Courtesy Photo: Zelda Sanchez, instructora de aprendizaje digital en la escuela Amy Biehl (ABCS, por sus siglas en inglés); Nancy Ramirez, coordinadora de escuelas comunitarias de ABCS; y Jessica Garcia directora de ABCS, festejan el reconocimiento a Ramirez en la celebración
La fundación Partners in Education de SFPS aumentará apoyo para subsidios a
maestros, viajes de aprendizaje, educación artística, ayuda de emergencia y programas
para ayudar a los estudiantes a prosperar.
Por Tara Melton
For more than 35 years, Partners in Education (PIE) has played a meaningful role in Santa Fe Public Schools (SFPS) classrooms, helping educators bring big ideas to life and ensuring students have access to learning experiences that extend far beyond the school day.
Now, that legacy is entering a new chapter.
SFPS and PIE have announced a strategic merger to form the newly unified SFPS Partners in Education Foundation, a move designed to strengthen support for students, educators, and schools across the district. The merger formalizes a long-standing partnership and brings both organizations under one aligned structure focused on expanding educational opportunities, enhancing classroom resources, and investing in educator success.
“For more than three decades, Partners in Education has been an essential partner in supporting our students and teachers,” said SFPS superintendent Christine Griffin. “This new structure allows us to align our efforts more closely and expand the impact of programs that directly benefit our school communities.”
The work of Partners in Education has long centered on removing barriers and opening doors. Through teacher grants, field trip funding, arts education, emergency assistance, and other programs, PIE has supported both immediate needs and transformational learning experiences.
Recent investments show the scope of that impact: $42,365.73 in emergency assistance, 10,809 students served with bus transportation for field trips, and $33,033.11 awarded in teacher grants. These funds have helped families and staff during times of need, connected students to real-world learning, and empowered teachers to try new approaches that deepen student engagement.
Under the newly unified SFPS Partners in Education Foundation, these efforts will continue and grow through key initiatives, including teacher grants, field trip funding, ArtWorks, teacher opportunity scholarships, emergency funding, and Hands-on Heritage, a free summer enrichment program for students.
At Sweeney Elementary School, teacher Faviola Rosales saw firsthand how a Partners in Education grant could transform classroom learning.
Rosales used a $1,000 grant to purchase bilingual materials that support hands-on interactive instruction. The resources are now used in classroom centers where students build phonemic awareness, math skills, critical thinking, and confidence through board games, manipulatives, and books in both English and Spanish.
The materials have helped create a more welcoming, inclusive, and culturally responsive learning environment, giving students new ways to explore language, numbers, and problem-solving.
Courtesy Photo: Estudiantes del quinto grado en la escuela primaria Ramirez Thomas comparten su Poesía.
Students quickly noticed the difference. Some shared that the books were easy to read, while others said the activities helped them form words, recognize letter sounds, practice measurement, build number sequences, and sort the alphabet from A to Z. One student was so excited by the new materials that they asked Rosales where she bought them so they could tell their mom.
Moments like these reflect the heart of the SFPS Partners in Education Foundation’s mission: Supporting educators, enriching classrooms, and helping students see themselves as capable, curious, and confident learners.
The foundation’s work also includes celebrating the educators who make a lasting difference in the lives of students.
On May 12, the Partners in Education Foundation honored six SFPS educators through its annual Teachers Who Inspire awards, recognizing their dedication, leadership, and service to students and school communities.
This year’s honorees were Kelly Phillips, a Capital High School teacher; Reid Burgess, Capital High School Medical Pathway lead teacher, mentorship coordinator, and HOSA advisor; Sophia Hegmann, third-grade teacher at Chaparral Elementary; Elizabeth Knowlton, an interventionist at Kearny Elementary; Megan Auer, a 7th and 8th grade teacher at Mandela International Magnet School; and Nancy Ramirez, Community School coordinator at Amy Biehl Community School.
The Teachers Who Inspire awards began in 1992 through the generosity of an anonymous donor who wanted to honor outstanding educators in Santa Fe’s schools. In 1999, another anonymous donor established the Noah C. Rodriguez Award for Excellence in Teaching, considered the premier honor among the awards, and named in memory of longtime SFPS teacher and administrator Noah Rodriguez.
