Guillen Middle jumps from F to B after major campus redesign

EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — Students and staff at Guillen Middle School celebrated Friday after the Texas Education Agency rated the campus a B, ending three straight years of F ratings.

The TEA’s A-to-F ratings consider factors including student achievement and school progress.

Principal Leticia Terrazas said one of the first challenges was getting students to accept higher expectations.

“There was pushback. I’m not going to lie. There was pushback at the beginning. But slowly but surely, the students were able to build the trust with their teachers, and they saw the good in things. We were able to make those gains because they finally understood the why behind this,” Terrazas said.

In December 2024, KFOX14/CBS4 reported that the El Paso Independent School District was redesigning Guillen.

Teachers who wanted to stay had to reapply for their jobs as the school prepared to adopt Accelerated Campus Excellence, or ACE.

Jordan Salas reports on Guillen Middle jumps from F to B after major campus redesign (Credit: KFOX14)

EPISD said the model focuses on effective teachers and principals, instruction, an extended school day and support for students.

“Everyone that used to be here had the opportunity to reapply for their positions. And so there were a bunch of new teachers that came in,” Terrazas said.

“And quite honestly, we changed a lot of things to change the culture on the campus. We changed the expectations. We set very high expectations,” she said.

EPISD board President Leah Hanany, who represents Guillen, called the improvement significant and said the district’s responsibility is ensuring campuses have what they need.

“To go from an F to B is a remarkable accomplishment. You’ve had a change in leadership. You had a focus on academics…” Hanany said.

“It’s up to us to resource the schools. And it’s up to the students and the teachers to deliver, and they have,” she said.

Not every EPISD campus improved. One example is Logan Elementary in Northeast El Paso, which dropped from a C last year to an F this year. Hanany said the district will need to focus on campuses that underperformed.

“Every single school that has underperformed will certainly have a lens… a focus for administration. So that’s going to be up to Dr. Lusk and his team to address. We’ll certainly be watching carefully,” Hanany said.

You can view the full 2026 TEA accountability ratings here.

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