Statement From EPISD

The integrity of El Paso ISD must be absolutely beyond reproach. We are working very closely and cooperatively with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General and with officials of the FBI in strong support of their reviews of our school district.

We are entrusted every day by the families of El Paso with the education of their children. If anyone violates that sacred trust with our children and our community, we will take action to stop it and hold those responsible accountable for it. That is why we are working closely and aggressively with the federal authorities to root out and stop any potential abuse of that trust.

We have taken strong corrective actions regarding many of the findings of the internal audit, which resulted from a directive from the Board of Trustees to the previous superintendent, and was completed in May of 2011. We are taking action on any other concerns that emerge as a result of the work being done by the federal authorities with our full support.

I want to make it absolutely clear that we are taking urgent action during this process to make our school district better serve our children and our community. We have, and will continue to, put strong procedures into place to ensure that the kinds of issues raised in our internal audit and during the federal reviews will not emerge again in the future.

We have provided the findings of this audit to the Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General and the FBI as part of our aggressive effort to support this inquiry. While our final report to the Texas Education Agency is pending the results from the Office of Inspector General audit and the FBI investigation, we have put corrective measures into place. For example, we already have instituted procedures that establish strict guidelines for out-of-country course credits. We have provided new and very detailed training for Bowie High School employees in the proper conduct of their duties and assignments. We have updated and clarified for our employees proper procedures for student grade level assignments in high school, and new administrative support has been assigned specifically to help Bowie High School staff in their work. Also, strict requirements have been added to guarantee proper documentation of any grade level changes so that auditors can always clearly find and review the documentation.

EPISD is committed to providing an outstanding education to all students. That work will continue every day by the educators, administrators, staff, and school board members who have dedicated their lives to the service of our children.