San Angelo READS!, Concho Educators Kick Off School Year with Book for Every SAISD Kindergartner 

San Angelo READS! kicked off its first read-aloud of the school year Thursday, September 10, with an interactive read-aloud, an excited group of kindergartners and a little help from Pete the Cat. 

Concho Educators Federal Credit Union joined San Angelo READS! at Belaire Elementary, where President and CEO Jerry Merrill read “Pete the Cat: Too Cool for School” by James Dean. As part of the giveaway, Concho Educators provided every kindergarten student across San Angelo ISD with a new copy of the book to take home and enjoy. 

Throughout the story, Pete has trouble deciding what to wear to school and turns to his friends and family for advice. After trying to follow everyone’s suggestions, he eventually discovers that being cool isn’t about pleasing everyone else — it’s about being confident in who you are and making your own choices.

Belaire kindergartners eagerly joined Mr. Merrill throughout the read-aloud, responding to questions and helping move the story along.

“Today was a great day,” Mr. Merrill said. “This was perfect for kindergarten. They thought it was a great book … they were able to help along with the story and basically participate by being a part of the book.”

Beyond the fun of the read-aloud, Mr. Merrill encouraged students to make reading a lifelong habit. He emphasized that books provide opportunities to continue learning at every age and that kindergarten is an important place to begin building the reading skills and habits that will help students throughout their lives.

The partnership also carries special meaning because of Concho Educators’ longstanding connection to San Angelo ISD. Founded in 1941 to serve SAISD educators and employees, the credit union is celebrating 85 years of serving its members and community in 2026.

“We were founded by educators with SAISD, and we are committed to giving back to the schools,” Mr. Merrill said. “We’ve been in business for 85 years and we’re part of SAISD and we continue to be a part of SAISD.”

San Angelo READS! monthly book giveaways continue throughout the school year, with local businesses and organizations partnering with San Angelo ISD to provide students across different grade levels with new books of their own. Each giveaway helps place books directly into students’ hands, build home libraries and extend the joy of reading beyond the classroom. 

San Angelo ISD and San Angelo READS! extend their sincere appreciation to Concho Educators Federal Credit Union for its continued partnership and investment in SAISD students. Partnerships like this help introduce young learners to the joy of reading while building home libraries and encouraging literacy both inside and outside the classroom.

📸 View photos from the San Angelo READS! and Concho Educators read-aloud at Belaire Elementary by visiting the photo gallery. https://sanangeloisd.pixieset.com/sanangeloreadsbelairekindergarten/ 

You can watch highlights from this read aloud below and others on the San Angelo READS! YouTube Channel. For more information on how to join San Angelo ISD in championing literacy, email us at communications@saisd.org. To stay up-to-date on San Angelo ISD, please visit the SAISD website at saisd.org and follow us on Instagram and Facebook. Community members are encouraged to share how they celebrate literacy and participate in San Angelo Reads! through the hashtags, #SAISDReads and #SanAngeloREADS. Keep Reading, San Angelo!

About San Angelo READS!

The San Angelo READS! community-wide literacy initiative was founded by the District in 2020 to promote and encourage reading and the SAISD future-ready learner profile attributes among SAISD students and the greater San Angelo community. The goal of the literacy initiative is to increase awareness of the importance of literacy and to inspire a love for reading. This exciting initiative is driven by statistics which show how vitally important literacy is in providing all students with the opportunities to succeed at a young age. Children and teenagers who read for pleasure on a daily or weekly basis score better on reading and writing tests than infrequent or non-readers.

SAISD kicked off San Angelo READS! on December 9, 2020 with the inaugural San Angelo Reads! Day, a day when literacy was celebrated at every SAISD elementary campus with literacy fun like read-ins, unveiling book vending machines and a gift of a book to all SAISD third-graders compliments of the San Angelo Area Foundation. Inside and outside our classrooms, SAISD is committed to building literacy skills which create students who are prepared for future success, thus building a better tomorrow for our students and community.

About Concho Educators Federal Credit Union

Founded in 1941 to serve San Angelo ISD educators and employees, Concho Educators Federal Credit Union has grown alongside the community for more than 85 years. Over time, membership expanded to include other area school districts, Angelo State University and additional organizations. Today, membership is open to anyone who lives, works, worships or attends school in Tom Green County. Concho Educators now serves more than 7,000 member-owners and has grown to more than $100 million in assets.