while managing extensive needs including roofs, windows, and aging infrastructure. EXCELLENCE BEYOND THE CLASSROOM Despite operating in a community still processing collective grief, Uvalde CISD students continue achieving recognition in competitive arenas. Anne Marie Espinoza,Executive Director of Communications and Marketing, details recent accomplishments.“Our mariachi program has been state winners and twotime state qualifiers. We’ve had a tennis player be a state qualifier, track, wrestling. We’ve had a wrestling team be an actual state winner out of our wrestling team. We’ve had our female powerlifting team go to state several years in a row.” The district’s small size creates opportunities rarely found in larger schools. “The other unique aspect about our students is they don’t just compete in one sport,” Espinoza says.“We can have a cheerleader in a cheerleader outfit run out into the ROTC and present colors, even run out onto the halftime field and be part of the band. We’re such a tight-knit high school that our students excel in multiple extracurricular activities.” Espinoza attributes student success to staff dedication, noting that teachers genuinely care about their students and the results show. The district maintains an average teacher experience level of 12.5 years, though salaries average $57,484, nearly $5,000 below the state average. The Class of 2023 achieved an 86.2% graduation rate with a 1.9% dropout rate for grades 9-12. Participation in diverse activities signifies broader district goals around student agency and personal growth. Students representing Uvalde at state competitions carry the district’s “Loyal and True” motto, performing under the Coyotes and Lobos mascots. Success in athletics and arts provides visible evidence that students can thrive despite extraordinary circumstances, inspiring resilience that goes beyond academic metrics into areas where passion and persistence meet opportunity. HOPE AS A NORTH STAR Chohlis frames the district’s future around measurable outcomes grounded in recovery.“Hope, for me, means that we create the conditions, experiences, and support to rise above what happened,” she says. “It doesn’t matter where they were that day—every one of them was touched by the trauma. My hope is that we have the right opportunities and systems in place so they don’t carry that weight like a tremendous backpack for the rest of their lives.” Within a two-year timeframe, Chohlis has specific targets.“I want to achieve solid data that shows we are breaking the trajectory of trauma, disrupting it for our students and community. More kids in college, 387 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 06, ISSUE 12 UVALDE CONSOLIDATED INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT
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