Del Valle Independent School District has been in active search mode for a new superintendent and it appears the hunt has concluded with the board announcing Dr. Matthew Gutierrez as the sole finalist for the position. In a special board meeting on Saturday, the board cast a unanimous vote in favor of Dr. Gutierrez after considering candidates from a pool of 41 applications. Dr. Gutierrez, if officially appointed following the required 21-day waiting period, will step into a notable role as the first Latino superintendent of Del Valle ISD, as reported by KXAN.
"I am deeply honored and grateful to the Board of Trustees for placing their trust in me to serve as the next superintendent for Del Valle ISD," Dr. Gutierrez expressed, highlighting his anticipation to join a district that nurtures students with backgrounds similar to his own. He promises to ardently continue the tradition of excellence within the district. At the heart of his approach is a commitment to to deeply engage with staff, community leaders, and stakeholders in a spirit of transparency and collaboration, according to a release from the district cited by KXAN.
Dr. Gutierrez's journey to this potential juncture has been paved with extensive experience in education leadership, including a recent stint as Deputy Superintendent for Leander ISD. There, he oversaw a network of 49 schools and steered several educational programs. Previously, as Superintendent for Seguin ISD, he garnered praise for executing transformative changes and for an acclaimed four-year strategic planning process which significantly lifted educational achievement and TEA ratings in 2022, as detailed by the district's release.
In personal terms, this opportunity is the realization of a lifelong aspiration for Dr. Gutierrez, who recounted to FOX 7 Austin his childhood dreams of educational leadership, dreams overheard and evidently nurtured from an early age. "I've always wanted to be a superintendent, and I know that sounds strange, but when my grandmother passed away and she kept a box of my things I had written in middle school about my goals, it was in autobiography and I had written that I was going to be a superintendent," said Dr. Gutierrez. His roots in education trace back to his initial days as a middle school English Language Arts Teacher at Northside ISD, and have since branched out to include advanced degrees and a swath of leadership roles at various Texas school districts.
With the impending retirement of former superintendent Dr. Annette Tielle and the transitional period steered by acting superintendent Brett Springston, Dr. Gutierrez's appointment positions him to to quickly become an emblematic figure for the students of Del Valle ISD. His first steps will involve building foundational relationships within the community. "I'll be spending a lot of time building relationships, making connections, and getting to know the staff, the students and parents. So, first order of business is making connections," Dr. Gutierrez told FOX 7 Austin. An educational and administrative journey that began with mock classrooms in a grandparent's keepsake box now progresses to the stage of a district-wide leadership role, holding the promise of expanding educational horizons for near 12,000 students under the Del Valle ISD wings.
