Bedichek Middle School is preparing for a series of lasts: the last art show, the last field trip, the last sporting events and the last graduating class.
Over more than five decades, generations of coaches and athletes have done their best to represent Bedichek in sports. This year is their last chance to put the Bobcats name up high. For the boys' and girls' track teams that meant rising up to meet the challenge.
"We told them at the beginning of the school year, if we go out, let's try to go out on top," coach Chris Gonzales said. "That would be the perfect ending to our story."
Bedichek is one of 10 Austin ISD schools set to close at the end of the 2025-26 school year as part of the district's effort to save $21 million amid a $181 million budget deficit.
Isabella Hernandez is an eighth grader who competes in long jump, the girls' 200-meter, and the 100-meter and 400-meter relay events. She said participating in track and volleyball have been a highlight of her time at Bedichek. Amid the closure, Hernandez said she was aiming to medal at her last track meet.
"It will show where I came from and what I did to represent Bedichek," she said.
Bedichek opened in 1972 in South Austin. It has historically served the Hispanic population. As of last school year, 44% of the school's students spoke a language other than English at home and 84% are economically disadvantaged.
It also served as the backdrop for Richard Linklater's classic coming-of-age comedy "Dazed and Confused."
Cases filled with plaques, photos and trophies line the hallways and showcase coaches' and students' Bobcat pride over more than 50 years.
Bedichek has served as a home for many generations
Many families have deep roots at Bedichek. Coach Gonzales went there. Hernandez said her parents were also Bobcats.
"They're kinda shocked at the fact that it's closing because it's been here for so long," Hernandez said.
April Mendoza coaches the girls' track and field team and teaches English at Bedichek. But years ago she was a student. She said letting go of the school hasn't been easy.
"It's like mourning a friend who just got told they have terminal cancer," she said. "You want to honor their life because that's what they deserve and you wanna be happy in their last times. But you know that there's gonna be an end and it's gonna hurt."
Mendoza was one of the few girls in the '90s who played football. A photo of her in football gear when she was 13 sits in the trophy cases.
Coming from a military family that moved a lot, Mendoza said Bedichek was the first place she felt a sense of belonging.
"This is where we were able to find a home," she said. "This is where the adults were here to support you in whatever."
She said the family atmosphere helped students take pride in everything they did.
"You couldn't help but be proud to be an athlete and go to school here too," she said. "Bedichek's motto is 'Pride in Excellence,' so pride is built into it."
After graduating high school, Mendoza moved to Georgia and then North Texas but slowly made her way back to Bedichek. She started substitute teaching in 2002, and in 2008 she got a full-time job.
She said she wanted her students to feel the same sense of pride she had. But with time, she realized the budget often fell short.
The coaches put a lot of effort into creating the encouraging environment she remembered.
"It helps you to appreciate. This is not a very affluent community," she said. "A lot of the things that we have is because [the] coaches were resourceful."
Mendoza and other coaches now do the same for their students. They take turns mowing the field's grass. They bring in cones and flags from old construction sites and use them during practice. They repaint, fix and clean the track and the gym when needed.
In return, Mendoza said her students have been there for her. Her dad died in January. Since then, she said, she has had to mourn two losses. But students have shown up for her in a lot more ways than she could have imagined.
"It really makes your heart warm and smile when they come in, like, 'Coach, are you OK?,' 'are you alright today?'," she said. "These are good kids and they come from good families too. They work really hard."
A bittersweet win
Coaches said this year the sports teams have worked hard to make sure they earn a plaque for Bedichek.
"If they're going to close us down, we want to go on top," Gonzales said. "And I think the students really buy into that. We can see it translate into the field events, track and field, and other sports as well."
Gonzales said students showed determination all season. They also worked hard to keep their grades up so they could participate.
At the last track and field event of the season at Nelson Field in April, the athletes focused following their coaches' instructions and hitting their marks.
Hernandez was among the students competing in the long jump. Last year she got fourth place. This year, she came in first. For the overall team results, the girls took first and the boys took second.
As students and coaches cheered on the field, Mendoza said the win was bittersweet. While the Bobcats ended their final season on top, she said she doesn't know what will happen to the trophies and awards won over the years, including the ones they earned that day.
"They'll go up on the wall where they are supposed to go, but where they go after that, only the coaches will know," she said.
Once a Bobcat, always a Bobcat
Next year, Bedichek students will be assigned to four different campuses: Covington, Paredes, Lively or Mendez middle schools. AISD officials said they will work with the community to repurpose the Bedichek campus. Part of the property is already slated to help house district departments.
Gonzales and Mendoza both said they planned to finish out their coaching careers at Bedichek before the closure was announced. Instead, they will also relocate to other schools.
Gonzales is set to coach football and track at Covington Middle School next year.
"I'll embrace being a Colt because they gave me that opportunity over there. But yeah, I'll always be a Bobcat" he said. "Once a Bobcat, always a Bobcat."
Mendoza will be working at Mendez. She won't be in the classroom anymore but will help other teachers plan their lessons. She will also coach football and track. She said that she will try to find a new sense of belonging, but Bedichek will always be home.
"You could knock down the school and I don't care what's built here, this will always be Bedichek."
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