Three Socorro ISD middle schools recognized as ‘Texas Schools to Watch’
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – Three middle schools in the Socorro Independent School District have earned state and national recognition from the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform and the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals (TASSP).
Montwood Middle School has been named a Texas School to Watch (STW) as part of the national recognition program. The program also redesignated William D. Slider Middle School and Spc. Rafael Hernando III Middle School as continuing Texas Schools to Watch in 2023.
The middle schools are among approximately 60 other campuses across the state of Texas with this distinction and honor.
“I am extremely proud of the hard work that our educators, parents, staff and students put into earning this prestigious recognition at these three campuses,” said SISD Superintendent Nate Carman, Ed.D. “SISD is committed to providing students with endless opportunities to achieve academic excellence, equitable learning experiences and outstanding extracurricular activities to succeed in school, college and beyond. Montwood, Slider and Hernando middle schools are great representatives of the excellent achievement in our district.”
The three campuses will be recognized in Austin at the Making Middle School Matter Symposium hosted by TASSP on March 3-5.
The campuses will also be recognized nationally with all the other STW schools from across the country in Washington D.C. at the National Forum of Schools to Watch Conference on June 20-24.
State leaders selected these three campuses for their academic excellence, developmental responsiveness, social equity and organizational structure and processes.
In addition, these campuses have strong leadership, teachers who work together to improve curriculum and instruction and a commitment to assessment and accountability to bring about continuous improvement.
William D. Slider Middle School was first designated in 2021 and Spc. Rafael Hernando III Middle School, originally designated in 2017, was first redesignated in 2021.
“We congratulate the principals of these respective campuses and their staff, students, and parents for being schools that do great things for all students,” said Leticia Menchaca, State Director for Schools to Watch in Texas and TASSP Associate Executive Director for Middle-Level Services. “These schools have demonstrated that a high-performing school is a place that focuses on academic growth and achievement. These schools are a place that recognizes the importance of meeting the needs of all students and ensures that every child has access to a challenging high-quality education.”
The STW selection process is based on a written application that requires schools to show how they met criteria developed by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform.
Schools that appeared to meet the criteria were then visited by state teams, which observed classrooms, interviewed administrators, teachers, students and parents; They also looked at achievement data, suspension rates, quality of lessons and student work.
Schools are recognized for a three-year period, and at the end of three years, they must demonstrate progress on specific goals in order to be re-designated.
Unlike the Blue-Ribbon recognition program, STW requires schools to not just identify strengths, but to also focus on areas of continuous improvement; thus, the three-year re-designation.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News.
