Gracie S. Flores seeking election to Place 7 La Joya ISD board

Gracie S. Flores is seeking election to Place 7 on the La Joya ISD Board of Trustees in the Nov. 8 school board election.

Flores, who graduated from La Joya High School in 1972, serves as a councilwoman on the City of Palmview City Council where she was the first woman to be elected to the city council. She has been on the city council for 20 years.

Flores is the oldest of four children born to the late Flavio Salinas and Elodia Salinas. She has been married to Oscar D. Flores for 42 years. They have a daughter, Giovanna M. Cardenas, who is married to Benjamin Cardenas. The Flores have three grandchildren – Alyssa, Gabriel and Daniel – all of whom attend La Joya schools.Flores has 29 years of experience in the banking industry where she was an assistant cashier for the former First State Bank for 17 years, a branch manager for Texas State Bank in Peñitas for six years, and operations manager for Lone State Bank for six years.

Flores said her extensive experience in the finance industry as well a keen understanding of how to manage money will benefit the La Joya board as they deliberate on how to maximize local, state, and federal monies that are relied on to fund schools, construction and renovation projects, fine arts programs, new technology, academic programs, and teacher salaries. The continuous downsizing of public education funding by state legislators poses stiff challenges for school boards, said Flores. The board needs to seriously dialogue on how tax money is being spent and determine where it can streamline operations without repercussions to educational programs.
Flores said she supports the board working to make all La Joya school campuses safer, more positive and conducive to learning for students and teachers.

“Schools are places where learning takes place every day,” said Flores. “We must do what is necessary to create an environment in the classrooms as well as throughout the schools, where parents can be assured that their children are safe and teachers can be happy,” said Flores.

In La Joya, Flores said the district’s mission calls for “continuous improvement, collaboration, and accountability” that will empower educators to prepare students to go to college or career technical schools after high school and then go out and “make an imprint on the world.” Flores said, as La Joya ISD’s vision statement says, “Educational Excellence: The Right of Every Student.”