Eddie Congers, Superintendent and Founder of ILTexas, (center) and other stakeholders attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the ILTexas campus in the Santa Fe community south of Plum Grove on Thursday, September 9th.
International Leadership of Texas (ILTexas), a free public charter school network, broke ground for its new ILTexas Brigadier General Ramirez K-8 campus south in the Santa Fe community south of Plum Grove, Texas on Thursday, September 9th.
Traditional Chinese lion dances and more than 30 students from the ILTexas Marine Corps JROTC were presented at the foundation stone laying ceremony. Abner Lyons, District 142 Liaison Officer, State Representative Harold Dutton, was also in attendance and presented new campus director Coral Martinez with a certificate and flag that was hoisted over the state capitol. An employee from the office of State Representative Ernest Bailes (District 18) also took part in the laying of the foundation stone.
ILTexas BG Ramirez K-8 will begin serving students in the 2022-2023 school year and will host 1,416 scholarship holders. In addition to the ILTexas BG Ramirez K-8, ILTexas will also open a second kindergarten up to the eighth grade campus and a grammar school in the school year 2023-2024. Both K-8 campuses will serve 1,416 students and the high school will serve 1,200 students.
Eddie Conger, Founder and Superintendent of ILTexas, said the location for the new campus was chosen because of the unprecedented growth that is being experienced within Cleveland ISD.
“This area was selected because the Texas Education Agency released some information that said Cleveland ISD was supergrowth and TEA was looking for options for the students and parents in the area,” Conger told Bluebonnet News.
In May 2021, Conger paid a visit to the community and met with some stakeholders who enthusiastically supported the project.
“We applied for the extension to the state and it was approved. The land owners have been very, very supportive of our mission to give students another option, ”he said.
The new school is being built on 17 acres along Community Drive in the Santa Fe community that was donated by Colony Ridge Land, LLC. Trey Harris, owner of Colony Ridge Land, LLC, said he was thrilled to see other educational opportunities offered to students.
“Obviously, Cleveland ISD is struggling to keep up with the growth. This ILTexas campus is a gift from the state and I couldn’t be happier, ”said Harris. “Whatever is good for our communities, we want to be part of it. I would have done backflips to get her here. You have been highly recommended by Texas Education Agency Chairman Mike Morath. He had wonderful things to say about this school system. ”
Conger, a 20-year retired Marine who describes himself as a “traditional educator” through teaching at ISDs in Hillsboro, Garland, and Dallas, says he appreciates the new Liberty County school.
“Freedom means having the freedom to make a choice without the government telling you where to send your children to school,” he said.
As a charter school, ILTexas offers a unique education as students learn three languages - English, Spanish and Chinese.
“It is about our mission to prepare children for exceptional leadership roles in the international community by emphasizing leadership skills, mastering the three languages, and strengthening their mind, body and character,” said Monger.
The quality of education at ILTexas schools has been confirmed by two mothers – Nancy Salazar and Manya Leach – who work for ILTexas and currently have children in the program.
“I love the training they are receiving. You get something that I think you wouldn’t have gotten in a traditional district. I have a feeling that it will give them an advantage in life, ”said Salazar.
Applications for students in the school year 2023-2024 are currently being accepted. Conger said they have already received an unprecedented number of applicants from families within Cleveland ISD, but that shouldn’t deter others from applying as new students are admitted on a lottery-based basis.
“You can be the last student to apply and get on anyway, or you can be the first and not be selected by the computer lottery system,” he explained.
Since the campus does not offer transportation, parents or guardians of the applicants must be willing to transport their students to and from campus each day of school or to live within walking distance for the students.
The new campus is named after Brigadier General Joe E. Ramirez Jr., who is from Houston and is a graduate of Texas A&M University. Ramirez is a retired Army officer with more than 30 years of service who now serves as the interim vice president of student affairs at Texas A&M University.
In April 2022, the computer lottery system will be activated and the students will be selected. Students do not have to go through the lottery system again after enrolling. Every February, ILTexas sends out letters to all students with the intention of returning. After completing and submitting this form, you will be re-enrolled in the following year. New places within the school open up as students graduate, move away, or set out for other opportunities.
To apply for the new campus, go online at https://www.iltexas.org/.
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