Tag Archives: el paso high

On a cool, blustery night the 89th Annual ‘Battle of the Claw’ took place at Austin High’s historic R.E. McKee Stadium.

The Panthers and the Tigers again locked up in their annual battle, but it was the homestanding Panthers that would take the victory 40 to 6 and claim ‘The Claw.’

Our very own Johnny Yturales was there and we bring you his view of the competition in this ‘Game in Many Pics.’

Story by Gustavo Reveles – Photos by Leonel Monroy –  EPISD

Historic Jones Stadium at El Paso High School will play host to a free football clinic for over 200 El Paso and Ysleta ISD student-athletes.

Now in its third year, The Dallas Cowboys High School Clinic presented by the Texas Lottery will give students from high schools represented the opportunity to learn both on- and off-the-field lessons.

At the clinic, Dallas Cowboys Youth Camp Coaches will instruct students on techniques and skills.

Camp Coaches will also be joined by a Dallas Cowboys current player to assist in sharing football insights and other life lessons.

Student-athletes were selected by their coaches for the high school football showcase.  Officials with the clinic share that the two school districts are expecting great competition during the day.

The clinic will start at 8 a.m. on Saturday, March 30 at El Paso High School’s Jones Stadium.

• WHAT: Dallas Cowboys High School Clinic – El Paso, TX – Presented by the Texas Lottery.

• WHEN: 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 30.

• WHERE: Historic Jones Stadium at El Paso High School, 800 East Schuster.

• WHO: Dallas Cowboys Youth Camp Coaches with over 200 EPISD and YISD student-athletes.

Retired Las Cruces businessman and engineer, Orlando Cervantes, recently gifted the New Mexico State University Foundation $50,000 to create the Orlando Cervantes Endowed Scholarship.

The scholarship is special in that it specifically bridges the El Paso and Las Cruces communities by awarding graduates of El Paso High School with scholarship dollars to complete a degree in engineering from NMSU.

Cervantes proudly explained his idea behind the scholarship, “I’m an Aggie,” he said. “And, I’m a Tiger.”

A native El Pasoan and graduate of El Paso High School, Cervantes’ life is a culmination of opportunity, perseverance and hard work. In high school, he served as captain of the EPHS football, basketball and baseball teams, lettered in both football and baseball and was inducted into the EPHS Hall of Fame.

He earned a football scholarship to play at NMSU and after his freshman year, Cervantes voluntarily joined the military. He was stationed in Korea for two years where he honed his passion for engineering by working on building and engineering projects for the army.

Following his service, Cervantes returned to El Paso, completing his degree in engineering from NMSU in 1960.

Opportunity immediately came knocking, and after a one-year appointment with Robert McKee General Contractors in El Paso, Cervantes moved to the West Coast where he was able to build his engineering portfolio alongside some of the area’s top engineers.

Nine years later, Cervantes returned to Las Cruces to his wife’s family farm where he would face new career challenges, “I didn’t have a lot of experience in farming,” he said, “So I started looking for things to do.”

Using knowledge and skills from his background in engineering, Cervantes worked with companies in Louisiana to introduce a new Tabasco crop ¬- and processing method – to Mesilla Valley. His initial talks were met with speculation about the probability of success in the desert. “They thought I was nuts,” Cervantes said. “Especially because it was a new crop and process foreign to the area.”

His perseverance and unique innovation in crop production and chile processing – along with a little luck, “I just happened to pick the right crop,” he added – resulted in the growth of the farm from 10 acres to several thousand, which now produces millions of pounds of mash distributed worldwide.

Notwithstanding the farm’s success, Cervantes maintained a second career as a plan-review engineer. He has served on the boards of a variety of civic and community organizations and has played instrumental roles in numerous projects across southern New Mexico, including the development of the Planning and Inspection Departments for Doña Ana County and the city of Sunland Park, the creation of the performance zoning ordinance for Doña Ana County and the construction planning and design of NMSU’s Zuhl Library.

Cervantes hopes his scholarship opens doors for new generations of fellow Tigers and Aggies. He wants them to understand that it will take a lot of hard work to achieve their goals. “Each student will have a different situation and story when they come to study at NMSU,” Cervantes said. “To be successful, however, you have to be the first one in the morning to open the office and the last person to close the office at night. You have to remember that a degree is not a pass to success. You have to make the effort.”

Looking back, Cervantes admits that of all his accomplishments, he is most proud of his three children, Joseph, Dino and Tina – who now run the family farm – and his six granddaughters. With regard to his career, Cervantes remains humble about his successes. “You can find examples of achievements much greater than mine,” he said. “But, I’m happy with what I’ve done.”

