The Harlingen CISD Board of Trustees was selected as the regional Board of the Year, the Region One Service Center announced on July 15, 2019.
The award recognizes 13 school boards across Texas for their dedication to the students they serve.
“The Harlingen CISD Board of Trustees is honored to have been recognized as the Board of the Year at the regional level,” said current HCISD Board of Trustees President Dr. Nolan Perez. “Our board members are passionate about improving the lives of students, and we are dedicated to ensuring our decisions have a high impact on their lives. We are excited to represent South Texas as the Board of the Year, and we look forward to continuing our service to all students of HCISD.”
Public school superintendents across the state nominate boards of trustees for the Texas Association of School Administrators board of the year award.
“I am super proud to work alongside the distinguished Harlingen CISD Board of Trustees, whose foresight and united vision has resulted in this momentous award,” said Harlingen CISD Superintendent Dr. Art Cavazos. “Each time they meet and make vital and impactful decisions for our students, they utilize an insurmountable amount of creative acumen, intellectual power, and sharpness.”
The Texas Association of School Administrators created the award in 1971 to “recognize school boards whose dedication and ethical service have made a positive impact” on students in Texas, according to information provided by TASA.
The Region One Education Service Center, which encompasses the Rio Grande Valley and other parts of south Texas, utilizes a committee to review the nominations for the Board of the Year award.
Region One ESC selects the board based on a set of judging criteria, including support for educational performance, commitment to a code of ethics, placement of the welfare of children served by the school system above personal or political motives, public relations efforts including community awareness, and support for educational improvement projects and school transformation initiatives.
The 2018-19 Harlingen CISD Board of Trustees were board President Greg Powers, Vice-President Dr. Nolan Perez, Secretary Eladio Jaimez, as well as members Gerry Fleuriet, Dr. Bobby Muniz, Javier De Leon and Dr. Belinda Reininger. All of the aforementioned trustees serve on the current board and will now move onto the next level in the recognition process.
A review committee will also meet this month to select up to five honor boards of the 13 regional boards of the year. The Texas Association of School Administrators along with the Texas Association of School Boards will then announce the state’s Outstanding School Board of the Year at the associations’ convention in September.
“We are fortunate to have a school board united for the advancement of our students, and I am honored to have a seat among the regional 2019 Board of the Year,” Dr. Cavazos said.
