Dear El Paso ISD:

We’ve reached the final Friday of the school year! We only have three days of classes next week before we say goodbye to 2022-2023. I’m extremely proud of all our teachers, administrators and campus staff who have worked so hard to guide our students to this juncture. I’m confident your efforts have inspired and empowered our students to thrive.

I know I was inspired earlier this week while listening to retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch speak during our Connecting Languages year-end awards ceremony. Castillo Kickbusch grew up amid poverty in Laredo and went on to become the highest-ranking Latina in the combat support field of the Army. She told dual-language students and teachers Wednesday at Bowie High School that — like her — their mastery of another language makes them powerful. She offered advice to students on how to use their gifts to reach their potential and urged them to one day give back to their communities to help pave the way for the next generation of bilingual learners. Wonderful words from a Latina trailblazer. It starts with us!

I was pleased to have a discussion with U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar and school leaders today at El Paso High School about our district’s partnership with Emergence Health Network. El Paso’s District is the first in the region to adopt a campus-based mental health delivery model to provide on-campus support services to strengthen students’ social and emotional well-being. The grant-funded partnership currently serves five campuses — El Paso, Austin, Franklin and Bowie high schools and Canyon Hills Middle School. We are grateful to our community partners for allowing us to establish programs that can bolster the district’s commitment to developing the whole child. We hope our efforts can serve as the model to offer support to more students throughout the region.

This week, we hosted a hiring fair for Canyon Hills Middle School. More than 150 individuals attended the event Wednesday at the Starlight Event Center hoping to be part of a positive future for the Northeast campus. Canyon Hills recently underwent a redesign based on a mission to provide inclusive and fair learning experiences that support the whole child beginning in the 2023-2024 academic year. If you didn’t make it to the hiring fair, you can still apply! Click here to submit your application. Incentives are available for all positions.

We should all be proud of one of our exemplary middle-school students. Arnav Tonde, an eighth grader at Wiggs Middle School, reached the semifinal round of the Scripps National Spelling Bee on Wednesday in Washington, D.C. Congratulations on all your success, Arnav! Thank you for representing El Paso’s District so well on the national stage!

There are already great things to look forward to next year. On Thursday, the inaugural class of students in our new Montessori program to be housed at Moreno Elementary School were selected. This innovative program marks another historic milestone in our public education journey. The renowned teaching method arrives at Moreno Elementary School next year and will teach students ages 3-6 to look within, think creatively and become capable of rising to new challenges. Parents, please check your emails for information on next steps, wait lists and more. We look forward to pioneering a new education offering together!

As we head into our final week, I ask parents to help us adhere to procedures outlined by campuses to ensure a safe, comfortable conclusion to the year. We thank you for your continued trust and support in us to inspire your children. Let’s close the year on a high note. Adelante, together!

It starts with us.

Sincerely,

Diana Sayavedra
Superintendent of Schools

June 2, 2023