The Seguin ISD Board of Trustees will be hosting a public hearing and regular board meeting on October 27th. You can find the agenda at the links below:

 

October 27 -Public Hearing

 

October 27 - Regular Board Meeting

 

Early voting in the Nov. 3 general election continues through Oct. 30. Seguin ISD administrative offices, located at 1221 E. Kingsbury St., serves as an early voting polling site for Guadalupe County. For more information on early voting opportunities, visit http://bit.ly/GuadCoEarlyVote.

The meeting below has been canceled. 

 

The Seguin ISD Board of Trustees will be hosting a special meeting on October 22nd. You can find the agenda at the link below:

 

October 22 - Special Board Meeting

 

Your Seguin ISD Board of Trustees is doing great things for the district. Read more about their quest for exceptional leadership in the latest edition of Texas Lone Star magazine, published by the Texas Association of School Boards.

 

Juan Seguín, in full Juan Nepomuceno Seguín, (born October 27, 1806, Bexar, New Spain [now San Antonio, Texas]—died August 27, 1890, Nuevo Laredo, Mexico), Tejano (Texan of Hispanic descent) revolutionary and politician who helped establish the independence of Texas.

 

After Mexico won independence from Spain in 1821, Stephen Austin—a friend of Seguín’s father—received Mexican approval to found settlements of English-speaking people in the Mexican territory of Texas. Seguín and his father, convinced that Spanish-Mexican unrest and Mexican governmental interference were contributing to economic upheaval in Texas, sided with Austin in his subsequent quest for autonomy for the region. Seguín became active in local politics, and he was elected alderman in San Antonio in 1829 and became that city’s mayor in 1833. Political tensions escalated between the Mexican government and both the Anglos (European-descended American settlers or European immigrants) and Tejanos in Texas, and both groups objected to Mexican Pres. Antonio López de Santa Anna’s harsh regime.

 

In order to quell the resulting rebellion in Texas, Santa Anna and his troops entered the territory and subsequently laid siege to the Alamo, a mission-fort in San Antonio, in February 1836. Seguín was in the Alamo when the siege began, but he was dispatched with a letter to Sam Houston, the commander in chief of the Anglo settlers’ army, requesting reinforcements. He was thus absent when nearly all those within the Alamo were killed by the Mexican forces on March 6, 1836. The following month, Seguín and his Tejano troops fought alongside the Anglos at the Battle of San Jacinto, which ended in the defeat and capture of Santa Anna and the independence of Texas.

 

In 1837 Seguín became the first Tejano to serve in the Republic of Texas Senate, a position he held until 1840, when he was reelected mayor of San Antonio. By that time tensions had increased between the Tejanos and the ever-increasing numbers of Anglos who were settling in Texas. Many Anglos distrusted the Tejanos—or simply coveted their land—and sought to remove them from the Texas territory. Seguín was eventually accused of aiding the Mexican government in trying to recapture Texas, and he was forced to flee with his family to Mexico in 1842. Seen as a traitor by the Mexican government for his role in the winning of Texas’s independence, Seguín was given the choice of a lengthy prison term or service in the Mexican army. He chose the latter, and he fought against the United States in the Mexican-American War (1846–48).

 

Seguín returned to Texas after the war and became a rancher; shortly thereafter he was elected a local justice of the peace. He lived in Texas until 1867, when lingering American resentment forced a final move to Mexico, where he remained until his death. The city of Seguín, located just outside of San Antonio, is named in his honour.

 

 

Juan Seguín | Tejano revolutionary and politician | Britannica. (2020). In Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Juan-Seguin

Seguin ISD Superintendent Dr. Matthew Gutierrez was recently interviewed for an article in Education Week magazine. Check out the article here.

Here is the October 2020 edition of Seguin ISD Fine Arts Fanfare courtesy of Jason Adam, Seguin ISD director of fine arts.  Click Read More to find out about all the fine arts updates.

 

 

 

Dear Matador fans,

 

It is our regret to inform you that the Oct. 14 freshman and junior varsity and Oct. 15 varsity football games against Kerrville Tivy have been canceled. This decision was made by Seguin ISD’s district and athletic administrators, in conjunction with Kerrville ISD, out of an abundance of caution and in the best interest of both teams’ athletes.

 

There is a possibility that the freshman team may play against another school.