In 2026, Nancy Ramirez was honored as the recipient of the Noah C. Rodriguez Award for Excellence in Teaching.
“Nancy Ramirez is such a gift to Amy Biehl Community School,” said Jessica Garcia, Principal of Amy Biehl Community School. “This award is so well deserved, as Nancy truly inspires all of us every single day through her dedication, kindness, and unwavering support for our students, staff, and families.”
SFPS teachers and educational assistants may be nominated as a Teacher Who Inspires by peers, students, principals, or community members. Honorees are announced during a special gala dinner and receive plaques and a monetary gift intended to support teacher wellness or personal needs, rather than classroom expenses.
As PIE has grown, so has the award amount. The award increased from $1,200 in 2013 to $1,500 in 2018. In 2024, the longtime anonymous donor contributed more than $500,000 to establish a Teachers Who Inspire Endowment, helping ensure the program continues for years to come. This year, the award amount increased to $2,500 per recipient.
Another cornerstone of the foundation’s impact is ArtWorks, a program designed to make the arts personally meaningful for children and teachers through art-making, live or virtual performances, exhibits, inquiry, and reflection.
Courtesy Photo: Una mujer se detiene a apreciar las obras de arte de los estudiantes en la muestra.
ArtWorks helps students build critical thinking skills, curiosity, and imagination through deep engagement with the arts. Through inquiry, reflection, and collaboration, students strengthen cognitive and interpersonal skills while developing a stronger sense of connection and belonging in their local community.
By working with local arts organizations, museums, and artists, students gain a deeper appreciation for culture, history, and community. Artists and educators guide the experience through carefully developed lines of inquiry that help students make meaning from what they see, hear, create, and discuss.
Each year, teachers and artists are compensated for professional development and training, ensuring the ArtWorks pedagogy continues to be implemented throughout the SFPS educational curriculum.
Every year, ArtWorks brings dance, poetry, visual arts, and music to SFPS K-8 students. During the 2025-26 school year, the program served more than 2,000 SFPS students.
“ArtWorks is about celebrating Santa Fe’s vibrant arts community while creating opportunities for students to see themselves as artists and envision their own creative futures,” said Maria D. Griego, an ArtWorks teaching artist. “The program helps students understand that artists are their neighbors and that a future in the arts is possible for them.”
Griego said the opportunity for students to showcase their artwork locally was a formative experience, one that could influence how they see themselves as artists and how they pursue the arts in the future.
As the SFPS Partners in Education Foundation moves forward, its unified structure represents a continued commitment to partnership, opportunity, and community support. The foundation’s work reflects a shared belief that when schools, educators, and the community work together, students thrive.
“I’m truly looking forward to seeing the Partners in Education Foundation continue to grow and impact the lives of SFPS students and educators alike,” said Sarah Amador-Guzmán, executive director of SFPS Partners in Education Foundation.
Courtesy Photo: Estudiantes de la academia El Camino Real visitan el museo de arte de Nuevo México en febrero del 2026 como parte de su unidad de obras de arte sobre Gustave Baumann.
Courtesy Photo: Una mujer se detiene a apreciar las obras de arte de los estudiantes en la muestra.
Courtesy Photo: Estudiantes de la academia El Camino Real visitan el museo de arte de Nuevo México en febrero del 2026 como parte de su unidad de obras de arte sobre Gustave Baumann.
Tara Melton, nuevomexicana, es oficial de información pública de SFPS. Después de graduarse de la Universidad estatal de Nuevo México, trabajó como periodista en el sur del estado, sobre temas de educación y gobierno municipal. Luego trabajó en el área de comunicaciones de entidades no lucrativas al servicio de los niños de Nuevo México antes de unirse a SFPS en el 2023.
Hay unos 10.000 estudiantes en las escuelas públicas Santa Fe, El Dorado y Tesuque. El distrito está comprometido a darle a cada estudiante una educación segura y de alta calidad que acepta la diversidad, promueve la igualdad y fomenta la justicia social. Obtenga más información en: sfps.info.