ALAMOSA — Amy Ortega, principal of Ortega Middle School (OMS), has been named the new principal of Alamosa High School (AHS). After a series of interviews, Alamosa School District (ASD) Superintendent Diana Jones and Assistant Superintendent Luis Murillo recommended Ortega for the position to the ASD Board of Directors. The board then approved the recommendation during Thursday night’s meeting.
The position of Alamosa High School principal was vacated in June when, after a decade spent in the position, Andy Lavier left to become the new assistant superintendent of the school district in Center.
Ortega has been with ASD since 2001. The first sixteen of those 23 years were spent in the classroom at Alamosa High School (AHS). Then, in 2017, she transitioned into administration at Ortega Middle School, first as the Dean of Students and then as assistant principal and principal.
“Ortega Middle School was a great experience,” she told the Valley Courier. She also feels that experience will serve her well in her new role as AHS principal. “Having been at the middle school, I know a lot of the kids and a lot of the staff. I already have those connections to keep the good work going that I know they already have been doing and to have a growth mindset for any changes and keep moving forward.”
During her tenure at OMS, Ortega garnered high praise from district administration for the significant strides she, her staff and students accomplished in “turning things around” at the middle school.
Now, just one day after being officially named as AHS principal, Ortega is already focused on what she’d like to do at the high school. “We have a grant for our eighth graders and ninth graders, and I was already working on the eighth grade piece. But we really want to increase freshman success that very first semester. That will be a goal for me to continue that work on the freshman side, so that students feel successful right away in high school, which makes them more likely to graduate.”
“Ms. Ortega has exhibited her leadership capabilities as she has led her school out of turnaround,” said ASD Superintendent Jones. “She will continue her instructional leadership knowledge and skills at the high school level enhancing their current success.”
In using the term “turnaround”, Jones is referencing a designation used by the Colorado Department of Education to identify a school whose performance is in significant need of improvement.
“After two rounds of interviews,” Murillo said, “Amy Ortega came out on top. She is a seasoned educator with a record of continuous improvement. Amy will continue that tradition of high performance at Alamosa High School. I look forward to collaborating to take Alamosa High School to the next step in the performance trajectory.”
“I really enjoyed being at the middle school,” Ortega said, “but I’m really excited to get back to Alamosa High School. It feels like I’m going home.”
In hiring Ortega for AHS principal, a position as principal was vacated at Ortega Middle School. With student orientation for the 2024-2025 school year on Aug. 7, Jones and Murillo could have been pressed to find a qualified candidate in time.
But an emerging practice of, essentially, “growing their own administrators,” allowed them to immediately connect with people who might be a good fit for the job at OMS. That strategy resulted in an announcement Friday afternoon that Jones and Murillo intend to recommend to the Board of Education OMS Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Nate Gonzales to take over as principal.
A former Marine, Gonzales was previously the Dean of Students at Alamosa Elementary 3-5. That experience is part of a broader career as an educator that, to date, spans 19 years and includes having taught multiple subject areas at each grade level from kindergarten to 12th grade.
“We are thrilled to recommend Mr. Nate Gonzales for the Principal position at Ortega Middle School,” Jones said in a statement to the Valley Courier. “Mr. Gonzales has been an integral part of the team at OMS over the last three years. His experience and demeanor are a huge asset to the school.”
Interviews will begin next week to hire a new assistant principal at the middle school.
When asked to expand upon the “grow their own administrators” strategy, Murillo said, “We have open and honest conversations about empowering assistant principals to take on roles that come with more responsibilities. We work hand in hand with assistant principals and are intentional in providing experiences to prepare them to take on roles with greater responsibilities when those opportunities arise.”
Murillo was asked if there were concerns about beginning school with two new principals being in their positions for less than three weeks. His answer – no concern, at all.
“I absolutely can assure staff, students and parents that the new school year will begin without any indication that there has been some recent transitions in staff. We’ll be ready and looking forward to another great school year at ASD.”
