Rio Rancho Public Schools opens long-awaited CTE campus

RIO RANCHO — Cleveland High School student Israel Pleasant has come a long way since she took robotics as an elective in middle school. She went on to place second in a statewide competition and became a student ambassador for her new school, RioTECH.

“One thing I try to share (with students) is that I’ve strived and accomplished far more than I ever thought I would have,” Pleasant, 16, said April 23 during remarks at a grand opening ceremony for Rio Technical Education and Career Hub. “I am very excited for this new school and to achieve more.”

Pleasant joined a swarm of dignitaries to cut the ribbon for Rio Rancho Public School’s brand-new career technical education (CTE) high school, located at 7001 Zenith Court. Tours of the facility, which is still under renovation, were provided to scores of dignitaries, including New Mexico Public Education Department Secretary Mariana Padilla and Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers.

RioTECH is part of a 2024 agreement between RRPS and Central New Mexico Community College that aims to expand CTE in Sandoval County for high school students and adult learners. To carry out this objective, RRPS committed to renovating the building on Zenith Court, while CNM will build a new facility in the same area, where some of its CTE programs will transfer this summer.

During Wednesday’s event, RRPS Superintendent Sue Cleveland said RioTECH was one of her school district’s most challenging projects, but worth the effort. The partnership between her school district and CNM “required a new instructional model.”

“Higher education and K-12 operate in two very different worlds ... and we had to find a way to make it work for us,” Cleveland said. “But everyone really made the effort, and we think we have a wonderful model that many others in the state will emulate.”

CNM President Tracy Hartzler said RioTECH is an example of the kinds of partnerships she has fostered with the community since she began leading the state’s largest community college in 2019.

“We’re really proud of our Rio Rancho campus, but this is a tremendous opportunity to do something different,” Hartzler said. “It took a leap of faith.”

Padilla said in prepared remarks that 86% of large employers reported hiring candidates based on CTE experience.

“Employers know that where they can find CTE programs, they can find job-ready, skilled candidates,” Padilla said.

More than half of American teenagers believe real-world, on-the-job experience is more beneficial to a career path than a college degree, she said.

“They want more opportunities to enter their career path early and are enrolling in increasing numbers in vocational programs after graduation,” Padilla said.

Weingarten, president of American Federation of Teachers, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that represents 1.8 million members in more than 3,000 local affiliates nationwide, added to Padilla’s statistics, saying that even as educators emphasize the importance of earning a high school diploma and a college degree, 40% of high school students don’t go on to get the latter.

“If we don’t start this work in high school, if we don’t open up the aperture and the possibilities in high school — remember that old shop class? — if we don’t do that, how do we open up possibilities?” Weingarten said.

She called the partnership between RRPS and CNM “profound and transformational.”

Weingarten noted in her remarks she does not attend every school grand opening, but she was inspired to come to Rio Rancho, in part, because she began her educational career as a vocational teacher.

Weingarten, described the RioTECH facility as “a 70,000-square feet launchpad” for students.

Pleasant, a sophomore in the computer information systems pathway, had visited the facility on April 16, when she gave U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich a tour before a roundtable discussion on education. Pleasant said in an interview Wednesday that she admired many of the building’s features, including the benches.

“It feels grown up, more so,” Pleasant said. “I feel more responsible, in-tune with the people around me and the building.”