Our Story
Who We Are
CREEED was launched in 2014 by a diverse group of El Pasoans who share two core beliefs:
Our schools are not graduating nearly enough students ready for college or a 21st-century career.
Our community has more than enough talent and tenacity to turn our schools around.
Vision
We are working towards a day when all students in El Paso have access to high-quality public education that provides them with the tools they need to succeed in school, work, and life.
Mission
Our region’s future is already here, in our schools. CREEED works to unite the El Paso community – educators, parents, business leaders, and civic leaders – around proven initiatives with measurable outcomes that will raise academic performance, enhance teacher development, and increase parent and community engagement.
In 1950, El Paso exceeded Texas' rate of college graduates by
20%
By 2014, El Paso trailed the state average by
20%
More than
1
in
5
El Paso 8th graders won’t graduate from high school on time.
By not completing college, each graduating class of high school students in El Paso forgoes
$8 MILLION
IN LIFETIME SAVINGS.
Our History
To navigate, click the gold arrows on the left or right of the timeline.
2014
Business, education, and community leaders launch CREEED to improve education outcomes in El Paso and create a globally competitive workforce.
2015
CREEED launches ACT El Paso, a $1M fund to help teachers in El Paso obtain certification to teach dual credit courses, and commissions a study to identify educational gaps and opportunities to support having more students in El Paso pursue a college degree.
2016
John King Jr. convenes Education Roundtable with El Paso Leaders, including CREEED board members. CREEED invests in regional philanthropic support through Educate Texas to enroll more female engineering students at UTEP.
2017
CREEED launches 60x30 El Paso, an initiative tied to the Texas 60x30 plan, with the goal of increasing college attainment rates in El Paso to 60% by 2030.
2017
CREEED establishes a $20,000 Sylvia Hopp Scholarship Fund to support graduating seniors from San Elizario High School with a $2,500 scholarship for college.
2017
CREEED hosts Choose to Excel Summit inviting national Charter Management Organizations to learn about El Paso and consider expanding into the region.
2018
CREEED launches a $10 million fund to help grow high-performing schools in El Paso with the expansion of IDEA Public Schools and hires a dedicated full-time team.
2018
CREEED serves as a Board member of the El Paso Collaborative for Academic Excellence at UTEP and works with school districts to establish the TEA “Meets” metrics as the standard for measuring academic performance in the region.
2019
Walton Family Foundation provides grant to CREEED, enabling CREEED to launch Parent & Community Engagement efforts.
2019
CREEED partners with UTEP’s School of Education and the El Paso Community Foundation to launch the UTEP Miner Teacher Residency Program, which prepares aspiring teachers with in-classroom training for a year.
2020
CREEED and partners secure a $1.36M grant from the Prentice Farrar Brown & Alline Ford Brown Foundation to expand teacher preparation initiatives, including launching a new Teacher Mentorship Program to support and retain new teachers in El Paso.
2021
CREEED reaches a milestone of providing $1.5 million in funds to support current ISD academic initiatives and programs and launches a $2.25 million fund to support expansion of Harmony Public Schools.
2022
CREEED launches College Ready El Paso to help parents and the community understand the performance of our schools and why we need to focus on increasing educational attainment.
2022
CREEED launches its Parent Fellowship Program, a community-driven initiative to help parents become advocates and engaged in their children’s education.
2023
CREEED launches the Algebra in Middle (AIM) High Initiative to increase the number of middle school students taking and passing Algebra I.
2023
CREEED and partners launch the El Paso School Design Collaborative to reimagine how schools can better serve students and communities.
2024
The inaugural Education Matters Summit is hosted by CREEED to bring together education, community and business leaders to discuss creating a more successful education to career pipeline for students.
2024
CREEED launches El Paso School Finder, the first regional website that allows parents to find and compare public schools across the region.
2024
CREEED launches the Excelencia Scholarship for Future Educators to encourage and support more high school graduates receiving an Education degree.
2025
CREEED launches the F.A.S.T. Rising Scholarship to support high school graduates from our four regional rural school districts to attend college.
2025
CREEED supports the Clint ISD implemented Pipeline to Leadership (P2L) initiative focused on maximizing the impact of highly effective teachers to reach more students.
Did You Know?
