Educators, dignitaries, philanthropists and community members turned out Wednesday for the groundbreaking of IDEA Lopez.
Located at 3401 W. Fifth St. in Odessa, it is currently well under construction and is set to launch in fall 2025 with kindergarten, first and second grade students, along with sixth grade, Jeff Cottrill, Superintendent and CEO of IDEA Public Schools, said. The mascot will be the Wildcats.
There will be a little more than 400 students starting in fall 2025 and then scaling up over the next six years. The first graduating class will walk the stage in spring of 2032, Cottrill said. IDEA Public Schools believes that each child can go to college regardless of where they come from or their background.
The late Al Lopez, for whom the school is named, was a former board chair and acting CEO and superintendent. His family was on hand for the occasion and to accept a plaque in Al Lopez’ honor.
“Al Lopez was a tremendous giver of his heart, a man of integrity, service, leadership, and a true pursuer of equitable educational outcomes for all students, aligning with our mission (of) college for all,” Cottrill said.
He added that staggering the grades in this way is a traditional launch pattern for IDEA Public Schools.
“We start with kinder, first, second, build the base at our academies and then allow for our teachers and our staff to hone in” and have a laser-like focus, Cottrill said.
“Because school systems exist to improve student outcomes, this allows for them to focus into those areas with that foundation at our academies, laser-like focus into our sixth graders, building that foundation for our college prep and then scale each and every year,” he added.
Cottrill said IDEA is in the process of hiring teachers to launch the campus next year.
“We invite those that are in the profession or interested in the profession, to come join us. … We will be in an active recruiting state over the course of the next eight months before we launch this campus,” he added.
Cottrill said at IDEA, they are totally invested in creating a sense of joy at their schools, autonomy for students and sense of agency so they can monitor their own progress to monitor their own achievements.
He noted that there is a need for another IDEA campus in Odessa.
“We look at the challenges that have come to exist in some of the schools and some of the areas where our students would come from, there’s a demand,” Cottrill said.
The IDEA Yukon campus has a waiting list of hundreds of students, he said.
“(As a) matter of fact, I think that we have as many students on the wait list as we have enrolled in that campus, which expresses a demand, an interest in the community, and interest in the parents that they want their children, to receive an IDEA education,” Cottrill added.
Annette Macias, executive director of IDEA Permian Basin, said she grew up in the community where IDEA Lopez is being built. She has lived through the booms and busts of West Texas and the oilfield.
“Coming from a migrant family, college wasn’t always a given so I know it takes hard work and we want to give that opportunity to our students,” Macias said.
Collin Sewell, Chair of the Board of Directors for IDEA Public Schools, said when he and Lopez stepped into leadership roles within the organization, Lopez told Sewell early on they may not know everything, but no one would outwork them.
“I do believe that when I think about our success, not only in what he contributed to IDEA, but in his life, it was this genuine belief … that hard work and determination and perseverance would take him far, and it would give him opportunities and open doors for his family and for his communities,” Sewell said.
“That’s really my hope … is that we breathe that life into IDEA Lopez, not only for what Al represented, but for what the future of all of these students and scholars represent for West Texas and beyond. And finally, I would close with this for Dr. Macias and everybody who’s going to be responsible for this campus, the one thing that Al would not accept is anything other than excellence. I can assure you that we will all not only be supporting you, but definitely keeping our microscopic eyes on the success of IDEA Lopez, because he would never want his name associated with anything other than something that was perfect,” Sewell said.
Justin Lopez, head of generosity at 49 Financial in Austin, said it was an honor to celebrate the groundbreaking of IDEA Lopez in honor of his dad’s investment of time with IDEA.
He added that it was a special opportunity for he and his mom to see the building’s progress. The hundreds of students attending IDEA Lopez will be blessed.
One of the things Al Lopez believed in was helping people live out their potential.
“A great education and lowering barriers to excellence and helping create opportunities for the next phase of education or career, whatever that is, that’s what was really my dad’s passion and IDEA is a great fit for that,” Justin Lopez said.
“We’re excited to see how and where it goes,” he added.
Justin Lopez said it’s unique to have a campus named after a loved one.
“My dad would be so proud of the school. He would be furious that his name was on the building, but he would be so proud of the school. He’d be so excited for the kids, and that’s what he would be telling every single kid and the kids that shared today (Zoee Stevens and Rodrick Evans). He’d be so proud of them. I think he’d be more proud of the possibilities and the future of each of the kids than he is about a building being named after him,” he added.
Lopez said he will be back to see the different stages and milestones of IDEA Lopez and see the first graduating class.
Stevens, a fifth grader at IDEA Yukon, started attending IDEA as a second grader. She said the staff cares for students like they are their own children.
“IDEA helps us with a lot of things. It’s a place where we can grow, learn and make new friends and we grow academically and emotionally,” Stevens said.
Evans, a 10th grader at IDEA Travis in Midland, said he is very excited to see more IDEA schools in this area because he has lived there all his life. He said the team sports at IDEA have created a sense of team and family.
“I’ve been a scholar at IDEA Travis since it opened during COVID in 2020. Before that, I attended the original Travis since kindergarten. Since IDEA took over, being part of the school felt like a breath of fresh air, somewhere you can be you,” Evans said.
