{"id":427,"date":"2026-07-21T09:35:57","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T16:35:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/?p=427"},"modified":"2026-07-21T09:36:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T16:36:15","slug":"25-educational-policy-leadership-alum-of-the-year-ignacio-prado","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/?p=427","title":{"rendered":"&#8217;25 Educational Policy &amp; Leadership Alum of the Year &#8211; Ignacio Prado"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-33.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-33.png 300w, https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-33-225x300.png 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Originally posted: Jun. 25, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By: <a href=\"mailto:kia.cummings@unlv.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kia Cummings<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Looking for Light Bulbs<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Futuro Academy Founder Drives Dynamic Learning and Teacher Retention<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A passionate leader and educator, Ignacio Prado is making a lasting difference in Southern Nevada students and educators. He serves as the executive director and principal of Futuro Academy, a tuition-free public charter school in East Las Vegas. The school is known for its support of English language learners and students from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the past 15 years, he\u2019s used what he\u2019s learned at UNLV\u2019s College of Education to guide his leadership, and he\u2019s getting great results. Futuro ranks in the top 14% of all Title I schools in Nevada, earning the trust and support of its community.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe\u2019s a tremendous asset to Las Vegas,\u201d said Assistant Professor Megan Griffard. \u201cLas Vegas Title I schools face chronic staffing shortages, yet since 2017, Ignacio has more than tripled his team, working tirelessly to be a source of support and a model of excellence at Futuro.\u201d He works to strengthen the academy, reinforcing his belief that teachers are the most important variable in student success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The non-native English speaker from an Argentine immigrant family serves as a powerful role model. His story shows students and families what is possible with hard work, belief, and a strong sense of purpose. \u201cThe most rewarding part of my work is seeing light bulbs in the eyes of students as they master new concepts,\u201d Ignacio shared.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ignacio earned two master\u2019s degrees in the College of Education. He completed an M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction in 2012 and another in Educational Policy and Leadership in 2021.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s no wonder why Ignacio Prado was selected as the 2025 Educational Policy and Leadership Alum of the Year award recipient. \u201cI am deeply humbled by the recognition from faculty I look up to.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Originally posted: Jun. 25, 2025 By: Kia Cummings Looking for Light Bulbs Futuro Academy Founder Drives Dynamic Learning and Teacher Retention A passionate leader and educator, Ignacio Prado is making a lasting difference in Southern Nevada students and educators. He serves as the executive director and principal of Futuro Academy, a tuition-free public charter school [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[16,18,34],"class_list":["post-427","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-educational-psychology-leadership-and-higher-education","tag-alumni","tag-awards","tag-faculty-staff-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=427"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":430,"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427\/revisions\/430"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coenewscenter.sites.unlv.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}