NEW MEXICO’S FLO VALDEZ TO BE INDUCTED INTO NFHS HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2026

     Valdez is one of 12 individuals selected for induction into the 2026 Class of the National High School Hall of Fame. “Flo Valdez’s career is defined not only by her achievements but by her enduring commitment to expanding opportunities for young women in sports, her passion for education-based athletics, and her leadership at the state and national levels,” said NMAA Executive Director Dusty Young.

     After graduating from Roswell (New Mexico) High School and Texas Woman’s University (Denton, Texas), Valdez launched her 44-year career at her alma mater in 1974 as Roswell’s volleyball, basketball, and track and field coach. In 22 years at Roswell, Valdez led the school to three New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA) State Volleyball Championships (1976, 1977, 1993), and one NMAA State Track and Field Championship (1989). Her basketball teams made seven trips to the state playoffs, with a third-place finish in 1978 and fourth-place finish in 1977.

     Valdez posted a 376-67 record as the Roswell volleyball coach, which computes to an average 17-3 mark per season, and her teams won 14 district titles in 22 years. As the school’s basketball coach, Valdez posted a 251-124 record and led the school to district titles in 1977 and 1978. In addition to the 1989 state track championship, her teams finished runner-up at the state meet four times and won 10 district titles.

     Valdez moved to El Paso, Texas, in 1996, and spent the next 22 years as volleyball coach at Franklin High School until her retirement in 2018. She compiled a 705-181 record at Franklin with 15 district championships, nine bi-district titles and three area championships. Overall at both schools, Valdez posted a 1,081-248 career volleyball coaching record (81.3 percent winning percentage). She also served three years as the Franklin softball coach (1999-2001) and won two area championships.

     Beyond her exploits on the court and track, Valdez had innumerable contributions to high school sports through her service on boards, committees, and state and national organizations.

     During her years in New Mexico, she was a volleyball rules clinician for the NMAA, and she hosted the NMAA State Volleyball Championships at Roswell 10 times. In 1992, she was a member of a coaches’ group sent by the NFHS to the Virgin Islands to conduct clinics in volleyball, basketball, and track and field. She also was the founder and host for all-star volleyball matches during the 1980s and 1990s.

     After moving to Texas, Valdez became active with the Texas Girls Coaches Association (TGCA), serving on the TGCA Board of Directors for four terms.

     Nationally, Valdez had immense contributions to the NFHS during the 1990s when the organization was located in Kansas City. She was a member of the NFHS Coaches Association Board of Directors from 1992 to 1999 and was president in 1998. She also served on the NFHS Coaches’ Quarterly Publications Committee for five years.

     In addition, Valdez was selected to serve on the NFHS Strategic Planning Committee for the 1996-1998 NFHS Strategic Plan, and she was a member of the NFHS Sportsmanship, Ethics and Integrity Committee (1996-98).

     During the same time period in the early 1990s, Valdez was the high school representative on the Women’s Player Selection Committee for USA Basketball and was on the Player Evaluation Team in 1992.

     Valdez was the first woman to be inducted into the New Mexico High School Coaches Hall of Honor, and she also has been inducted into the Texas Girls Coaches Hall of Fame, the El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame and the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame.