La Feria Independent School District
Encyclopedia
The La Feria Independent School District (LFISD) comprises four elementary school
s: Sam Houston, C.E. Vail, David G. Sanchez and Noemi Dominguez, one Middle School
: W.B. Green, and one High School
: La Feria. LFISD is ranked as a 3A school district. Its rival school is Port Isabel. Its mascot is the Lion, colors are maroon and gold, and motto is Expect, Achieve, Excel.
In 2009, the school district was rated "academically acceptable
" by the Texas Education Agency
.
, defeating the heavily favored Bandera Bulldogs 31-14.
Oh, and they teach academics as well.
David G. Sanchez Elementary is our newest campus, and is home to 1st and 2nd grade
C.E. Vail houses 3-4 graded, Noemi Dominguez house 5th and 6th
, The Railway Killer/The Railroad Killer. The school board's decision to name the new elementary school after Dominguez was a tribute to the short life of a local Mexican American woman who made headlines with her death but did not impact the La Feria school district with her life.
The school board's decision was reached because of the board's desire to name the school after a respected Mexican American community member. Indeed, Dominguez Elementary School was the first local school to be named after a Mexican American. This was significant given the local history of Mexican segregation.
in 1954 mandated an end to segregation, La Feria Independent School District (LFISD) and many other school districts throughout the United States failed to comply with desegregation mandates. In the 1960s La Feria had four schools: La Feria High School; Franklin D. Roosevelt, the middle school; Robert E. Lee, and Sam Houston. Sam Houston Elementary School (K-3) was also known as the Mexican School. It was a segregated school for Mexican and African American students. In rare instances, Mexican students were admitted to Robert E. Lee Elementary School.
After the third grade, Mexican students attended Robert E. Lee Elementary School with Anglo children. Though then attending the same school, separate classrooms divided Anglo students from Mexicans, a practice that continued throughout the junior and high schools. Nevertheless, there were some Mexican students who were exceptions to this rule of racial segregation and were placed in predominantly Anglo classrooms. These students were often children with light skin, had a strong command of English, and/or were from middle class Mexican American parents.
At the high school level, there was an extremely high drop out rate for Mexican students. Oftentimes those who did complete their requirements for graduation were counseled to attend the various local vocational schools rather than attend four year colleges. However, external and internal forces and actions during this dynamic era of educational change caused modifications within the La Feria school system.
Student walkouts and protests in nearby towns and counties in the late 1960s prompted the La Feria administration to begin hiring Mexican American
teachers and begin a gradual integration process at its schools. For example, in 1966 and 1967 disagreements between farm workers and its owners in neighboring Starr County caused protests and social unrest. MAYO (Mexican American Youth Organization
), later Raza Unida Party
, who sought social justice by confrontations and demonstrations organized a successful student walkout in 1968 at Edcouch-Elsa high school, eighteen miles northwest of La Feria. The students demanded more Mexican American teachers and staff and equal opportunities for all students. In 1969-1970, MAYO also founded El Colegio Jacinto Treviño in Mercedes, Texas, about seven miles from La Feria.
Also, in the 1960s, the student population at La Feria hit a record high. Enrollment increased at the Mexican school. The district began a summer language program for Spanish-speaking children. After the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965 passed, more opportunities opened for minorities. Title I allowed the hiring of teacher aids and provided funds to employ more teachers, which La Feria did. In 1967 the Head Start Program opened its doors at Sam Houston Elementary. Also, in 1971 a group of activists presented a list of grievances to the school board. One of the items proposed was the desegregation of Sam Houston Elementary. The school board denied the petition. Therefore, the group, Colonias Del Valle, and its representative, Pedro Guzman, filed a complaint with the United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare, (HEW). To help implement all these new programs, which targeted the Mexican community, and to ease the pressure from HEW, La Feria ISD employed Mexican American instructors and Sam Houston desegregated in 1972.
