By Dandy Pilon

Just off Expressway 77/83 in Brownsville, deep in the heart of Texas is a little, light blue school folks are calling the ‘miracle in the Valley.’ With its unassuming exterior, most people miss it entirely as they pass from old downtown to the newer business district of Brownsville.  “You mean that blue building?” most people ask. However, in that old, blue building, something exciting is happening – the collaborative school initiative of Guadalupe Regional Middle School.

Guadalupe Regional Middle School (GRMS) is a tuition-free Catholic school serving academically successful students from families of low and modest incomes. GRMS opened its doors in September of 2002 through the collaboration, financial investment, hard work, and vision of three sponsoring religious congregations: Marist Brothers of the Schools, Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament, and Congregation of Christian Brothers. Now in its eighth year, it is the mission of GRMS to provide a quality, private education to those who desire but cannot afford to pay for it.

Almost all students served by GRMS are Hispanic and classified as at-risk. Brownsville remains the largest city in the Rio Grande Valley, and its proximity to the Mexican border and the high level of poverty poses serious problems to the community in terms of drug trafficking, alien smuggling, substance abuse, homicide, aggravated assault, and domestic violence.

Based on the Nativity-Miguel model, GRMS strives to break the cycle of poverty through education. The school boasts small class sizes and a maximum total enrollment of 90 students. Nativity-Miguel Network schools are committed to providing students as complete an education as possible, and that includes an extended day and school year. Even with such a demanding schedule, daily attendance rate is 97%. The values which have inspired the Nativity-Miguel model include respect for the dignity and potential of each person, a responsibility to assist the poor and those in need, a strong sense of community, and the obligation to promote a society characterized by social justice.

Fifty one percent of GRMS graduates go on to private high schools on scholarships; while others go on to attend public or magnet schools. Most GRMS students will be the first in their family to enroll in college, although many parents lack the experience and knowledge to guide their children through school towards that goal. The Graduate Support Program is one of the elements that distinguish GRMS from all other schools in the area, providing support beyond the middle school years. GRMS assists in placing graduates in competitive high schools, and continues to provide mentoring and other resources as they navigate those institutions. With the exception of one graduate who enlisted in the military, all of those students went on to colleges and universities around the state of Texas. Its second graduating class has already received acceptances to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the University of Texas – Pan American, and the University of Notre Dame, among others. 

For reflection
What importance do you give to education? What are the greatest challenges encountered in educating young Latinos?