A group of parents and students is raising concerns that Dallas school officials are making "backroom decisions" to scale back the district's magnet schools at Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Center, making them less effective.

The Dallas Independent School District said the misgivings are unfounded. Superintendent Michael Hinojosa recently said that the district prizes the magnet schools and would not "tinker" with them.

Students and parents at the Science and Engineering and Talented and Gifted magnet high schools – recognized as two of the best public schools in the country – cite several reasons for their concerns.

They want to know whether Spanish results on standardized tests will be accepted for admittance into the high school magnets next school year, as has been posted on DISD's Web site. If so, they fear some veteran teachers might be moved out to make room for bilingual teachers.

But district officials said the Spanish language provision will apply only to elementary schools. District spokesman Jon Dahlander added: "Our Web site is incorrect, and we need to make the correction."

Parents are also concerned that the district is replacing principals with deans, who have starting salaries comparable to the average pay for a high school assistant principal. Some parents believe it's a less prestigious title that diminishes their campus's standing, and note that no other DISD high schools are run by deans.

Recent job postings for dean positions at Townview magnets list a salary range of $73,368 to $87,452. People still holding principal positions at Townview schools have salaries averaging about $103,000. High school principals in the district average $92,000.

Mr. Dahlander said the dean salaries are being reviewed. He added that "there may be some movement on that" but said he could provide no more information.

Some students also worry that a dean's signature on a recommendation letter for college doesn't carry as much weight as a principal's. Mr. Dahlander said the students should work on that issue with Alice Black, the principal over the Townview campus, which houses six different magnet schools.

DISD is adamant that it's not trying to dilute the magnet schools at Townview, or any other magnets in the district.

But Marguerite Buccino, president of the science and engineering PTSA, believes otherwise.

"He has tinkered with magnet schools," Ms. Buccino said of the superintendent, noting changes that had already been made, such as the new dean titles.

Robin Ryan, DISD's executive director of a group of schools that includes the magnets, told parents and students at a recent science and engineering PTSA meeting that deans would function just as the principals had, and he didn't consider it a position downgrade. But parents said the lower salaries make the positions seem less important.

Mr. Ryan voiced disbelief that anyone would think the district was watering down the magnet programs.

"Nobody is going to disband a school that is having fantastic success," he said at the meeting. "That's crazy."

Mr. Dahlander said the district intends to meet with parents. "We're aware of their concerns, and we appreciate them too," he said.

Ms. Buccino described the environment at the science and engineering school as one of "absolute concern, a lot of suspicion." That was certainly the feeling at the recent PTSA meeting that drew over 80 parents and students.

Trustee Lew Blackburn, who also attended the meeting, told parents they should be concerned, and he's concerned too.

"What you know Townview to be right now, I think it's going to change," he told them.