Dear El Paso ISD:

A week ago, we celebrated a wonderful Friday evening in El Paso’s District. A celebratory spirit was in the air during a gala celebration at the EPIC Railyard Event Center where we revealed this year’s Elementary and Secondary Teacher of the Year and two Educational Support Personnel of the Year.

Congratulations to our award recipients. They include:

• Elementary Teacher of the Year: Dianna Brun Ferriter, a kindergarten collaborative teacher at Rivera Elementary School.

• Secondary Teacher of the Year: Marcos Muñoz, a mathematics teacher from Jefferson High School.

• Educational Support Personnel of the Year: Valerie Horn, secretary to the principal at Hornedo Middle School; and Eddie Pacheco, campus patrol at Wiggs Middle School.

The celebration honored all 2022-23 campus teachers of the year, campus support personnel of the year and department support personnel of the year. Our top two teachers will represent El Paso ISD at the Region 19 competition later this summer. Although last Friday night was meant to honor a handful of our best, the district is blessed with exceptional teachers and staff who put forth tremendous effort to serve our students.

This Friday, we have a great night for baseball!

I hope you’re planning to join me this evening at Southwest University Park for El Paso ISD Night at the Chihuahuas. Check out performances by our talented Chapin and Coronado mariachis, and watch me test out the arm as I deliver the ceremonial first pitch. It will be a festive evening beginning at 6:35 p.m. There’s still time to purchase your specially priced tickets to watch our El Paso Chihuahuas take on the Oklahoma City Dodgers. Click here and join the fun!

On Saturday, we open the doors at Andress High School for our Family and Community Engagement Conference, which will run from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Come and explore all the resources available to you and your family. In addition, learn how you can become an active partner in your child's education. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. See you there!

On Monday the district recognized schools with exemplary attendance percentages during the fifth six-weeks period as part of our Show Up, You Matter attendance campaign. These campuses received visits from district leadership who delivered treats, coupons from gracious community sponsors and all-around praise for their commitment to showing up in the classroom. 

We were also happy to welcome Congresswoman Veronica Escobar to Aoy Elementary School on Wednesday where she presented the district with a $2.2 million ceremonial check for community project funding. The money allows El Paso ISD to expand its partnership with the YWCA Paso del Norte Region to provide after-school learning hubs at Guillen Middle School, Tinajero PK-8, and Aoy, Cooley, Douglass, Hart and Zavala elementary schools. These hubs give our students safe, productive after-school activities that will help them thrive in future career and educational opportunities. Thank you, Congresswoman Escobar for putting El Paso first! See photos from the visit here.

Our own Chapin High School was recognized this week as one of 22 schools in Texas named a 2022-23 Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Distinguished School. Only 262 high schools throughout the country receive this honor for providing broad access to transformative learning experiences for students through PLTW’s computer science, engineering, and biomedical pathways. Way to go, Huskies!

Are you an incoming freshman or current high school student with your sights set on the stage? If so, don’t miss the 2023 El Paso ISD Fine Arts Live On Stage Summer Musical Auditions on Saturday at Bowie High School. We are looking for our next summer musical cast. Come show us your moves and be part of our next big production. Click here for your audition packet. Rehearsal starts at 9 a.m. Break a leg.

Good luck to our six baseball squads who take the field this weekend in the opening round of the baseball playoffs. We know Austin, Bowie, Burges, Chapin, El Paso and Irvin will represent El Paso’s District superbly.

Lastly, a reminder that the May uniform election is Saturday, May 6. Some of our campuses will operate as polling sites that day. Find more information on polling locations and what to expect when voting here.

We’re inching closer to the end of the year. Let’s continue to work together to reach our goals.

It starts with us.

Sincerely, 

Diana Sayavedra
Superintendent of Schools

May 5, 2023