November/December 2009
Mission CISD’s Oscar Rodriguez Jr. believes in success for all
By Jennifer LeClaire

Mission CISD Superintendent Oscar Rodriguez Jr. knows that if you apply a little pressure on low-performing students, you can transform those rough pieces of coal into sparkling diamonds.

That’s the driving philosophy behind many of Rodriguez’s initiatives in Mission CISD — initiatives that attracted the attention of the Texas Association of School Boards, which bestowed Rodriguez with its highest honor: Superintendent of the Year. Rodriguez accepted the award at the annual Texas Association of School Administrators and Texas Association of School Boards convention in Houston in early October.

Every year, TASB presents the award to recognize chief administrators who exemplify excellence and achievement in educational leadership. Superintendent of the Year candidates are chosen for their dedication to improving educational quality, board-superintendent relations, student achievement, commitment to community support and involvement in public education.

Under Rodriguez’s leadership, Mission CISD was one of six districts in Texas recognized for using high school allotment funds to build a college-going culture. The district has experienced an increase in high school graduates going on to college, as well as an increase in the number of students taking the ACT. The district also actively works to reduce the dropout rate among ninth graders.

“[Being named Superintendent of the Year] has been a truly humbling experience for me,” Rodriguez says. “While I came to Mission CISD in the spring of 2005 with a vision of where I wanted the district to be, it is the tremendous team of dedicated educators I work with and our board of trustees that should have been standing next to me at the awards presentation.”

Success for every student

The TASB selection committee noted Mission CISD’s emphasis on success for every student and its partnership with South Texas College and The University of Texas-Pan American to create Operation College Bound, an initiative that helps high school seniors complete college and financial aid applications.

“We make sure that every initiative we implement in our schools addresses the entire student population we serve — not just the top 15 percent that educators have a tendency to focus on when we talk about college readiness,” Rodriguez says. “The top 15 percent are going to college anyway. We focus on everyone, from the 50th percentile to the 25th percentile — even our special needs children. We truly believe that no child should be left behind.”

Two years ago, Mission CISD launched Operation College Bound. The program’s mission is to ensure all students are responsible, productive, college-ready graduates. At the behest of the program, seniors are gathered in the school gym and — as Rodriguez explains it — their only "ticket" out is a completed college application. The result of the first year’s effort was a 37 percent increase in Mission CISD students attending South Texas Community College.

A secondary emphasis of Operation College Bound is to increase the number of students sitting for the ACT exam and to improve their scores. Mission CISD offers extra credit to students taking a college-readiness program that prepares them for the ACT. The program is bearing fruit: The district’s average student score increased from 17 two years ago to 18.5 today.

Preventive education

Beyond Operation College Bound, Rodriguez also set out to decrease the dropout rate by increasing literacy with a program called Operation Graduation. Because most dropping out occurs between the ninth and 10th grades, Rodriguez tapped into high school allotment monies to hire more ninth grade teachers so he could lower the pupil-teacher ratio in the core courses to no more than 22 to 1.

The program takes a preemptive, preventive approach to dealing with students struggling to pass the ninth grade. Students are placed on a grade recovery system rather than a credit recovery system. According to Rodriguez, if educators wait until the student has lost a credit to intervene, then that student cannot pass the grade. Because many students don’t want to face the embarrassment of repeating a grade, they often drop out instead.

Operation Graduation also monitors the classrooms for struggling kids. When poorly-performing students are identified, they receive tutoring and mentoring to raise their grades. Non-core-class teachers make phone calls to students’ homes, check attendance records, investigate for disciplinary or health problems and work to help the students overcome their struggles — academic or otherwise.

“We realized that if we didn’t increase the passing rate in ninth grade, we weren’t going to have many kids to take through Operation College Bound in their senior year,” Rodriguez says. “The first time we started tracking [the program’s results], we still had a large failure rate. But after three years, we’re beginning to see an increase in passing rates because the teachers have more time to deal with these children.”

The man behind the title

Rodriguez has 30 years of experience in education administration. He came to Mission CISD from United ISD in Laredo, where he served as superintendent. Rodriguez began his education career as a high school teacher in Dallas in 1974. He spent those early years teaching English and speech. He went on to serve as a principal at the elementary, middle school and high school levels before accepting a position as an area superintendent in Dallas ISD. Rodriguez then moved on to the superintendent’s post with United ISD.

Rodriguez holds a master of education degree from Stephen F. Austin State University and a bachelor of science degree in education from the University of North Texas. He has certifications in superintendent mid-management administration, secondary English and secondary speech. He has been active in the local United Way, chamber of commerce, Mission Economic Development Association and Leadership Mission. In addition, he works with various district-level advisory committees, the District Council of PTOs and the Mission CISD Council of Clergy, among others.

The saying goes that all good things must come to an end, and this unfortunately is the case for Mission CISD; Rodriguez’s contract with the district ends this school year. The superintendent is preparing to leave the district, because his wife, Dr. Claudia Rodriguez, has taken a position as executive director of human resources for Dallas ISD. Rodriguez has indicated that he might head for Dallas before the 2009-2010 school year is over; however, he has yet to announce the next stage of his professional career.

“You take the job of superintendent with one main focus,” Rodriguez says. “That focus should always be the students. If you are making sure that what you are doing as a school district is in the best interest of the students, then you can go to sleep at night knowing you are making a positive difference. Seeing the improvements in our student performance has been my biggest reward. This honor is just the icing on the cake.”

JENNIFER LECLAIRE is a freelance writer.