Albuquerque Public Schools
Celebrating Veterans Day and Military Families
In her weekly message, Superintendent Blakey thanks military families and affirms APS’s commitment to support them.
Clocks have been set back an hour. Trees around town are a stunning mix of gold and red, though a few of the stubborn ones are still sporting their summer green.
Fall is in full swing, and when you work in a school system, that means you’re thinking about all the things you need to get done before the Thanksgiving break and the fact that the end of the semester–and winter break–are just around the corner.
But there’s another important holiday coming up next week that we should all take a moment to reflect on. APS students and staff are off on Tuesday for Veterans Day, a holiday created to honor those who have served in the U.S. armed forces.
We all owe a debt of gratitude to the women and men who have dedicated their lives to protecting our country. They put themselves in harm's way to keep us safe and are frequently called upon to go to dangerous places around the world.
But it’s not just service members who are sacrificing for our country; it’s also their spouses and kids.
There’s a special place in my heart for military families because I’ve seen firsthand the sacrifices they make. My elementary school was on Kirtland Air Force Base, and many of my friends were from military families. To this day, I remember the steady stream of students coming and going at Sandia Base Elementary School as their parents were reassigned to other military bases.
I didn’t give it much thought as a kid. It was just the way things were. Later in life, I realized how tough it must have been on these families to pick up and move to a new place every couple of years.
It’s important for all of us to acknowledge this and honor that sacrifice by doing everything we can to welcome these new families and make their lives easier.
I was so proud last week at the grand opening of the completely rebuilt Sandia Base Elementary School because it symbolizes our district’s commitment to the men and women stationed at Kirtland and to their families. This is a beautiful new school featuring a dedicated music and art room, a STEAM room, an awesome library, gymnasium and cafeteria and amazing classrooms! It’s a state-of-the-art school that our military families have access to right on base.
Hundreds of students and their families, many of them in uniform, attended the grand opening ceremony. The turnout was a testament to the strong community we have at Sandia Base Elementary!
I mentioned that we need to make things easier for our military families. Toward that end, we have launched a Military Families page on the APS website with links to help families through the enrollment process and information about everything from special education services, resources, graduation requirements and so much more. Our goal with the new page is to make the transition into APS as smooth as possible.
Again, to all of those who are currently serving, and to all of those who have served, including my late father-in-law, who served in the Air Force, I thank you!
Before I sign off, I also want to thank everyone who voted in the General Election and to congratulate Rebecca Betzen, Joshua Martinez, Margaret “Warigia” Bowman and Courtney Jackson, who were elected to the APS Board of Education. I look forward to working with each of them. And a special thank you to taxpayers for approving our General Obligation Bond.
Have a great weekend.