Hector Gonzales: Raymondville

Hector Gonzales joined the STISD board of directors in May 2002.

He was born and raised in Raymondville, and he continues to call Willacy County his home as a resident of Lyford.

After graduating from Raymondville High School, Gonzales earned his bachelor of science in Education from Pan American University (now The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley), and two masters degrees from Texas A&I University in Kingsville (now Texas A&M University-Kingsville) – one in Bilingual/ESL and the other in Mid-Management. 

Gonzales started his career in education as a classroom teacher at Lyford CISD. He served as principal at Lasara ISD for 13 years, then as principal at Lyford CISD for 10 years, and he currently works as a teacher supervisor for Texas Teacher Alternative Certification Program in Brownsville. 

He and his wife, Lucila, have one son, Roger, and two daughters, Andrea and Cristina. 

Gonzales is involved with the Lions Club and the Catholic Men’s Club. In his spare time, he enjoys hunting and gardening, and he is a collector of Oldies records. 

Seventeen years into his tenure on the STISD board, Gonzales has been involved with many decisions that have allowed the district to progress and positively impact the children of the Rio Grande Valley. He shares that, “Serving as a Board Member for STISD is important for me because it allows me to be involved in the education of Valley youth (our future). The success of Valley youth is my top priority.”

He adds, “I am most proud of the success and top rankings of all our campuses. STISD is second to none in the quality of education it provides the students.” 

In terms of the future, he hopes STISD “… continues to provide a top-notch educational format to all the students that attend our campuses, and that the students continue to attend the top-ranked colleges in the nation.”