Because of these external and internal forces the La Feria ISD administration, led by Mr. C. E. Vail until 1974 and then by Mr. William B. Green, began implementing the state mandated programs to show La Feria could comply and that its schools could excel. It was a slow gradual process, but Mexican American students and staff became more involved and visible in the school community. In 1971 the first Mexican American school board member was elected. When Sam Houston desegregated in 1972, another Mexican American joined the school board. Also, in 1972 La Feria hired the first Mexican American counselor. By 1974 Mexican Americans were visible at all levels of La Feria school school system. There were two principals, one at Sam Houston Elementary and one at La Feria High School, one counselor and six teachers at the high school and various teachers at the elementary and middle school level.
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s: Sam Houston, C.E. Vail, David G. Sanchez and Noemi Dominguez, one Middle School
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
: W.B. Green, and one High School
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
: La Feria. LFISD is ranked as a 3A school district. Its rival school is Port Isabel. Its mascot is the Lion, colors are maroon and gold, and motto is Expect, Achieve, Excel.
In 2009, the school district was rated "academically acceptable
Texas Education Agency accountability ratings system
The Texas Education Agency accountability ratings system rates all public schools, charter schools, and school districts in the State of Texas.The criteria are the same for schools and districts, and are discussed below...
" by the Texas Education Agency
Texas Education Agency
The Texas Education Agency is a branch of the state government of Texas in the United States responsible for public education. The agency is headquartered in the William B...
.
La Feria High School
La Feria High School is classified as an AAA (3A) campus, as regulated by Texas U.I.L. regulations. Athletics include: Football, Basketball (Boys and Girls), Cross Country (B&G), Volleyball, Tennis (B&G), Soccer (B&G), Track and Field (B&G), Baseball, and Softball. During the 2008-2009 Football season, Rio Grande Valley History was made, as the La Feria Lions recorded the valley's first ever post-season football win at the AlamodomeAlamodome
The Alamodome is a domed 65,000 seat, multi-purpose facility that is primarily used as a football/basketball stadium and convention center in San Antonio, Texas, U.S...
, defeating the heavily favored Bandera Bulldogs 31-14.
Oh, and they teach academics as well.
Elementary schools
Sam Houston Elementary is the Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten campus,David G. Sanchez Elementary is our newest campus, and is home to 1st and 2nd grade
C.E. Vail houses 3-4 graded, Noemi Dominguez house 5th and 6th
Naming Controversy
When Noemi Dominguez was under construction, the School Board asked the residents of the city to generate a list of names for the new school. Forms were provided in the local newspaper, and residents wrote their choices and delivered it to the main office. A large majority of the vote was in favor of naming the school after retired principal and teacher, Mrs. Ruth Johnson, who served the district for over 30 years as an educator. However, the school board chose a name that was not proposed by any significant percentage of the respondents. They named it after Noemi Dominguez, a 1991 graduate of La Feria High School who obtained her BA from Rice University and was a teacher in the Houston ISD. Dominguez was brutally murdered by Angel Maturino ReséndizÁngel Maturino Reséndiz
Angel Maturino Reséndiz, aka The Railroad Killer/The Railway Killer , was an itinerant Mexican serial killer responsible for as many as thirty murders across the United States and Mexico during the 1990s. Some also involved sexual assault...
, The Railway Killer/The Railroad Killer. The school board's decision to name the new elementary school after Dominguez was a tribute to the short life of a local Mexican American woman who made headlines with her death but did not impact the La Feria school district with her life.
The school board's decision was reached because of the board's desire to name the school after a respected Mexican American community member. Indeed, Dominguez Elementary School was the first local school to be named after a Mexican American. This was significant given the local history of Mexican segregation.
La Feria ISD: Dynamic Era of Educational Change
The 1960s brought tremendous changes and disturbances to the American educational system. Although the decision in Brown v. Board of EducationBrown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 , was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The decision overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 which...
in 1954 mandated an end to segregation, La Feria Independent School District (LFISD) and many other school districts throughout the United States failed to comply with desegregation mandates. In the 1960s La Feria had four schools: La Feria High School; Franklin D. Roosevelt, the middle school; Robert E. Lee, and Sam Houston. Sam Houston Elementary School (K-3) was also known as the Mexican School. It was a segregated school for Mexican and African American students. In rare instances, Mexican students were admitted to Robert E. Lee Elementary School.
