Community members will have the chance to learn more about the “State of Public Education” in Alpine during a panel discussion on Wednesday, Sept. 3 at noon at the Espino Conference Center in the Morgan University Center at SRSU.

Dr. Carlos Hernandez, the president of Sul Ross State University, and Dr. Michelle Rinehart, the superintendent of Alpine Independent School District, will each provide updates from their campuses, followed by an open conversation moderated by Big Bend Telephone General Manager Rusty Moore.

Dr. Carlos Hernandez and Dr. Michelle Rinehart

“At a recent meeting of Alpine Community Projects, Dr. Minerva Gonzales, the director of nursing at SRSU, and Phillip Carey, president, West Texas National Bank in Alpine, decided we should all get together to host a ‘State of Public Education’ panel in Alpine,” said Kirsten Moody of Alpine Community Projects. “They’d both attended this kind of event in other cities and said it can be useful in helping everyone understand both the opportunities and the challenges facing our educational entities.”

The event is free and open to the public, and all are encouraged to attend — parents, students, business owners and anyone interested in the future of education in Alpine and the Big Bend region.

The discussion will be livestreamed for those who cannot attend in person at https://gqr.sh/Rbre.

Lunch is limited and will be provided to those who register at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdrDp3ny2meZ53lRTLTWC_6WvWExw9hMLx2sB5SC41Ng0LxhA/viewform

For more information, email kirsten@alpinecommunityprojects.org.

Photos: Dr. Carlos Hernandez and Dr. Michelle Rinehart