Two legislators I spoke with were saddened by tonight’s news that the Las Cruces school board fired Superintendent Sonia Diaz, but they weren’t talking about bringing in the state to takeover operation of the district.
Rep. Mary Helen Garcia said the findings that led to the decision must have included “substantial evidence” for the board to fire Diaz instead of buying out her contract.
“It was their responsibility to do what’s necessary,” Garcia said. “It’s unfortunate for the children of the district to have to go through this, but hopefully they’ll find the right person at the right time.”
In the meantime, Garcia said, she has full confidence that Elizabeth Marrufo, the administrator in charge of the district, can manage the situation.
Garcia said the board’s decision – clearly a tough one to make – demonstrated leadership, so the state does not need to come in and help stabilize the district.
Sen. Leonard “Lee” Rawson said the community must be concerned about what has taken place.
“My concern is that we haven’t resolved the problem,” he said. “The problem, from my perspective, is that the school board has made some bad decisions and now we’ve lost another year.”
He said the board is either not giving clear direction to superintendents or doing a poor job of selecting them, but added that he’s glad the board acted tonight, instead of delaying a decision.
“Hopefully, the school board will learn from its mistakes, or what it perceives as mistakes,” he said.