After the third grade, Mexican students attended Robert E. Lee Elementary School with Anglo children. Though then attending the same school, separate classrooms divided Anglo students from Mexicans, a practice that continued throughout the junior and high schools. Nevertheless, there were some Mexican students who were exceptions to this rule of racial segregation and were placed in predominantly Anglo classrooms. These students were often children with light skin, had a strong command of English, and/or were from middle class Mexican American parents.
At the high school level, there was an extremely high drop out rate for Mexican students. Oftentimes those who did complete their requirements for graduation were counseled to attend the various local vocational schools rather than attend four year colleges. However, external and internal forces and actions during this dynamic era of educational change caused modifications within the La Feria school system.
Student walkouts and protests in nearby towns and counties in the late 1960s prompted the La Feria administration to begin hiring Mexican American
Mexican American
Mexican Americans are Americans of Mexican descent. As of July 2009, Mexican Americans make up 10.3% of the United States' population with over 31,689,000 Americans listed as of Mexican ancestry. Mexican Americans comprise 66% of all Hispanics and Latinos in the United States...
teachers and begin a gradual integration process at its schools. For example, in 1966 and 1967 disagreements between farm workers and its owners in neighboring Starr County caused protests and social unrest. MAYO (Mexican American Youth Organization
Mexican American Youth Organization
The Mexican American Youth Organization is a civil rights organization formed in 1967 in San Antonio, Texas, USA to fight for Mexican-American rights. The creators of MAYO, Los Cinco, consisted of José Ángel Gutiérrez, Willie Velásquez, Mario Compean, Ignacio Pérez, and Juan Patlán...
), later Raza Unida Party
Raza Unida Party
Partido Nacional de La Raza Unida is an American political party centered on Chicano interests. The party was termed La Raza in reference to the Mestizo people. During the 1970s the Party campaigned for better housing, work, and educational opportunities for Mexican-Americans...
, who sought social justice by confrontations and demonstrations organized a successful student walkout in 1968 at Edcouch-Elsa high school, eighteen miles northwest of La Feria. The students demanded more Mexican American teachers and staff and equal opportunities for all students. In 1969-1970, MAYO also founded El Colegio Jacinto Treviño in Mercedes, Texas, about seven miles from La Feria.
Also, in the 1960s, the student population at La Feria hit a record high. Enrollment increased at the Mexican school. The district began a summer language program for Spanish-speaking children. After the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Elementary and Secondary Education Act
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act , is a United States federal statute enacted April 11, 1965. It was passed as a part of President Lyndon B. Johnson's "War on Poverty" and has been the most far-reaching federal legislation affecting education ever passed by Congress...
of 1965 passed, more opportunities opened for minorities. Title I allowed the hiring of teacher aids and provided funds to employ more teachers, which La Feria did. In 1967 the Head Start Program opened its doors at Sam Houston Elementary. Also, in 1971 a group of activists presented a list of grievances to the school board. One of the items proposed was the desegregation of Sam Houston Elementary. The school board denied the petition. Therefore, the group, Colonias Del Valle, and its representative, Pedro Guzman, filed a complaint with the United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare, (HEW). To help implement all these new programs, which targeted the Mexican community, and to ease the pressure from HEW, La Feria ISD employed Mexican American instructors and Sam Houston desegregated in 1972.
Because of these external and internal forces the La Feria ISD administration, led by Mr. C. E. Vail until 1974 and then by Mr. William B. Green, began implementing the state mandated programs to show La Feria could comply and that its schools could excel. It was a slow gradual process, but Mexican American students and staff became more involved and visible in the school community. In 1971 the first Mexican American school board member was elected. When Sam Houston desegregated in 1972, another Mexican American joined the school board. Also, in 1972 La Feria hired the first Mexican American counselor. By 1974 Mexican Americans were visible at all levels of La Feria school school system. There were two principals, one at Sam Houston Elementary and one at La Feria High School, one counselor and six teachers at the high school and various teachers at the elementary and middle school level.