In 2022 Hidalgo ISD Graduated 65 students with Associate Degrees/Certifications. The district takes pride in ensuring college success for its students. Hidalgo ISD’s Ida Diaz Jr. High understands that and year after year it has prepared its students for the TSI (Texas Success Initiative) Exam. The TSI exam is required for all students interested in taking early college courses in high school. Students must pass this exam, or they will not be permitted to enroll in early college courses. This summer over 200 incoming freshmen have taken advantage of the extra assistance provided by the district. “You have to understand that these students are giving up part of their summers for this,” Dr. Christian Trevino Ida Diaz Jr. High principal explained. “At Diaz Jr. High we prepare our students to be successful on their STARR exams and prepare them for their future, which includes the TSI exam. For our students to be willing to give up part of their summers for the better of their education shows just how dedicated they are to their future. The TSI is a challenging exam, not everyone passes it, but as educators, we love to see the determination in our students. ”The TSI consists of Math and Reading exams that test students’ abilities. The exam is taken online and detects a student’s college readiness as the exam progresses. If the exam detects that the student cannot progress further, the exam will end.
Hector Guerra, a teacher at Ida Diaz Jr. High and a TSI teacher for the summer semester expressed his appreciation for the dedicated group of incoming freshmen, he said, “What we’re doing here is so important and our students have recognized that. "We’re giving them the opportunity to get on a fast track for college enrollment.” Guerra specializes in mathematics. He shows his students the basics of algebra and gives his students their first exposure to higher-level math. Robert Monreal incoming freshman to Hidalgo Early College High School shared his experiences in the summer program, “I feel blessed that we’re given this opportunity. College is important, and my classmates understand that. We all want to take part in those early college courses. Our teachers have been great in helping and preparing and I feel great walking into the TSI exam.”