Dear Canutillo Community,
On Monday, the families of 6,000 students entrusted us with their kids when they dropped them off at any of 10 schools for the first day of classes. That commitment we make every year to not only educate, but also shape and mold the children of our community is one every educator takes seriously. It is, in fact, the core value behind our profession.
I am proud to report that the start of the 2023-24 school year went as planned. Our schools opened without incident and high-quality instruction happened from Day 1. Thanks go out to our teachers, maintenance workers, bus drivers, custodians, cafeteria staff, aides and all other personnel that worked tirelessly to make sure our schools were ready from the get go.
Of course, there were some issues that popped up here and there, and the vast majority of those issues involved forces outside of our control. Still, it is our responsibility to find solutions to the challenges ahead of us, and I can assure you that the CISD Team is doing just that.
Some of the most urgent calls we received this week involved issues with school buses. From questions on new bus stops, to delays in pick-ups and drop-offs and even a couple of students falling asleep on the bus and missing their stop, we dealt with a lot this week. Fortunately, all students made it to and from school safe and ready to take on another day of instruction.
After a lengthy conversation with the Transportation Department, I have learned that school bus routes have been readjusted and/or consolidated because of several factors. The two main culprits are heavy road construction throughout the District and a shortage of bus drivers.
We continue to work with TxDOT, the County of El Paso and the City of El Paso to determine best detours and routes given the level of construction happening on our roads. As you can see if you drive around the District, streets are being closed and barrels are lining our highways left and right. Road construction can be a headache, but the end result will be better connectivity. I ask you to be patient as we work through this challenge.
The other issue, like I mentioned, is the lack of human capital. We continue to face a bus driver and bus monitor shortage. If you or anyone you know wants to become a bus driver for CISD, please tell them to give us a call. This year we raised our starting bus driver pay to $22 an hour – the highest in the region. To apply, go to www.canutillo-isd.org and click on the JobLine link.
Thank you Canutillo for a wonderful first week of school. I can’t wait to see what Week 2 will bring.
Pedro Galaviz
Superintendent of Schools