In photos: A day in the life of a rural Latina superintendent
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Karen Sanchez-Griego, superintendent of the rural Cuba Independent School District in Cuba, N.M., outside of her office. Photo: Russell Contreras/Axios
Karen Sanchez-Griego is a longtime educator who has defied the odds as a superintendent of a rural New Mexico school district, dramatically improving graduation rates and growing enrollment, especially among Native American students in nearby communities.
Through the lens: This month, Axios Latino spent time with Sanchez-Griego — who has held her position for six years in a state where the average superintendent tenure is about two — to see firsthand how she does her job.
Details: When Sanchez-Griego took over as superintendent in the Cuba school district, the high school graduation rate was 62%.
- She implemented aggressive retention programs and reached out to parents. She overhauled disciplinarily policies and changed curriculum.
- Today the graduation rate is 95%.
- Enrollment has also grown by more than 22% from 546 students in the 2016-2017 school year — the year before she started — to 669 in the 2021-2022 school year, according to state data kept by the Kids Count Data Center.
The intrigue: Sanchez-Griego noticed tensions between the area's Hispanic student population and Navajo children when she became superintendent.
- She adopted programs to address histories of racial tension and held open discussions of past trauma.
Zoom in: The 62-year-old Sanchez-Griego recently suffered a heart attack. Her doctor gave her a warning: slow down.
- Sanchez-Griego said she will watch her health but slowing down is "not an option."
- "I'm here for a limited amount of time and I need to do what I need to do before I leave."
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