When Dr. Gabriella Durán Blakey walked onto the stage at the Albuquerque Convention Center on Tuesday, she wasn’t just a superintendent addressing her staff. She was a daughter of Albuquerque Public Schools carrying a torch — both literally and figuratively — for the next generation.
Before a sea of nearly 7,000 educators, Durán Blakey handed that physical torch to Riley Salazar, a young student whose presence served as a living reminder of the district's mission. As Riley raised the torch and exited the stage, the message was clear: The future of Albuquerque is being written in its classrooms today.
“We shape the future of our community, not by grand gestures or big speeches, but by our day-to-day interactions with students,” Durán Blakey said.
The 2026 APS Rising: Educator Summit marked the second consecutive year the district’s teachers, educational assistants, counselors and other support staff gathered under one roof to align on goals and celebrate the impact of public education. The event was held in partnership with the Albuquerque Teachers Federation and the Albuquerque Federation of Classified Professionals.
Durán Blakey stressed that APS remains committed to the five-year goals the Board of Education set in 2023 as a promise to the community: ensuring students can read, analyze information, and understand mathematical reasoning, helping them develop important life skills, habits, and mindsets like perseverance, self-efficacy, self-regulation, and social awareness, and getting them to lay the groundwork for the careers they want.
Developing critical thinkers
In an era where AI is rapidly reshaping the job market, Durán Blakey argued that the district must move beyond simply doing things better to "doing better things."
“That’s why it’s so important for us to focus on helping our students develop the skills they’ll need to rise to the top, no matter what happens in the job market,” she said.
“Critical thinkers and problem solvers will always be in demand. The same goes for good communicators and individuals who are innovative and collaborative,” Durán Blakey added. “These are the skills we need to be teaching our students from their first day of preschool to the last day of senior year.
Central to Durán Blakey's address was a commitment to a "dramatic redesign" of how students experience school.
This vision includes expanding Genius Hour for elementary students to explore their passions, implementing team-teaching through the Next Education Workforce Initiative in middle schools, and launching six new Freshman Academies to connect high schoolers with career pathways in engineering, health care and other fields.
“We are laying the foundation for our future police and fire chiefs, doctors and dentists, engineers and architects, mechanics and plumbers, lawmakers and CEOs.” Durán Blakey said, reflecting on her own journey from a young girl at Sandia Base Elementary to the district’s top leadership role.
Fostering a sense of belonging
Beyond academic redesign, she emphasized the importance of ensuring that every student has an adult at school who they can go to. Durán Blakey shared the story of Za’Kirah Boxton, a Hoover Middle School student who found safety and value through her school’s supportive community. This sense of belonging, the superintendent noted, is critical to student success.
Durán Blakey highlighted programs like "Where Everybody Belongs" for middle schoolers and praised staff at Dolores Gonzales Elementary and Atrisco Heritage Academy for creating welcoming environments through music and personal greetings.
As the summit drew to a close, the central message remained: Albuquerque Public Schools isn't just a district; it is a community rising to meet the future.
"The torch is in your hands," Durán Blakey told the educators in her final remarks. "Light the way."