The Socorro Independent School District rolled out the red carpet for families of military-connected students at the first Welcome to Socorro ISD event on Aug. 12.
Families such as Christine Kenny and her son Christian Kenny, a sixth grader at John Drugan School, explored different opportunities the district offers in academics, sports and college-and career-readiness programs to help Christian Kenny, whose father is in the military, thrive in school and beyond.
“I want to get a head start for my son,” said Christine Kenny, who was excited to learn about the Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs available at each high school. Christine Kenny was particularly impressed with the Health Professionals Academy (HPA) students from Socorro High School, who showed her and her son how to do chest compressions on a CPR mannequin.
“We feel very blessed and very lucky to have this (event) because we are directed in options very early on,” Christine Kenny added. “My son is barely in 6th grade, so that's great; knowing is half the battle.”
Socorro ISD proudly serves 6,568 military-connected students. Forty-six out of SISD’s 51 schools have been designated Purple Star Campuses by the Texas Education Agency, the most of any school district in the El Paso region.
The schools received the prestigious designation for their exceptional commitment to supporting the unique needs of military-connected students and their families through a variety of resources and services. These include a webpage for military families, a campus transition program, a military liaison at each campus, and hosting special events, including the welcome event for the military families.
“Our district is serving the highest number of military-connected children in this county, and because of that, we are looking to provide information for the parents so that it helps them with the decision-making regarding the programs that their children can participate in whether they are three-year-olds all the way to early college kiddos,” said SISD Director of Administrative Services Carmen Olivas-Graham.
Erica Hicks's children attend kindergarten and seventh grade at Jane A. Hambric School. Hicks was excited to learn about the district’s early college high school programs. She said the information would help her make informed decisions about her children’s future education.
“As my children are getting older, it's important for me to be more involved, so it brought a lot of awareness to me so that I can prepare my kids for the best opportunity going into college,” Hicks said.
For information about SISD military-connected services and resources, visit www.sisd.net/page/military.
SISD’s military-connected families first welcome event photos