Diana del Pilar Receives Gulf Coast Educators FCU Principals Month Award

The Avalos P-TECH School leader earned the honor for creating an ‘outstanding learning environment for students.”

Principal Diana del Pilar poses with students and Assistant Superintendent Todd Lindeman.

This month, representatives of Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union (GCEFCU) surprised four principals from across the area. One of the recipients is Principal Diana del Pilar at Avalos P-TECH School.

GCEFCU received more than 1,000 nominations in October, which is national Principals Month.

Diana Del Pilar took the helm of Avalos P-TECH School in 2019. The Aldine ISD graduate’s (MacArthur High School, Class of 1990) focuses on working alongside her teachers. Together they work to create an outstanding learning environment for students to succeed in all they do. Being accessible to her staff and students is fundamental. She even moved her office location to a centralized area where both students and staff can quickly get to her. On any given day, you can catch Del Pilar on the main campus halls or in a teacher’s room, guiding and coaching them to be the best educator they can be.

She continually advocates for students and thinks of new ways to create better learning opportunities. Del Pilar is not afraid to draw up new ideas and bring them forward to the district when she feels they will significantly impact her campus. When teachers pivoted to virtual teaching due to the coronavirus pandemic, Del Pilar researched best-practice methods from scholarly reviews.

Her efforts have not gone unnoticed by the faculty, staff, and students’ families. Parents are appreciative of her actions when it comes to seeking out intervention options for their children. According to the individual who nominated Del Pilar, each key stakeholder — faculty, staff, students, and families — feels she listens. The result is engagement from students who are enjoying school and learning.

The principal implemented “Zero Period,” which serves as an intervention class. Zero Period targets high-needs students and those who are struggling with reading. Del Pilar and a teacher also co-taught a reading class to benefit these students.

Del Pilar’s unyielding efforts in supporting her students allowed them to achieve the district’s highest Lexile growth. Through Del Pilar’s persistent efforts to provide valuable resources for her campus, she has achieved positive, significant reading academic results from students. Additionally, she increased the overall attendance rate for at-risk students and those with low attendance history.

As a recipient, she received $500.00 from GCEFCU for the school and a crystal award.