Education non-profit donates $27,000 to help EPISD Board of Trustees improve governance skills through Harvard Business School Executive Education training
El Paso, TX – The El Paso ISD Board of Trustees recognized and thanked the Council on Regional Economic Expansion and Educational Development (CREEED) on Tuesday for partially funding the Board and Superintendent Diana Sayavedra’s participation in a Harvard Business School Executive Education program in July. Funding was also provided by the Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce and Raiz Federal Credit Union.
“CREEED has maintained that strong teachers and effective school leaders are needed in order to increase educational attainment in the region, and that is why we are proud to support EPISD Board Trustees sharpen their skills around school governance,” said Richard Castro, CREEED’s Chairman of the Board. “We hope that the trustees will use this seminar to make informed and strategic decisions about how to prepare all students within EPISD for college, and how to strengthen the trust that families have in the school board.”
The Trustees and superintendent participated in a school board seminar conducted by Harvard’s Accelerating Board Capacity (ABC) Institute in Cambridge, Mass. The training provided sessions on the vision and goals, systems and processes and fostered collaborations to promote excellence in student academic achievement. Specific emphasis was placed on leadership skills and growth, managing conflict, relationship building among stakeholders, building capacity to focus on district improvement and addressing inequities.
“Our experience at Harvard would not have been possible without CREEED’s on-going commitment to ensuring that the education opportunities in our region are supported by quality educators, high-performing schools, and dedicated school leaders,” said Al Velarde, EPISD Board President. “We look forward to implementing the knowledge, tools, and connections gained during the seminar to improve our district, beginning with board governance.”
The seminar, led by the ABC Institute, draws on the expertise of faculty at the Harvard Business School (HBS), the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE), and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government (HKS), as well as the Council of the Great City School’s years of hands-on experience working with urban school boards.
“We are incredibly grateful to CREEED because with their support, members of our board were able to participate in this opportunity to better themselves as board trustees and education leaders,” said Israel Irrobali, EPISD Board Trustee. “The Board of Trustees is a corporate body with an incredible duty to oversee the functions of our school district, and the Harvard seminar provided my fellow Trustees and I with the tools and resources needed to be fair, responsible and effective board members and serve all students.”
More information about CREEED’s efforts to raise educational attainment in the El Paso region can be found at www.creeed.org.
For media inquiries, please contact Laura Rodriguez at (915) 209-2230 or media@creeed.org.
###
About CREEED:
The Council on Regional Economic Expansion and Educational Development (CREEED) is a notfor-profit organization focused on increasing the number of high-performing seats in El Paso’s public education system. This is accomplished by investing in initiatives that are creating measurable outcomes to close the achievement gap for El Paso students. CREEED supports organizations, initiatives, and policies that prepare students to succeed in college and in our future workforce. CREEED’s efforts are focused on increasing the quality of education that students receive in El Paso. Our efforts fall into three categories: Increasing Student Attainment; Increasing Teacher Talent & Leadership Development; and Increasing Parent and Community Engagement. Each of which contributes to the formation and sustainability of a quality workforce with quality career paths and opportunities.