Dr. Dani Portillo is in her second year leading Roosevelt School District in Phoenix, Arizona after having made history as the first Latina to lead in the district. In her conversation with Dr. Kishimoto, Dr. Portillo emphasizes her commitment to focusing on student outcomes, parental engagement, and community collaboration, which she notes has led to increased school enrollment and parental involvement.
Enjoy the conversation with Dr. Kishimoto and Dr. Portillo below.
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The following transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
Dr. Kishimoto
Hello everyone. It’s Christina Kishimoto from Voice4Equity, and I have with me a dear friend and colleague, a woman I just respect tremendously, Superintendent of Roosevelt School District Dr. Dani Portillo. Dani, I’m glad we have a chance to catch up today.
Dr. Portillo
Yes, likewise. It’s very nice to see you.
Dr. Kishimoto
I know it’s been a busy few weeks with the start of school planning for the school year. How is that going?
Dr. Portillo
It’s been going really well. So, this is my second year, so my second time around opening up the school year. So, of course, we learned a lot from last year’s first time around. And we kept notes. We kept notes right after each piece of last year so we could refer to those this year. And it helped us. It absolutely did. And our team is stronger now because it’s our second year together with the dynamics we have. And so it’s getting better, and I’m sure it’ll be better next year too.
Dr. Kishimoto
That’s fantastic. That’s great news. So as long as nothing changes from last year, you have notes.
Dr. Portillo
Of course, things are different, but, but at least we have that starter plan, right? Last year we were making it all up from scratch!
Dr. Kishimoto
It’s always nice to go into year two and beyond. I’ve heard nothing but amazing things in terms of what you’re doing and the role you’re playing as part of the superintendents who are leading in Arizona, a state where I have just a lot of colleagues and friends having served there myself. It’s just a wonderful place in terms of who’s leading in the system. So, I’m so glad you’re part of that portfolio of amazing superintendents.
Dr. Portillo
Yes, I am. I’m surrounded by great leaders, so that helps a lot, too. And they’re all just a phone call away. So yes, absolutely, we’re united here in Arizona.
Dr. Kishimoto
So, I know that you are Honduran, we are in Hispanic Heritage Month. And Hispanic Heritage Month, I believe, has 21 countries Hispanic countries it represents. And we started celebrating this as the United States back in the Lyndon Johnson days when he signed it into law in 1968 as a week of celebration, I believe it was. And then Reagan came along, and he was asked to sign it into law as a month of celebration. So, we started on September 15. We go all the way through October 15. Why don’t we start there? What does this mean to you? Why does it matter that we have these kinds of cultural celebrations today?
Dr. Portillo
Well, we should celebrate our culture all year, every day. We must acknowledge it. A lot of times when I’m in meetings during this month, I take the opportunity to say to the people who are there, Happy Hispanic Heritage Month. And people usually look at each other like, oh, it’s Hispanic Heritage Month. But we must mention it, and acknowledge it, because not everyone else is Latino, and not everyone else is necessarily celebrating it, but many of us serve mostly Latino students, so it’s a great reminder for everyone else when I say it. And I feel like I have permission to say it, because it’s my month, right?
But, as I am Honduran, I think that it’s really important for us to acknowledge that there’s so much diversity in our culture. So specifically, when I’m thinking about Hispanic Heritage Month, I love to talk about how Latinos have contributed to the wealth of the United States, to the richness of the United States, to science in the United States, and being Honduran specifically, one of the things that I always mention is our focus on the environment, and how much we value the environment. There is a lot of research happening in Honduras at some of the universities there. Some people think about Honduras and think, oh, they must not have universities and they don’t know how complex our economy is, and our education system.
So, I mentioned some of the research that’s coming out of the universities because I always mention that to bring attention to the fact that there are educated people outside of the United States, and many of them are Latinos, and many of them are focused on things that are going to make the world better, including the United States. So, the environment, for example, is one of the things that we like to focus on when we’re talking about what contributions we have because it’s beyond the food and the music. Though we love food and music as Latinos, we’re much more than just that. And I think it’s important for us to mention our scientific contributions, our financial contributions, and our leadership contributions to the US success.
Dr. Kishimoto
Yeah, I love that you say that because it is true that sometimes we are so caught up, especially in our US culture, around the racialized tensions that are part of the United States. I mean, that’s a reality, and as educators, we are in systems where we are constantly called upon to deal with some of these matters, of ways in which there’s a lack of equity, and we have to ensure we’re leaning into that equity work. And so, these cultural celebrations, these heritage months, I think, are amazing to talk about the diversity. We’re not the same people when we say Hispanics or Latinos, there are 21 different countries represented, and there’s a uniqueness to each country. And within those countries, there are also unique histories. And so, it’s a wonderful time to share about one another, even within the Latino community, and then as we go into other heritage months, learn about other people. And so, I love it. I think it’s a wonderful thing that we do in the United States. I think we do need to listen more deeply to each other’s stories. I think it’s a wonderful time to do that.
