School districts prepare for Hurricane Harvey's young evacuees
Sara Sanchez
As El Paso readies to receive a possible influx of 1,500 evacuees displaced by Hurricane Harvey, school districts also are preparing for the children among them.
El Paso Independent School District officials said they are ready to help aid evacuees coming to the city.
Manuel Chavira, the safe and secure schools manager for the EPISD, said the district has been designated as an overflow resource for the city. If the city's designated shelters are overflowing, evacuees will go to EPISD facilities.
"We want to help them (evacuees) establish some sort of normalcy," Chavira said. "Get kids registered in school, provide them with transportation to and from school."
Chavira said since the city is on standby and not expecting immediate arrivals, the district has some time to identify facilities that might be more comfortable than the ones available at a moment's notice.
If evacuees arrive in the district without much notice, vacant facilities, such as the old Wainwright Elementary School, could be used.
In a news release, officials said Superintendent Juan Cabrera spoke with El Paso Mayor Dee Margo and offered education and housing services to children and families displaced by the destruction of Hurricane Harvey.
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"EPISD and El Paso have a strong tradition of service in humanitarian aid, and our schools and employees are ready to do their part in helping displaced Texans," Cabrera said in the news release. "We've taught our students to lead with character, and now it's our turn to show what this means. EPISD will lend a hand and help those affected by Harvey during their toughest time."
The news release said the district is ready to provide buses to transport families and hire substitute teachers to instruct displaced school-age children.
EPISD board President Trent Hatch said there have been internal discussions about how trustees can help with relief efforts and that they are ready to help however they can.
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"We've had discussions about what steps we need to take to support Houston," Hatch said. "The issue we see is that the storm is ongoing, and we're going to support in any way we can."
Hatch said he has family in the Houston area and on Monday said he was loading up boats with family members who were going to drive out to Houston and assist with rescue efforts.
In 2005, El Paso received hundreds of evacuees from hurricanes Katrina and Rita. At the time, the EPISD identified 43 school-age children at the shelter set up inside the Judson F. Williams Convention Center.
In a statement, Ysleta Independent School District Superintendent Xavier De La Torre said the district is ready to assist evacuees and children who arrive in El Paso.
More:Up to 1,500 Hurricane Harvey evacuees may be headed to El Paso
"Our thoughts and prayers go out to our fellow Texans suffering the devastation of Hurricane Harvey," De La Torre said in the statement. "As always, the Ysleta Independent School District stands ready to assist any evacuees and/or displaced families who come into the El Paso area by providing their children with an unparalleled educational environment."
The YISD also will hold a districtwide fundraiser Thursday during which employees and students can pay to wear jeans to work or school. Proceeds will be donated to the American Red Cross.
Officials with the Socorro Independent School District, which also received students from hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, said the district has reached out to the city's Office of Emergency Management to discuss the next steps.
More:Texans helping Texans cope with Harvey
Ismael Castro, emergency plan operations manager for SISD, said the district is prepared to help incoming students however it can.
"If we do get students, we'll help them with any possible thing they need to continue their education," Castro said.
Jose Alvarez, head baseball coach at Socorro High School, said he and other baseball coaches in the district are coordinating efforts to collect toiletries for evacuees. Alvarez said he was prompted to act after seeing photos in the news of hurricane victims.
"The photo of people in the nursing home just broke my heart," Alvarez said. "Watching people sit there; they had lost hope. I want to give those people back their hope."
Alvarez and his team are collecting soap, shampoo, shavers, shaving cream, deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes and feminine products.
Donations can be dropped off at Socorro High School through Friday.
Sara Sanchez can be reached at 546-6147; ssanchez@elpasotimes.com; @siempresarita on Twitter.