First-Class Education in Segundo Barrio
by Cassandra Yardeni • photos by Perla Parra

Unbeknownst to many El Pasoans, our city is home to one of the poorest neighborhoods in the country. Segundo Barrio, or Second Ward, is located in South-Central El Paso and hosts more than 18,000 predominantly Mexican-American inhabitants, most of whom live in low-income, single-parent homes. In 1967, a group of Segundo Barrio mothers changed this Downtown neighborhood for the better. Forty years later, the recently opened La Fe Preparatory School keeps this tradition alive, bettering the local community one child at a time.

Believing that life improvement starts with community wellness, the aforementioned mothers established a small neighborhood clinic that cared for the physical, social, spiritual and psychological well-being of their families. Over several years, the single clinic developed into a citywide movement known as Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe, Inc. (La Fe), which has enriched El Paso with its numerous clinics and community wellness and development programs. As part of La Fe’s 40th anniversary celebration, the organization unveiled a charter school in the heart of its birthplace, Segundo Barrio.

La Fe Preparatory School, which currently teaches pre-kindergarten through first grade, does not provide students with a typical educational experience. In fact, La Fe faculty and staff go above and beyond their call of duty and both parents and children are reaping the benefits. Inside of the school’s colorfully decorated walls works a team of dedicated and inspiring individuals, striving to teach La Fe students to “think outside the box”.

The school, located at 520 S. Ochoa, boasts a unique curriculum, which focuses on multiculturalism and the importance of heritage. Teachers utilize integrated instruction, in which individual subjects are combined into larger projects and reinforce various concepts, such as identity and responsibility.

Developing a well-rounded student is La Fe’s main priority, as the children are taught entirely in English for half of the day and in Spanish during the second half.

“We want our students to be proud of where they’re coming from, to be bilingual and truly multicultural,” says Karina Schulte, La Fe Preparatory School’s principal. Of the school’s unconventional approach, she adds, “Instead of the traditional [education], we’re advocating a paradigm shift.”

Positive reinforcement is a crux of the La Fe Prep teaching philosophy.

“Instead of catching the kids doing something bad, we catch them doing something good and reward them for it,” Schulte explains. Amy O’Rourke, the director of La Fe’s Community Development Corporation, reasons, “If you instill confidence in kids, they can become anything they want to become.”

As each class is capped at 16 students, every child is guaranteed individual attention from his/her instructor. Through private donations and some out-of-pocket contributions by the staff, each child is furnished with school supplies, backpacks and uniforms. The school’s classrooms are surprisingly spacious and lively, containing rows of computers, many colorful desks and learning tools, and most notably, cheerful children dressed in traditional plaid uniforms. One especially jolly pre-schooler even performed an impromptu jig for several La Fe administrators and one delighted journalist. Staff members know most children by first name, and as Estela Reyes López, La Fe media administrator says, “the children feel special, not like they’re one in a crowd of many. La Fe is an integral part of the community, as we are a product of its people.”

Each morning at 7:30, La Fe teachers, students (and some volunteer parents) can be found in the school’s cafeteria. Children are required to eat breakfast with their instructors, enjoying hearty meals, good conversation and a lesson in table manners. Keeping within La Fe’s tradition of improving the entire community, parents are invited to involve themselves with the school for a minimum of five hours each month.

As a large majority of the parents work during the day, La Fe Preparatory School has developed an after-school program that kindergarten and first-graders are required to attend. The children can participate in activities such as folklorico dancing, theatre programs and soccer.

Although the preparatory school is funded by the state of Texas, La Fe CEO Salvador Balcorta feels “the Texas Education Agency is a little bit warped in priorities.” Balcorta supplied half of the school’s budget out-of-pocket and says, “the government spends $38,000 a year to incarcerate criminals, but only $6,000 a year on education. Money from legislation doesn’t even cover two-thirds of what we need.”

With or without funding from the state, La Fe plans to expand upon its charter school. Each year, the school will add an additional grade, allowing for its children to remain within the La Fe Preparatory School system. The feedback has been tremendously positive and “parents are so proud, they will demand a middle school and high school,” O’Rourke says.

However, La Fe will not settle for any run-of-the-mill middle and high school. Further expansion will include an infant/toddler daycare and an adult education program that will provide educational and enrichment opportunities for the parents of students. Balcorta says of La Fe’s future, “we’re promoting vibrant leadership, we grow on our own, and we promote our own.”

Rather than Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe, Inc. “thinking outside of the box,” Balcorta declares, “we’re creating a new box.”