Dr. Portillo
And, also take the opportunity to do the same. So, like for Black History Month, same thing. I’ll go into the room, Happy Black History Month, everyone. So, I’ll learn something about black leaders here in south Phoenix, specifically so I can contribute and add that to a conversation.
People are like, oh, really, but really, it’s intentional to show that the same level of interest that I want everyone else to have in the contributions that Latinos make, that I have that same level of interest in making sure that I’m acknowledging the contributions that other groups have made as well. So, it’s modeling it too. But I think it’s really important that we that we don’t miss the opportunity to acknowledge it, and then also to emphasize that we should acknowledge it every day, right? This very special time is specifically dedicated to reminding us to acknowledge it.
Dr. Kishimoto
Absolutely. And you know, this country has never been so diverse as it is in this current era. And so as educators, our student body is diversifying, and our communities are diversifying each year. 10 years ago, the majority of students in this nation are now students of color. We’re about 54-56% students of color in this nation as of 10 years ago. We are this amazing community with diverse cultures, languages, perspectives, and family constitutions. We know that with the world moving so fast there’s this embracing that we need to do, of that, and then there are some challenges, especially as we think of the social, and political climate that we’re in today.
Dr. Portillo
Absolutely, thinking too about the diversity within our culture, I was thinking about even in Honduras, and in other countries as well, there are indigenous populations, populations that don’t speak Spanish. Then we have our black Latinos and Afro-Latino cultures in Honduras that also don’t speak Spanish, or that speak Spanish as their second language. So, it’s just so diverse. To me, it’s beautiful. It does present some challenges in the political context. And I guess that’s where we exist, in this brave space where we have to be able to talk about it.
If you don’t talk about it, that doesn’t mean it goes away.
Dr. Kishimoto
A brave space, I think is a great way to put it that. Speaking about brave spaces, we have so many things happening around us that impact education, but are outside. You know, we have these wars in other countries, the Gaza Strip, and what’s happening to Ukraine, and now we hear a lot more about the conflicts with Iran. Those are complicated issues. And then now that we’re in the midst of, obviously, our elections, for presidential elections, there are policy conversations from the affordability of housing, to the economy, to the rights of women to make decisions about their own body and health. I mean, the policy issues are really widespread and complex, and they impact our families and communities. I’m wondering what you’re seeing in terms of the chatter around these policy issues and the national elections amongst our kids. You know your students, are they talking about this? Are they talking about something completely different than the adults are talking about?
Dr. Portillo
Well, I know when it comes to policy, I think policy that directly impacts them, they might not recognize that it’s a policy. But of course, the school safety and school shootings. So that’s something that especially with all the social media threats that many of us experienced across the nation in the last couple of weeks. So that’s something that kids are talking about more than they did even a month ago. In Arizona, we started school the first week of August so, we’ve been in session for a while, and even at the beginning of the school year, they weren’t talking about it. But unfortunately, with what happened with the last school shooting, they’ve been talking a lot about it, and with the social media threats.
It’s hard for me to relate to because I didn’t go to school like that. I had other challenges that we were dealing with at that time. But really, to get into the mind and the psyche of kids. My little niece told me the other day about a drill she had at school. And she’s like, well, that guy, he’s not actually coming, but we just have to be ready when he comes. And she’s in first grade. It broke my heart to wonder what they think, even when we’re practicing, and it’s important to practice, it’s important to talk about it, they’re surrounded by that.
They’re surrounded by images and messaging about violence in schools. So that’s one thing, and then the other thing that I hear some of our students talking about is fear about what’s going to happen to them or their family members if there’s any kind of mass deportation. So that’s something that has been coming up quite a bit. I would assume that in other parts of the city or the country where there are other immigrant groups, they’re probably feeling the same kind of tension about mass immigration.
Dr. Kishimoto
We’ve heard the kind of rhetoric and just the awful kind of storytelling about Haitians who are here legally in communities, working in jobs in Ohio and so these things that as adults we try to wrap our minds around and are complex and do connect to things that we call policy issues, the kids may not call it policy issues, but they certainly hear it right. There are, like you said, there’s messages all around. They’re hearing adults talk. They’ve seen it on social media. And it creates a complicated space called education, where we want them learning. So how do you stay focused as a superintendent in the design that you need in your schools, to stay hyper-focused on learning?
