Exceptional Beginnings: Southside ISD ECC Achieves Excellence

When Southside ISD opened the Menchaca Early Childhood Center in 2018, the goal was simple: to give young learners an exceptional start. 

Using cutting edge technology and empowering parents to be an integral part of the campus community, the center was recognized as the best in Texas by one of the state’s most influential organizations for turning that vision into reality. 

In May, H-E-B honored the district with an Excellence in Education award, lauding MECC’s ability to go “above and beyond” for its students and their families with “exceptional academic, social-emotional, and community impact.” 

MECC emerged from a pool of five finalists after award judges toured the campus in March. The panel — comprised of educators, administrators, and community leaders throughout Texas — specifically pointed out how well the center engaged parents and involved them in the educational process. 

Principal Tanya Mares said it has taken a holistic and inclusive approach to make it happen. 

“Parents are a child’s first teachers, and we truly believe they have to be part of the work that we do,” Mares said. “From the beginning, MECC was created with the understanding that we cannot educate our youngest learners without our families and our community.” 

Recognizing that parents ultimately hold the key to their children’s success, Mares said making everyone feel like they’re shaping the center’s learning environment is critical to its success. 

“At the end of the day, we want families to leave Menchaca feeling like they were truly part of their child’s educational journey from the very beginning,” she said. 

Jesse Hernandez, Southside ISD’s board president, joined the district shortly after MECC opened. He quickly figured out the impact the center had on its students, typically aged five years or younger, and sought to build on the solid foundation it began with. 

“That original investment set the tone for everything the campus has accomplished since,” he said. “As board president today, I’m proud to help continue that work.” 

The district received a $25,000 grant with the award, and it plans to use it to “invest directly in our students through learning opportunities and experiences,” Mares said. It’s about enhancing what MECC is already doing for its “littles.” 

“We want to continue making school a place where they are excited to learn, explore, and grow,” she said. 

The following are questions that Texas Lone Star asked Mares and Hernandez. Their responses have been lightly edited for clarity. 

Q: What does it mean to the district to receive the H-E-B Excellence in Education Early Childhood Facility Award? 

MARES: It’s such an incredible honor for Menchaca and for Southside ISD, and it really validated the work that our staff does every single day and something we have always believed very strongly: Early childhood matters. 

Our students are three, four, five, and six years old. Sometimes people look at early childhood and see little ones playing, singing, creating, and learning how to be students. We see the foundation for everything that comes next. 

We know that the experiences children have during these years can shape how they feel about school, how they see themselves as learners, and what they believe they are capable of doing. 

What made the award even more meaningful was that it recognized the collective work behind our students. It belongs to our teachers, paraprofessionals, support staff, families, district leadership, and community members who continue to pour into our children. It was never about one person. It was about Menchaca, Southside ISD, and a community that believes our youngest learners deserve the very best start possible. 

Winning also gave us an even greater responsibility. Being named the best in Texas does not mean our work is finished. If anything, it makes us ask, ‘What can we do next for our littles?’ 

Q: How did you engage parents and the community in the creation of the center, and how do you continue that outreach today? 

MARES: We try to create opportunities for families to be on campus, learn with their children, understand what their children are learning, and feel comfortable reaching out to us. Whether it is through family events, parent education, campus activities, community partnerships, or simply the relationships our teachers and staff build with families every day, we want our parents to know that they belong at Menchaca. 

We also understand that family engagement does not look the same for everyone. Some families can be on campus often, while others may connect with us in different ways. Our job is to continue finding ways to meet families where they are, and to make sure they still feel included and connected to their child’s school experience. 

Our community partnerships are just as important. Menchaca is successful because there are so many people who believe in our littles and in the importance of early childhood education. Our staff, families, district, community partners, and supporters all play a role. 

Q: What were the vision and goals for the Menchaca Early Childhood Center, and how were those formulated? 

HERNANDEZ: We wanted MECC to be a place where early learners are not only academically prepared but also socially and emotionally supported, and truly excited about school from day one. 

Our goals centered on creating a nurturing, research-based environment that values play, hands-on learning, and strong relationships with families. These goals were formulated through close collaboration between district leadership, educators, and the community. We listened to teachers who understand early childhood development, and we considered input from families who wanted a warm and welcoming start for their children. 

We aligned everything with Southside ISD’s strategic priorities around early literacy and whole child development. MECC was intentionally designed to be a model campus, one that reflects what is possible when a district invests in high-quality early childhood education. 

Q: What advice do you have for districts regarding early childhood education? 

MARES: My biggest advice would be to never underestimate its importance. Sometimes early childhood is looked at as simply preparing children for ‘real school,’ but this is real school. These are the years when children are learning how to be learners. They are building language skills, learning how to interact with others, becoming more independent, developing confidence, and building the foundational academic skills that everything else will be built on. 

One of our biggest focuses is building strong foundations. We look closely at what our students need and ask ourselves what skills and experiences will help them be successful at the next level. We track their growth, look at our data, collaborate as teams, and we make adjustments based on that. 

But early childhood cannot only be about academics. Our littles need strong relationships, consistency, opportunities to play and explore, language-rich environments, and adults who truly believe in what they are capable of. 

I would also encourage districts to invest in the adults who work with their youngest learners. Early childhood educators need strong professional learning, time to collaborate, the right resources, and support. The work may look different from what happens in older grade levels, but it is extremely intentional and incredibly important. 

I also think districts should look beyond just kindergarten readiness. Ask what you want your students to look like in third grade, fifth grade, middle school, and when they eventually graduate. Then work backward and think about what foundation needs to be built from the very beginning. 

Our goal is not simply to prepare children to leave our campus. We want to give them such a strong beginning that what they learned, experienced, and believed about themselves while they were with us continues to carry them forward. When we get the beginning right, we change what is possible for everything that comes after it. 

Q: What were the steps involved in making the vision for the center a reality? Have the goals for the center changed over time? 

HERNANDEZ: Although I wasn’t serving on the board when the center was created, I joined soon after, and I’ve always respected the vision behind it. It was designed as a state-of-the-art early childhood campus with advanced technology and hands-on learning spaces for our pre-K and kindergarten students. 

That original investment set the tone for everything the campus has accomplished, and I’m proud to help continue that work. Our role has been to support MECC’s growth, ensure the campus has the resources it needs, and preserve the core mission of giving every young child an exceptional start. 

While the foundational goals haven’t changed, the center has certainly evolved, serving more students and continually refining its practices as the district learns and grows. For me, it’s inspiring to see how far MECC has come and to champion its continued success. 

Photo: Southside ISD’s Menchaca Early Childhood Center in May was presented with an H-E-B Excellence in Education that honors the center as the best in Texas. The award came with a $25,000 grant for the center. Photo courtesy of Southside ISD.

This story first appeared in the October/November 2026 issue of Texas Lone Star.