At the start of every school year, there is an excitement and enthusiasm that provides us all with profound joy. I have always found there to be something magical about the first day of school: the energy, the anticipation, the promise of growth. It’s a moment that reminds us all why we do what we do.

This year, our districtwide theme is “Inspiring Hope.” To us, that means creating school environments where students believe in themselves, where families feel connected and informed, and where educators are empowered to make a difference. Hope isn’t just a feel-good idea, it’s one of the strongest predictors of student success. Students who feel hopeful about their future are more likely to attend school regularly, engage in learning, and perform well academically. Hope helps students set goals, persevere through challenges, and stay motivated even when things get hard. Hope is a powerful combination of belief and action. It's the belief that a positive future is possible, coupled with the conviction that our efforts can make it happen. When we inspire hope, we light a spark that ignites potential. Inspiration, in its truest form, leads directly to hope.

Our leaders are committed to leading with purposeful intent through communication, collaboration, and innovation. We will strive toward achieving our goals outlined in the prioritized strategic plan for the next two school years. Our priorities for each goal area are outlined using an in-action format that details action steps that will be taken to achieve our goals. 

Thanks to the incredible efforts of our educators and the support of our families, we saw growth across the district:

• Preliminary chronic absenteeism data suggest improvements in school attendance districtwide for the third consecutive school year

• High Schools worked hard to achieve higher ACT pass rates

• Districtwide SBAC ELA scores saw growth

• Districtwide SBAC Math scores saw growth

These achievements reflect the hard work and commitment our educators have to our students and community. They are also evidence of the belief that when we work together, great things happen. Official achievement data information will be released to the public on September 15, 2025. 

Our commitment remains strong to help every student discover their path to success, whether that’s in the classroom, through career technical education, in athletics, in the arts, or a student's personal best achievement. In DCSD, we will inspire, empower, and prepare each learner to achieve his/her life aspirations.

Have a great start to the 2025-26 school year!

Sincerely,

Frankie Alvarado

Superintendent