Socorro ISD captures state theater award
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA)—The Socorro Independent School District continues to celebrate after earning the Texas Thespians Premiere Communities for Theatre Education Award for a third year in a row. Each year, Texas Thespians recognizes school districts that provide excellent theater education.
Dr. Josey Pickett, the fine arts facilitator at SISD, said the district’s fine arts programs have helped students find their voice and reach their full potential.
"Students have that opportunity to shine, to choose topics of their own interests and, connect with, connect with each other on stage,” said Pickett.
SISD junior Vianey Parada explained that when she was in elementary school, she saw her sister, a fellow SISD student, perform on stage. It was that moment when she decided she, too, would be joining the theater in middle school. She sad theater has helped her grow personally.
"I'm able to be so free here. Like, I don't have to be someone that I am every single day. Like, every day, I have to go to school, and I have to act a certain way, and I have to be answering questions for the teachers. I feel like I'm very restricted in my other classes, but once I'm in theater, it's just so freeing because not only do I get to be myself in a community that I love, but I'm also playing different characters who have crazy personalities who are really goofy, and I get to be really goofy,” Parada said.
Now, Parada hopes to enter the field of education and become a theater teacher herself.
The district also said its fine arts programs help students develop critical life skills they’ll use in the future.
“So they're building those social skills, are also building the ability to empathize with each other, to be leaders in the community, to act creatively, to know what it's like to problem-solve on stage with real-life issues.”
"Theater taught me confidence through that. And so now when I'm in classes, and I'm learning with my classmates, they can be shy sometimes, and I'm going to be the one to speak up, and I'm going to be the one to be making discussions between us. And when our teacher asks us to, like, answer the question. And everyone else was being so shy; I think I just know we're ready to, like, just go for it,” Parada said.
To qualify for the award, SISD answered questions about its curriculum, facilities, theater safety, technical equipment, production elements and overall support for the theatre program.
SISD educators were thrilled to be recognized for their hard work and dedication.
"This is because our theater teachers and our schools work so hard, endlessly."
Additionally, SISD fine arts director, Armando Martinez, was also featured in the Texas Educational Theatre Association’s Administrator Spotlight.