Dr. Portillo
We are here to learn, and we’re not here just for an activity. Well, one of the things that we have focused systemically on from the boardroom to the class to the living room, is a focus on student outcomes. So, our governing board started the process with the executive team last year, and we measure how we utilize our time and hold each other accountable for how we’re utilizing our time in our board meetings in our study sessions, and now in our executive team meetings.
And even looking at my daily schedule and prioritizing time that’s spent on improving learning. So, for example, if I have to give something up in my calendar, I know that I have to go through the walkthroughs because I have to give the principal feedback on the implementation of different strategies that we’re using to improve instruction because it’s part of what my governance coach is going to be checking on my minutes. And I’m modeling for them. Hey, I’m prepping for my meeting with my coach, and they have a coach as well who’s also checking on how they’re utilizing the minutes of their leadership structural meeting that they have on their campus. So systemically, we have been very intentional about making that shift, about how we utilize our time, and now shifting into how we are utilizing our budgets so our resources of time, people, energy, and money. It’s been very systemic, and intentional we’re trying to communicate it as much as we can, even in our parent leadership groups that we have as well, trying to permeate this focus on learning above everything else. Everything else is important and it impacts learning. But if you don’t focus on the actual learning, then all of those other things become obstacles or excuses or distractors to focusing on instruction and improving outcomes for kids.
We’ve seen some modest gains, and we’re very excited about that, not only in our learning but also improved our enrollment. While everyone else is decreasing enrollment, our enrollment is increasing. And the biggest change that we’ve made is focusing on learning and talking about it. And going through all of our systems of celebration, all of our systems of marketing. Everything has to be focused on learning. And what we’ve seen again is all of these secondary gains that we’re making in other areas that are not related to learning, but it is, it is.
Dr. Kishimoto
I appreciate the way in which you continue to hyper-focus on being very intentional about having a systemic approach to how everyone’s working, how time is being utilized, resources, and what’s happening in the classroom. One piece I want to make sure that we highlight is that you are also as hyper-focused on relationships, the inclusivity of people, and hearing students for their authentic voices. And I know you do tremendous work with parental engagement. I’d love you to talk a little bit about that side too, because it’s that balance of approach that you use that makes the Roosevelt school system such a great system.
Dr. Portilo
Thank you. Thank you. And again, we always acknowledge we’re not where we want to be yet, but we’re heading in the right direction. We have about 600 or so graduates now of our parent leadership class. In fact, we’re presenting at the National Alas, on our parent engagement.
But our parent leadership is what is starting to push this transformation forward. So really engaging our parents in telling their stories, their dreams for their kids, and then also advocating for outcomes. So that’s why we say from the boardroom to the living room, so that parents are advocating for outcomes, and knowing their role in it. And their role in it isn’t just making cookies for the cookie sale. It’s not just always being our cheerleaders. It’s challenging us and knowing that they will hold us accountable as a system. They’re going to hold our board members accountable as a system, and then also recognize that there are a lot of things that are very important to them. Once we start working with them, they all realize the most important thing to them is that their child is safe, and loved, and that they are learning.
So, they oftentimes reframe their focus to really, how can I support the school in being a place of learning. And in that, because kids are focused on learning, guess what? It becomes safer, and bullying decreases as well, right? And then kids feel successful, and they feel like they’re good at school, and then they start to love school, and they feel loved. So, all of those things have this interplay. They’re not separate. Also, it focuses everyone’s attention, including our parents who say, is the system that I’m bringing the thing that I love the most to every day, is that going to make a difference for my child in their future. And to be able to do that, they have to be able to have certain outcomes that are just gatekeepers, like their literacy and their math.
And we know there are so many other things as well, but these things are gatekeepers. Where we used to have concerns, and we still do have some maybe, about the pizza and the cafeteria or things like that, like does my child have enough time for recess, and all that. These things are important but the majority of their time now, as they come together to help solve problems.
The focus they have now is on this sense of self-efficacy. So, they’re solving problems. They’re focused more so on problems that relate back to learning directly. And that keeps us focused too, because that starts to decrease the tornado of other kinds of stuff, like the whirlwind of other kinds of stuff that distracts the principles from the learning, right? Because they’re responding to the parent’s concerns. And if the parents are mostly concerned about learning, then their focus is going to be on learning.
One great celebration, really quick for our parents. They identified that oftentimes in the summer, kids are hanging out at home or, you know, not very engaged in other things and so they, created this partnership with our local library, to do a summer reading program. And they organized the whole thing. They figured out how to count the minutes. They figured out how to sign up the kids. They got donors to donate incentives for the kids. And we had a celebration. They organized the celebration. They had the certificates and everything, all run by parents. It was amazing!
