The United Independent School District Board of Trustees and Superintendent Roberto J. Santos are pleased to announce that Sandra Higareda as the new principal at Clark Elementary School. The announcement was made at the recent UISD board meeting held on July 18, 2012.
Higareda is the oldest of four children born to Santa Cestou and Francisco Higareda. Her family immigrated into the United States in 1987. Starting life in a new country was very difficult at the beginning, but her parents instilled in their children the value of education, hard work, and the importance of family and friends. She graduated with honors from J. W. Nixon High School in 1990 and in 1993, she completed an Associate’s Degree in Secondary Education at Laredo Junior College. At that point in her life, feeling she would be of more benefit to the community if she could service recent immigrant children at the elementary level, Higareda decided to change her major from Secondary Education-Spanish to Elementary-Bilingual. She graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies Degree with a Major in Bilingual Education from Texas A & M International University in 1995. Upon completion of that degree, she was hired by UISD as a fourth grade bilingual teacher at Juarez-Lincoln Elementary. Inspired by her students in Rio Bravo and the desire she had to provide a solid bilingual education foundation for her students, she continued her college studies. She pursued and completed a Master of Science in Education with a Major in Bilingual Education and a Minor in Psychology from Texas A & M International University in 1999. That same year she transferred to J.B.J. Muller Elementary where she worked as a fifth grade bilingual teacher. In 2002, feeling the urge to impact a wider range of children, she joined the UISD Area One Team where she served as a Reading and Bilingual Specialist. Higareda recognizes and treasures the experiences she lived while working with the teachers serviced by Area One. For it was they who led her to the conclusion that once again she wanted to further her education. Higareda decided to return to the classroom and joined the Rodolfo C. Centeno Elementary as the fifth grade pathfinder while she pursued and completed a Master of Science in Education with a specialization in Educational Administration.
Higareda is currently enrolled in a Doctor of Education degree program in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Bi-literacy that is offered in collaboration from Texas A & M International University and Texas A & M College Station. She has proudly been servicing the UISD students at Clark Elementary as the Assistant Principal for the last three years and will continue to commit herself to her students and the Clark Elementary School community as the Principal of the school. She has been employed at UISD for 18 years.
United Independent School District
for children
It is the policy of United I.S.D. not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, or handicap in its programs, services, or activities as required by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.
Es norma de United I.S.D. el no discriminar por motivos de raza, color, origen nacional, sexo o impedimento, en sus programas, servicios o actividades, tal como lo requieren el Título VI de la Ley de Derechos Civiles de 1964, según enmienda; el Título IX de las Enmiendas en la Educación de 1972, y la Sección 504 de la Ley de Rehabilitación de 1973, según la enmienda.
