Garcia: Vanguard Academy's College, Career & Military Readiness scores keep on improving

EDINBURG, Texas - Dr. Narciso Garcia, superintendent at Vanguard Academy, is pleased with the progress his charter school system has made in preparing students for collage, career and the military.Collage, career and military readiness (CCMR) is part of the accountability process expected of school systems under House Bill 3.In a recent podcast with the Rio Grande Guardian, Dr. Garcia pointed out that just a few short years ago Vanguard lagged behind neighboring school districts in this regard. But now, based upon data from the Texas Education Agency, Vanguard is often outperforming other school districts. “We wanted to make sure that our CCMR grew because it is part of our accountability to the state,” Garcia said. “We are very excited because CCMR has positively impacted a lot of families.”The data shows, pro rata, that Vanguard is top of the list or near the top for the Texas Success Initiative, Advanced Placement, Dual Credit, Industry Based Certification and Associate Degrees. “Making sure that our students are connected to college, to a career, to the military, are important. But most of all we want to them ready to succeed in life and succeed in helping the community,” Garcia said.“Four years ago when I arrived here, in 2017, we had zero percent of students graduating with industry-based certifications,” Garcia said “Fast forward to four years later and we have 55 percent of our students graduating with CCMR certifications, either in level one or level two.”Garcia pointed out that level two is more rigorous. “We have 11 percent of our students graduating with a level two certificate,” Garcia said proudly. “These certificates prepare students for the workforce.”The attached podcast has the full interview with Dr. Garcia. Editor's Note: To see a chart contrasting Vanguard Academy with other local school districts go to the story in the Rio Grande Guardian.Go to www.riograndeguardian.com to read the latest border news stories and watch the latest news videos.