CORTEZ MOVES TO A BIGGER FEEDING TROUGH AT TSBOE

By Juan Montoya
Using politiquera-inflated votes results from Hidalgo County, former Brownsville Independent School District trustee Ruben Cortez has moved closer to his dream of someday being in the statehouse by getting elected to the Texas State Board of Education.
Cortez, with his impressive educational background consisting of a GED, beat out assistant San Benito ISD assistant superintendent Celeste Sanchez with  a Master's degree and more than 45 years experience in education and ranging from the classroom to the board room, but also Republican Laurie J. Turner, a teacher at Gregory-Portland Junior High School
Cortez Jr., who describes himself as a Brownsville businessman, won the State Board of Education, District 2 seat in the Nov. 6 election.
The State Board of Education sets policies and curriculum standards for educational programs in the public school system and approves the creation of new charter schools.
If our experience with Cortez's performance as a BISD trustee is any indication of what's coming, we should see the path to his door widen to a four-lane highway with textbook vendors and lobbyists. During the 2010 campaign for BISD trustee, the DefeatZayasCortezPowers PAC revealed how Ruben actively solicited contributions from vendors. And more than one person has told of Cortez cornering vendors with contract proposals to the BISD and demanding his cut before they could get his support during a golf-tournament political fundraiser.
He told Gary Long, his megaphone at the Brownsville Herald, that he would be setting up town-hall meetings in Brownsville and throughout District 2 with members of the education community and with with leaders of the Texas State Teachers Association, American Federation of Teachers, the Association of Texas Professional Educators and others concerning the most pressing needs in public education. He also told the Herald that he would meet with superintendents and school board members throughout the 17-county district to give their concerns a voice on the board.
Really? What on earth could he tell these educational professionals about curriculum and textbook content? How to quit school and use politics to get ahead?
He does it, he said, to“to put children before politics” and has had conversations “with superintendents up and down the Valley” about their concerns.
This is the same Cortez putting children before politics that was outed in the lawsuit filed by former BISD superintendent Hector Gonzales in his lawsuit, since settled.
–  May 2008: Cortez went to (former BISD Superintendent Gonzales and instructed him to promote his wife to principal of Benavides Elementary. Cortez threatened Gonzales that "if he wanted to remain at BISD as superintendent, he should make it happen. Gonzales said he could not oblige such a request. Cortez responded "we will see what happens."

Cortez was also in the majority sued by former Special Needs Department Director Art Rendon, who stated in a sworn deposition in his case (Southern District of Texas 1:10-cv-00198) that:

"58. On or about June, 2008, Ruben Cortez, a sitting board member on BISD, contacted Plaintiff directly via telephone. He instructed Plaintiff to hire his sister, Linda Aguilar, for summer school employment as a Special Education teacher.

59. Plaintiff informed Mr. Cortez that BISD had hiring policies in place and instructed him that the hiring application for the summer of 2008 had already been accepted and processed.

60. Cortez sent Plaintiff his sister's application and insisted Plaintiff call her immediately and giver her a job. Plaintiff set up a meeting between Cortez's sister Linda, Ana Lerma, who was a Special Education supervisor, and Dr. Lee Garcia, Assistant Director for Special Services. At the meeting, Ruben Cortez's orders were followed, and Linda Aguilar was given a job for the summer of 2008.
He, of course, has his eyes on greener pastures other can had from than putting politics before the children of the BISD.
Part of the board’s responsibility is to approve textbooks for schools statewide, he told Long. Because Texas is so large, textbooks approved here often end up in about half the schools in the nation, he said.
"The money to buy textbooks for Texas schools comes from the Permanent School Fund and amounts to approximately $2 billion a year, Cortez said. With average high school texts costing about $120 each, and seven required of each student, the textbook lobby becomes an influential force.
Meanwhile, digital textbooks cost about $15 each but require iPads or other types of tablet computers. Cortez said he’s not advocating Apple’s product over other vendors, but the economic and learning advantages of digital technology are obvious.
“As you think about the poverty we have and these kids who never get to go anywhere or see anything, imagine that instead of just seeing the Pacific Ocean on a map on the wall, they get to take a virtual tour of the Pacific Coast Highway on their tablet computer,” Cortez said.
He commended the McAllen school district for using local money to purchase iPads for the district. He said McAllen is pioneering technology that can save Texas money and at the same time “engage students at a higher level.”
Oh, yeah, our little Ruben can just see there's mucho money to be made in them thar Hill Country state board rooms, alright!