Ignacio Ruíz chosen as Las Cruces Schools superintendent, contract set for $200K
Las Cruces Public Schools’ Board of Education deliberated for nearly four hours Saturday, July 1, behind closed doors to decide on the next superintendent for the state’s second largest school district. Ignacio Ruíz was chosen in what the board deemed a “competitive” selection process among the three final candidates.
The meeting started shortly after 9 a.m. and ran a majority of the day with the board coming out of executive session at around 2:04 p.m. Board of Education President Teresa Tenorio delivered the news in the open session.
“I want to thank our candidates or applicants, and our finalists who put themselves out there are incredible leaders, and any district is blessed to have them. It was one of the most difficult decisions and we can't merge three into one,” Tenorio said.
“I'm very excited about the direction of LCPS and where the board and district can support our leader in creating that vision for doing what's best for our children,” she said.
Ruíz comes to Las Cruces from the Clark County School District, the fifth largest school district in the country, where he currently serves as assistant superintendent. He’s held various leadership positions from assistant principal and principal to director of language acquisition for Tucson Unified Schools.
His extensive experience and passion for education is what stood out to the board, but one aspect in particular put him over the top, according to board member Carol Cooper.
“All of the candidates were very focused on the well-being of our students. That's what we're here for and they were all very focused, but it turns out that Mr. Ruíz has a special place in his heart and his mind and everything about him that reaches out to our young students, and to start them out right,” Cooper said.
Board member Robert Wofford echoed Tenorio and Cooper’s excitement for the new leadership but reminded folks that while Mr. Ruíz will be the face of LCPS, the work is shared among teachers, staff, and everyone else in the district.
“It's all of the educators down to every employee of Las Cruces Public Schools, who daily makes a commitment to the children of this district,” Wofford said. “Thank you for your support with our new superintendent for making this district the best possible so that all our children can succeed.”
The search for a superintendent came shortly after Ralph Ramos, then superintendent for Las Cruces Schools, resigned on April 7, 2023, stating retirement as the reason. The board voted at a March 28 meeting to begin the preliminary steps for selecting a permanent leader. Later that month, the board voted to expedite the search after consulting with Austin-based search agency, JG Consulting.
Sherley O’Brien, the district’s chief of staff, was named interim for the time being effective April 8 and will remain in the position until Ruíz takes over Aug. 1.
The board approved Ruíz contract unanimously starting his salary at $200,000, roughly $20,000 more than his predecessors Sherley O’Brien, Ralph Ramos and the late Karen Trujillo. A measure to have an engagement coach to support the superintendent’s leadership was also approved unanimously.
From a Zoom call, Ruíz expressed his gratitude to the board and the community while being optimistic about the growth of the district into the incoming school year.
“I believe wholeheartedly that this is going to be a process of collaboration of shared leadership and I'm just excited for the work ahead of us,” Ruíz said.
Ruíz' contract runs through June 30, 2025.
Ernesto Cisneros is a UNM/NM Local News Fund Fellow covering education. He can be reached at ECisneros@lcsun-news.com. Follow him on Twitter at @_ernestcisneros
This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: LCPS Board of Education picks Ignacio Ruíz for superintendent
