Natasha is in her tenth year and possibly the 10th luncheon at Rotary. Galindo Elementary exists to empower committed educators to create a community where every student achieves at high levels every day.
Natasha showed us a photo of an intellectually disabled student showing a math sheet marked 100% and he has a big smile! Currently there are 415 students enrolled. It is getting smaller and smaller originally it was 800 students. It’s in 78704 zip code which is not growing in young families. 92% are considered economically challenged and 44% are not primary English speakers. 179 receive some special education instruction due to autism, social , life skills, dyslexia, early childhood, hearing loss, etc.
Lenicia Longe, the new school librarian, was introduced. She has brought back the love and joy of the library and reading. This is her second year. Galindo is the most diverse elementary school she has worked at even though much of her past was teaching in Houston which is very diverse. She put out a suggestion box and got a lot of book requests. She has been adding those books to the library and the students faces light up when they find the book of their choice on the shelves!
They have 74 total staff, 26 of which are teacher assistants. All teachers are bilingual. Galindo, Dawson and other nearby schools are under enrolled and in December consolidation will be announced. One thing that is to their advantage is that they do hearing checks and no other school offers that in AISD, so it helps their changes at staying open. They also have after school care programs and they work with the YMCA and offer discounts to some students which also helps their chances for staying open.