Dr. Jaime Aquino became Superintendent of San Antonio ISD in May 2022. Within his first year, he began to change the culture of the district to be more inclusive, fully embracing the community. Dr. Aquino worked collaboratively with the Board of Trustees and his executive team to develop a
declaration statement, which is one of the first in the nation to include a word in Spanish – familia.
After the Board established five-year goals and guardrails focused exclusively on student outcomes, Dr. Aquino and his executive team began a collaborative process with all stakeholders to ensure the district met the goals. The comprehensive process culminated in a strategic management plan called Always Learning, which began implementation in Spring 2023.
Under Dr. Aquino’s leadership, the district developed a six-year sustainability plan. Now midway through achieving its goals, the district projects to eliminate a decades-in-the-making structural budget deficit within the next three years.
Dr. Aquino is committed to serving with a teacher’s heart, working tirelessly beside the SAISD familia to enhance student achievement, enrollment, and attendance. To him, it’s not about one, or some, or most – it’s about all kids.
Dr. Aquino is a board member for the McNay Art Museum and Learning Forward, an international organization dedicated to fostering professional learning and development among educators to enhance teaching practices and improve student outcomes. He is an alumnus of the Holdsworth Superintendent Leadership Program, the recipient of an outstanding leadership award from the National Diversity Council, and co-author of Breakthrough Principals: A Step-by-Step Guide to Building Stronger Schools.
Dr. Aquino earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology at the Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo. At Fordham University, he received his master’s degree in bilingual education and his doctoral degree in curriculum and teaching with a specialty in language, learning, and literacy.