Edinburg CISD Board Honors 70 Scholarship Recipients with $1,000 Awards and AT&T Laptops
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first part of The Edinburg Advocate’s reporting on the May 26, 2026 ECISD School Board meeting. See theedinburgadvocate.com for the second report on the meeting.
Edinburg CISD, Superintendent Scholarship, AT&T, Rio Grande Valley Partnership, Laptops, Edinburg TX
Arnoldo Mata
EDINBURG TX – The Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District Board of Trustees held its regular meeting Monday night, highlighted by the presentation of $1,000 scholarships and AT&T laptops to 70 graduating seniors and a series of personnel actions taken following a lengthy executive session.
AT&T and Rio Grande Valley Partnership Foundation Laptop Awards
In what Superintendent Mario Salinas described as a first-of-its-kind recognition in Texas, AT&T Corporation selected Edinburg CISD as the only school district in the state to pair each of its 70 superintendent scholarship recipients with a $2,000 laptop and backpack — in addition to their $1,000 scholarship checks.
“In the state of Texas, there are almost 1,500 public schools,” Salinas told the audience. “AT&T Corporation chose only one school district to award to every child that got a $1,000 superintendent scholarship to go to college.”
Salinas said every recipient was selected based on academic performance over four years and participation in extracurricular programs. “Every student tonight that receives these awards deserves it,” he said. “Every child, every student has got excellent grades, and they all perform in extracurricular programs, which is what we want students in Edinburg ISD to do.”
The scholarships were funded through the district’s annual spring golf tournament, which raises money specifically for this purpose.
JD Salinas, Vice President for AT&T Texas, told the board the partnership grew out of a breakfast conversation with community leader Ronnie Guerra. “He says, ‘JD, I need your help.’ I said, ‘Yeah, what’s up, coach?’ ‘We gotta help with the scholarships for the kids,'” Salinas recalled. “I said, ‘Coach, I can’t help in the golf tournament this year, but I think I got a better idea.'”
Salinas said the initiative is part of AT&T’s broader commitment to closing the digital divide in Texas. “The Census Bureau’s latest statistics show that millions of Texans do not have perhaps the ability to get on the internet, but most importantly, don’t have the equipment to get on the internet,” he said. He noted AT&T has invested $12.9 billion in its Texas network and more than $150 million in the Edinburg area in recent years.
“This is a perfect example of a public-private partnership — not using taxpayers’ money, but a private corporation making sure that we invest back into our community,” Salinas said.
Paco Sanchez, President and CEO of the Rio Grande Valley Partnership, also addressed the board. “At the partnership, we speak as one region with one voice to support the Rio Grande Valley and our economic strengths here in the region,” Sanchez said. “Today’s computer distribution aligns with those goals, and so we’re delighted to play a role here in helping these students access the tools that they need to prepare for the future and for their future jobs.”
Superintendent Salinas also credited state Sen. Juan Hinojosa and state Rep. Terry Canales, who were unable to attend, for encouraging corporate investment in the community. The laptops were distributed in partnership with CompuDot.
Scholarship Recipients by Campus
The 70 recipients represent the graduating class of 2026 across six campuses:
Edinburg High School — Ashley Aguinaga, Kayla Almazan Montalvo, Abigail Margarita Alvarado, Diego Alberto Castrejon, Aileen Coete, John Davila, Jacob Edward Garcia, Madison Gonzaba, Sophia Menchaca, Paulina Murillo Bedoya, Bianca Aileen Palomares, Kenya Perez, Sylvia Reina, Abraham Rodriguez, and Eddie Jude Vega.
Edinburg North High School — Eliu Alcocer, Jared Calderon, Adrian Chavez, Aileen Garcia, Leonardo Garcia, Gabriela Garza, Hannah Gomez, Anna Gonzalez, Raymundo Martinez, Angel Emilio Mendoza, Isabella Perez, Jocelyn Pinon, Cassandra Rodriguez, Joshua Rosales, and Cynthia Soriano.
Economides High School — Angie Alvaro Gloria, Hadassah Cavazos, Annabella Del Bosque, José De León, Edma Escobedo, Angelina Fuentes, Giancarlo Garcia, Kimberly Jimena Jorge, Nathaniel Leal, Brian Orellana, Diego Piñón, Sophia Ramos, Amanda Nicole Saenz, Aram Sanabria, and Adrienne Renee Taglia.
Robert Vela High School — Ana Alanis, Anthony Alvarado, James Cerva, Audrey Fuentes, Christopher Gonzalez, Valeria Hernández, Dionne Moore, Mark Moreno, Isabel Rodriguez, Lucas Saenz, Alexandra Sauceda, Kiara Torres, Karime Torres, and Michela Kombai.
Collegiate High School — April Globus, James Garcia, Anthony Havayana, Lauren Lopez, Jordan Luna, Elijah Mangum, and Karina Salinas.
Vision Academy — Brian Perez Lozano, Samantha Perez Lozano, and Ivan Ramirez.