Principals of some El Paso Independent School District schools shared a letter to the community addressing the recent controversy involving former Superintendent Lorenzo Garcia.

The open letter points out how some EPISD principals feel toward Garcia.

The district has been at the center of a major corruption scandal for almost a year.

Garcia pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges. He admitted to defrauding the state's assessment testing system by cheating and keeping certain students out of the 10th grade to avoid having them take the test.

Garcia was arrested in August 2011 on fraud charges for steering a $450,000 contract toward someone with whom he was having an intimate relationship.

Principals who signed the letter want to reassure the community that their focus is on academic success.

The letter is as folllowed:

June 26, 2012

Open Letter to the Residents and Taxpayers of the El Paso Community: 

For the past year, we have lived and worked under the shame and embarrassment brought upon our beloved school district by the criminal and dishonest actions of one man.  Our disappointment in this epic failure of leadership coupled with the negative and destructive press coverage has deflated the morale of hard-working, honest District employees.  Quite simply, it has shaken the EPISD to its very core.

The El Paso Independent School District is much like a home on fire.  Some members of our community seem more content to sit back and fan the flames.  There are those of us, however, who refuse to fan the flames and instead choose to help put out the fire.  We did not set the fire but we have a responsibility and duty to put it out. Teachers, counselors, clerks, principals, central office administrators and school board members are willing to run back to the burning building to battle and beat back the blaze.  In doing so, we will save our students and their future.  

In classrooms across the EPISD, day in and day out, teachers pour their hearts into providing rigorous and exciting instruction for our students.  They challenge their young minds while nurturing creativity and respect for others.  As educators, we realize the process is fraught with overwhelming challenges. These challenges must never deter us from the goal we set for our children – to graduate from high school, prepared for college and the workforce.

Educators need the support and encouragement of the community they serve.  The negativity and finger-pointing must stop.  It serves no purpose now, other than to sell newspapers and catch a sound-byte on TV news.  The focus must return to the classroom, to the preparation for academic success and to the nurturing environment all children deserve.  We challenge all members of our community to take up a fire hose or shovel and help put out the fire.  After the last ember is extinguished, we must rebuild the EPISD to the greatness we once knew. 

Signed by the following EPISD Principals

Luis Loya                             Principal              Irvin High School

Sandra Sanchez                  Principal              Crosby Elementary

Patty Calk                            Principal              Dowell Elementary

Bonnie O’Leary                   Principal              Lee Elementary

Andrew Veilleux                Principal              Powell Elementary

Jaime Hernandez               Principal              Park Elementary

Joseph Garren                    Principal              Logan Elementary

Edmund D. Brezinski        Principal              Hughey Elementary

Martha Franco                    Principal              Aoy Elementary

Carlene Cephus                  Principal              Rivera Elementary

Kathryn McMillan             Principal              Cielo Vista Elementary

Elco Ramos                         Principal              Crockett Elementary

Martha Martinez                Principal              Clendenin Elementary

Stella Menchaca                 Asst. Principal     Crockett Elementary

Heidi Appel                         Principal              Mitzi Bond Elementary

Mary Elvira Rodriguez     Principal              Whitaker Elementary

Ina Lachmann                   Principal              Lundy Elementary

Raul Mendoza                    Principal              Zach White Elementary

Gina Rodriguez                  Principal              Tippin Elementary

Cynthia Donnelly              Principal              Roberts Elementary

Suzanne Schwitters          Principal              Burnet Elementary

Michaela Varela                 Principal              Polk Elementary

Angela Henderson             Principal              Hornedo Middle School

Karla Onick                         Principal              Omar Bradley Elementary

Mark Brooker                     Principal              Nixon Elementary

Rosa Parga                          Principal              Newman Elementary

Cynthia Sanchez               Principal              Beall Elementary

Irma Ludwig                      Principal              Milam Elementary

Gabriela Cortez                  Principal              Fannin Elementary

Victoria York                     Principal              Brown Middle School

Laila Ferris                         Principal              Mesita Elementary

Nancy Tovar                      Principal              Western Hills Elementary