken at your DCCCD college campus. And finally, download the new, recently updated GoPass app (free from Google Play and the Apple App Store) on your smartphone. In the app, register your phone number by going to “Settings” and then “Register.” It’s that easy to ride DART for free.
Liz Conti, a student at NLC, says, “The GoPass is great for students who live close to school but don’t have a car because it’s free and DART is easy to use.”
For those without a smartphone or whose smartphone isn’t compatible with the GoPass, there’s no reason to worry—you can still enjoy the privilege of a free pass. After your college’s class certification date, you will receive a decal for your student ID from your college’s business office.
Since DART rides all over Dallas, it’s a convenient option for students going to events downtown. NLC student, Samantha Guzman says, “If I was going downtown, I’d probably use the DART GoPass just to avoid traffic and not have to deal with parking.”
DCCCD has partnered with agencies to offer its students cheaper options. The resources are there. It’s up to you to start saving today.
Learn more about the DART Student GoPass and the Dallas Museum of Art
