Albuquerque Public Schools
Recognizing Excellence
In her weekly message, Superintendent Blakey thanks teachers, principals and school nurses for their hard work.
It’s Friday, and I want to begin the day by thanking all of our teachers, principals and school nurses. Each of you plays a vital role in our schools, and I am beyond grateful for all that you do.
Teachers, you are the bedrock of our education system. I know how hard you work and how much you give to your students. As we wrap up Teacher Appreciation Week, I hope you know you’re making a difference in our students’ lives.
I see examples of this every day.
Amaal Bahraq, a second-grade teacher at Mountain View Elementary, has gone out of her way to create a space where her students feel safe and supported and where they can thrive. As a native of Tanzania who credits her teachers with giving her the tools she needed to succeed in the U.S., Amaal is particularly passionate about championing English language learners.
Stacey Adams, the automotive teacher at Eldorado High School, does amazing work preparing students for good-paying jobs in the field. They routinely perform well in the regional New Mexico Junior College Automotive Competition, and even took first place this year.
And then there’s my former student, Edward Gonzales Elementary fifth-grade teacher Raquel Padilla. For the past three years, she’s been teaching economics through an ingenious classroom economy system in which students earn, budget and spend money. Along the way, she’s teaching them about taxes, credit, debt and supply and demand.
The school recently held a Business Fair, where Raquel’s students and students from fellow fifth-grade teacher Shannon Richesin pitched their ideas to business leaders. A few of them even won start-up funding from school board member Crystal Tapia-Romero and her husband, Ricardo Romero, to bring their ideas to fruition.
Our teachers are incredible!
We also have outstanding principals. May 1 was National School Principals’ Day, and even though I’m a little late, I want to acknowledge their invaluable contributions.
When I became superintendent, I challenged our principals to be the CEOs of their schools and ensure that every kid on their campus was getting the best education possible.
Being a principal is a tough job, but it’s also rewarding because it provides the opportunity to have a big impact.
I’m grateful to our principals for rising to the challenge. We have people like Amy Veschusio Lissick of Cleveland Middle School. Cleveland is seeing growth in goal 2, which, as you know, deals with eighth-grade math proficiency. I’m also impressed by the work Amy and her team are doing to bring the International Baccalaureate program to the school. The school has been selected as an International Baccalaureate Candidate School, an important step in establishing the program at Cleveland. The IB program is rigorous. It emphasizes critical thinking skills and solving complex problems and is well-regarded throughout the world.
Our principals are doing important work. I’ve done that job at a middle school, and I know just how much commitment it takes at every level. I’m so grateful for all they do.
Finally, I want to acknowledge the vital work of our school nurses. They help keep our students healthy, and they’re there to help when a child is injured or becomes ill. They administer medications and handle a host of other things.
Wednesday was National School Nurses Day, and I was happy to be at the monthly nurses meeting to recognize Desert Ridge Middle School’s Kristin Grenemeyer as the APS School Nurse of the Year. Kristin’s husband and three of her daughters were on hand for the announcement.
She was nominated by her colleagues, who called her an “exceptional nurse” who “knows all the students.”
“Our school would be lost without our nurse,” one Desert Ridge staffer wrote. “ On a personal level, I count my blessings every day that I have the privilege of working alongside such an exceptional nurse and person.”
Congratulations to Kristin and thank you to all of our school nurses, teachers and principals for all they do. And happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there!
Enjoy your weekend.