A familiar face will be returning to the position of athletic director at Española Valley High School.
The Española School District has hired Theresa Flores, 56, to serve as athletic director.
Flores was the athletic director from 2000 to 2004 and was informed Monday afternoon that she had been selected from five candidates who were interviewed for that position. Flores replaces Dave Fontaine, who served as athletic director from 2006 to 2009 and chose to resign at the end of June.
Flores said she was interviewed by incoming Superintendent Janette Archuleta.
“During the interview, one thing that impressed her was I was so familiar with the District and the procedures that are in place,” Flores said.
Archuleta confirmed that Flores’ knowledge of the District, as well as her experience with the Española Middle School athletic program, were the things that impressed her.
“I felt she could assume the position and we could move forward right away,” Archuleta said. “Her knowledge of the Middle School program will help her effectiveness at the high school.”
Flores was assistant principal and athletic coordinator at Española Middle School this past school year. She will vacate that position to become athletic director. Outgoing Superintendent David Cockerham indicated she would receive around $79,000, a salary commensurate with her assistant principal’s salary.
The highlight of Flores’ first tenure as athletic director, which ended with her retirement in 2004, was when she received the 2002 Sportsmanship Award from the New Mexico Activities Association.
“I still have the letter I got from the (Association) how they were impressed with the short amount of time it took us to turn the program around,” Flores said.
Española fans, however, threw debris upon the court after the Sundevils’ lost to Artesia March 12 in the semifinals of the 2009 Class AAAA state basketball tournament and although Flores knows of no action being taken against Española for the incident, it is something she is concerned about.
“I feel it was really unfortunate and we need to impress upon our fans the need to rise above that,” Flores said.
Flores said her top priorities will be facilities, budget and staffing. A proposed cut to an item in the athletic budget also concerns Flores.
“I read where they were thinking of not paying for kids’ meals at away games,” she said. “That’s a hard one for me because having traveled along on those trips I know we have a lot of kids who can’t afford to pay for their own meals.”