Dr. Nate Carman named Socorro Independent School District superintendent sole finalist
EL PASO, Texas – After a 9-month-long search, the Socorro Independent School District has named Dr. Nate Carman as its superintendent sole finalist.
"I'm both excited and humbled at the opportunity," Carman said.
Carman is a longtime educator. He started as a maths and physics teacher that also doubled as a wrestling coach, before working his way up to a principal.
He's spent 9 years as a superintendent - the last 4 and a half years as the superintendent of San Benito Consolidated Independent School District.
During his time at the helm of San Benito CISD he oversaw 9,050 students across 22 campuses. In his new role at Socorro ISD there are closer to 50-thousand students across 49 campuses.
"In San Benito it is still a 6A school district," Carman said. "So the programs, the extra curricular activities will be very similar to what there are here. It will just be scaled up."
One SISD parent who wished to stay unnamed told ABC-7 that the biggest thing parents and teachers asked the board to consider was hiring someone who was bilingual - something Carman is not.
"I'm not fluent in Spanish but I have worked 4 and a half years in a border district with very similar demographics to Socorro ISD and it was not a hindrance to my performance there and I do not believe it will be a hindrance to my performance here," Carman said.
"The fact of the matter is that when you look at the big picture a person with that stature and those qualities he has, that gives you an idea he can commute with anyone no matter the language," David Morales, president of the SISD school board.
The board is currently in contract negotiations with Carman. There's a 21 day waiting period until they can officially offer him a contract.
Dr. Carman replaces Dr. Jose Espinoza, who resigned in May of 2021. He was paid $629,309 as part of his separation agreement with the school district.
