I will never stop believing in the power of students being seen.<\/p>\n
In high school, I stumbled into something called Forensics Speech. Depending on where you\u2019re from, it might be called Speech and Debate, Competitive Speech, or something else entirely. For me, it didn\u2019t matter what the name was. What mattered was that I finally found a space where my voice wasn\u2019t just allowed, it was celebrated.<\/p>\n
I only got one year. One single year my senior year. And in that year, I went to state. I won awards. Not because I was some secret prodigy, but because I was finally excited. I finally cared. When a student finds the thing that lights them up, everything changes. Confidence shows up. Discipline follows. Purpose takes root.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why stories like this one matter so much.<\/p>\n
VVECHS, 1st Place Courtesy of El Paso County<\/p>\n
VVECHS, 1st Place Courtesy of El Paso County<\/p>\n
NWECHS, 2nd Place Courtesy of El Paso County<\/p>\n
NWECHS, 2nd Place Courtesy of El Paso County<\/p>\n
Two El Paso high school teams, Valle Verde Early College High School and Northwest Early College High School, are headed to the state Mock Trial Competition after taking first and second place at the Region 19 competition right here in Downtown El Paso. Twelve schools competed. More than 150 students put in months of work. They analyzed a full civil case, built arguments for both sides, studied legal statutes, practiced objections, crafted openings and closings, and stood in front of real judges and attorneys to make their case.<\/p>\n
That is not a club. That is real work.<\/p>\n
These students argued their final round in the Enrique Moreno County Courthouse in front of sitting judges and legal professionals who volunteered their time because they believe in what happens when young people are challenged at a high level. And the talent didn\u2019t stop with the team trophies. Individual students across the region were recognized for excellence, from Best Advocate to Best Witness to Courtroom Artists who captured the intensity of the proceedings through their work.<\/p>\n
This is what it looks like when education goes beyond the classroom.<\/p>\n
Mock Trial doesn\u2019t just teach students how the legal system works. It teaches them how to think critically, speak clearly, collaborate under pressure, and advocate for themselves and others. For some of these students, just like for District Attorney James Montoya, this experience might be the first time they see a future they didn\u2019t know was possible.<\/p>\n
And that deserves applause. Loud, public, unapologetic applause.<\/p>\n
So from Iris & Grizz in the Morning, congratulations to Valle Verde ECHS and Northwest ECHS. Congratulations to the individual award winners. Congratulations to every student who stayed late, practiced harder, and showed up ready. You earned this.<\/p>\n
Go kick ass at state. El Paso is already proud of you.<\/p>\n
Diana Hernandez, 1st Place Courtesy of El Paso County<\/p>\n
Diana Hernandez, 1st Place Courtesy of El Paso CountyFrom El Paso to Hollywood: Julian Kalel\u2019s American Idol Journey<\/p>\n
Julian Kalel secures a golden ticket on\u00a0American Idol\u00a0and delivers a message bigger than music.<\/p>\n
Gallery Credit: Courtesy: American Idol<\/p>\n
Meet The El Paso Girls Who Took Over the 2026 \u201cI Voted” Sticker Contest<\/p>\n
Three talented El Paso students swept the 2025 Sticker Design Contest, taking first, second, and third place with designs that set a new bar for creativity.<\/p>\n
Gallery Credit: Iris Lopez<\/p>\n
Krystall Poppin For A Purpose Fest 2026<\/p>\n
Krystall Poppin for a Purpose Fest invites El Paso locals to a parade, bazaar, car show, and abuelita contest benefiting Our Lady of Assumption Church.<\/p>\n
Gallery Credit: Courtesy: Krystall Poppin<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"I will never stop believing in the power of students being seen. In high school, I stumbled into…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":149282,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[138,140,139,141,142,143],"class_list":{"0":"post-149281","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-el-paso","8":"tag-el-paso","9":"tag-el-paso-headlines","10":"tag-el-paso-news","11":"tag-featured-carousel","12":"tag-include-in-newsletter","13":"tag-local-el-paso"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149281","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=149281"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149281\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/149282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=149281"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=149281"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=149281"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}