Home Opinion Opinion: Latino Consortium for Action Supports Choice of Gutiérrez for Schools Superintendent

Opinion: Latino Consortium for Action Supports Choice of Gutiérrez for Schools Superintendent

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To the editor:

Latino Consortium for Action (LCA) is a coalition of the leaders representing different Latinx organizations, professional association and educational groups in Dane County.

We are Madisonians and Wisconsinites who for decades have been deeply rooted here. Many of us are homeowners, professionals, business owners, entrepreneurs and workers who have raised our families here, the vast majority of our children attending the Madison Metropolitan School District.

Over the past several MMSD School Board elections there has been a fundamental shift in its make up from a primarily White school board, to a school board that is primarily Black and Brown elected officials. That shift in composition of the MMSD School Board has resulted in a change in processes and procedures, in particular with regards to the hiring of the new MMSD Superintendent. We support and trust the unanimous decision by the MMSD School Board to select Dr. Matthew Gutierrez as our next Superintendent.

While no process is free from flaws, we firmly believe and are confident that the hiring of our new MMSD Superintendent was the most open and transparent in recent history. Many community leaders were afforded an opportunity to engage with the final Superintendent candidates and see them in person. This has not been the case in the past, and we applaud the effort the Board took in making the process more inclusive of the Madison community.

As Madison becomes even more diverse we need a Superintendent that embraces diversity and equity, inclusive of Black Excellence – someone who is willing to listen to all interested parties, and to become a key part of our community’s collective interest in transforming the trajectory of our kids. Leading a very diverse district in Dallas,TX, as Assistant Superintendent, in addition to his current Superintendent experience demonstrates Dr. Gutierrez’s strong qualifications.

We invite you to join us in celebrating the hire of Dr. Gutierrez as our next Superintendent. His selection is groundbreaking. He is eminently qualified to lead our district and we must be committed to ensuring his success and in turn the success of our City.

Karen Menendez Coller, Executive Director, Centro Hispano of Dane County
Julia Arata-Fratta, Alder, City of Fitchburg
Shiva Bidar-Sielaff, Co-Chair, Latino Health Council
Fernando Cano, Latino Health Council
Salvador Carranza, Founder and Past President of the Latino Education Council
Justice Castaneda, Executive Director, Common Wealth Development
Jessica Cavazos, President and CEO, Latino Chamber of Commerce
Baltazar De Anda Santana, Executive Director, Latino Academy of Workforce Development, Director, Orgullo Latinx LGBT+
Veronica Figueroa, Executive Director, UNIDOS
Brenda Gonzalez, Latino Health Council
Fabiola Hamdan, Chair, Latino Children and Families Council
Armando Ibarra, Voces de la Frontera – Madison
Juan Jose Lopez, Board Chair, Wisconsin Latino Economic Development Center, Inc.
Oscar Mireles, Executive Director, Omega School
Sandy Morales, CEO, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Dane County
Nicole Sandoval, President, Latino Professionals Association of Greater Madison (LPA)
Patricia Tellez-Giron, Co-Chair, Latino Health Council