Panther Nation – 

Welcome to the 2022-2023 school year! We are all excited to have our scholars back in our classrooms and hallways, filling them up with energy and enthusiasm for learning.  It is our mission to provide a safe, purposeful learning environment that promotes scholars today and leaders tomorrow! We strive to challenge each scholar to grow in his or her academic abilities, and we are dedicated to ensuring our scholars receive exemplary learning experiences that promote growth.

We are proud of the academic gains made last year that catapulted our accountability rating to a B.  Our dedicated teachers will continue to focus on data-driven instructional experiences that improve academic performance and ensure student growth. We will also continue our commitment to providing instructional resources and practices that accommodate the varied learning needs of our students.  These endeavors will be accomplished by ensuring our students come to school daily and understand content objectives, master content performance tasks, and utilize success criteria to be successful.  

As your principal, it is important to me that everyone who walks through our doors feels welcomed and is excited to be here! Our students are the heart of our school, and we want them to feel welcomed, connected, and part of our Parkdale family.  Throughout the school year, I encourage you to attend parent/teacher conferences, school programs, student academic and extracurricular activities, and school celebrations. Together, we will ensure our students are academically progressing and socially and emotionally developing. 

Our continued vision is to empower our scholars to think critically, lead empathetically, and exemplify integrity.  I am honored to serve as the principal of Parkdale Elementary, where parents, students, and staff care for each other and strive to build positive relationships that support academic and social growth. Please feel free to contact me at 254-772-2170 or at lena.ortiz@wacoisd.org to share any questions or concerns. 

Again, welcome back and let's continue to make Parkdale the Place to B!

Sincerely, 

Lena C. Ortiz