To better assist the public in making an informed decision, McAllen ISD has created a series of podcasts on the upcoming bond election. These podcasts explain different aspects of the bond in bite-sized chunks.
The fifth video podcast features McAllen ISD CTE (Career and Technical Education) Director Leo Saenz who explains how the bond would impact his program. The bond proposal is for $335 million and will address facility upgrades, program expansions, safety, security and modernizing learning spaces across the district. Early voting runs April 20-28 and the Election Day is May 2.
McAllen ISD’s CTE offers 23 programs of study where students can earn professional licenses and certifications to go straight into the work force. Last year, McAllen ISD students earned more than 3,200 licenses or certifications, preparing them for the work force.
“It’s way more advanced now than it was back then (in the 20th century),” Saenz said. “CTE (job skills) is something that is very much needed in the area. We’re blessed to have a really good program here in McAllen.”
Under the bond, the CTE program would expand to have buildings at McAllen ISD’s three comprehensive high schools – McAllen High, Memorial High and James “Nikki” Rowe High.
“What we saw was how we could better utilize our land … and how we can serve our students better,” Saenz said. “One of the main components was to have it expand at each campus and also use it for proximity to our work-based learning partners.”
Another goal is to modernize the facilities used by students.
“Our facilities are antiquated,” Saenz said. “We still have very nice things going on…but, could we have more modern locations for our students to work in a setting where it’s going to mirror what they’re going to see in the work place and that’s what we’re looking for.”
McAllen ISD’s periodic podcast is called Extra Credit. Each episode features McAllen ISD Marketing and Communications Director Felicia Villarreal as the host with a guest. They discuss topics of interest to the McAllen ISD community.
The district anticipates that the current overall tax rate of $0.93 will remain at $0.93, and that an increase to the overall tax rate to support the bond is not anticipated.
The full episode, which is called McAllen ISD Extra Credit: The Future of Work Force - CTE, can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITo2R67XlTA&t=4s.
Other podcasts on the 2026 bond will focus on the vision, tax rate, safety, facility improvements, program improvements and election information. They are available to view on McAllen ISD’s Facebook and YouTube pages.
More information on the bond can be found here: https://www.mcallenisdbond.org/.