KERMIT, Texas — The Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) has picked Kermit ISD Superintendent Jose Rafael Lopez from Region 18 as one of the five state finalist's for the 2023 Superintendent of the Year Award.
“Our goal with the Superintendent of the Year program is to honor the outstanding talent we have leading our Texas public schools,” TASB Executive Director Dan Troxell said in a press release. “Serving as a superintendent is one of the toughest yet most rewarding jobs in the world, and we’re thrilled to be able to celebrate these accomplished and committed leaders who do so much for our students.”
This program has been recognizing hard-working school leaders since 1984.
Lopez has worked as superintendent at Kermit ISD, located in West Texas, since 2019, where he supervises three campuses that total 1,200 students.
Over his 23-year career as an education leader, Lopez has worked in four districts, including superintendent of Taft ISD, located in South, TX., for four years.
His career began as a middle school teacher in Alief ISD and he also served as principal and executive director for state and federal programs in Mission CISD.
While at Kermit ISD, Lopez has improved the accountability rating for the district to a B in 2022. In addition, he has developed a five-year strategic plan and created new career pathway programs and curriculum that supports to boost student achievement.
The other state finalists include Martha Salazar-Zamora (Tomball ISD, Region 4), Wade Stanford (Westwood ISD, Region 7), Jim F. Chadwell (Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD, Region 11) and Sheri Blankenship (Hereford ISD, Region 16).
The five finalists were selected by school members a part of a TASB committee who interviewed 19 regional nominees put forward by Education Service Centers. Student outcomes, developing a strong "team-of-eight" relationship and an ongoing commitment to innovation and leadership were the qualities the candidates were evaluated on.