• Category 1

    Selected in 2024

  • Grades: pre k - 5
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 560,274
    Student Enrollment: 261
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 1.2%
    White/Caucasian: 19.7%
    Hispanic: 74.5%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 0.4%
    Native American: 1.5%
    Other: 2.7%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:11
    % Reduced Lunch: 100%
    % ELL Learners: 9.7%
    Founded: 1952
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Desiree Springer
  • CONTACT:
    1100 Solar Rd NM
    Albuquerque, NM 87107
    505-344-4412
    desiree.springer@aps.edu
Alvarado Elementary School
Albuquerque, NM
"We believe the students’ education and life outcomes are dependent upon their access to safe and welcoming learning environments."
1. Tell us about your school’s success.
Alvarado Elementary is a warm, community focused school that has been educating families since 1952. We offer a multi-cultural educational experience through our Dual Language program for kindergarten through fifth grade. We are a creative campus and we are going on our second year as being a Structured Literacy school. Other opportunities include a STEAM lab, a library with over 12,000 books, a school garden, music, art, and physical education classes offered weekly, a very active PTA, and an extremely supportive community. We made great gains for the 2023-2024 school year. In Reading/Literacy in English we went from 40.7% proficient to 47.0% proficient and in Spanish we went from 10.4% proficient to 24.1% proficient. In Math we went from 18.1% proficient to 52.9% proficient. We increased our climate and culture score by 6% from fall to spring. These scores are a reflection of the dedication and hard work by our staff and students!
2. Talk about the greatest contributing factor(s) that promoted positive change in your school.
We believe and understand that students’ education and life outcomes are dependent upon their access to safe and welcoming learning environments and rich learning experiences. We have created an inclusive environment and work hard to make sure students want to come to school every single day. By making school a fun and memorable place to be, our students want to come to school on a daily basis. We are a team with everyone being a key piece. All voices are heard and advocated for. Small class sizes give our teachers opportunities to provide more targeted instruction for our students in every subject, as well as building stronger relationships. We have also made social and emotional learning a cornerstone of what we do everyday. Having support staff like a counselor, Behavior Redirector and Social Worker help to support our students with the most needs. This helps students to be able to focus on their learning and emotional well-being.
3. How has ESEA funding supported the school's success?
N/A
4. What professional development activities were used to improve teaching and learning?
We use explicit and systematic instruction to help students learn to read. Professional learning communities have allowed educators to share best practices, discuss challenges, and work together to improve teaching methods. This collaborative approach has led to more innovative classroom strategies, higher student engagement, and overall improvements in academic achievement. Empowering teachers with resources and autonomy to experiment with new ideas has resulted in a more dynamic and responsive learning environment. There has been a lot of professional development given to our teachers to support the implementation of our core curriculums.. This has created consistency across the grade levels for all of our students, which has led to such great outcomes in our math and literacy scores. Prioritizing professional development and collaboration has given the teachers the necessary foundation to plan instruction and to become experts in knowing the standards.
5. Talk about the cultural shift leading up to your school's success.
We have worked hard to provide a positive school culture that makes students and staff feel safe, respected, and encouraged to take risks, which has led to higher levels of achievement and engagement. We have created a Principal’s advisory council with the purpose of attending to student voices that require administrators to intentionally disrupt power structures and collaborate with students as legitimate partners. We build trust, flatten power dynamics, and act as a bridge between students and power brokers in decision-making processes. We have created an environment where teachers feel supported and this has led to them feeling like they are part of a team that they can rely on for support and growth. Staff functions outside of school have also helped to build positive relationships. Teachers and staff have also built stronger relationships with parents. There is an environment where all stakeholders are willing and active participants.
6. How has community involvement strengthened your success?
We have strong community partnerships that support improved academic outcomes, whole-child engagement, and family development. Our PTA works hard to fund programs that we request. They provide us with funding to initiate incentive programs. They are frequently on campus helping us with every and any event we want to occur. They sponsor a yearly read-a-thon that not only funds many things for our school but promotes the love for reading. We have a consistent number of parents who volunteer in their child’s classroom and support teachers with any help that they might need. We work with retired teachers who volunteer to help tutor students one on one. Once an All-Star always an All-Star is our motto! Previous staff and students return to support our school needs in any way they can, including school functions and events.This environment has led to many parents transferring their children to our school because of the unique experience and opportunities our school has to offer.
Stats
  • Category 1

    Selected in 2024

  • Grades: pre k - 5
    School Setting: urban
    Town Population: 560,274
    Student Enrollment: 261
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 1.2%
    White/Caucasian: 19.7%
    Hispanic: 74.5%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0%
    Asian: 0.4%
    Native American: 1.5%
    Other: 2.7%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:11
    % Reduced Lunch: 100%
    % ELL Learners: 9.7%
    Founded: 1952
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Desiree Springer
  • CONTACT:
    1100 Solar Rd NM
    Albuquerque, NM 87107
    505-344-4412
    desiree.springer@aps.edu