 

Thank you for your patience and understanding,

 

Seguin ISD Administration

The Seguin ISD Back to School Blueprint has been updated.  Parents, students and staff are encouraged to review the document for important back to school information. #SeguinStrong  https://view.publitas.com/seguin-isd/seguin-isd-return-to-school-plan-2020-2021-1/page/1 

 

El Plan de Regreso a Clases en Español de Seguin ISD ha sido actualizado. Se anima a los padres, estudiantes y personal a revisar el documento para obtener información importante sobre el regreso a la escuela. #SeguinStrong https://view.publitas.com/seguin-isd/spanish-seguin-isd-return-to-school-plan-2020-2021/page/1

 

Seguin ISD Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

 

Sam Flores devoted 36 years of his life to the Seguin City Council and most of his life serving others. Mr. Flores was born in San Marcos during the Roaring Twenties, but grew up during the difficult years of the Great Depression. A young Flores soon learned the value of hard work as the middle child of seven raised during this trying time. As soon as he was physically capable of manual labor, Flores was thrust into the life of an adult migrant worker, traveling from California to Minnesota as the seasons changed. When only 17, he dropped out of school to join the Marines. His six year career was distinguished and included serving as a Platoon Sergeant in the Korean War and aiding in the evacuation of Shanghai by Americans during the communist revolution in China.

 

After finishing his time with the Marines, Flores continued his formal education and earned a degree in education from Southwest Texas State University in 1955. Four years later he had earned his Master’s degree in school administration, was married to Velia Flores, and moved to her hometown of Seguin. For the next 35 years, Flores was employed at Harlandale ISD in San Antonio. He taught regular and special education classes to elementary and secondary school students. He distinguished himself as the first Hispanic principal at Harlandale.

 

He then became the Director for Special Education for six school districts. Even after this extensive career, Mr. Flores, knowing the value of education, worked at Seguin ISD as an attendance officer. Flores did not limit himself to his teaching vocation, but also took an active interest in other aspects of the community. Flores helped others. And it was both the small and large things that made an impact--everything from helping a single mother fill out a college application to working for the Seguin Housing Authority, from assisting an elderly widow with her Social Security to helping establish the Seguin Boys Club.

 

Sam Flores is remembered for his work to build a new Seguin Post Office, establishing the Health Unit Project, and providing the leadership needed to complete the Walnut Creek flood project. He was also known for fighting against discrimination. During the 60s he helped form the Seguin Biracial Committee that successfully helped to end discrimination in public places in our community. Flores worked hard to expand cultural understanding and helped to develop Texas Lutheran University's Mexican American Studies program. The contributions made by Flores to Seguin are felt by all Seguin citizens. His tremendous work and accomplishments are inspiring and his example of sincere dedication to others is a blueprint for all to follow.

 

#SeguinStrong

Seguin ISD is hosting an informational meeting on Oct. 30, 2020 for general contractors interested in learning about the Briesemeister Middle School renovation project. For more information, visit the Meeting Notice.

Any conversation about Tejano music is incomplete without a mention of internationally successful, Grammy award-winning supergroup La Mafia. One of the primary elements of the band since the beginning has been keyboardist and background vocalist David DeLaGarza whose music and infamous gritos helped shape the sound and heart of Tejano music.

 

Born and raised in Seguin, Texas, four-time Grammy award-winner David DeLaGarza was born into a musical family. His father, along with 7 of his brothers, made sure music was always a part of David's life. His father started him early in the music business, making him get up on stage at the age of 7. By the age of 16, David was a full-fledged music veteran. He was playing music full time, going away on weekends and being back in school by Monday morning.

 

It was after graduating from Seguin High School that David's life would change forever. In 1988, Tejano supergroup La Mafia was looking to add a keyboard player to their group and had been hearing about David through many people. He joined the band in January 1989, right at the time when La Mafia was making a change from a Tejano sound to more of an international sound that led them to many years of worldwide success.

 

During the 1990s, La Mafia crossed many boundaries that few Tejano bands had ever crossed--such as selling out venues such as the Houston Astrodome and playing in front of 100,000 people in Mexico City. During the 90s David received his first two Grammys with the band and he received two more in 2004 and 2005. In 2006, David fulfilled a long-time dream and started his own band, playing the kind of funk, rock and soul music that he wanted. Although still a key member of La Mafia, with his own band, he's able to stretch out musically, and is a crowd-pleaser wherever he performs.

Thank you Guadalupe County Commissioners Court for allocating CARES Act funds to local school systems. Seguin ISD will receive $200,000 for COVID-19 related expenses by entering into an interlocal agreement with Guadalupe County.

 

Thank you Judge Kutscher and county commissioners for recognizing that the pandemic has placed an unexpected financial burden on local school districts.

 

Special thanks to Kirsten Legore and Patrick Pinder for serving as liaisons between Seguin ISD and Guadalupe County! #SeguinStrong

The Seguin ISD Board of Trustees will be hosting a special meeting on October 5th. You can find the agenda at the link below:

 

October 5 - Special Board Meeting