Dr. Kishimoto
That’s what happens, Dani, when you engage parents and family members, our students, our teachers, and the community, in this rigorous, respectful, culturally responsive way. Then the conversations and the preponderance of work are going to be around that learning. Being centered. And then they become solution setters for these other things that come up, which is powerful.
Dr. Portillo
And they help each other. All In Education is the organization that supports us as a partner. They bring together parents from different schools, and then there are different levels of leadership training they can participate in. So our parent ambassadors, for example, sometimes we might have a conflict or a difference between administration and a parent at a different school and, even though it’s not their school, what they’ve often done is gone to the meetings to help facilitate some of that conversation, and help to zero in on what this parent is really wanting to express and almost like the anchor interpreter, right the person in the middle, really bringing both sides together as to what’s the most important.
Then, how do we focus this conversation on being solution-centered, and also ensuring that we’re protecting everyone’s time and focus on learning? And is this distracting parents from focusing on their child’s learning, and then also distracting the principal from focusing on their child’s learning and bringing them together to unite on that? And when you see parents helping, parents see that, and when you see parents helping, administrators see that it’s amazing. It’s amazing to see them in these roles. And hopefully, some of them will decide to be teachers, and we can use them in growing our own teacher and leader program.
Dr. Kishimoto
That’s right. I know All In Education is very focused on having some of our parents become board members to understand how to run, and how to be part of governance teams. That’s just very empowering. Now, I know that we need to wrap up here, but there’s so much to catch up on.
When I talk to you, I appreciate you kind of thinking about some of these issues. I’ve been in a space where I’ve thought a lot about what’s most important in my life right now, just on a personal level. And so, I’d love as we wrap up for you to share how you make sure you protect what’s most important in your life.
Because so often superintendents are driven to the expectation that the only important matter is leading a district, and yet, we know you have a family and you’re part of a community. You may have a faith-based community you’re a part of. These things that are part of your life that are important. So how do you make sure that what’s most important to you, you are giving priority to?
Dr. Portillo
I feel like this was my vocation and my calling. So, one of the things that is most important to me is making a difference. So really leaving a legacy and a change that’s going to be beneficial for South Phoenix, this area that I chose to serve. That means I don’t just have my job as superintendent, but that I’m leading, along with other leaders from South Phoenix to make this place better. And that’s really, really important for me. I have just had so many connections to this geographic area.
So, at this time in my life, I recognize that I’m one small piece of this massive change that is affecting our community. It’s really important for me to make sure our efforts as a district are to stay connected and that it’s supporting, that it’s mutually supportive to all these other leaders that are leading in other spaces to make this better for kids here.
I try to make space for that by being present and interested in other people’s passions. So for me, it’s education, but I know that we have people who are very passionate about health care here in the same space and still serving the same families. They’re very passionate about job skills development, they’re very passionate about the community college system. Whatever their passion is, just really attending to nurturing that passion in them, and ensuring that we’re partnering towards supporting the same community, the same partners.
So, that’s something I do. And then I know that to do that and really see the benefits of that, I have to be healthy. I’ve been focusing on things like, my little Aura ring here. People have different tools that they use. This measures everything, like looking at my sleep score. I know everything starts to spiral for me when I have lack of sleep. So, my sleep score, then closely followed by, hydrating. And then on the worst days where I’m seated a lot, at least, I am drinking water and sleeping. Small steps! Am I actually making time to exercise and find joy with my family and make sure that I’m in a healthy mental space as well? I have to be intentional about it because the superintendency will suck everything out of you if you allow it, and then you’re not effective anymore.
Dr. Kishimoto
Absolutely. I mean, the workload is bigger than what’s possible in a workday, in a workyear. I think this is a great place to end your message around wellness, centering on joy.
You’re one part, one small part of this collective that’s working right towards the wellness of the community and the success of the community. I think it’s a wonderful message to end with. I want to thank you for having the time today to chat, just catch up and see where you are. I wish you a wonderful Hispanic Heritage Month, and we’re going to see each other pronto in ALAS.
Dr. Portillo
Yes, and you come to Arizona in January.
Dr. Kishimoto
Yes in January for the Tech, Power, and Equity conference.
Dr. Portillo
Dr. Kishimoto, thank you for creating this space. When you highlight our stories, it shares that story with other people, but it also feeds us. You know to know that we’re special enough for you to take time out to highlight us. It’s really something unique and thank you so much for that.
Dr. Kishimoto
There are so many more stories than we can actually tell, and I’m just going to keep chipping away and sharing because it inspires. So, thank you. Dr. Portillo, thank you for leading our nation’s students, and specifically in Arizona. Thank you.
