Ledes from the Land of Enchantment

Swearing-in of the members of the school board from January 1st; Maria Flores has been on the board for almost 13 years

By Mike Cook

Two incumbents and a new member of the Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education were sworn in on December 15 for a four-year term beginning January 1, 2022. The ceremony took place at the LCPS Dr. Karen M. Trujillo Administration Complex. instead, with Doña Ana County Clerk Amanda López Askin, who administers the oath of office.

Ray Jaramillo was elected to the board for his second term in November.

Pamela Cort was named to serve in District 2 on the board in July following Terrie Dallman’s resignation. Cort was elected for a full four-year term in November.

Robert Wofford was elected to the District 3 Board of Directors in November. He succeeds Maria Flores, who did not run for a fourth term.

“My mantra throughout my tenure has been ‘Provoke, Confront and Elevate,'” Flores told the Bulletin. “It helped me through the difficult phases and helped me to make a difference. It’s a bittersweet moment, but I happily leave my place to a great teacher and mentor, Bob Wofford. I wish the new board every success! Thank you for letting me serve! “My Agradecida! (Very grateful).'”

When her term ends in late December, Flores will have served 12 years and eight months on the LCPS Board of Education. Her term was extended when Las Cruces passed the Local Elections Act in 2019, which consolidated local elections and moved school council elections from February to November.

Flores won her first election to the board in 2009 with two votes. In 2013 and 2017 she was re-elected by a large margin.

Jaramillo, who has been chairman of the board since January, is the director of Alpha School for Young Children, a pre-school in Las Cruces where he has worked for 26 years. He is a member of the New Mexico Early Learning Advisory Council.

After starting her career at Albuquerque Public Schools, Cort taught French at Las Cruces High School for 26 years and retired in May 2019. Cort was named LCPS Teacher of the Year in 2012 and New Mexico Teacher of the Year in 2013.

Wofford retired in 2017 after teaching English at Las Cruces High School for 34 years. He has over 15 years’ experience as a consultant for The College Board, a national not-for-profit educational association.

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