Minority of Texas State Board of Education members have taught in public schools

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(The Center Square) – As State Board of Education members meet to approve curriculum and guidelines for public schools, many Texans have raised questions about their qualifications. Only a handful have been public school educators. Several have been school board members or administrators. 

The SBOE is the policy-making body of the Texas Education Agency (TEA), which is statutorily required to adopt policies, rules and regulations; approve budgets; execute contracts to purchase textbooks and instructional materials; direct the investment of the Permanent School Fund; among other actions. Members serve on three committees.

Each member represents roughly 1.8 million Texans in 15 districts. The majority are located in the eastern half and most populated areas of the state. District 15 in the Panhandle has the most counties (87); District 11 in the Dallas area has the least (five). 

Members are elected to four-year overlapping terms. All but five are Republicans. Eight are women. Nine are Caucasian, four are Black and two are Hispanic. Eight members aren’t running for reelection or are being challenged in November. They include:

District 1: Democrat Gustavo Reveles represents border communities from El Paso to Laredo. A former journalist and current ISD communications director, he’s championed advancing more than $1 billion in debt and taxes through bonds. Growing up in El Paso and Mexico as an English Language Learner or Emergent Bilingual student he advocates for all children to have access to Texas public education, including those in the country illegally.

District 2: Republican LJ Francis represents the Coastal Bend and Rio Grande Valley from Bay City to Brownsville. A naturalized citizen from Jamaica and licensed professional engineer in Corpus Christi, he lost his primary race. Democrat Thomas Garcia and Republican Victoria Hinojosa are running for the seat in November.

District 3: Democrat Marisa Perez-Diaz represents south Texas from San Antonio to Rio Grande City. Vice president at Firstmark Credit Union, she was a district-level administrator in several Texas school districts and worked at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. She touts being at “the forefront of the Ethnic Studies courses for high school credit movement in Texas.”

District 4: Democrat Staci Childs represents the Houston area. She taught fourth and fifth grade and was a Houston ISD Teacher of the Year in 2019. As an attorney, she served on the Obama administration’s Domestic Policy Council’s education team. She founded Sunnyside Legal, is a children’s book author and launched a video series, History Not Taught.

District 5: Democrat Rebecca Bell-Metereau represents the Austin area. She taught for 43 years at Texas State University and has numerous academic accomplishments. She is not running for reelection. Democrats Stephanie Bazan and Allison Bush are running in a runoff. Whoever wins will face Republican Mica Arellano in November.

District 6: Republican Will Hickman represents Montgomery County and part of north Houston. He holds three undergraduate and two graduate degrees and is in-house counsel for a major oil company. He’s not running for reelection. Democrat Michelle Palmer and Republican Tiffany Nelson are running for the seat in November.

District 7: Republican Julie Pickren represents multiple counties in southeast Texas. A homeschool mom and small business owner, she invests in real estate to provide affordable housing and economic opportunities for Choctaw Nation members. She’s served as a board member of two Christian private schools and was a former ISD trustee. Whoever wins the Democratic runoff, Debra Ambroise or Tiffany Perkinz, will challenge her in November. 

District 8: Republican Dr. Audrey Young represents counties in the Houston region. She holds a Doctorate of Education and served as a speech therapist, reading specialist, middle school administrator, and executive district director. She retired as an executive director of student support services and Special Education in Nacogdoches ISD. She also served on ISD and TEA boards. Democrat Dana Van De Walker is challenging her in November.

District 9: Republican Keven Ellis represents multiple counties in northeast Texas. A chiropractor and business owner, he served as vice chair of the Texas Commission on Public School Finance to lay “the groundwork for a sweeping new school finance law.” He is not running for reelection. Democrat Ericka Ledferd and Republican Kason Huddleston are running for the seat in November.

District 10: Republican Tom Maynard represents several central Texas counties. He was an agricultural science teacher for 13 years in career and technical education. He also served 17 years as executive director, president and regional vice president of the Texas FFA Association, representing more than 1,000 Texas campuses and received multiple awards.

District 11: Republican Brandon Hall represents several central and north Texas counties. A pastor at Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Springtown, he previously served as a congressional aid and worked in non-governmental roles for elected officials.

District 12: Republican Pam Little represents several north Texas counties. She co-owns one of the largest fence companies in the DFW Metroplex. She taught business management as a community college instructor, worked in educational publishing, is considered a textbook expert and retired from Houghton Mifflin Publishers. She is an active community volunteer.

District 13: Democrat Dr. Tiffany Clark represents the DFW Metroplex. She holds two post graduate degrees including in community and school counseling. She co-founded a program to connect high school students to potential career fields, helped implement multiple public education policies and runs a nonprofit leadership development program for teenage girls. Republican April Williams Moore is challenging her in November.

District 14: Republican Evelyn Brooks represents multiple counties in central and north Texas. She holds an Elementary Education degree and has taught in public schools in Maryland, Colorado, Virginia and Texas. She is not running for reelection. Democrat Amy Taylor and Republican Mindy Bumgarner are running for the seat in November. 

District 15: Republican Aaron Kinsey represents the Panhandle. He’s CEO of American Patrols, a Midland-based aviation company, and previously managed a $450 million San Antonio-based commercial real estate company. An Air Force veteran, he holds a BBA in Accounting, an MS in Finance and an MBA from Harvard Business School.