OPINION: Cuba graduation rates show district is improving

In the Sunday Journal on June 29, an op-ed titled “Graduating students who don’t deserve it ought to be a scandal” was published.

The real scandal is that this so-called “teacher” who spent barely three months in our schools has the audacity to disparage our students, families and educators in rural New Mexico. His sweeping claims rely on cherry-picked data and ignore the broader reality of student growth, community investment and lasting systemic change.

As the former superintendent of Cuba Schools, I feel compelled to set the record straight. I retired in July 2024 after six years dedicated to transforming this small rural district with a progressive, committed board of education. Our mission simple but profound: Ensure every child, especially our Native American and Hispanic students historically overlooked or pushed out, receives the high-quality education they deserve.

What this writer won’t tell you is that he complained over his termination to the school board, hardly an unbiased perspective. A real journalist would have shared the full truth, including the many measures beyond a single test score that show our students’ genuine growth.

When I arrived in 2018, Cuba High School’s graduation rate was just 62%. We faced decades of entrenched inequities, outdated practices and small-town politics that failed our students, especially Navajo and Hispanic youth. Together with our board, staff and community partners, we faced these challenges head-on with data, accountability and unwavering belief in our kids.

We partnered with experts to build a strong data system, analyze instruction and ask hard questions. If all 160 students in a class are failing, is it the students or the system?

We found classrooms where instruction lagged decades behind, where English learners got no support, and where some teachers sat at their desks instead of engaging kids. That changed. We stood up for our students because educators should be their fiercest advocates.

This work didn’t happen alone. Partners like Future Focused Education, Los Alamos National Laboratory Foundation, Kellogg Foundation, Appleseed and others stood with us. We launched capstone projects with real rubrics, improved course advising, and expanded career technical education pathways that give students meaningful skills and certifications.

Our graduation rates tell the real story:

2017: 62%

2018: 70%

2019: 84%

2020: 89%

2021: 95%

2022: 95%

2023: 95%

Behind these numbers are students from three Navajo chapters: Torreon, Ojo Encino and Counselor — students from communities too often overlooked. Today, many graduate early with college credits and industry certifications in hand. That’s not “artificial,” as this writer claims. It’s real, it’s earned and it’s transformative.

His dismissal of the landmark Yazzie/Martinez case is equally dishonest. Contrary to what he claims, the New Mexico Public Education Department has been working for years to tackle the deep-rooted inequities this case exposed. Real change takes time and courageous leadership willing to confront pushback within our own systems.

And the arrogance of someone who claims to be writing a book about Navajo people while questioning their children’s worth is astounding. Cultural understanding is not gained in a few months; it’s built through years of trust, respect and genuine partnership.

I know these students. I know their families. I have seen their brilliance, resilience and success. I will not stand by while someone reduces them to a false narrative of failure for their own agenda.

New Mexicans, stand up for our children. Believe in them, fight for them, and celebrate what they have achieved and will continue to achieve when given the opportunities they deserve.

This is the reality: Our kids are thriving when we stand with them.