Author:  Daphne Griffin – NMSU

Two El Paso High School JROTC cadets will lace-up their running shoes this Sunday for the 33^rd annual Army-Ten Miler in Washington D.C. — a first for El Paso ISD.

After being part of the first EPISD team to compete in the Bataan Memorial Death March, seniors Mikel Adame and Angel Ramirez will now be the first to compete in the ten-miler, running alongside 35,000 other runners.

“We are really proud, since we will be representing our school and EPISD,” Adame said.

“Normally, when people think of El Paso High, they think about the building and say ‘that’s a beautiful structure,’ but the JROTC program was one of the first in El Paso. We want to bring more recognition to the program.”

The cadets are attending the race thanks to sponsorship from the Association of the United States Army (AUSA).

“I am a member of the AUSA, so I contacted them and asked if they would be interested in sponsoring us,” said Ret. Sgt. Maj. Velton Locklear, EPISD’s JROTC assistant. “They have been very helpful.”

Locklear, who led the Bataan team back in March, encouraged the cadets to participate in the ten-miler. He will also participate in the run.

“They did really well, and I knew they would be up for this challenged,” Locklear said. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for them to go to Washington D.C. and have this experience.”

The cadets have been training for weeks to prepare for the run, participating in the German American Oktoberfest Night Run and other local runs, as well as running on their own time.

“This past Sunday we ran ten miles with the sergeant major, and we did pretty well,” Ramirez said. “We ran at Fort Bliss where the Special Forces do their rucksack marches and finished in 1 hour and 20 minutes.”

The race will start and end at the Pentagon, charting a course past national monuments, important landmarks and scenery.

This will be Ramirez’ first visit to the Washington D.C., and he is excited to see the sights.

“I am looking forward to seeing the White House and the other monuments,” he said. “We are cadet officers, so it’s great to set the example for the other cadets and for them to see the things that can happen when you put in the work.”

Current and former students of El Paso High School will have a full day of Centennial Celebrations on Saturday, Oct. 8, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the opening of the Lady on the Hill.

The celebrations on Saturday cap three days filled with activities aimed at bringing EPHS students and alumni together to observe this important milestone. The activities on Saturday include an attempt to have the largest high-school reunion ever.

“It is a wonderful time to be an El Paso High Tiger. It’s so exciting to see so many of our former students come back and have them celebrate with us,” said Principal Kristine Ferret.

“We want to make sure that all Tigers feel welcomed on Saturday as we show off just how special our school is to the El Paso community.”

More than 3,000 alumni are expected to attend the 85th Battle of the Claw between the EPHS Tigers and the Austin High Panthers at historic R.R. Jones Stadium.

The game kicks off at 11 a.m., but tickets for the game will go on sale starting at 9 a.m.

At 12:30 p.m., the EPHS Alumni Orchestra will give a concert in the EPHS Auditorium. After the end of the game, at around 2:45 p.m., registered alumni will gather on the field to attempt to establish the Official Guinness World Record for the largest school-reunion.

All activities will take place at the Trost-designed El Paso High School, 800 E. Schuster.

Again our very own Andres Acosta was moving through the Borderland, documenting the region’s interesting match ups for week 5 of the high school football season. Check out all the action from Canutillo at Del Valle, as well as Andress at El Paso.

EPISD teachers Amy Stell from Coronado High and Russell Lang from El Paso High were nominated to receive the Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction award from the National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS).

The NSHSS boasts members in more than 160 countries and is dedicated to recognizing academic excellence among high-achieving scholars and educators. To qualify for the award, student members must nominate an educator they feel is deserving of the distinction.

Coronado sophomore Sydney Reiter felt her teacher and cheer coach Amy Stell more than met the criteria.

“She is such an important role model, not only in her students’ lives but also her cheerleaders’ lives,” Reiter said. “She is always compassionate and always there if you need her. She’s just a great person to talk to.”

Stell is honored by the nomination, acknowledging there is more to an educator’s job than meets the eye.

“It’s amazing. It’s always very endearing to receive thanks, whether it’s in a note or something like this,” Stell said. “There’s more to teaching than just teaching my topic. It’s teaching life lessons.”

She is proud to be able to teach in two different capacities and make an impact in her students’ lives.

“One of my former cheerleaders is now coaching at Austin,” Stell said. “She shared a message on Facebook thanking me for being her coach and having those lessons carry through into what she is doing today. It’s a great feeling to see that. She posted it for everyone to see.”