Gadsden school board votes to offer superintendent post to finalist Nubia Tarazona

The Gadsden Independent School District Board voted unanimously at a special meeting on April 25, 2026, to offer the district’s superintendent position to finalist Nubia Tarazona. The board convened in closed session under the New Mexico Open Meetings Act to review finalists and then took a public roll-call vote that approved the offer.

The move came after an executive session the board conducted under Section 10-15-1(H)(2) of the New Mexico Open Meetings Act, the provision the board cited for limited personnel matters. The board’s roll call recorded affirmative votes from Board President Lita, Board Vice President Flores, Board Secretary Rodriguez, Board Member Guerrero, and Board Member Medrano; the clerk indicated the motion carried.

The motion on the floor asked the board to fill the superintendent vacancy and "offer the opportunity to Nubia Tarazona to become our next superintendent." The transcript records the motion and a subsequent unanimous roll call; it does not identify on the public record who made or seconded the motion. Board members offered congratulations to the finalists after the vote.

The meeting materials and comments contain two different start dates for the vacancy: at one point the vacancy is described as beginning July 1, 2026, and elsewhere the agenda language refers to a June 15, 2026 start. The board did not clarify on the public record at the meeting which date is final; that discrepancy is noted here and should be confirmed with district administration.

Next steps beyond the vote were not specified in the public transcript. The board did not record contingencies, conditions of employment, or an effective start date in the public minutes provided here. The transcript shows the board entered closed session at 8:09 a.m., completed interviews and deliberations, reconvened, approved the offer to Tarazona, and adjourned.

Authority and process references: the board cited the New Mexico Open Meetings Act, Section 10-15-1(H)(2), as the basis for conducting the personnel executive session in which finalist materials and interviews were reviewed.

What remains open: the transcript contains inconsistent language about the vacancy start date (June 15 vs. July 1) and a single segment shows an alternative spelling of a board member’s name ("Gederow") inconsistent with other roll-call lines that read "Guerrero." Those inconsistencies are recorded in the meeting record and require administrative clarification for an authoritative personnel announcement.