September 3, 2010
''Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle."

Buenas tardes LISD,

The beginning of the school year is always an exciting time for all of us at Laredo ISD.  For the students, teachers, and everyone at our schools, the beginning of the new school year provides an opportunity for a fresh start with a re-energized sense of commitment to our schools.  The beginning of the school year presents a chance to improve upon anything that was less than perfect in 2009 - 2010.  This year we have challenged ourselves and our campus leadership teams to focus on improving adherence to our standardized dress code.  Our campus leaders and staff have commented on the positive energy and team approach being directed at motivating our students to comply with the dress code.  From the visibility of the administrators, security, and attendance officers at Nixon High School to the classroom sweeps at Martin High School, everyone has come together to enforce the dress code as it was intended to be enforced and more importantly help define what I like to refer to as "Laredo Pride."  It is my hope that everyone sees our efforts as more than just enforcing rules.  Not only are we teaching our students to follow a simple rule, we are coaching them to live up to a higher standard.  Please continue this attention to details as we train and develop our students.

Earlier this week, I had the honor of throwing out the first pitch at one of the final Laredo Broncos Baseball games.  I watched the Martin High School Band perform the National Anthem before the final game of the season.  I had the pleasure of meeting Jose Canseco and several other players on the team and I appreciate all of the hospitality shown to LISD by the Broncos organization (click here for photo).  The Melendez brothers (Jose and Ray) and Arnold Cantu have done a fine job with professional baseball here in Laredo and I applaud the Broncos on a fantastic season.

Last weekend I attended the United ISD Volleyball tournament and was able to see all three of our fabulous volleyball teams compete and make LISD so proud. I tip my hat to all of our volleyball coaches, parents, and students for an exciting start to our school year with so much volleyball success at MHS, NHS, and CHS. A special congratulations to CHS Head Volleyball Coach Irma De La Cruz for the victory this week over Martin High.  The match was hard fought and the packed out gym enjoyed each serve, set, and spike.  In the end of this rivalry match, the Toros came out victorious.

In football, it gave me chills to watch the Nixon Mustang Junior Varsity and Freshmen teams on Thursday.  The Nixon freshmen smashed Valley View from Pharr, Texas and the Junior Varsity young stallions out hustled J.B. Alexander and swept the evening 20 - 0.  Congratulations to all of our Nixon Mustang football coaches and good luck to all the varsity men as they travel to Valley View Friday night.  The new football coach, Tommy Ramirez, has created an atmosphere that motivates the kids to perform at the highest level.  I look forward to some exciting Friday and Saturday nights as we compete and perform in athletics, band, dance, and cheer all over LISD.  In fact, Nixon High School’s Varsity Football Team was honored for volunteering with supplies during this summer’s catastrophic flooding.  A plaque was presented to the team on Tuesday morning (click here for photo).  Also at Nixon this morning, the Mustangs thanked BBVA Compass Bank for their donation of an outdoor marquee (click here for photo).

One of the more serious activities observed by our district this week was the annual remembrance ceremony for Lizzy Rivera (click here for photo).  For those of you that do not know, 15 years ago Lizzy Rivera was tragically killed by a fellow classmate.  I would like to thank Cindy Dominguez, Imelda Murrillo, and the entire team at Memorial Middle School for organizing this assembly.  I was very encouraged to hear the comments from Chief Lonnie Cook, Board of Trustee John Peter Montalvo, and the family of Lizzy.  We all agree that Lizzy’s memory is very important to the future of Laredo as we accept the challenge of keeping all of our precious youngsters safe and secure every day.  All of our campuses are checking for illegal weapons and please remind all of our students to report any threats to safety to an adult immediately.

At Cigarroa Middle School, we held a very special dedication ceremony to celebrate the many contributions of the late Alfonso Ornelas with  our new orchestra wing.  Close to 75 people attended the dedication event.  Family members unveiled a portrait of the late Mr. Ornelas who served as principal at Macdonell, Ochoa, and Daiches Elementary Schools and Cigarroa and Lamar Middle Schools.   The Cigarroa MS and CHS Orchestras, under the direction of Alma Garcia and Tomas Aguilar Jr., serenaded the audience in the new surroundings.  I would like to thank Laura Flores at Cigarroa MS and Rosalinda Sillas of CHS for putting together such a fine event.  The Ornelas family is very special to LISD not only because Mr. Ornelas dedicated his career to LISD, but also because his wife, Sylvia, worked in LISD’s Federal Programs for many years. I am glad that our Board of Trustees has chosen to honor this legacy of educational excellence.

Enjoy your Labor Day weekend. 

Sincerely,

Dr. M. Nelson

"The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reasons for remaining ashore."

-Vincent Van Gogh