EPISD superintendent leaving district, interim named. What’s next?

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Diana Sayavedra formally resigned from her position as the El Paso Independent School District Superintendent.

On Tuesday's special board meeting, EPISD's Chief Financial Officer Martha Aguirre has been appointed to interim superintendent, starting on June 15.

Sayavedra was granted a Voluntary Retirement Agreement by the board — moving forward, she'll serve an advisory role to Aguirre until she retires from employment on Jan. 30, 2026. 

Both Board President Leah Hanany, who initiated the motion to terminate Sayavedra's employment, and District 7 Trustee Daniel Call, who opposed it, both shared positive thoughts on the CFO.

"So in terms of us being concerned about our financial positioning, I think we are in a very strong financial position," says Hanany. "And having the CFO serve as an interim superintendent will only strengthen that position."

Although Call disagreed with Hanany over the past few weeks, he says a good decision was made.

"My experiences with Martha Aguirre have been great. You know, I was worried that, that reason that they would try to put a [...] in there as an interim superintendent," says Call. "Thankfully, the public outcry seemed like it dissuaded her from that. And I think Martha will do a great job."

ABC-7 spoke with Aguirre who says her biggest goal for the next few days is to ensure that they quote allocate for the correct initiatives and strategies.

“I believe that we are the executive leadership alongside with all our leadership throughout the district. We have focused on the strategic levers and have been, continue working through those, as we continue moving forward," says Aguirre. "Again, I believe my role will be more of sustaining stability as we move through this transitional period.”

The Board of Trustees did not disclose a reason as to why they wanted to fire Sayavedra.