Director of Dual Credit
Mr. Brendan Liszanckie-Ruiz is the Director of the Dual Credit Program at Cathedral High School. He is originally from Boston, MA, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in Film Studies from Boston University in 2002 and his Master of Education: Prevention Science and Practice from Harvard University's Graduate School of Education (HGSE) in 2015. Mr. Liszanckie has worked in the field of education for the past 18 years. He started off teaching 5th grade for four years in Los Angeles before teaching 7th and 8th grade English Language Arts in Dallas and San Diego. Prior to moving to El Paso in 2018, Mr. Liszanckie-Ruiz was the Director of Counseling at Cristo Rey Boston High School, a Catholic institution looking to serve low-income students via an innovative work-study program. He has also served as a Teaching Assistant at HGSE.
His role as the Director of Dual Credit is to serve as the focal point for the alignment of the Cathedral High School curriculum with higher education requirements via El Paso Community College. As such, he's responsible for all components of a successful dual credit program that allows Cathedral students the opportunity to try on the role of college student in order for them to start to understand the challenges and responsibilities it takes to be successful in the collegiate environment, while they simultaneously earn real college credit and enhance their high school transcripts for the college application process.
In addition, as the designated administrator of College Board electronic testing, Mr. Liszanckie-Ruiz is tasked with the responsibility of ensuring the timely administration of the College Board’s Texas Success Initiative® Test. He also serves as the coordinator for Cathedral High School's Senior Scholarship/College Essay supervision, which pairs and prepares seniors with educated peer support to strengthen and refine their writing in order for their voices to be heard. Finally, Mr. Liszanckie-Ruiz teaches EDUC 1300 as an accredited faculty member at El Paso Community College; this course seeks to prepare students with the college knowledge necessary to navigate the postsecondary world successfully, while allowing them the opportunity to identify the interests, passions, and values that allow them to make meaning in their lives.
In his spare time, Mr. Liszanckie-Ruiz loves to spend time with his wife, Vanessa Ruiz, and his twin daughters, Zia and Sol. You can also find Mr. Liszanckie-Ruiz running around El Paso on the west side or at Planet Fitness as he's allergic to not exercising. Some of his other interests/passions include creative writing and cooking, as he runs a mobile food business called Barrio Bites for low-income students that seeks to provide them opportunities to support their postsecondary dreams while building critical real world skills such as communication, collaboration, and more.
Always feel free to contact Mr. Brendan Liszanckie-Ruiz at bliszanckie@cathedral-