EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)- The Charles Butt Foundation, a non-profit pursuing a more equitable and prosperous future for Texas through education and community partnerships, selected Fabens High School Principal Edgar Rincon for a prestigious summer program.
Rincon has been named as part of the 2023 cohort of educators to attend summer institutes at the Principal’s Center at Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Including the new cohorts, the foundation will have paid for over 1,500 educators to attend training at Harvard through the Raising School Leaders program, an initiative designed to develop stronger school leaders who will enhance the quality of education across Texas.
The foundation also covers expenses for the attendees including tuition, travel, hotel, and other discretionary costs for a total investment of over $10 million since the program’s inception.
Attendees, including individual principals as well as campus teams, will participate in one of two
weeklong workshops on leadership development, coaching, or school turnaround led by Harvard faculty and other national and international experts.
Each program is designed to inspire, challenge, and empower school leaders to bring lasting impact to their campuses and communities, the entire state of Texas, and beyond.
“This is great opportunity to bring back what I learn. The Achieving Excellence: Leadership
Development for Principals Institute at Harvard will allow me to grow as a principal, which in
turn will allow me to make a bigger impact at Fabens High School. I can’t wait to go!” Rincon said.
“Great teachers, along with strong school and district leaders, represent the most significant influencers of academic achievement and supportive culture,” said Tim Miller, director of Leadership Development at the Charles Butt Foundation. “Our alumni often report that their Harvard experience is the best professional development they have ever experienced and that they return to their campuses energized, inspired, and empowered to make meaningful change that benefits all students.”
For this summer’s institutes, preference was given to school leaders from districts that were considered rural or had a student enrollment of less than 5,000.
“As demographics shift in Texas, we recognize that the needs of schools in rural and smaller districts are unique. Creating a space for school leaders in rural and smaller districts to find commonalities, problem solve, and build a network of support is an important component of this year’s Raising School Leaders program,” Miller added.
Following the Harvard Institutes, attendees remain as part of the program’s statewide network of school leaders and are encouraged to work together to create change at the campus and district levels.
In addition, alumni are sponsored to attend the organization’s biannual leadership symposium and receive continuous support and professional development.
A list of all 50 cohort members from across Texas can be found here.
For more information about Fabens Independent School District: FISD page, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
