The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) lobbied hard to ensure that a Hispanic was hired. They went so far as to say the new superintendent "must be Hispanic" in order to fix the "dropout problem". USANow will now anxiously await Saavedra's unique programs in an effort to discern precisely what he will do that no Anglo nor African American could do.
Prior to hiring Saavedra, HISD went through the motions by interviewing three other candidates for the job. Two of the candidates were in the last year of their contracts, and their contracts are not to be renewed. The third candidate was being forced into early retirement after the Tucson school board lost confidence in his leadership. Apparently, HISD searched nationwide to find 3 "candidates" who would make Saavedra look like the only man for the job. HISD was forced to find weak candidates because Saavedra himself was forced to resign by his former school district in Corpus Christi.
During yesterday's board meeting, Saavedra stated that his race had nothing to do with his hiring. "I think I offer a certain level of sensitivity to that culture. I intend to be the superintendent for all kids". Saavedra then thanked the board in both English and in Spanish, which makes no sense because every HISD board member is fluent in English. So much for being a superintendent for "all kids" - a good portion of HISD students aren't even able to understand his comments to the school board.
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